The Minnesota Twins finally found a way to snap their prolonged postseason losing streak and defeated the Toronto Blue Jays in the Wild Card round before losing in the Division Series to the Astros.
Minnesota now enters an offseason of uncertainty with several impending free agents to sort through. Their core with guys like Royce Lewis, Carlos Correa, Pablo Lopez. and Byron Buxton is locked in for a whole, but their roster will still have a new look thanks in large part to the players who will likely depart.
Here are five players who won't be back after the Twins unfortunate elimination.
1) Joey Gallo
The Twins took a chance on Joey Gallo this past offseason after failed stints with the Yankees and Dodgers. In April, it looked like that gamble was going to pay off in a big way as he had a 1.063 OPS with seven home runs in 65 plate appearances. He appeared to be settled in quite nicely away from the big city spotlight playing first base primarily against right-handed pitching.
Unfortunately Gallo's hot streak was short-lived as he slashed .163/.288/.374 with 14 home runs and 26 RBI from May 1 through the rest of his season which ended prematurely due to a left foot contusion.
When he's hitting, Gallo has value as he's a terrific defender who can play all three outfield positions in addition to first base and of course, has the light tower power. Gallo simply hasn't been able to put it together since the first half of the 2021 season, and the Twins frankly don't have a need for him.
Minnesota has a ton of left-handed corner outfielders who can also play first base with Max Kepler, Matt Wallner, and Alex Kirilloff. With the 29-year-old headed back to free agency, there's a good chance Minnesota looks to add a right-handed hitter to platoon with one of those lefties instead of adding yet another left-handed hitting outfielder to the mix.
2) Tyler Mahle
At the 2022 trade deadline the Twins took a big swing, trading some promising pieces including Spencer Steer and Christian Encarnacion-Strand to the Cincinnati Reds in exchange for Tyler Mahle. The trade made some sense at the time as none of the three prospects they gave to the Reds were considered extremely highly-touted, and Mahle had an extra year of control to try and make a playoff run in both 2022 and 2023.
Unfortunately for Minnesota, that trade has aged as horribly as they could've imagined. Spencer Steer had an unbelievable rookie year for the Reds. Encarnacion-Strand has developed very nicely in the minors and looks like Cincinnati's future first baseman. Meanwhile, Mahle made just four starts for the Twins in 2022 as he dealt with injuries, and then after five starts this season underwent Tommy John Surgery.
Mahle pitched decently well for Minnesota, but they certainly regret making the deal as they got just nine starts out of him. With Mahle set to miss most if not the entire 2024 season, the chances Minnesota pays Mahle in a season where he presumably won't pitch feels quite unlikely.
The Twins have to focus their efforts on bringing Sonny Gray back. If that fails, bringing in another starter that can actually pitch in 2024 is more important than bringing Mahle back. It's unfortunate that it didn't work out, but the two sides should part ways.
3) Michael A. Taylor
Michael A. Taylor was acquired in a trade with the Royals to try and provide a capable fourth outfielder. The Twins desperately needed someone of Taylor's caliber to turn to with Byron Buxton's health always in question. Buxton predictably missed a ton of time due to injury and wound up not playing a single inning in the field. Taylor played in 129 games and exceeded expectations.
The 32-year-old slashed .220/.278/.442 with 21 home runs and 51 RBI this season. The average and OBP were obviously quite low, but Taylor set a career high with 21 home runs and his .720 OPS was his highest mark in a season since 2017. He's a player known far more for his glove than his bat, so seeing him hit at just a slightly below league-average level was encouraging.
Taylor was his usual awesome self in the field ranking in the 95th percentile in outs above average according to baseball savant. Taylor could win his second Gold Glove award this offseason and even if he doesn't, he was still a very important player for the Twins.
Taylor has absolutely earned a starting center field job somewhere. The Twins hope Byron Buxton can return to the field for the 2024 season, but even if he doesn't, it feels like he's priced himself out of Minnesota's range. The Twins could turn to a guy like Willi Castro to play center field if Buxton can't, and can even consider calling up a prospect like Austin Martin to fill in.
4) Kenta Maeda
The trade the Twins made in the 2020 offseason acquiring Kenta Maeda has worked out quite nicely for them. When healthy, he's been a reliable starter for them. The problem is, he simply hasn't been healthy enough.
Maeda's Twins career couldn't have gotten off to much of a better start as he posted a 2.70 ERA in 11 starts in 2020 and finished as the AL Cy Young runner-up. That was great, but over the next three seasons the right-hander was limited to just 42 appearances (41 starts) and he did not throw a pitch in 2022 after undergoing Tommy John Surgery.
Three of the five rotation spots are solidifed for the Twins with Pablo Lopez, Joe Ryan, and Bailey Ober set to fill in. Minnesota hopes Sonny Gray will be their fourth starter, and there's a good chance Chris Paddack returns back to the rotation after a healthy offseason. That doesn't leave much room for Maeda who will certainly be in a rotation somewhere.
There's a good chance Maeda will earn a multi-year deal because he is mostly dependable when healthy, but at age 35 the Twins shouldn't be the team to give it to him. They should have enough depth to avoid bringing him back if they're able to retain Gray, and if they're not able to do that, they should sign someone they can trust to take the ball every fifth day. Maeda certainly is not that with just one season of 30+ starts in his seven-year MLB career.
5) Jose Miranda
The first four players on this list are all impending free agents. Jose Miranda is a player with a ton of team control but simply doesn't have much of a role in Minnesota anymore.
Miranda entered the 2023 season with third base seemingly on lock after an outstanding rookie season, but he struggled mightily to the point where he was demoted to the minors and missed a ton of time due to injury after going there.
The Twins have Royce Lewis penciled in at third base for now, and their top prospect, Brooks Lee, has seen time at third base as well. Miranda can also play first base, but that could be where Edouard Julien settles in long-term with the infield crowded in Minnesota. The bottom line here is Miranda had his chance to earn a spot with the organization long-term but he slashed .211/.263/.303 with just three home runs and 13 RBI in 40 MLB games this season.
Miranda is just 25 years old and thanks to his impressive rookie year, should still have value on the open market. Trading him to fill a hole for the 2024 season could be a decision the Twins make this offseason. Plenty of teams would want to take a flyer on the young corner infielder while Minnesota will be looking to try and acquire a player to try and help them win now.
