What to Make of the Craziest Trade Deadline in Minnesota Twins History
There was plenty of expectations that the Minnesota Twins would sell. There was absolutely no predicting that what took place at 1 Twins Way on Thursday afternoon could have been seen coming.
Derek Falvey parted with a whopping ten players from the MN Twins active roster. That’s 38% of the 26-man roster, and five-of-eight relievers represent 63% of the bullpen.
How Rocco Baldelli fills out a lineup on Friday night in Cleveland remains to be seen. The expectation that multiple familiar faces should return from St. Paul is logical. The rest of the season now becomes a proving ground.
Catching up the Minnesota Twins transactions
While we wrote about all of the moves the MN Twins made, the speed in which they came in at was likely hard to keep up with. 11 players leaving for a boatload of fresh faces means plenty of guys will need to make introductions in the next few days.
| Player(s) Traded | New Team | Player(s) Acquired |
|---|---|---|
| Chris Paddack, Randy Dobnak | Detroit Tigers | Enrique Jimenez |
| Jhoan Duran | Philadelphia Phillies | Mick Abel, Eduardo Tait |
| Harrison Bader | Philadelphia Phillies | Hendry Mendez, Geremy Viloria |
| Brock Stewart | Los Angeles Dodgers | James Outman |
| Danny Coulombe | Texas Rangers | Garrett Horn |
| Carlos Correa | Houston Astros | Matt Mikulski |
| Louie Varland, Ty France | Toronto Blue Jays | Kendry Rojas, Alan Roden |
| Griffin Jax | Tampa Bay Rays | Taj Bradley |
| Willi Castro | Chicago Cubs | Ryan Gallagher, Sam Armstrong |
If that looks like a lot to process that because it is. Players in the clubhouse had to know that the team was going to be sellers. They were probably unaware that the franchise was going to strip things down to the studs.
Said one #MNTwins player: "Now no one wants to stay if they are selling like this."
— DanHayesMLB (@DanHayesMLB) July 31, 2025
He and Jeremy Zoll are flying to Cleveland tomorrow to meet with staff and players in person to discuss the direction of the team.
— Declan Goff (@DexsTweets) August 1, 2025
The majority of the MN Twins acquisitions will be assigned to different runs of the minor league system. While a few are major league ready, it remains to be seen who will be chose.
St. Paul played on Thursday night in Toledo. That’s just a two hour drive from Cleveland, and multiple players from the roster should be expected to join the Twins at Progressive Field.
Who are the winners for the MN Twins?
First and foremost is the Pohlad family. The most substantial monetary move of the day came when they obliged Carlos Correa and the Houston Astros interest in one another. After just two-and-a-half seasons the sides called it quits. While ownership is paying $30 million to not have the shortstop, they get out from over $70 million still left on his deal.
This was less than 2 years ago.
— Matthew Taylor (@MatthewTaylorMN) July 31, 2025
I’ll never forgive the Pohlads… https://t.co/kcfVRXF3RP
With the departure of Correa, Brooks Lee is now the present and future at shortstop for the Twins. That’s a for better or worse scenario. The 24-year-old has just a .252/.291/.382 slash line across 89 games this year, and his 83 OPS+ is well-below league average. There have been periods of positivity, but there’s no more room to hide.
Related: Minnesota Twins Draw Rave Reviews for Duran Deal
The holdovers and next wave will get their shot sooner. Expect to see Edouard Julien and Austin Martin back with the Twins in earnest. Jose Miranda hasn’t earned a trip back, but he could surface down the stretch. Pitchers like Festa should be joined by Ohl, and Adams. Marco Raya and Connor Prielipp could be on the way too.
The losers of the Minnesota Twins trade deadline
There are no bigger losers in any of this than the fans. It has been the case since 2023 ended, and became most apparent today. The Pohlad family has never cared about engaging the fan base. The dialed back payroll after their best postseason performance in years. Now they have a product that is nameless, and it only helps them on the bottom line as they work towards a sale.
Asked Derek Falvey tonight what he can offer for a #MnTwins fan out there who just saw 40-percent of the active roster traded away.
— Chris Long (@ChrisLongKSTP) August 1, 2025
Plenty more ahead at 10 on @KSTP after a wild day saw eight players (a total of ten this week) depart the team. pic.twitter.com/HNwPBU6YB9
Joe Ryan saw his name floated in trade rumors. He mentioned being excited by the premise, but also preferred to stay. This isn’t the team he has pitched for though, and it’s not the same group he was in front of when getting to an All-Star level. He will now be trotted out the rest of the way with a fate much like that of the Pittsburgh Pirates Paul Skenes.
Nobody has been more unwavering about his commitment to the Minnesota Twins than Byron Buxton. He is in the midst of a career-year, and should return to set records. He’ll do so with a rag tag roster around him. All season long his performance has went wasted, and no he’ll have to go through the motions in a clubhouse that the organization stopped caring about.
Thursday’s 2025 Major League Baseball trade deadline will go down in history as a day MN Twins fans never forget. Regardless of what happens to the prospects, or their development along the way, the sheer volume of moves and exodus will have ripple effects forever.
What about the returns for the Twins?
Although the speed and frequency in which the Minnesota Twins operated made it feel like a $5 swap meet, they did get some nice talent back. The Duran deal obviously paces the pack as Abel and Tait both have top 100 prospect status recently. Tait is a long term play as he’s just 18 and in High-A, but Abel should be a developmental project immediately.
James Outman has struggled to find the consistency of his rookie season at the big league level. He hits for lots of power, but strikes out a ton too. The defense is legit and he’s a usable piece. Stewart had team control, but has always been a ticking time bomb when it comes to health. That felt like selling high on an uncertain commodity.
Taj Bradley, Filthy 82mph Curveball…and Sword. ⚔️ pic.twitter.com/KhfLJWKNF7
— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) June 29, 2025
The Jax for Bradley deal is potentially the most intriguing. It isn’t the return Duran netted, but Jax is already 30 years old. Bradley has three seasons of big league experience, and is just 24 years old. He’ll need to be refined, but if the Twins can make him look like the last arm they got from Tampa Bay (Joe Ryan) that’s a great come up.
Of course the most non-existent return was Matt Mikulski. The Astros had to give the Minnesota something for the salary dump that was Correa’s move. They chose a 26-year-old non-prospect that was signed a month ago and has a 7.63 ERA in Single-A. You couldn’t sugar coat that move more if you were a baker.
Quite possible the most frustrating move was dealing Varland to the Blue Jays. That felt like a reflection of Toronto missing out on the top-tier bullpen arms. He’s under team control through 2030, a hometown kid, and like never going to cost much. While Rojas was the Blue Jays fifth best prospect, there didn’t seem to be reason for moving a guy you turned into a workhorse with triple-digit stuff and a 2.02 ERA.
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