Wake Up and Sell the Roses? – Why the Minnesota Twins Should Move on From Eddie Rosario

The Twins have one of the best outfields in the Majors. With Eddie Rosario and Max Kepler holding down the corners, the speedster Byron Buxton has room to operate from center field. I mean, just look at Buck’s range!

BYRON BUXTON IS SUPERMAN#MNTwins pic.twitter.com/DfZSvs0VEH

— FOX Sports North (@fsnorth) July 14, 2019

So, not a bad trio, huh?

via GIPHY

Well, I’m here to tell you why one of those three should be shown the door. Yes, I’m talking about Eddie Rosario.

Don’t get me wrong, I love Eddie and have been a huge fan of his since he came into the league. The Twins could get something very valuable back for him, though. The move might not be popular among fans, but we’ve seen success come from fan favorites being traded. It just happened at a much larger scale, when the Toronto Raptors traded DeMar DeRozan for Kawhi Leonard.

Eddie finished 18th in AL MVP voting last season and many still consider him to be one of the top left fielders in the MLB. This isn’t so much about Rosario, as it is about two prospects waiting for a shot in the majors.

Trevor Larnach and Alex Kirilloff are both corner specialists in the Twins farm system… but they aren’t just any outfield prospects. As the 3rd and 2nd ranked prospects respectively, the duo falls only behind 2017 first-overall pick Royce Lewis.

Lewis could even find himself playing in the outfield, with the infield crowded too…

Why Rosario?

I get it, Kepler is also a corner outfielder, why don’t we look into trading him?

Kepler himself was 20th in the AL MVP voting last season, only two spots behind Rosario. He’s also a year and a half younger than Eddie and is locked up until 2024, a few years longer than Rosario.

Sure, Rosario’s batting average is slightly higher, but Kepler bests him in the other three major batting stats categories. So with a younger Max already locked in on a more team-friendly contract, Rosario seems like the odd man out.

Who would we trade him for?

Now, I’m not saying we just throw Rosario out for nothing. He has value and could possibly snag the Twins a solid pitcher, either in the rotation or out of the bull pen. The Twins’ lineup is solid, but the pitching rotation and bullpen could always improve.

He won’t fetch an ace for the Twins, but he definitely could bring in someone who would fill out the rotation nicely. I don’t know exactly who that player would be, but trading Rosario seems like a solid move for the Twins.

via GIPHY

Here are a few potential targets:

1. Texas Rangers’ Starting Pitcher, Mike Minor
2. Arizona Diamondback’s Starting Pitcher, Robbie Ray
3. Oakland Athletic’s Starting Pitcher, Chris Bassitt

None of these three will challenge José Berríos as the Twins’ ace, but they would solidify the rotation.

Let me know you thoughts, Twins faithful.