MLB - Twins offseason just got worse

So when I offered my drastic steps to get the Twins pitching somewhat in order in a previous post I already noted that the Twins had made a mistake by letting a quality affordable option in Scott Baker sign elsewhere when he was ready to sign with the Twins.

Since then things have gone from bad to worse for Minnesota baseball. At least for now. 

• The short window I proposed to trade with Seattle passed when Chone Figgins was released, losing the chance at taking his salary on in order to get Jason Vargas. 
• Atlanta signed BJ Upton, which totally changes some of their demand for OF help. Although it does not totally rule them out yet as a trade target.
• Then out of desperation it looks, the Twins dealt what might have been their best trade chip in Span (best in terms of having a team friendly contract, his position and place in the line-up being in demand, and the team having a solid replacement option), as I had suggested in my original breakdown, he went to the Washington Nationals. They made sense as a destination for some time. But instead of that in any way being a deal which might solidify the wasteland of Minnesota pitching (or as I had proposed acquired players that allow the team to unload other offensive players for pitching) they received a single pitching prospect who has never pitched past A ball.
• If only that were all, while the rumor was later downplayed in how serious the discussions were, reports also came out that the team was having conversations with Francisco Liriano.

Really?!? That is the current plan? Let Baker sign elsewhere but consider a return of Liriano? Trade Span for a prospect who is not close to MLB ready?


Now the upside this prospect could eventually prove to be great for this team. Baseball America reportedly suggested he would rank 6th in the Twins farm system. So they did get a quality prospect, my issue is the team has a massive need at the MLB level and publicly stated intent to reload their pitching and have done little to do that. Liriano needs to move on, I think he is a fit for teams like the Astros or Cubs, but he should be the second last free agent starter Minnesota is considering, right after Jason Marquis. Twins GM Ryan said he will let the prospect (whose name is Alex Meyer by the way) determine how far he is from the MLB, which loosely translates to, "Yeah, he has a chance at pitching in the majors soon. Since we know we were supposed to get MLB pitching and haven't we don't want fans to think he is too far away, so we'll say something that is basically true of all players: if he does well enough, he will be in the majors shortly."

So what does the team do now?
I think they need to up their pursuit of two free agent starters: Edwin Jackson and Brandon McCarthy. In Jackson you know what you're going to get: A hard thrower who will give you lots of innings with an ERA in the 3.50-4.00 range. In McCarthy you're not sure what you're going to get because he carries to big question marks: how well he will perform with a new team (since he was quite good in Oakland pretty unimpressive in Texas) and how his health will hold up. But together you make quality upgrades for this team without breaking bank on the biggest free agents out there. And they are both younger free agents, which will mean you will have less regression at the end of the deal. I think Jackson will get done if they give him a fourth year, since last year only one team would only give him three and he had to settle for one year. Four years at maybe 50 million would do it. It's kinda high, but since the Twins are now relying greatly on Free Agents, they have to outbid others. McCarthy I think two years at say 8 mil a season with a vesting 3rd year at 10 mil might do the trick. It is an expensive upgrade to give 66-76 million for two pitchers no doubt. But don't blame me, my first proposal would have saved the team money.

The other option is the team deals Willingham for a pitcher from teams like Atlanta, Tampa, or Seattle. They would then probably have to sign someone, maybe Ryan Ludwick (although his career indicates his power is highly dictated by the ballpark, struggling in places like Pittsburgh and San Diego but thriving in St. Louis and Cincinnati, unless those two seasons in PIT and SD were chalked up to other struggles he may really find Target Field as a tough place to hit home runs), or the team could reacquire one of Cuddyer or Kubel - guys who may not cost too much in a trade and have provided solid (but not elite) offense at Target field. But in those situations, you still have to offer the best deal, and the team is not good enough to part with any players they see as a legit part of their future.

This is the tough position Minnesota is in. They are not rebuilding, but they cannot reload at the cost of the future because they are not really close enough to challenging for the top of the division. They publicly state their intent to improve the rotation, and yet do nothing for that yet. But Winter Meetings, where most of the offseason action takes place, is around the corner. Here's to hoping the Twins are going there with a plan in mind. Because if they walk away from their having twiddled their thumbs or only adding A ball players or scrap heap pitchers, you might as well wait for 2014 before getting excited.