The Twins have reportedly reached an agreement. Carlos Santana On a one year contract. The veteran first baseman, an Octagon client, is guaranteed $5.25 million in a contract that also includes performance incentives. Minnesota would have to move 40 people accordingly if the deal goes through.
Earlier in the offseason, President of Baseball Operations Derek Falvey said the team was open to adding at first base. That comes ahead of three months of lack of activity on both the trade and free agent fronts. The Twins essentially did not make the acquisition, as layoffs were expected in anticipation of a drop in local broadcasting revenue.
Things really kicked into gear this week with the trade release of the second baseman. Jorge Polanco The goal is to have four players return to the Mariners.Two of the players returned to the Twin Cities – relievers. Justin Topa and starter Anthony DeSclafani — Addressed some of the pitching depth the team lost. sonny gray, Kenta Maeda, tyler marr and Emilio Pagan Sign elsewhere.
As Falvey acknowledged shortly after it was finalized, the trade foreshadowed free agent acquisitions on the part of the position players. Minnesota waived Polanco's $10.5 million salary. They took back Topa's $1.25 million contract and assumed $4 million of the $12 million owed to DeSclafani for next season. This resulted in cost savings of $5.25 million. This is exactly the same amount of money we are currently putting into Santana.
Polanco's move indirectly opened the door for more defensively limited hitters. Edouard Julien It paved the way for him to become an everyday rep at second base. Julien will still be a designated hitter, but he won't get as many at-bats as he would have had Polanco still on the roster.with Santana Alex Kirillov Must share the majority of playing time with DH and first base.
Despite approaching his 38th birthday, Santana is better suited to play in the infield than the DH spot. He continues to play solid defense as a first baseman. Statcast and Defensive Runs Saved each typically give ratings slightly better than average with the glove. DRS estimated he was 11 runs above average a year ago, while Statcast had him scoring +2 runs.
A large portion of Santana's value comes from his defense. He's a solid hitter, but he doesn't have the offensive power that is typical of this position. He is hitting .240/.318/.429 in 619 at-bats between the Pirates and Brewers. He hit 23 home runs, 33 doubles, and earned his first triple in four years.
As measured by wRC+, his offensive output was essentially league average. He was also rated as an average hitter in 2022, hitting .202/.316/.376 in 506 at-bats between the Royals and Mariners. His triple-slash stats in '23 were significantly higher than the previous year, but his offense was improving league-wide. (League OPS jumped from .707 to .734.) American Family Field in Milwaukee, where Santana finished last season, is also a far more favorable hitting venue than any of the parks Santana called home two years ago. It is.
By park-adjusted metrics, it didn't feel like Santana made much progress at the plate. His sentiment was clearly shared by the market, which values him about the same as it did a year ago. His 2024 salary is just below the $6.725 million he was guaranteed in his one-year contract with Pittsburgh.
Santana, a switch hitter, has become more effective attacking from the right side. Over the past two seasons, he has hit .266/.370/.430 in 303 at-bats against left-handed pitchers. This is significantly better than his .208/.298/.397 line against right-handed pitchers. Santana's recent production against southpaws is appealing to a club that struggled somewhat in that regard a year ago. Minnesota's batting lineup hit .244/.330/.432 against right-handed pitchers and .241/.313/.414 against left-handed pitchers.
Assuming byron buxton He can play center most days, which is the current expectation, and most of Minnesota's in-house DH prospects can bat from the left side.corner outfield trio max kepler, matt wallner and Trevor Larnach Like Kirillov, all are left-handed bats. Santana complements the group from a handedness standpoint.
Perhaps more importantly, he is incredibly durable. Santana, surprisingly, has only been on the disabled list once since 2014 (minimally sidelined with his ankle bursitis in May 2022). He has appeared in more than 130 full-time games since 2011 and all 60 games during the shortened season. That kind of reliability pairs well with Kirillov, a talented hitter who has been plagued by various injuries during his career thus far.
Kirillov missed all three of his MLB seasons. Injuries to his right wrist sidelined him for extended periods of time during his first two seasons, with post-season surgery both years. He suffered shoulder problems last season and had surgery to repair his labrum in October. He is expected to be ready for spring training, but his injury history should be a concern for the front office. His 88 MLB games played last season was his career high.
Minnesota's payroll projections jump back to the roughly $123 million figure that started this week, according to Roster Resources calculations. They are reportedly targeting a salary range of $125 million to $140 million to begin the season.
Darren Wolfson of SKOR North It was first reported that the Twins and Santana had agreed to a one-year contract. John Heyman of the New York Post reported that it includes $5.25 million in guarantees and performance bonuses.
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