If Twins Keep Fading, Will Another Trade Deadline Fire Sale Take Place?

The Twins hit four solo home runs in the first five innings of Tuesday night's series opener in Detroit, but a rough start from Taj Bradley and another mess of a bullpen performance resulted in a 10-4 loss to the Tigers.

It's the fifth loss in the last six games for the Twins, who are 3-10 in their last 13 and have gone 19-31 since an 11-7 start. At 30-38 overall, they've slipped to a season-worst eight games below .500 and are very fortunate to only be three games out of a wild card spot in a weak AL.

There's still plenty of time for Minnesota to turn things around, and some faint hope exists in the form of potential call-ups (like Kaelen Culpepper) and players returning from injury (like Mick Abel). But with an awful bullpen and an underwhelming lineup, it seems far more likely that the Twins continue to fade out of playoff contention over the course of this summer. And if that happens, it's worth pondering what GM Jeremy Zoll and Twins ownership might do at the trade deadline.

The answer might be another sell-off in the mold of last year's infamous fire sale. As ESPN's Jeff Passan noted in an early deadline preview last week, the Twins could be "open to another bloodletting" and "an encore of the last deadline." Doing so might represent a pivot to a true rebuild — moving off some of the final pieces of the 2023 ALDS team and looking toward the future by adding to their stable of young talent.

The most prominent piece the Twins could theoretically move is their best player, superstar Byron Buxton. He'd need to waive his no-trade clause for a deal to happen, and the Twins would have to receive a massive offer to say goodbye to the face of their franchise, so it may not be super likely.

But even if it would be another big blow to the fan base, there's at least a case to be made for considering a Buxton trade if the Twins are out of the race at the end of July. His recent health and barrage of homers has his value higher than ever. And the Twins have four strong outfield prospects at Triple-A in Walker Jenkins, Emmanuel Rodriguez, Gabriel Gonzalez, and Hendry Mendez, even if the first two names on that list have struggled with injury issues of their own.

It's even easier to see a path to the Twins trading their best pitcher, Joe Ryan, who is on pace to make his second straight All-Star team. Ryan was in the middle of trade rumors last summer but ultimately stuck around. And with 1.5 years of team control remaining, he's the kind of high-end starting pitcher who could fetch a haul, even with the possibility of a work stoppage looming in 2027. The price for Ryan would likely start at two top-100 prospects, with one of them being a high-upside pitcher.

Another trade candidate would be catcher Ryan Jeffers, who was having a career year before being sidelined by a broken hamate bone in his hand. He's a pending free agent who would generate a lot of interest, assuming he doesn't suffer any setbacks in his recovery. Other lower-level trade chips could include hitters like Josh Bell and Trevor Larnach or relievers like Anthony Banda and Taylor Rogers (although both lefties have struggled so far this year).

If the Twins can turn things around over the next couple months, they could be inclined to hold onto their stars and try to push for the playoffs, either this year or next year with Pablo Lopez back healthy (assuming there's a 2027 season). But if this fade continues, there's a world where they have another busy deadline as sellers, with an eye on building towards contention in 2028 or 2029.

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