Ex-MLB GM proposes big trade involving Twins' Joe Ryan, top prospect

This trade proposal would land the Twins one of the top prospects in baseball in exchange for Ryan.

Apr 27, 2025; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Minnesota Twins pitcher Joe Ryan (41) throws a pitch against the Los Angeles Angels during the first inning at Target Field. | Jeffrey Becker-Imagn Images

In a recent piece for The Athletic (subscription required), former MLB general manager Jim Bowden proposed five trades he'd like to see in May. One of those involves the Twins sending standout pitcher Joe Ryan to the team they're going to see this week at Target Field, the Baltimore Orioles.

Here's the proposal:

Orioles get: RHP Joe Ryan
Twins get: 1B Coby Mayo, LHP Cade Povich, RHP Michael Forret

The rationale from Bowden is that the Orioles, with their extreme pitching struggles this season, need to add a frontline starter. Meanwhile, he believes "it's time for a roster reset" with the Twins, who did very little last offseason and are off to a 15-20 start. In this hypothetical deal, Minnesota lands a star infield prospect in Mayo, as well as a couple young pitchers.

Ryan, who turns 29 in June, is a highly valuable asset. He's a legit No. 2 starter who is under team control through the 2027 season. Ryan is off to a fantastic start this year, with a 2.93 ERA and a 47-to-5 strikeout-to-walk ratio over 40 innings. He had a 3.60 ERA or lower in two of the previous three years. Ryan's fastball is an excellent pitch, and he's honed in his sweeper as a great complementary option to go with a splitter. Even after a slow start as a team, the Twins won't be incentivized to trade a guy like him.

With that said, this offer would probably do it. Mayo is the No. 11 prospect in all of baseball, according to MLB.com, and a potential future star slugger at first base. He's 23 years old and a former fourth-round pick out of high school in 2020. Mayo has raked in the minor leagues for the Orioles, hitting 88 home runs with a .918 OPS across 418 games and five different levels. In 2023, split between Double-A and Triple-A, he hit 29 homers, drove in 99 runs, and had a .974 OPS. Last year, mostly at AAA, he hit 25 more bombs with a .964 OPS.

Mayo made his MLB debut last year and struggled in a small sample size. He was recently called up again by the Orioles. So far, in 46 MLB plate appearances, he has four hits and 24 strikeouts. But for a guy with his track record in the minors, it feels like only a matter of time before his success starts to translate to the big-league level.

108.8 mph | 422 ft

MLB's No. 13 prospect Coby Mayo (@Orioles No. 2) crushes his second dinger of the year to straightaway center for the Triple-A @NorfolkTides. pic.twitter.com/eG17coKuSH

— MLB Pipeline (@MLBPipeline) April 12, 2025

Acquiring Mayo would give the Twins a position-player prospect core led by Walker Jenkins, Mayo, Emmanuel Rodriguez, and Luke Keaschall, who are all top-60 prospects in the sport. Their infield could feature Royce Lewis at third base, Carlos Correa at shortstop, Keaschall at second, and Mayo at first. That's a pretty enticing idea.

Povich and Forret would be add-ons to the deal who could add a bit of pitching depth to the Twins' organization. Povich, 25, was originally a Twins third-round pick in 2021 who was dealt to Baltimore in the Jorge Lopez trade in 2022. He reached the big leagues last year and is set to start at Target Field on Tuesday night opposite Pablo Lopez. Povich hasn't had good results so far in the majors (5.19 ERA in 22 starts), but the lefty may still have some upside, perhaps with a move to a bullpen role. Forret is a 21-year-old in High-A who has some intriguing stuff.

This feels like a trade the Twins should accept, even with Ryan pitching so well lately. It would be a big blow to their rotation, but they'd still have Lopez and Bailey Ober to lead that group. Importantly, they have young starting pitchers like Zebby Matthews, David Festa, and Andrew Morris down in Triple-A, so there's a bit of a pipeline that could help replace Ryan over time. Mayo's upside as a 30-homer bat at first base makes this a worthwhile deal for Minnesota, were it to be offered.

And to be clear, there's no way of knowing if this is something the Orioles would actually do. They have a worse record than the Twins right now at 13-20, which makes the idea of them being buyers an interesting one. They do need pitching help, but will they part with Mayo to make that happen? It's a hypothetical trade idea from Bowden — and one that I think the Twins would be willing to do.