Uncustomed Heroes of 2023: Twins

 

The name of the game with the Minnesota Twins is depth. They may not always have the assets they were banking on, but there's enough options waiting to strike if somebody gets hurt. This year featured injuries to Byron Buxton, Joe Ryan, Jorge Polanco, Royce Lewis and Tyler Mahle, and yet the team still had enough pieces to get to the postseason and take down Toronto. Depth is going to be the deciding factor going forward in the AL Central, as it saved the Guardians' rotation and made the Tigers a second place team. In a year that may come down to who's the most prepared, the Twins may have a few legs up.

Jorge Polanco, yes, despite missing half the season, was able to accomplish a lot for the Twins. In 80 games, he hit .255 with 48 RBIs, 14 home runs and a 2.2 WAR, which is not bad at all for a 9-year veteran in a partial season. The thing about Polanco is that not only is he versatile and really skilled, but NEXT SEASON will be his age-30 season. He's done all this already since joining the Twins in 2014, and he hasn't even hit 30 year. That's so damned rare in today's age of bringing people up at 26. 

2024 Prediction: This could be the last year of Polanco's deal, though there's a chance the Twins could keep him on for 2025. I say he has another strong year while also paving the way for Edouard Julien, an equally important presence on this team.

I thought the Twins pulled a nice move in signing Christian Vazquez, as he'd been a reliable backstop and decent mid-lineup bat for the Sox and Astros. Plus, being a Sox lifer, he'd only have to go a little further down the road from usual to report for Spring Training. Vazquez's 2023 was not exactly what fans were expecting; in 102 games he only hit .223 with 6 homers and 32 RBIs, major steps down from his peak seasons. The good news is Vazquez is still an excellent defender, but this lack of offensive production led to Ryan Jeffers starting a ton more.

2024 Prediction: An improvement at the plate, but I think Jeffers might be looking at a starting gig by the end of the year.

Michael Taylor is one of those players that clearly has some flaws but does enough right that he's been employed constantly and has had excellent moments recently. The Twins signed Taylor for 2023 after two nice years in Kansas City. Taylor's defensive numbers were down in 2023, but he was doing a lot more offensively, with 13 steals, 51 RBIs and a career-best 21 home runs. 

2024 Prediction: Similar production in a smaller market. I don't know if this means he's a full-time home run guy now, but I think his defense will rebound.

The Twins have been waiting for Alex Kirilloff to happen for a while now, and every year something begins to work and then he sort of fades off again. This year was a slight improvement, as the Twins did manage to give Kirilloff some reps at 1st in between Donovan Solano's. In 88 games, Kirilloff hit .270 with 41 RBIs and 11 homers, both career marks for the 25-year-old.

2024 Prediction: I think the plan is to give him the starting gig at 1st, but I think the Twins are playing the game of 'that's riiiight, we're totally gonna start Alex Kirilloff at 1st, it would be a PITY if something were to happen to prevent us from doing so..."

Kenta Maeda handed in one excellent campaign for the Twins and then struggled to stay healthy for any more of them. This year he, at least, got 20 games, and he did alright enough, going 6-8 with a 4.23 ERA and 117 Ks. Maeda is 35, he's looking a little cooked, but he was still able to be a solid enough fifth man for a competitive Twins team, and that's what they wanted.

2024 Prediction: I don't think it will be for a full season, but the Tigers will get some peak Maeda material next year.

And then with all the outfield instability, Matt Wallner, who was looking like a fifth-string guy for a while, got some chances to prove himself with this team. In 76 games, Wallner hit .249 with 41 RBIs and 14 homers, and finished the year with a 2.2 WAR. 

2024 Prediction: I think he'll factor into the starting outfield for this team, and his star will continue to blossom.

Coming Tomorrow- The manager for this team kept his job and Buck Showalter didn't. Think about that.