He has been pretty adamant that he will not waive his no trade, he really seems to like it in Minnesota
If I knew there was a high chance I was getting brought back if I missed the playoffs, I’d absolutely trade those two for Ryan and Buxton.
Agree I do think this is the toughest "one month away" from the deadline to figure out who will and won't be available in a long long time Kansas City and the Angels are the only two teams in the AL more than 5 games out of a playoff spot right now. AND, the Yanks and Tampa are the only two teams with any kind of playoff spot security right now, every other team who would be in if the playoffs started today are within 2.5 games of being out of the playoffs In the NL the Mets, SF and Colorado are the only three teams more than 5 games out of a playoff spot. The Dodgers, Milwaukee, Atlanta and Philly all are looking pretty solid though, meaning it will be easier for some of the teams in the middle to fall out of it, cause just getting to .500 isn't going to make you feel clearly in the race in the NL So as of right now you only have 5 teams that clearly should be sellers, and two of those teams (Angels and Rockies) have owners that almost never let them sell. BUT outside of the Yankees and Rays, every team in the AL could be in a position to sell by the deadline. They are ALL a really bad two week stretch from being sellers. Heck, even the Rays have been know to both sell and buy at the deadline when they are in the race This has the potential to be a wild deadline this year. The other thing that could possibly be a factor is the CBA. I know most fans feel like there will be a work stoppage next year. I am in the much smaller group that doesn't think there will be. BUT the owners have a MUCH better idea of whether there will be or not, and obviously that will play into some owners directives and/or willingness to buy or sell I hope we continue to play well and are buyers. I really think we are 1 bat away from being a top tier AL offense. We are middle of the pack as it is and are always running at least one OF out there who really shouldn't be starting a game in MLB, just putting an average hitter in their spot would be a big upgrade. If the recent output from Imai is legit, we could have as good of a 1-2 at the top of a playoff rotation as there is in the AL. We can't trade ourselves into having the pitching depth of the Yankees, but in a playoff series we don't have to The team I hope falls out of it is Baltimore, you mentioned Rogers the other day and I think he would be a good target if they fall out. I also like Taylor Ward, I know everyone wants a LHH, but our team OPS is actually 10 points higher vs RHP than LHP, and Ward has consistently had a .700 OPS vs RHP which would be a big upgrade for us. Dude gives a very professional at bat also which this team could use
Agree with all that. To your point about the owners having insight into the CBA outcome, if Jim Crane expects a lockout and lost/shortened 2027 season, he could be very motivated to maximize the odds of winning in 2026, damn the cost. Firstly, he’s 72 and his involvement in the team seems like it might be waning. He hasn’t spoken to the media since January. So he could be on a year-to-year basis of being the owner or at least being an involved owner that really cares about his team winning. Secondly, I would imagine Crane has a heavy affinity for Jose Altuve. Crane could be watching Altuve this season, and thinking of not having a 2027 season, and logically come to the conclusion that this is the last season in which Altuve is a quality major league player; that could motivate Crane to do whatever it takes to maximize the odds of getting Altuve another ring.
