30 Teams in 30 Days 2018 09 Minnesota Twins

The Minnesota Twins were surprise contenders last year, qualifying for and then falling in the Wild Card Game. So GM Thad Levine took advantage of a depressed free agent market, added quite a few pieces to the roster, and are looking to stick around in a division with only one clear favorite.

All-Acquired Factor

In basically any season in baseball's history, 38 home runs is a lot of home runs. There was a time when having the ability to hit that amount of home runs in a season might earn you a large payday in free agency. Those days are now gone (or at least that financial practice is now dormant), and thus the Twins' new DH was found, at a bargain rate. Based on his 2018 outlook, LoMo didn't do too badly for himself, as his fantasy rank jumped up to 217 with the signing (which also caused that of longtime face of the franchise Joe Mauer fell to 402, and DH candidate Robbie Grossman's to plummet all the way to 625). One player whose ranking did not change with a change of scenery is starter Jake Odorizzi, acquired from Tampa Bay's former stock of pitching depth. Given that two Rays prospects are down for Tommy John surgery in 2018, I'll bet GM Erik Neander would like to take that one back.

Minnesota also made a number of shrewd additions to the bullpen. The biggest personality is the crookedly capped Fernando Rodney, who has already been enjoying the weather in his new northern accommodations. But the reliever with the most upside might be another former closer Addison Reed, ranked ten spots better at 252. Joining that duo will be starter-turned-lefty specialist Zach Duke, and also a Rule 5 pick Tyler Kinley, last seen at the Miami Marlins' Double-A affiliate. I also feel compelled to mention fifth outfielder Ryan LaMarre, who's from nearby Royal Oak, MI.

Fifth Starter

This is actually an extension of the All-Acquired category, because the guy signed to round out Minnesota's rotation was still a free agent with the SI baseball preview issue went to print. When Lance Lynn settled for a one year deal with the Twins, like many of us, I though the great free agent holdout of 2017-18 had finally come to an end. But then just days later, Alex Cobb reeled in four years and nearly five times the money from the Orioles. Curiously, though, despite the superior payday, Cobb's ranking dropped to 232 after his signing, whereas Lynn remained steady at 194. Maybe it's due to the lighter competition Lynn will face in the AL Central, rather than the AL East, but most likely it's because Cobb waited that extra week to sign, which means he had to start the season in the minors.

Lynn actually profiles more as a fourth starter on this team, pushing Kyle Gibson to the five slot, but in reality, everyone moves up a peg because of Ervin Santana's finger injury - he hasn't even been cleared to throw as of this writing. Minnesota doesn't actually have a fifth starter on their roster, due to off days and such, but when one is needed, my money's on prospect Adalberto Mejia. He did suffer a big rankings drop when Lynn was brought in (down to 627), but he was profiled in the "Payoff Pitch" section of the SI preview as the high-strikeout type of pitcher that the Twins rotation desperately needs.

Legal Issues

While Lynn's signing happened to late to make the pages of Sports Illustrated, but that's not the case for shortstop Jorge Polanco's PED suspension. His trip to the Restricted List caused his fantasy ranking to drop all the way to 516, while you can see that his replacement Eduardo Escobar's rank to increase to 387 (plus backup infielder Ehire Adrianza went up to 620, as he should see slightly more use in the first half of the year). But the more troubling situation in Minnesota is the assault allegation against third baseman Miguel Sano. I'm not sure if this or the lingering effects of last year's shin surgery is the reason why his ranking fell to 134, but either way, MLB cleared Sano of any wrongdoing after an official investigation. However that doesn't necessarily remove the cloud hanging over one of this team's most promising sluggers.

Song

Purple Rain - Prince

As with picking a song by Boston for the Red Sox, this is more about the connotations associated with the artist than the content of the actual song, and there's perhaps no artist more associated with the land of 10,000 lakes than Prince. Speaking of lakes, I've never seen the movie Purple Rain, but I have heard about this iconic scene where one of those lakes is mentioned. I'm well aware that the body of water in the scene ain't Lake Minnetonka, but if it were, Apollonia and The Kid would only be 20 miles from the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome, where the Twins played back in 1984 when the movie was released. However, if you're looking for a song that actually references this team's home state, there's always the instant classic "Minnesota" by Lil Yachty.

Colossus

I can't put my finger on any particular reason why Phaedra, the fourth Colossus, reminds me of the Twins. It looks like a horse (or a kirin, according to the game's development team). It marches around a field outside some burial cairns. It has two dangling dreadlock-type things on each side of its head. It's just a gut feeling. A better analogy than Shadow of the Colossus for Minnesota might be Game of Thrones - a Twins fan friend of mine refers to his favorite team as House Stark, mostly just so they can all shout "KING IN THE NORTH!" whenever Joe Mauer comes to the plate.