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Young Twins will get fresh start in 2017
- Updated: October 3, 2016
MINNEAPOLIS — It will be an important offseason for the Twins, who are coming off a highly disappointing year and will have a new leadership team in place, with former Indians assistant general manager Derek Falvey taking over as the president of baseball operations.
Falvey, 33, replaces longtime general manager Terry Ryan, who was dismissed in July after the Twins couldn’t build on their surprising showing in 2015. Falvey inherits an organization that has young talent such as Byron Buxton, Miguel Sano, Max Kepler and Jorge Polanco as well as a top farm system, but the Major League team is coming off a 100-loss season and lacks pitching.
• After early stumble, Twins never found footing
Many changes are expected this offseason, but manager Paul Molitor has been assured by ownership that he’ll be back next year. There are plenty of unknowns heading into next season, however, and Molitor is grateful he’ll get another shot to help turn around the franchise under Falvey.
“I think everyone realizes we had expectations and we fell short,” Molitor said. “Sometimes people have to fall when those things happen. I’m fortunate to be in a position where they’re going to give me a shot to do a little bit better next time around.”
Free agents: Kurt Suzuki
Arbitration-eligible: Trevor Plouffe, Tommy Milone, Eduardo Escobar, Hector Santiago, Kyle Gibson, Ryan Pressly, Brandon Kintzler, Logan Schafer
Catcher: Suzuki is Minnesota’s lone free agent, and outside of pitching, catching is the club’s biggest question mark. The Twins traded for John Ryan Murphy from the Yankees before the season to be the catcher of the future, but he struggled offensively and spent most of the year at Triple-A Rochester. Juan Centeno performed admirably as a backup, but he had trouble with wild pitches and passed balls. Minnesota will look to acquire a starting catcher via free agency or trade this offseason.
First base: Joe Mauer got off to a strong start in 2016, but he had trouble staying healthy down the stretch, as he was limited by strained quads that drained his production over the last two months. Mauer, though, is firmly entrenched at first base with two more years left on his contract. Byungho Park was brought over from Korea, but he struggled in his first taste of the Majors, but he could bring much-needed power if he gets back on track next year once he adjusts to the pitching and culture. Kennys Vargas …
