Category: Baseball

For years, Salvador Perez has been the Royals’ mainstay behind the plate. If he’s been healthy, he wants to catch, and catch he has.

But the past several years have seen an aging, albeit still productive Perez shift more to first base and designated hitter. Last year, he appeared in 92 games behind the plate with a combined 68 appearances coming elsewhere. The year before that: 91 games catching, 49 at first, 24 with a DH appearance. Perez hasn’t caught more than 100 games in a season since 2021.

Thankfully, the Royals have allocated resources to succeeding Perez, and the first true step occurred last year when Carter Jensen reached the Majors.

Royals manager Matt Quatraro on MLB's No. 18 prospect Carter Jensen:

“He's a rat. He's going to do everything in his power to be as good as he can be… you've gotta think sky is the limit [for him].”

MLB Network + @SageUSAmericapic.twitter.com/0Bl2NrktJp

— MLB Network (@MLBNetwork) February 24, 2026

Jensen, a 2021 third-round pick out of Park Hill High School, collected 69 plate appearances in 20 games at the end of 2025. He performed so well that I believe the Royals accelerated their plan in supplanting Perez as the full-time catcher. Not only did Jensen prove his worth defensively and build a rapport with the pitching staff, but he also slashed .300/.391/.550 with half of his hits being worth extra bases.

Incredibly, doubled up Perez in bWAR—0.8 to 0.4.

Jensen, a left-handed hitter, is not the only highly rated catching prospect in the Royals system. Sure, he’s the first to reach the Majors, but the organization has another two catchers in the wings who could, one way or another, help the Royals down the line.

First, let’s take a look at the prospect rankings. Max wrote an article some weeks ago breaking down where the current prospects land for the Royals in the big Top 100 lists. Jensen made all three of the big lists—No. 1o according to The Athletic’s Keith Law, No. 11 according to Baseball America, and No. 18 according to MLB Pipeline.

Next is Blake Mitchell, the Royals’ former first-round pick from 2023. Mitchell, like Jensen, bats left and throws right. He did not make Baseball America’s Top 100 but landed at No. 75 with MLB Pipeline (down from No. 48 a year ago) and No. 57 according to Law. Law concluded his report on Mitchell by writing that “[h]e still projects as an everyday catcher who might hit .230 or so with 20 homers and plus defense, which is a regular for almost every team in baseball.”

MLB Pipeline ranks Jensen as the game’s No. 2 overall catching prospect with Mitchell at No. 10.

But wait, there’s a third catcher raising eyebrows in the farm system. Ramon Ramirez, signed out of Valenzuela, is the youngest of the group, and while he didn’t make any of the Top 100 lists, he’s still worth a concentrated eye. Law ranks him as the Royals’ #9 prospect, noting that the young man has power but also seems to lack focus.

Baseball America ranks Ramirez as the team’s No. 8 prospect. They note that he signed with the Royals as an outfielder and also missed a chunk of time last season due to left-hand inflammation. Still, “[h]is body looked firmer in 2025, increasing his chances of staying behind the plate.”

The Royals find themselves with three stellar catching prospects and only one catching position.

Jensen is already in Kansas City and seems to have the upper hand when it comes to locking down the position for the next five to seven years. Mitchell has a chance to bounce back this year and prove the organization’s faith in him when they drafted him so high three years ago. And Ramirez, with seemingly the lowest skill level of the trio, could still make it as a dependable backup catcher who can also play the outfield.

Now, I’m not here to advocate for the Royals to trade a certain one of these young men. But with all of this in mind, the Royals should definitely cash in on one of these three chips.

Spring Training trades are not unheard of, but I think we’re more looking at a deal occurring around the trade deadline, once the Royals figure out which position needs tinkering. Of course, there’s nothing from stopping the team from making a trade before then. Perhaps I’m overestimating things, but in a trade for one of these three battery mates, the Royals should be able to land a player under team control instead of settling for a rental.

While the Royals’ farm system is on the rise, it still isn’t in the top half of the league. Despite that, the Royals have managed to develop three catchers who could, in the near future, start for a Major League club. With the big league roster still needing work, trading one of Jensen, Mitchell, or Ramirez could help shore up things.

Just gotta trade the right one.

The Jays and Marlins play in Dunedin at 1:00 Eastern today. We have a bunch of regulars in the lineup. It actually could be close to the lineup they would put out against a lefty starter.

And Kevin Gausman gets his first time out there this spring. Gausman set a personal record for innings pitched last year. Not bad considering he was in his 13th season and 34 years old. I’d like them to take it a little easier on him this year. But, we do have a few starters that will have to be handled gently, at least to start the season. But then we have roughly 37 guys who could start games (I might be exaggerating, my wife has told me a million times that I tend to exaggerate).

Kevin will throw 1 to 2 innings.

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Alek Manoah said a rather unfortunate thing to a reporter from the Athletic:

“I was a very big piece of that process, getting to that World Series run,” Manoah added. “I wasn’t able to be there like I wanted to.”

The rest was very normal, nothing inflammatory. I’m almost sure that if Alek had time to think about what he was saying he would have found better words.

“Those are all my friends,” Manoah said. “A lot of those guys I called my brothers. I rooted for them 100 percent. I wanted them to win it all.”

The story also says that he is “down to” 285 lb (on his 6’6” frame).

“No, man,” Manoah said, when asked if there was a mental anxiety element to his strike throwing struggles. “I don’t know. I don’t think I’ve dealt with any of that.

“I think for me it’s more when, mentally, you don’t have your best stuff, I know for me, I’m going to go out and compete with what I’ve got.”

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Ken Rosenthal tells us that Max Scherzers incentives are $1 million for each of 65, 75, 85, 95, 105, 115, 125, 135, 145 and 155. I’m quite willing to bet he won’t get to 155 innings. We could have a poll:

The Houston Astros travel to Jupiter, FL to take on the St. Louis Cardinals. The Astros will be playing a split squad game.

Peter Lambert gets the start for Houston. This is his first start of the spring and his second appearance. In his first appearance, he pitched one scoreless inning while allowing 2 hits and striking out 1.

Astros top prospect Brice Matthews will play 2B today and lead off, Carlos Perez starts behind the plate and Astros #3 prospect Walker Janek will DH.

Game Info

Game Date/Time: Thursday, February 26, 12:10 p.m. CST

Location: Roger Dean Chevrolet Stadium, Jupiter, FL

TV: No Local Broadcast

Streaming: MLB.tv (Cardinals audio only)

Radio: no local radio

(Image courtesy of Brian McTaggart on X)

Back at @RDCstadium ⚾️ pic.twitter.com/TTJmqJOBAU

— St. Louis Cardinals (@Cardinals) February 26, 2026

Mets lineup

1. Marcus Semien – 2B
2. Mike Tauchman – RF
3. Bo Bichette – 3B
4. Mark Vientos – 1B
5. Ronny Mauricio – SS
6. Luis Torrens – C
7. Jared Young – DH
8. Tyrone Taylor – CF
9. MJ Melendez – LF

SP: Nolan McLean

Astros lineup

lineup to follow

Broadcast info

First pitch: 1:05 PM EST
Radio: Audacy Mets Radio WHSQ 880AM

Minnesota Twins vs. Pittsburgh Pirates, February 26, 2026, 1:05 p.m. ET

Location: LECOM Park, Bradenton, FL

How to Listen: 93.7 The Fan, 100.1 FM, AM 1020 KDKA, Sports Net Pittsburgh app SNP 360, How to Watch: Sportsnet Pittsburgh

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The Pittsburgh Pirates are at home today against the Minnesota Twins looking to grab a win.

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The only coverage today is courtesy of the Boston Red Sox radio team

First pitch is at 1:05 at JetBlue Park

The Angels are stuck. Stuck with an aging Mike Trout, signed through 2030 with nearly $200 million left on his 12-year contract he signed in 2019. Stuck with paying out nearly $40 million on Anthony Rendon’s disaster of a free agent contract signed in 2020. Stuck with an owner who doesn’t even recognize that winning should be a priority for the franchise. Stuck with the consequences of short-sighted, win-now decisions over the last decade when the need for a complete tear down and rebuild was so obvious from the outside.

Los Angeles is essentially running things back this year, though at least the moves they made have the potential for some higher rewards if things break their way. Gambling on guys like Grayson Rodriguez and Alek Manoah could have some solid payoffs if they’re healthy, though bringing in four high-leverage relievers with an average age of 36 is a lot less defensible. There are a handful of bright spots to cling to: Zach Neto is one of the best young shortstops in baseball and Jo Adell finally broke out in his sixth big league season. Still, just look at the table below and you’ll get a sense for how bleak things are for the Angels.

Position	Angels Projected WAR	Mariners Projected WAR	Edge
Catcher	1.5	6.1	Mariners
First Base	1.7	2.9	Mariners
Second Base	1.5	2.7	Mariners
Shortstop	4.4	2.8	Angels
Third Base	1.9	3.0	Mariners
Left Field	1.0	2.2	Mariners
Center Field	1.9	6.0	Mariners
Right Field	1.4	2.0	Mariners
Designated Hitter	1.3	1.6	Mariners
Starting Pitching	11.0	14.2	Mariners
Relief Pitching	1.9	3.4	Mariners
Total	29.7	46.8	Mariners

The only position the Angels have an advantage over the Mariners is at shortstop, where Neto projects to be third best in the American League at that position. Everywhere else is below league average and not in a “the sum is greater than it’s parts” kind of way. Nearly every part of this roster needs an overhaul, and if you read John’s summary of Los Angeles’ farm system, it’s pretty clear that future improvement isn’t present in the organization yet. It feels like you can boil down the Angels approach to roster building to “make it 2019 by science or magic,” which wouldn’t be so sad if you didn’t know that the last time they made a playoff appearance was 2015.

So here they are, caught in no man’s land, neither competing for even a Wild Card spot nor tearing things down to build for the future. Just existing in the cellar of the AL West. Stuck.

2026 FanGraphs Depth Charts projections: 72.5-89.5, 5th in AL West, 5.4% playoff odds

2026 PECOTA projections: 66.4-95.6, 5th in AL West, 0.5% playoff odds

If it all goes right

As he stepped into the Rate Field batter’s box on March 27, 2025, Mike Trout took a deep breath and said to himself, “Fuck it. This one’s for me.” Knowing that his (still mystifyingly) beloved Angels were going nowhere, he spent the year chasing his lost ceiling, but it cost him something. To stay healthy, he spent 106 games at DH and the mere 22 games he played in the field came in right. To chase his old batting line, he sold out for power, whiffing and striking out at unprecedented rates.

So when he picked up a baseball for the first time over the offseason, he looked at it, tossed it in the air, caught it, and said to himself, “This time, for the real me.”

And that’s what we saw from wire to wire over 2026. Gone was the 2016-2023 version of himself that was trying to drag his team to the promised land. And gone was the 2024-2025 version of himself that was trying to etch his name more firmly into the record books. Returned again was the 2014-2015 version of Mike Trout who played simply for the love of the game. No longer playing like he was trying to prevent an injury, he just let himself go, leaving his status up to the baseball gods that once shined on him so brightly. And that turned out to be exactly the sacrifice they’d asked for.

Trout once again played with a preternatural ease and a too-simple-to-have-other-interests joie de vivre. At the plate, he hadn’t lost a step with his skills last year—the bat speed, the eye, the swing path, they were all still clearly there in the peripherals. He’d just made a bad change in approach. No longer selling out for power, he was able, ironically, to access more of it. And a vintage Mike Trout in the 2026 Angels lineup resulted in opponents intentionally walking him at a rate not seen in MLB since Barry Bonds. So he ended up hitting .288/.430/.575, the best hitter in baseball for the first time since 2019.

His speed was never coming back, but he’d clearly learned a thing or two about baserunning and pitcher tells across his 2,900 times on base, so he still stole 29 bases, just shy of a second 30-30 season.

He asked to get put back in centerfield, where he always belonged. He’d lost his range to the ravages of time, but no longer caring about whether he was going to be sore tomorrow, he made a few high-effort web-gem plays that made his youth, and our youth, flash before our eyes. When he robbed Julio of a home run at T-Mobile Park on September 25th, even the Mariners fans—in a forgiving mood after clinching a playoff spot the night before—gave him a standing ovation in tribute.

All told, his 9.1 fWAR took him past Wade Boggs, Al Kaline, Albert Pujols, Cap Anson, Cal Ripken Jr., Carl Yastrzemski, and Eddie Matthews to get to 22nd all-time.

The Angels finished 80-82. —ZAM

If it all goes wrong

The real battle over the past six years hasn’t been him vs. Verlander, or Price, or Iwakuma, even. Not even the WBC matchup with Ohtani that’s been analyzed from every angle, replayed in YouTube videos and TikToks through tiny, tinny speakers. No, the battle he fights every day is older, Biblical: spirit vs. flesh. The sense memory of gliding across outfield grass, thick and springy beneath his feet as he chases after a ball, easily picking out the small white orb from the California sky. The reality of how his knee protests every sharp turn and slide, the fifteen minutes he puts in every morning rolling his back out, the lingering ache in his thumb that worsens in the rain. He always knows when it’s going to rain.

For so long, he’s kept watch in the garden. He’s been the steady heartbeat at the center of this lineup, attempted to keep his teammates alert, drag them kicking and screaming over the precipice of the playoffs. He’s been a faithful servant to this team, this fanbase, this city. It’s all he knows: faith and family, showing up for people, doing the right thing.

And in exchange, management brought in…some players who should have worked, actually. Talented guys who maybe just needed some new scenery, a little sunshine. Grayson Rodriguez, Alek Manoah, Vaughn Grissom, Matthew Lugo, Oswald Peraza – all promising players who went by the wayside somehow. Diamonds in the rough, some rougher than others. As a plan, it left a lot to be desired. But he’s learned how to live with not getting what he wants.

Initially, it’s great. Manoah, a burly bear of a man he likes quite a bit, declares the squad Misfit Island, a reference that he’s not sure most of the clubhouse understands but makes a good t-shirt anyway. He’s not sure when Mike Trout, the Mike Trout, became a misfit, an underdog, an afterthought, but he puts those thoughts out of his mind. Maybe, just this once, someone else can take over the watch.

It starts small — a delayed start to the season for Grayson, which stretches into a missed month, then two. Then the injuries come for the pitchers in the bullpen whose birthdates have an 8 as the third digit. Offensively, the health is better, but the strikeouts gradually stack up, alongside the losses. You don’t get the reward without the risk, but sometimes buying low just means you paid less, got less.

It happens at the end of April, towards the end of a Midwest road swing. Chicago is cold and miserable that spring, the streets still pockmarked by mounds of fossilized snow, the field soggy after weeks of heavy rain-snow mix. They’re on a good run early in the season, even not at full strength due to some injuries, and he’s getting to play right field – a compromise between himself and his new skipper, who still remembers him in his golden era, a not-misfit. 

The ball jumps off Mongtomery’s bat with a crack but hangs up in the wind, suspended, before plummeting downwards like someone shot it out of the air. There’s no way he’ll get there in time. In his prime, he probably couldn’t have gotten there in time. But he has to try. He’s wired for loyalty, the flesh mortal but the spirit indomitable, ever-vigilant. 

He feels it in his plant leg immediately, his foot sinking too deep in the spongy grass, the knee joint catching like an old lock; can picture the cartilage shearing back, but it’s too late, he’s already in motion, chasing, one last time, a quickly disappearing dream, an angel falling out of the sky. —KP

The Houston Astros (1-2-1) host the New York Mets (2-2-1) in a split squad game today in Palm Beach, FL.

Tatsuya Imai makes his first appearance of the spring in this game. Imai was the Astros top free agent signing of the offseason and currently projects as their third starter while offering number 2 starter upside.

3B Carlos Correa and 1B Christian Walker will also make their spring debuts in this game.

Game Info

Game Date/Time: Thursday, February 26, 12:10 p.m. CST

Location: CACTI Park of the Palm Beaches, Palm Beach, FL

TV: No Local Broadcast

Streaming: MLB.tv (audio only)

Radio: KBME 790 AM / 94.5 FM HD-2

(image courtesy of Brian McTaggart on X)

Today’s starters! 🌴 #LGMpic.twitter.com/bH4Nq76VC6

— New York Mets (@Mets) February 26, 2026

1914
In the final game of their World Tour, the White Sox beat the New York Giants, 5-4, in 11 innings. The win came in front of the biggest crowd of the entire tour, between 20,000 and 35,000 spectators, at Stamford Bridge in London. Contrary to the headline above, Tommy Daly secured the win with a walk-off solo shot leading off the bottom of the 11th, ending the 46-game series at White Sox 24, Giants 20, with two ties.

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1950
Short-time second-sacker for the White Sox Jack Brohamer was born, in Maywood, Calif.

Brohamer came to the White Sox during a flurry of Roland Hemond–Bill Veeck trades during the 1975 Winter Meetings. He had a relatively outstanding 1976 debut with the club, leading all position players and finishing third on the team with 2.6 WAR. He also became the only player in MLB history to homer in shorts, going deep against the Orioles on August 21.

Brohamer played a lesser role with the 1977 South Side Hit Men, but managed an amazing wind-down to his White Sox career, hitting for the cycle on September 24 — the third-to-last game he played in Chicago.

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1991
Five years after his death, Bill Veeck was elected to the Hall of Fame by the Veterans Committee.

The two-time owner of the White Sox (also with ownership of St. Louis Browns, Cleveland and the minor-league Milwaukee Brewers) was the last of the “small-time” or “common-touch” owners now made obsolete by free agency.

He found quick success in both of his stints as White Sox owner. In 1959, he was finally handed the keys — the first non-Comiskey owner ever — just before Spring Training, and the White Sox went on to win the pennant. In 1977, just his second full season of his 1970s ownership of the club, Veeck’s novel “Rent-a-Player” scheme of picking up players on free agency salary drives paid off to the tune of 90 wins — considerably more than anyone anticipated for his rag-tag band.

Veeck was also, hands-down, the most novel, innovative and fun owner in baseball history. His promotions remain legend (fan managing, Martians landing, exploding scoreboards, a dozen or more ethnic nights, Eddie Gaedel activated for a game), likely never to be repeated in the game.

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2018
In an early spring training game vs. Oakland at Camelback Ranch, promising third baseman Jake Burger ruptured his left Achilles tendon running out a ground ball in the third inning. The 2017 first round pick, only in camp early playing in Cactus League A-games as a courtesy often extended to top picks soon after their drafting, would miss the season.

Subsequent injuries to his Achilles (another tear) and foot (plantar fascitis), plus the 2020 pandemic that cancelled the minor league season, saw Burger sit on the sidelines for three years. He returned in 2021 and jump right to Triple-A after never having played higher than Low-A professionally — and Burger mashed.

Before a trade deadline deal to Miami in 2023, Burger was shaping up as an average MLB starter, with 1.7 WAR over 154 career White Sox games, buffeted by a .230/.291/.500 slash, 34 homers, and 81 RBIs.

Today we look at the Cubs’ left-handed flamethrower.

Luke Little, all 6’8”, 220 pounds of him, just needs to throw strikes. In three seasons as a part-time Chicago Cub, he’s thrown 35.1 innings. In those innings, he has struck out 44 batters. That’s really good. But he has walked 28. That’s really bad.

He’s 3-1 with a 2.80 ERA in 39 games. Most of those games were in his pretty good 2024 season. He was hurt some of 2025 and spent almost the entire remainder of the season in Iowa. In his 43 games there, he was 2-1 in 59.2 innings, earned two saves, was the opener twice, had a 2.87 ERA, struck out 75 and walked 34.

Lifetime, he has amassed 0.6 bWAR (0.2 fWAR). The 25-year-old still has a little time before he’s considered a suspect but he’s on that track unless he makes a great showing in the spring. Projections do have him making the roster and throwing 30-ish innings, with his BB/p shrinking to 3.9 in Baseball Reference’s book. Zips has him garnering positive WAR and throwing 57 innings.

That would be okay. He could join the short/setup group with those kind of walk numbers. Little throws HARD — he’s reached triple digits more than once and sits 96+. He doesn’t give up many long balls. The free passes will determine his financial future.

He could be a star in the league. The odds are against it at this late date, but we will await developments.

The Dodgers take a trip east across the desert to face the San Francisco Giants on Friday in Scottsdale, with Yoshinobu Yamamoto making his final start before heading to play for Japan in the World Baseball Classic.

Yamamoto threw 30 pitches in his 1 2/3 innings last Saturday against the Angels in the Dodgers’ Cactus League opener. After a scoreless first inning, Yamamoto allowed three hits and two runs, one of them earned in the second inning.

This is the first of two meetings between the longtime rivals this spring. The Dodgers and Giants meet again on Wednesday, March 18 at Camelback Ranch.

Friday game info

• Teams: Dodgers at Giants
• Ballpark: Scottsdale Stadium
• Time: 12:05 p.m. PT
• TV: SportsNet LA, MLB Network (out of market)
• Radio: AM 570

The Dodgers are back at Camelback Ranch on Wednesday, playing the White Sox in a battle of co-tenants. The Dodgers are the home team in this one, where Max Muncy and Alex Call will see their first game action of 2026.

Lineup

Miguel Rojas SS
Kyle Tucker DH
Will Smith C
Freddie Freeman 1B
Teoscar Hernández LF
Max Muncy 3B
Andy Pages CF
Alex Call RF
Hyeseong Kim 2B

Tyler Glasnow starts on the mound, his first game this spring.

Other pitchers

Blake Treinen is set to make his 2026 Cactus League debut, pitching along with Alex Vesia, Jack Dreyer, Ben Casparius, and Kyle Hurt, plus non-roster invitees Carson Hobbs and Jordan Weems.

Pitchers active from minor league camp are Cam Day (wearing number 90), Myles Caba (91), Kelvin Ramirez (93), and Nick Robertson (97).

Other position players

Michael Siani and Ryan Ward are active on Thursday, as are non-roster invitees Ryan Fitzgerald, Keston Hiura, Zach Ehrhard, Josue De Paula, Kendall George, Zyhir Hope, Chris Newell, Noah Miller, and catchers Eliézer Alfonzo and Griffin Lockwood-Powell.

Also active from the minor league side are Elijah Hainline (05) and Yeiner Fernandez (89).

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Spring training baseball isn't always a recipe for high-scoring games, but when the floodgates open, they are thoroughly blasted.

So, with my MLB picks, I'm eyeing a trio of game total Overs where there should be more offense, including a showdown between the Colorado Rockies and San Francisco Giants on Thursday, February 26.

Spring Training predictions for February 26

Pick #1: Rockies vs. Giants Over 11

The Colorado Rockies are showcasing their young bats (Charlie Condon and Kyle Karros, in particular) while the San Francisco Giants are trotting out what may be their Opening Day lineup.

With the starting pitching matchup between Valente Bellozo and Blade Tidwell, we could see half this total on the board by the time we go to the bullpen.

Pick #2: Marlins vs. Blue Jays Over 8

I assume we're getting a relatively low total because Kevin Gausman is on the bump for the Toronto Blue Jays. But it's still pretty early in spring training, so even if he pitches well, it will be brief.

Toronto hit lefties better than almost everyone last season, and it could ambush Miami Marlins starter Braxton Garrett this afternoon.

Pick #3: White Sox vs. Dodgers Over 11

The Los Angeles Dodgers are unbeaten this spring, and scored 10 runs yesterday against the D-Backs and 11 the day before against the Guardians.

The Dodgers were also one of the few teams that did more damage vs. lefties than the Jays, and the Chicago White Sox will send Sean Newcomb to kick things off here. 

The same principle applies here with Tyler Glasnow starting as it does with Gausman. Even if he is sharp — which he may not be, as he is coming off a side injury — he won't pitch deep enough to impact the final total too much.

This article originally appeared on Covers.com, read the full article here and view our best betting sites or check out our top sportsbook promos.

At last year’s Trade Deadline, the Twins faced a reckoning. After taking the AL Central title in 2023 and experiencing their first playoff success in over two decades, they stumbled down the stretch in ’24 to a disappointing 82-80 record. Now, the bottom had fallen out. A 13-1 drubbing on July 30th at the hands of the Red Sox dropped their record to 51-57, good for fourth place and 12 games back of the pace in the wide-open Central. President of baseball operations Derek Falvey pulled the trigger on a deadline fire sale for the ages, trading 10 players off their big-league roster. Those moved included three-time All-Star Carlos Correa — in what amounted to a salary dump — and five relievers, headlined by closer Jhoan Duran.

Minnesota Twins

2025 record: 70-92 (4th, AL Central)
2026 FanGraphs projection: 79-83 (3rd, AL Central)

Despite spurious reports that he had been traded to the Red Sox, the Twins did hold onto ace Joe Ryan, as well as fellow starter Pablo López and longtime center fielder Byron Buxton, who has repeatedly affirmed that he will exercise his no-trade clause if the Twins attempt to move him. For his part, Buxton had something of a career year at 31, smashing 35 homers while playing in 120 games for the first time since 2017. Ryan, too, took the next step, striking out 194 in 171 innings while earning his first All-Star berth. Rookie second baseman Luke Keaschall and sophomore starter Simeon Woods Richardson looked the part as MLB regulars.

That’s pretty much where the bright spots ended. At least the Twins were consistent, finishing 23rd in both runs scored and runs allowed. Everyday players Matt Wallner, Trevor Larnach, and Brooks Lee were relied upon to shoulder their share of the load and floundered, combining to end the season below replacement level despite playing in a combined 385 games. On the other side of the ball, manager Rocco Baldelli’s cupboard was left threadbare by the deadline moves as he finished the season with a patchwork group of journeyman and underperforming prospects.

Baldelli was relieved of his duties after the season and Falvey departed “mutually” in a shock January shake-up that occurred about a month after Joe Pohlad took over from his brother Tom as the Twins’ controlling owner. The front office, now headed by Falvey’s former deputy Jeremy Zoll, has been largely inactive this offseason, signing veterans Josh Bell, Victor Caratini, and Taylor Rogers to short-term, low-risk deals. López, one of the few proven contributors on the roster, is undergoing Tommy John surgery that will cost him the entire season. Ryan, the team’s unquestioned ace, was scratched from a scheduled spring start last Saturday with lower back tightness (though he reportedly got encouraging news from the MRI that followed). And Buxton, the team’s de facto captain, cannot reasonably be relied upon to stay on the field over the course of a full season.

And yet FanGraphs’ projection has them finishing ahead of not only the White Sox but the Guardians in the Central under new manager Derek Shelton (late of the Pirates). They anticipate Buxton taking 473 plate appearances — something, again, he did for the first time since 2017 last year. They’re also bullish on Wallner not only taking a step forward with the bat but no longer being a defensive liability in his age-28 season while expecting 23-year-old Kaelen Culpepper to be a key contributor as a rookie.

To be candid, I don’t see what the algorithm is seeing. Losing a half-season of Correa, Duran, and company with only marginal replacements and expecting to win nine more games seems like a pipe dream. Given how placid their front office has been this offseason, I don’t think even the Twins expect to fare that well. To be fair, FanGraphs was also counting on a healthy season from López in their calculations, though his 2.6 WAR can’t account for the large swing they project.

Given the busy offseason of the White Sox — headlined by the signing of Japanese slugger Munetaka Murakami — and the Guardians’ ability to exceed projections each year, Minnesota has a very real chance to enter the race to the bottom of the division (no matter how irrationally optimistic Pohlad seems to be despite refusing to invest). Expect them to use this season to assess whether young talent like Lee, Culpepper, and Walker Jenkins can be part of the next competitive Twins team while once again lying in wait as one of the league’s few true sellers at the deadline.

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More Pinstripe Alley MLB team season previews can be found here.