The Twins believe they are set up for success after winning their first postseason series in 21 years, but there will likely be a lot of roster turnover over the next few months.
Twins' five free agents all want to return next season. But will they all come back?
Sonny Gray will be a hot commodity in the offseason market, though, and will be difficult to re-sign.
October 13, 2023 at 12:03PM
Sonny Gray will be one of the best starting pitchers on the free agent market this winter and should command a multiyear contract. He shared long embraces with teammates following Wednesday's Game 4 loss to the Houston Astros, which ended the Twins' season.
"I hope we get to play together a lot longer," Joe Ryan said of Gray. "He's going to be a great friend for the rest of our lives. An amazing person. Just tough to see him. Obviously, free agency is a little bit of an unknown. Hopefully, we can bring him back here. He's a special part of this team."
The Twins have five players on their postseason roster set to hit free agency after the conclusion of the World Series: Gray, Kenta Maeda, Emilio Pagán, Michael A. Taylor and Donovan Solano. All of them expressed an interest in returning, but they are aware Wednesday might have represented their last day with the club.
"This is my first time hitting free agency," Maeda said through interpreter Dai Sekizaki. "Coming off Tommy John and the [injured list], and then pitching fairly well from midseason to the end, I think I've positioned myself in a decent spot. We'll see what the future holds, but I'm excited about it."
Each of the impending free agents spoke highly of the Twins' future after they were bested by the Astros in four games in the best-of-five American League Division Series, but they noted their odds of returning lies with the Twins front office.
"I don't know," Maeda responded when asked if he expected to return. "I really love the Twins, all the way from the president, the general manager, coaches, staff, everyone."
Taylor added: "I hope so, a lot. I really enjoyed my time here. Quality people throughout the organization. The clubhouse and locker room has a lot of chemistry. We all just get along."
The eight Twins headed for arbitration are Royce Lewis, Joe Ryan, Jhoan Duran, Bailey Ober, Ryan Jeffers, Willi Castro, Griffin Jax and Trevor Larnach.
