Minnesota Twins: Grading the José Berríos trade
The Minnesota Twins finally blew things up hours before the MLB Trade Deadline, moving All-Star pitcher José Berríos to the Toronto Blue Jays – reported first by Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic.
The closer it was to the trade deadline, the more apparent it was that the Twins would move on from their fan-favorite pitcher. Here’s what Minnesota received in return:
Here’s a look at how each team graded out:
Twins:
Losing Berríos was going to be hard for any Twins fan to swallow. He was drafted in the first round of the 2012 MLB Draft and continued to work his way through the minor league system. He eventually made his MLB debut in 2016, where he would eventually go on to become a two-time All-Star.
Berríos has the stuff to be a No. 1 pitcher, but his outings were too inconsistent. Despite all that, if Minnesota decided to move him, he would net the organization a nice return.
Minnesota landed two talented prospects in this trade – receiving Austin Martin and Simeon Woods-Richardson.
Martin was the No. 5 pick in the 2020 MLB Draft and is currently the No. 16 prospect in baseball. Because there wasn’t a minor league season in 2020, Martin has just one year under his belt at Double-A.
There, his batting splits are .281/.424/.383. In 196 at-bats, he’s hit two home runs and batted in 16 RBIs. Martin won’t hit for power, but he’s a great hitter who can get on base. In his junior season at Vanderbilt, he batted .377, with an on-base percentage of .507.
MLB.com notes there are some question marks about his defense, but he has some defensive versatility. His main position is at shortstop, which is a positional need for the Twins with Royce Lewis’s future uncertain after tearing his ACL.
Woods-Richardson is the No. 68 prospect in baseball and was selected in the second round by the New York Mets.
This season at Double-A, Woods-Richardson has a record of 2-4 and an ERA of 5.76. Despite having some early-season struggles, he’s only 20 years old and has immense potential. Remember, he missed out on a 2020 season and was drafted as a 17-year-old.
He has four pitches in his arsenal, those being the fastball, changeup, curveball and slider. Right now, his fastball and changeup project to be his best two pitches.
Minnesota already has some talented pitching prospects and they added another one in Woods-Richardson.
Grade: A-
Blue Jays:
The Blue Jays needed starting pitching and they received that in Berríos. Toronto’s starting rotation currently ranks 12th in baseball in terms of ERA (3.97). Beyond Hyun Jin Ryu and Robbie Ray, the Blue Jays starting rotation has been inconsistent.
They can now slot Berríos in as the No. 1 or 2 starter. This season, he has a record of 7-5 and an ERA of 3.48. If he was on a better team with better defensive players, his record and ERA could look even better.
The Blue Jays are currently 51-48 and sit 4.5 games out of the Wild Card slot. The AL East is a tough division this season, with the Boston Red Sox, Tampa Bay Rays and New York Yankees all vying for a playoff spot.
The Blue Jays had a big offseason, signing Marcus Semien and George Springer. When you have those players and a lot of up-and-coming young talent, this is a move that could potentially catapult them into success for many years to come.
