Miguel Sanó has recovered from his injury and is playing across the river in St. Paul. Players are allowed a maximum of 20 days on a rehab assignment (currently at 13 days), which means the Minnesota Twins will have to quickly decide what to do with the right-handed slugger.

The former All-Star was placed on the 60-day IL earlier this season, and his fill-ins have quickly exceeded expectations in the likes of Alex Kirilloff and Jose Miranda. Luis Arraez has also done a great job playing first base and was well-deserving of an All-Star selection. 

The Twins could have Sanó rejoin the team and demote one of Gilberto Celestino, Miranda, or Kirilloff. This seems highly unlikely as the hitting production of Miranda and Kirilloff have exceeded expectations. At worst, Celestino has been a serviceable bat and a great defender.

This option would decrease the development and potential confidence of these players, as well as provide a less competent hitter in the lineup. Although Sanó could provide some pop in the late middle of the order, the contact issues have carried over from year to year (183 strikeouts in the 2021 season.)

Ideally, the Twins could package Sanó for relief help. Trading him straight up for quality relief or starting pitching is a pipe dream, though he could be a valuable piece in a transaction. For example, a trade along the likes of Sanó, Simeon Woods Richardson, Austin Martin, and Trevor Larnach could move the needle in a Luis Castillo deal.  

Pitching is an obvious need for the Twins; however, MLB front offices would quickly reject any sort of deal that singularly involves Sanó. The “slugger” is batting .093 in 54 at-bats this year and is making $9,250,000 – hardly a positive addition to any club.

The final option would be to DFA him and hope he makes it through the waivers. Doing so would allow Sanó to progress and develop at Triple-A. Worst case, he gets picked up by another team, and you have that decision made for you.

This would be a sad ending to a hitter that was supposed to be a franchise cornerstone alongside Byron Buxton. However, at some point, the production outweighs the fantasy of him becoming the next David Ortiz.