Derek Falvey held on to hope that this Twins team could still find success all the way up until the trade deadline.
The Twins had swept a four-game series with Detroit by a combined score of 30-18 heading into the All-Star break, and it felt like maybe the team was finally gathering some momentum for a late-season push.
That wasn't the case. The Twins faced the Tigers again out of the break and were swept in a three-game series, including two by shutouts. And that heralded to Falvey, the president of baseball operations, that this season was not turning in any direction but down.
"I really didn't like necessarily give up hope. And then it kind of got to a point we had to really start making decisions around the trade deadline," Falvey said. "And where we were focusing our efforts in terms of looking at whether we're acquiring major league talent or potentially really trying to acquire talent for the future. And that's, I think, when it really settled in."
With the Twins playing their final home game Thursday before ending the season this weekend in Kansas City, Falvey has started the somewhat painful reflection process on the Twins' 71-88 season when expectations were to vie for the division title and accomplish an elusive playoff victory. And he's also looking to the future, with the aim of learning from some of 2021's misfires.
“I fully anticipate we'll have further conversations with [Byron Buxton]and his agents, both around the arbitration contract and ultimately doing a really deep dive again about what it looks like in the future.”
One such folly Falvey owned up to was the state of the starting rotation, specifically on J.A. Happ and Matt Shoemaker, who both signed one-year free-agent deals last offseason, Happ for $8 million and Shoemaker for $2 million.
Happ was a trade deadline departure, with the 38-year-old going to the Cardinals with his 6.77 ERA. Shoemaker didn't even make it that far into the season, with the 35-year-old designated for assignment July 1 with an 8.06 ERA before his eventual release about a month later.
"Our pitching in aggregate, early on, guys didn't throw the ball," Falvey said. "… When you're talking about the one-year pitching market that's in that range of cost, there's a lot of outcomes there, and sometimes, they do line up that way without getting great outcomes. I would say that we have to come back and evaluate that because we didn't hit on those for sure. Those guys didn't pitch as well as we thought they could have."
This offseason will bring another opportunity to right that wrong, but with the added intrigue of the current collective bargaining agreement (CBA) expiring Dec. 1. The trade market in November is typically quiet, but this year it could be silent while teams wait for the new CBA's specifications.
Byron Buxton will be at the epicenter of another compelling offseason. The Twins tried to sign him to an extension this summer but failed. If the parties can't agree on one in the offseason, the center fielder will go into his final arbitration year before reaching free agency in 2023.
"We know that some guys are going to enter into free-agent seasons, and that's just the way it goes. That's never been of concern to me," Falvey said. "… We've never hid the fact that we've had some of those conversations with Byron and his agents. I fully anticipate we'll have further conversations with him and his agents, both around the arbitration contract and ultimately doing a really deep dive again about what it looks like in the future."
Buxton started 2021 by being named the American League Player of the Month for April but again struggled with injuries this season, including a length Injured List stay because of a broken hand.
Players aren't the only additions Falvey is looking to make. The Twins need a bench coach after Mike Bell's death during spring training this year and Bill Evers' retirement. There's also been some discussion of adding a former major league pitcher to the pitching coaching staff.
But the overarching sentiment is pretty simple when zoomed out from the intricate moving pieces: Improve for next year.
"We need to assess everything," Falvey said. "… Let's assess every player, let's see where our roster is and let's see how we can make it better. I fully anticipate this offseason we're going to try to find a way to get better for '22 and beyond."
Only one word is taboo for Falvey: Rebuild. He characterized the Twins' approach as a retool or refresh instead.
"We're going to find a way to invest in next year's team," Falvey said. "This is not with an eye toward five years down the line."
