00:00These two weeks of baseball are right up there for the most important of the season.
00:04Many teams will be playing for the chance to have their front office either push the chips in for a run to the postseason,
00:09or they'll make it clear that it's time to start focusing on the future and trade some pieces.
00:14One of those teams are the Minnesota Twins.
00:16They're four games back of the Mariners for the final wildcard spot in the American League.
00:21Heading into the deadline, they're at the Rockies and Dodgers, and then back home for Nationals and Red Sox.
00:26So it's a mixed bag of opponents.
00:27If they don't make it clear they're a playoff team, they have a few pieces that I think the Yankees would really be interested in.
00:34Let's start with the flamethrower, closer, Yohan Duran.
00:37Duran has 15 saves and 44 appearances, 49 strikeouts to 16 walks, 33 hits for a 1-6-6 ERA.
00:46It's good for fourth in the American League among all qualified relievers.
00:50Diving into his arsenal, though, is where the numbers really start popping off the page.
00:54His fastball averages 100.3 miles per hour.
00:58That's second in all of baseball, only behind ace closer Mason Miller.
01:03That cheese is something the Yankees' bullpen desperately needs.
01:06He also features a splitter that averages 97.5 miles per hour.
01:11That's by far the fastest in MLB.
01:14Almost 4 miles per hour faster than the next, which is Paul Scheme, in 93.7.
01:19Yeah, you get it, he throws hard.
01:21But how effective are those pitches?
01:22The heater this year has a .234 batting average against, but 9 of the 11 hits are singles, with the other two being doubles.
01:30So not a ton of damage.
01:32Same goes for the splitter.
01:33.212 batting average against.
01:3512 of the 14 hits are singles.
01:38Other two are doubles.
01:39Those four doubles I just mentioned are the only extra base hits he's given up all season.
01:45Wondering if that would remain the same with the short porch of Yankee Stadium?
01:48Only one of those doubles would have been out of the stadium.
01:51He'll definitely take that.
01:54So not only does he limit damage and keep the ball in the ballpark, he keeps the ball on the ground, too.
01:59Duran has 69.4% ground ball rate.
02:03That's the best in all of baseball among all qualified relievers.
02:07Having a guy in the back end of your bullpen that keeps the ball in the ballpark, keeps the ball on the ground, throws gas, and is an intimidating figure when he's towing the slab would be an addition for the Yankees and Brian Cashman that would certainly classify as going to town.
02:22We're going to go to town.
02:23We're going to do everything we possibly can to improve ourselves and try to match up.
02:29It would take a lot to land him, especially since he has two years of arbitration left on his deal.
02:34So to make the package you'd have to give up hurt a little less, let's add utility player and free agent at the end of the season, Willie Castro, to this deal.
02:43Castro has already played five plus games at five different positions this year, and it's the fourth season in a row he's done that.
02:49Two of the positions he plays are positions of need for the Yankees, third base being the most obvious, and then left field.
02:58Most of his time would come at third base, but if the Yankees need to dispel Dominguez in left field versus a lefty, he can do that.
03:04And if things get even uglier with Volpe, he can move over there.
03:08He's only played five games or short this year, but it was his most common position last year, so he'd be comfortable.
03:13Castro is a switch hitter, batting .265 with a .356 on base, .791 OPS, nine homers, and even gives you a little speed with eight stolen bases.
03:24The Yankees would be totally okay with him playing every day because the splits from each side of the plate aren't too dramatic.
03:30.926 OPS versus left-handed pitching, .735 OPS versus righties.
03:35Both are certainly an upgrade to the .673 OPS Yankees third baseman had this season.
03:41So my proposal to the Twins for Yohan Duran and Willie Castro would be headlined by Yankees number two prospect Spencer Jones,
03:48plus number five prospect shortstop Roderick Arias, and number 17 prospect Carlos Lagrange.
03:55What do you think, Yankees fans? Is this a deal you'd be excited about, or would you be complaining that Cashman gave up too much?
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