Ryan Jeffers Shares Feelings on Twins Future as Free Agency Begins

With the World Series over, catcher Ryan Jeffers officially became a free agent on Thursday, and the Minnesota Twins now have to decide how hard they want to push to bring him back.

Minnesota is the only professional organization he has ever known, since the Twins took him in the second round of the 2018 draft and he made his big-league debut in 2020.

Jeffers was asked about his future after the final game of the regular season, and he sounded like a player who wants to stay but also wants to see what the market looks like first.

"I love the idea of a reunion. I also love the idea of going out there and seeing what else is out there. I'm excited for this. I've worked really hard for this moment, for free agency, and that doesn't mean the chapter here has closed. We'll just see where we go," Jeffers told the St. Paul Pioneer Press.

He has earned that chance, since Jeffers hit .256 with a .353 on-base percentage, a .461 slugging percentage, 14 home runs and 56 RBIs in 92 games this season, and he did that even after a fractured left hamate bone in May cost him nearly two months.

The first big date is close, as clubs have until 4 p.m. CT on the fifth day after the end of the World Series to make qualifying offers, and with the Brewers finishing off the Rays on Oct. 28, that deadline lands on Monday.

The Pioneer Press reported the offer is expected to be around $23 million for one year, and if Jeffers turns it down and signs somewhere else, Minnesota would get draft pick compensation.

I think making that offer is an easy call.

The worst case is the Twins get a pick back for a player they were going to lose anyway, and the best case is Jeffers stays for one more year at a price that fits a team trying to climb back after a 77-85 season and a third-place finish in the American League Central.

There is a real argument that keeping Jeffers should be the top priority this winter, and that case gets stronger once we look at who is behind him on the depth chart.

Right now, catcher Victor Caratini is the only catcher on Minnesota's 40-man roster, and the Pioneer Press noted he is under contract for one more season.

Catcher Vahn Lackey, the No. 3 overall pick in this summer's draft, is the long-term answer, but he is not ready to take over a big-league staff yet.

That leaves a gap the front office has to fill one way or another, and it is not the only one.

The Twins also could look for a new closer this winter, and there are cheaper ways to add help to the relief group than spending big on a catcher.

Jeffers is a proven bat at a spot where good bats are hard to find, so if the Twins let him walk without at least making the offer, they would be making next season harder than it needs to be.