Pablo Lopez would go to Baltimore for top hitting prospect and two young pitchers.
After having a very eventful trade deadline back in July, the Minnesota Twins have stood pat through the first month and a half of free agency.
After going 70-92 in 2025, Minnesota decided to tear down a majority of their roster, indicating a fresh start.
However, there are still two elite pitchers that have foggy futures in Minnesota in Joe Ryan and Pablo Lopez.
Ryan (29) is the flashier of the two pitchers, as he's coming off of a career year where he posted a career best 3.42 ERA in 31 starts. Ryan has two more years of team control until he's set to hit free agency after the 2027 season.
Luckily for Ryan, General Manager Jeremy Zoll has made it clear that Minnesota is no longer shopping the pitcher to other teams, indicating that Ryan is here to stay.
Lopez, on the other hand, could be a more enticing trade option for Minnesota as he's coming off a season with only 14 starts, his lowest mark since the 2020 covid season.
Like Ryan, Lopez is set to hit free agency after the 2027 season. If Minnesota were to trade one of the two, I would bet on it being Lopez.
There are many pitcher needy teams in the MLB right now such as Baltimore, Chicago and both New York teams. I could see all four of these clubs pursuing Lopez, if made available.
Baltimore is one of, if not the most aggressive teams in free agency -- especially in their pursuit of starting pitching. Baltimore has a surplus of good prospects and young MLB ready bats to get a deal done for Lopez.
In this mock trade, Baltimore would send 1B Coby Mayo to Minnesota, along with pitching prospects Nestor German (No. 11) and Chayce McDermott for Lopez.
Minnesota would be getting a young, controllable first baseman with endless hitting upside, along with two promising arms.
Mayo would project as the first baseman of the future for Minnesota, as their starting first baseman currently would be 33 year old veteran Josh Bell.
Lopez would be a brilliant fit for Baltimore, as he would slot in between Kyle Bradish and Trevor Rogers as the number two starter in the rotation.
Lopez is set to make $21,750,000 annually for the next two years, which would be considered a steal given the state of the current pitching market.
If Minnesota wants to go full rebuild and completely tear it down, Coby Mayo would be a very promising building block for them to build off of.
Lopez would immediately bolster Baltimore's rotation, making them one of the best teams in the American League.