Twins urged not to repeat Pablo Lopez trade mistake with 3.18 ERA All-Star

The Minnesota Twins are not a top postseason contender, but they have been hovering around the AL Wild Card with the hunt for the final spot being wide open.

At 39-45, the Twins are just 2.5 games back of a postseason spot. They could easily make a bid for October this year with a strong second-half. But, instead, the Twins might be sellers in the trade market.

MLB.com's Thomas Harrigan wants the Twins to sell, and more specifically, he's urging them to not to make the same mistake they made with Pablo Lopez with 3.18 ERA All-Star Joe Ryan. That mistake? Not trading Lopez while they could.

Twins urged not to repeat Pablo Lopez trade mistake with Joe Ryan

"After what happened with Lopez, the Twins need to seriously consider capitalizing while Ryan is healthy and pitching like an ace (3.18 ERA, 2.81 FIP)," Harrigan writes.

The Twins could have traded Lopez before, but elected not to do so. Now, he's on the injured list recovering from elbow surgery, and won't pitch at all in 2026.

They could've gotten a haul for Lopez, but instead, they've not benefited from him at all. Minnesota is in a similar spot with Ryan, though he makes significantly more sense to trade away.

The 3.18 ERA right-hander is under club control through the 2027 season, which does give the Twins an extra year to make a decision.

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But that extra year should be used as a way to get more out of a trade. He's not too expensive contract-wise, and is a good starter. His trade value is immense right now.

Byron Buxton has a no-trade clause, so there's little the Twins can do there. But Ryan does not, and if they want to build for the future, trading him makes too much sense this summer in what's likely to be a seller's market.

Ryan is likely to be one of the best pitchers on the trade market if he's placed there. Harrigan believes the Twins should entertain trade calls for Ryan, as repeating the same mistake they made with Lopez would be costly for this franchise.

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