What the Twins got is a raw, speedy outfielder in Carlos Gomez, who didn’t look like much of a hitter in 125 at-bats with New York last year, and right-hander Philip Humber, who has bounced back from elbow ligament replacement surgery after being drafted third overall in 2004.
Minnesota also acquired pitcher Kevin Mulvey, who was 12-10 with a 3.20 ERA in 26 starts at Double-A Binghamton and one at New Orleans last year, and Deolis Guerra, who turns 19 in April and was 2-6 with a 4.01 ERA at Class-A St. Lucie.
Some think Mulvey can be a middle-of-the-rotation starter in the majors. Guerra is a wild card.
If one or two of these guys pan out, it won’t be a bad deal for the Twins, who at least shipped Santana out of the American League. The best thing they did, though, is add multiple prospects. When dealing with minor leaguers, dealing in volume is the way to go.
But waiting to pull the trigger might prove costly for the Twins.
Santana, left unprotected by Houston in the 1999 winter meeting draft, turns 29 in March. The left-hander seems to be the closest thing there is to a safe bet, too.
After beginning his career in the bullpen, he proved durable for the Twins but wasn’t overused. Minnesota takes great pride in protecting its young arms — Santana has made 33 or 34 starts each of the last four seasons and pitched anywhere from 219 to 233 2-3 innings. He threw extra innings in the playoffs several times, but not last year.
The Mets needed to make a big move after their unprecedented collapse last September left players and fans bitter. Then, Tom Glavine took his 200-plus innings to Atlanta, leaving a huge hole in the rotation.
Plus, they had sat by and watched as their chief rivals in the NL East, the Philadelphia Phillies, upgraded their bullpen (Brad Lidge) and lengthened their lineup (Geoff Jenkins and Pedro Feliz) this offseason.
Just two years ago, the Mets were one win from the World Series. The addition of Santana makes them NL favorites again.
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