In an item on the Twins at SI.com, writer Jeremy Fuchs uses the Twins' weekend sweep in Cleveland — the first of its kind since 1991, the last time Minnesota won the World Series, of course — as a device for heaping some praise on the local nine.
He gets it mostly right, starting with Ervin Santana, noting Miguel Sano's huge impact, perhaps overstating the contributions of inconsistent Eddie Rosario and correctly mentioning the solid years of Joe Mauer and Brian Dozier as reasons for the team's success.
But then there's this: "The Twins certainly need more pitching behind Santana, who is more than carrying the load. But with someone like Byron Buxton to dangle, they might be able to make something work."
Sorry, but that's an awful idea. Trading Buxton for a pitcher likely upgrades one spot on your staff. But taking away his defense makes everyone on the staff worse.
Read Michael Rand's blog at startribune.com/randball. michael.rand@startribune.com.
