The Twins have placed Jim Thome and Jason Kubel on trade waivers, tweets Ken Rosenthal, of FoxSports.com.

Players need to be placed on waivers in order to be traded in August, and teams have the option of pulling them back if other teams make a claim. If a player isn't claimed, he can be traded to any team. It's not unusual for teams to try to pass several of their players through waivers this time of year.

The Twins have said they'd like to re-sign Kubel, but this could be like late July, where they are willing to move him if they are overwhelmed.

The Phillies and Indians are among the teams that could be interested in Thome, who has a full no-trade clause. He has never won a World Series, so he might welcome the chance this year, but you can bet the Twins would only trade him with his blessing.