In major-league front offices, no moves are made in a vacuum. Many voices are in play and Twins fans are well aware that outside constraints (e.g. payroll limitations) can hold major influence. But ever since he was first hired after the 2016 season, up until his departure on Friday, Derek Falvey was atop the chain of baseball command. Every move made over the past nine years has had his stamp on it.

During that time, we’ve seen some of the best trades and boldest signings in franchise history. We’ve also seen a lot of misfires and missed opportunities that played a huge role in the inability of talented teams to get over the hump. 

These are my picks for the five best, and five worst, moves made by the Twins during Falvey’s time in charge.

5 Best Twins Moves Under Derek Falvey

The first Carlos Correa signing
It’s reasonable to look back at Correa’s Twins career with some bitterness, given the shortcomings and early exit. His second contract with Minnesota was at best a mixed bag. But that shouldn’t cause us to overlook what a monumental, game-changing moment his first signing was. 

Announced out of nowhere in the middle of the night, Correa’s bombshell contract – three years, $105 million with opt-outs – seemed to redefine what was possible for the Twins franchise. They had never waded into these kinds of free agency waters before. This was a statement signing that they (briefly) followed through on the next year, And although the 2022 season proved to be a disappointment overall, Correa produced one of the best seasons for a shortstop in team history, posting 4.6 fWAR and setting the stage for an unlikely return.

The Joe Ryan trade
Now this is how you “sell” at the deadline. When the Twins fell out of contention in 2021, they made hay with their best expiring asset, trading Nelson Cruz to the Rays for two pitching prospects. One of those prospects came to the majors almost immediately, and has been excelling in the Minnesota rotation ever since, to the point where he’s now arguably their ace. This was a rare moment where the Twins managed to outfox a Rays front office that they so admired and aspired to emulate. Easily one of the best trades in franchise history.

The Pablo López trade
The López trade doesn’t rate quite as highly as Ryan, since the Twins had to give up more substantial value for him, but it looked smart at the time and looks genius in retrospect. Luis Arraez has declined rapidly since the trade while López – whom the Twins quickly extended – instantly solidified his status as a frontline starter, which he has maintained since. He led the way in two playoff victories in 2023 and will likely start on Opening Day for a fourth consecutive season.

The Byron Buxton contract extension
For a long time, it looked like this wasn’t going to happen. Unable to find common ground on an extension as free agency approached, the Twins were actively exploring trades for Buxton before finally managing to reach an agreement just ahead of the 2021 lockout. The seven-year, $100 million contract was very favorable to the team, built around incentives due to Buxton’s availability concerns. It has already paid for itself based on his performance on the field, despite injuries and missed time. 

Drafting Ryan Jeffers
There are a lot of other candidates I thought about throwing in here: the Escobar-for-Durán trade, the Willi Castro signing, the Royce Lewis selection. Bailey Ober deserves mention as well. But I think it’s fair to say Jeffers was the biggest draft success story of the Falvey era – the one position player who has developed into an above-average, multi-year major-league regular. Perhaps that is damning with faint praise, given that Jeffers hasn’t been a spectacular player or All-Star, but we’ve seen how hard it is to develop a good big-league catcher. 

5 Worst Twins Moves Under Derek Falvey

The 2024 trade deadline
As you’ll see, most of the low points from Falvey’s tenure revolve around the trade deadline. Missed opportunities to supplement good or borderline rosters will haunt memories from this stretch of competitive seasons where the Twins too often fell short of their potential.

The deadline in 2024 was a perfect example. When it arrived the Twins were very much in contention, 11 games above .500 at the end of July. At the deadline, the front office did nothing of consequence; in fact, trading only for Trevor Richards – a replacement-level reliever who’d be released weeks later – was almost worse than nothing. This set the stage for a full-on collapse to ensue, with no added quality depth to help weather the storm.

The 2019 trade deadline
Unlike the 2024 team, the 2019 team didn’t need saving. It needed reinforcements. The Bomba Squad was perhaps the best regular-season Twins teams ever, but got swept out of the playoffs. There’s no guaranteeing savvier pickups at the trade deadline would’ve changed that outcome, but Sam Dyson was a disaster and Sergio Romo didn’t move the needle enough. If ever there was a time to think big.

The Alex Colomé signing
Rarely has a singular offseason acquisition tanked an entire season like this. Signed as a free agent to handle the closer position in 2021, Colomé repeatedly melted down in key spots while the Twins dug an inescapable early-season hole. It’s one of several examples that makes me raise an eyebrow when people intimate that building a bullpen on the fly is easy.

The Ryan Pressly trade
Ope, another deadline trip-up. I view letting Pressly get away as perhaps the single most regrettable move of Falvey’s time at the helm. He would’ve been under control in 2019, when the Twins were scrambling for the likes of Dyson and Romo at the deadline, but instead was flipped in 2018 for Jorge Alcala and Gilberto Celestino. Pressly went on to become Houston’s bullpen ace for several years, helping the Astros win a World Series. 

A former Rule 5 pick, Pressly was one of the biggest reliever development success stories for Minnesota in decades, but the front office – intent on “selling high” with extended control remaining – let him get away before his impact could be fully felt. You hope the same doesn’t happen with the players lost in this final set of moves…

The 2025 firesale
I know this wasn’t all driven by Falvey or the front office. Maybe not even mostly. But still, you have to hold the baseball decision-makers accountable for some truly baffling baseball decisions. 

On their own, many of the trades at least year’s deadline made sense, but in totality this scorched-earth sell-off completely obliterated any realistic hopes of contention in 2026, which now looks like a glaring misstep in light of Tom Pohlad’s directive to field a competitive squad this year. Had the Twins not sold off four key controllable players, that would have actually been viable.

What are your thoughts? Which highs and lows did I miss from Derek Falvey’s nine-year tenure as Minnesota Twins baseball leader? Where are you hoping to see the team improve in his absence? Sound off in the comments.