Credit: Rob Thompson, St. Paul Saints
The Minnesota Twins were semi-surprising buyers at the trade deadline this summer, since nobody really trusted the Pohlads to add payroll, despite promises from Tom that they were happy to do so.
When the dust settled, general manager Jeremy Zoll landed three new bullpen arms and one depth starter, filling arguably the biggest weaknesses on Minnesota’s roster.
However, it’s become apparent since the trade deadline passed that the MN Twins were trying to do more, if only the asking price had been slightly lower.
On Saturday at the Star Tribune, Bobby Nightengale Jr. reported that Zoll was involved in multiple conversations leading up to the deadline that would have landed some pretty big names in the Twin Cities, had talks progressed.
Zach Neto trade talks stalled at Walker Jenkins
The most notable was a follow-up report on something his father, Bob Nightengale Sr. (USA Today Sports), reported last week on the Foul Territory Podcast — that the Twins were the most aggressive team in talks with the LA Angels for 25-year-old shortstop, Zach Neto.
According to Bob Jr, Minnesota hit up the Angels front office multiple times in recent weeks. However, negotiations didn’t go very far because LA was demanding the Twins include their No. 1 prospect (No. 14 overall according to MLB Pipeline), Walker Jenkins.
 The Twins had multiple check-ins with the Angels regarding Neto, sources said, but they never gained traction because the asking price started with top prospect Walker Jenkins.
Bobby Nightengale – Star Tribune
Instead of trading for Zach Neto, the MN Twins called up top prospect (No. 29 overall) Kaelen Culpepper, in order to fill the massive hole they have at shortstop. Especially with Byron Buxton on the injured list, it’s possible we could see the same thing with Jenkins anytime.
As much as I would have loved to see GM Jeremy Zoll pull off his first blockbuster as general manager last week, I’m very much glad he did not trade Walker Jenkins to get it done.
Related: Byron Buxton Recovery Taking Longer Than Expected
Neto is a fine young shortstop, but his .242 career batting average and .751 OPS are certainly not All-Star caliber. He also leads the league in strikeouts this season, with 162. His defense (1 DRS in 2026) is nothing to ride home about either.
That’s not the type of talent you want to get back if trading a prospect like Jenkins, who has the talent to develop into one of the best outfielders in baseball, if all goes well.
108.2 mph | 400 ft 👀
MLB’s No. 14 prospect Walker Jenkins collects the first multihomer game of his career!@Twins | @StPaulSaints | @TwinsPlayerDev pic.twitter.com/6c2fu4vVu7
— MLB Pipeline (@MLBPipeline) August 7, 2026
Minnesota Twins were also deep in Kevin Gausman trade talks
Per Nightengale Jr, the Minnesota Twins were also deep in talks with the Toronto Blue Jays, for 35-year-old starting pitcher Kevin Gausman, who was ultimately traded to the Chicago Cubs for their 10th ranked prospect and an MLB-ready outfielder.
The Twins beat writer does not disclose what was on the table for Gausman, or what the Blue Jays were demanding from Minnesota in the deal. Gausman is a 2x All-Star with a career 3.89 ERA, 110 ERA+ and 3.60 FIP.
On Sunday, one day before the deadline, the Twins were in talks with Toronto for Kevin Gausman, a source said. Gausman was later traded to the Cubs for two position player prospects: Middle infielder Ty Southisene, who ranked 10th in the Cubs’ system by Baseball America, and outfielder Brett Bateman, a Mounds View High School alum who made his major league debut Friday.
Bobby Nightengale – Star Tribune
Related: What’s Next for Ryan Jeffers and the MN Twins?
Gausman would have slotted in nicely at the top of the Twins rotation, likely even ahead of a healthy Joe Ryan and Taj Bradley, especially in the playoffs where he has 14 appearances and 8 total starts in his career, most of which have come in the past five seasons.
Obviously, none of the above transactions got done. Still, it’s interesting to see such aggressiveness out of an organization that most expect to sit on their hands at times like last week’s trade deadline. Maybe, just maybe, we will see the Minnesota Twins do something big this offseason, unless the players are locked out, of course.
Mentioned in this article: MLB Trade Deadline MLB Trade Rumors Walker Jenkins
More About:Minnesota Twins
Add MinnesotaSportsFan as a preferred source on Google.