USA Today’s Bob Nightengale reported Sunday that the Yankees and Rays had scouts at Wrigley Field this weekend to watch three Twins: catcher Ryan Jeffers, starter Joe Ryan and outfielder Trevor Larnach. The timing is awkward. Minnesota’s front office said at the break it wants to add, and the club then went to Wrigley and dropped two of three, capped by Sunday’s 10-1 loss that left it 49-51 and two games back of the AL’s third wild card.
The contract situations explain the shopping list. Jeffers is a free agent after this season; Ryan and Larnach are under club control through 2027. Jeffers has been one of the league’s most productive catchers since returning from a broken hamate bone, hitting .288 with a .401 on-base percentage, a .540 slug and eight home runs in 42 games. Ryan — an All-Star this month — carries a 2.85 ERA with 128 strikeouts against 25 walks in 110 1/3 innings, the kind of line that would headline any deadline. Larnach is the quieter name at .286/.377/.444 with seven homers, but for a contender needing a corner bat on a controllable deal, he may be the most gettable of the three.
None of this means Minnesota has changed its posture. Scouting a possible seller two weeks out is standard preparation, and the Twins have said all month that the plan is to buy bullpen help, not to move the roster’s core. What the next two weeks of games do to that plan is the actual question. At .500 on Friday, buying was easy to defend; two games under and two back of Boston, the math tightens with every loss before August 3.
For fantasy managers, Jeffers should be rostered in every two-catcher league and most single-catcher formats while this hot streak lasts, and a trade to a contender would only help his runs and RBI environment. Ryan’s value is stable regardless of uniform — a 128-to-25 strikeout-to-walk ratio travels. Larnach is the speculative piece: a deal that lands him an everyday corner job would make him a standard-league add.
