The first domino of the Twins' offseason wheeling-and-dealing has finally toppled.
And it's a big one.
Jorge Polanco, who had been with the Twins organization since he was signed as a 16-year-old, was dealt Monday to the Seattle Mariners in exchange for three pitchers, an outfielder, and cash.
Two of the pitchers are righthanders with major league experience; starter Anthony DeSclafini and reliever Justin Topa.
The other two players are minor leaguers, pitcher Darren Bowen and outfielder Gabriel Gonzalez.
"This gets the 2024 Twins and the future Twins better," Twins vice president of baseball operations Derek Falvey told Vineeta Sawkar on the WCCO Morning News.
"We weren't going to trade Jorge Polanco without getting real return, and ultimately we felt we got that," he said.
A key part of the transaction is the cash element.
The Twins have been strapped for funds because they are still without a revenue-generating television deal for 2024 after cutting ties with Bally Sports.
That move prompted the Twins' front office to cut back on team payroll, although they did pick up Polanco's $10 million option for the coming season.
"We'll continue to find ways to augment the roster within the changing landscape around baseball and some of the media questions (about TV rights)," said Falvey.
Polanco debuted with the Twins at the age of 20 in 2014 and five years later was named to the American League All-Star team.
He was an integral part of the Twins infield for a decade, putting in most of his time at second base.
Polanco's career batting average is .269 with 112 home runs and 447 RBI.
He had a .334 on-base percentage and an OPS of .780.
Polanco, 30, missed much of last season with knee and hamstring injuries, allowing rookie Edouard Julien to take over at second base.
Julien hit .263 with 16 homers last season and was the starter at second base during the Twins' postseason run, while Polanco filled in a third base for the injured Royce Lewis.
DeSclafini never pitched for the Mariners, coming over from San Francisco in a trade earlier this month.
In nine seasons with the Marlins, Reds, and Giants, DeSclafini has a 54-56 record with a 3.81 earned run average.
Topa came out of the Seattle bullpen last season to win five games, and has also put in time with the Milwaukee Brewers.
DeSclafini is 33, Topa 32.
The Twins are in need of pitching help after losing Sonny Gray and Kenta Maeda to free agency.
Gray signed a three-year deal with St. Louis and Maeda went to Detroit after combining for 51 starts in 2023.
In Bowen, the Twins gained a righthanded pitcher heading into his second year of pro ball.
The 23-year-old righthander won four games for Class A Modesto.
Gonzalez, who's 20, was the Mariners' number three-ranked prospect, according to MLB.com, and hit a combined .298 for Class A Modesto and Everett.