The Minnesota Twins shook up this year's trade deadline when they, seemingly unexpectedly, decided to host a major fire sale and part ways with a ton of veteran players, including those with multiple years of control remaining on their contract.
As the team abruptly launched head first into a total rebuild, one trade they made at the deadline stood out as a complete head-scratcher. Included in the trade that sent veteran infielder Ty France to the Toronto Blue Jays was relief pitcher Louis Varland. The decision to part ways with the reliever reportedly left players in the clubhouse "seething" and GMs across the league "dumbfounded," per Bob Nightengale of USA TODAY.
Varland is a St. Paul, Minn. native and an outstanding reliever who wore the Twins uniform with pride and had his family at every game. The 27-year-old is making just $768,150 in 2025, slightly above the league minimum, and is controllable for five more years. Trading him in the midst of a campaign in which he has a 1.98 ERA and a 1.8 bWAR in 52 outings made little sense, especially given how beloved he was by his teammates, and how much he loved being in Minnesota.
Twins fans have made clear they weren't pleased with the organization's sudden change of direction at the trade deadline, which included the stunning departure of Carlos Correa, but it was ultimately the Varland trade that seems to have offended players within the clubhouse the most.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as One Head-Scratching Twins Trade Deadline Deal Left Players 'Seething' .
