Should the Twins bring back Jorge Polanco in free agency?

The Mariners on Friday declined Jorge Polanco’s $12 million club option for 2025, making the former Twins goalie a first-time free agent at age 31. He had a rough season in Seattle after being traded in a January deal that didn’t work out and didn’t play for either side because Justin Topa and Anthony DeSclafani were injured for the Twins. Should Minnesota consider bringing him back this winter?

The argument for reuniting the Twins with Polanco is that he may not cost much and may have a decent chance to return to form in the only MLB organization he has ever known before 2024. The 2019 All-Star had a 111 OPS+ in over 800 games with the Twins, including a mark of 110 or better (100 is league average) in every year from 2018-2023 except for the Covid-19-shortened 2020 campaign.

It’s hard to believe that Polanco has suddenly become the .213/.296/.355 (93 OPS+) bat he was in 118 games for the Mariners last season. Maybe that’s what it is – his advanced contact indicators don’t paint a picture of someone who was unlucky – but maybe not. Before last year, the attacking forward could consistently hit the ball and had above-average strength. The 2019 juicy ball season wasn’t Polanco’s only high-quality campaign; he hit .255 with 63 home runs in 336 regular season games from 2021-2023, good for 30.4 home runs per 162 games.

As Eno Sarris noted, Polanco’s strikeout rate was a big issue during his tenure in Seattle, but there’s a theory that hitters sometimes struggle because of the batter’s eye at T-Mobile Park.

The argument against bringing back Polanco is that it would be reusing someone who was once successful for the Twins but might not be the same player he once was. He’s a second baseman and acquiring him would hinder Brooks Lee’s ability to gain everyday batting skills. Lee played in 50 games as a rookie this year, but the 23-year-old remains one of the Twins’ most important players and projects because he will be a big part of their future if he can perform as the organization expects. Another top prospect, Luke Keaschall, could also join the team at second base as soon as this season.

On the other hand, you could argue that the Twins shouldn’t designate Lee as their starting 2B out of the competition considering he has no track record of success in the MLB. They certainly can’t count on Edouard Julien too much after his struggles in 2024. And if that happens, trading for someone like Willi Castro they may not have much infield depth this offseason, especially considering how injury-prone Royce Lewis and Carlos Correa were.

In a year where the Twins won’t have much money to spend due to self-imposed salary cap restrictions that won’t go away, Polanco could potentially prove to be a useful buy-low acquisition if he’s willing to return to Minnesota enough inexpensive offer.