Twins are clearly ready to trade Brian Dozier now

The Minnesota Twins are clearly in sell-mode, and Brian Dozier may be the next one gone.

In a matter of several hours, before and after last Friday night’s game, the Minnesota Twins traded infielder Eduardo Escobar to the Arizona Diamondbacks and reliever Ryan Pressly to the Houston Astros. But they should not be done making trades in the roughly 24 hours remaining before the non-waiver trade deadline. According to ESPN’s Jerry Crasnick there’s a “strong sense” second baseman Brian Dozier will be dealt to a contender.

Dozier seemed to be getting an early start on his typical second half hot streak, with a 1.091 OPS and a stretch of a home run in three out of four games over the 10 games heading into the All-Star break. But as a testament to his streakiness, he’s hitting .175 with zero home runs in the 10 games since (entering Monday).

After the trades of Escobar and Pressly on Friday, Dozier went back to a past narrative lamenting teammates getting traded and how the front office should have given the team more time. There’s savvy leadership, then there’s a fake front that stretches credibility.

In three games since Escobar was traded Dozier is 1-for-12 with one RBI, and he’s got a .224/.306/.404 slash-line with 16 home runs and 52 RBI overall this season.

Many contending teams that needed an infielder have moved to fill the void, with the Phillies acquiring Asdrubal Cabrera and the Brewers acquiring Mike Moustakas as the most notable alongside Escobar going to Arizona. The Brewers could still circle back to Dozier, with corner infielder Travis Shaw moving to second base to accommodate Moustakas, but there aren’t a lot of clear fits for Dozier’s services.

But Mike Berardino of the St. Paul Pioneer Press did point to a couple of potential suitors on Saturday.

The Indians and Twins start a three-game series on Monday night, so Dozier would only have to move to the other clubhouse at Target Field if the division-leading visitors make a deal for him. The Giants are still in hunt for a playoff spot, 6.5 games back in the NL West and six games back in the Wild Card race, but with just three wins in their last 10 games they’re on shaky ground as a legit trade deadline buyer.

After never getting involved in serious negotiations on a contract extension with him, the Twins seem to be open to any and all offers for Dozier. Heading toward Tuesday afternoon, even with a lack of obvious fits, a move seems imminent.