Things have been fairly quiet on the MLB trade front on Monday, but one deal was completed. The Minnesota Twins sent Chris Paddack and Randy Dobnak to the Detroit Tigers in exchange for catching prospect Enrique Jimenez.
Was this the biggest deal in the world? Absolutely not. Paddack is nothing more than a No. 5 starter at best, Dobnak is simply a depth arm, and Jimenez is far from an elite prospect. With that being said, while Jimenez might not be an elite prospect, he was considered the No. 14 Tigers prospect according to MLB Pipeline. That might not sound amazing, but Detroit's farm system is one of the best in the sport, and Jimenez has had a solid season in 2025.
To put it bluntly, the Twins, somehow, were able to receive a very real prospect in exchange for an underwhelming No. 5 starter on an expiring contract and a depth arm. If that was the return Minnesota got for Paddack and Dobnak, they might've been handed the best reason yet to trade their ace, Joe Ryan.
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Twins should listen to Joe Ryan offers after Chris Paddack trade
The Twins shouldn't want to trade Joe Ryan, but by no means should he be untouchable. Every player should be able to had for a price, and based on what we just saw in the Paddack deal, the price might be met.
What this Paddack deal shows is that teams are desperate for starting pitching depth. Paddack is a 29-year-old on an expiring contract who hasn't been very healthy or productive since his rookie year in 2019. Dobnak has virtually been a non-factor at the MLB level and could easily be a rental as well. Those two players netted an intriguing 19-year-old catching prospect. Sure, the Tigers are loaded with catcher prospects, but they wouldn't have traded Jimenez in this deal if they didn't have to.
If a team was willing to trade Jimenez for a couple of months of Paddack and Dobnak, what might two and a half years of Joe Ryan, one of the best pitchers in the American League, get? The answer is an absurd amount. The Twins might get an offer so overwhelmingly in their favor to the point where they feel as if they have no choice but to trade Ryan.
It's never fun to trade a cheap, cost-controlled starting pitcher, especially one as good as Ryan, but this is a seller's market, and one that is in dire need of an influx of starting pitching. The Twins shouldn't want to trade Ryan, but after getting Jimenez for Paddack and Dobnak, they ought to field offers. Based on what they were able to get for Paddack and Dobnak, they might get an offer that's too good to pass on for Ryan. If not, there's no shame in holding onto him.