Twins Will Shop Santana

Charley Walters of the St. Paul Pioneer Press reports that the Minnesota Twins will listen to offers on the centerpiece of their franchise this Winter.

The Twins don't have to trade Cy Young Award winner Johan Santana this winter, but they are expected to shop the left-handed pitcher who can become a free agent after next season. There will be more of a market for Santana, 28, this winter than next July before the trade deadline. The New York Mets, run by Omar Minaya, remain the strong favorite to acquire him if he leaves.

There will be several teams interested, but the price will probably be too steep to pursue. Even if a team comprised an offer good enough to land the lefty, his impending free agency might make the deal moot.

Should a contending team's last piece of the puzzle be a #1 starter, they might feel it necessary toward making a championship run. However, this would be an expensive six-month rental considering the type of super-prospects it would take to acquire him.