The Cardinals drew only minimal interest when trying to shop shortstop Brendan Ryan at last week’s Winter Meetings in Orlando, Florida. It appears their luck has changed.
According to Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, the Twins are exploring a trade for Ryan, hoping to add middle infield depth in the wake of Friday’s J.J. Hardy swap.
Ryan, 28, batted just .223 with a 573 OPS in 486 plate appearances for St. Louis this past year, but he’s one of the best defensive shortstops in all of baseball and would be a useful utility infielder on just about any roster.
The Twins won exclusive negotiating rights to 2010 Japanese batting champ Tsuyoshi Nishioka and are expected to work out a deal with the shortstop. They also have 26-year-old Alexi Casilla on board. A moving carousel of Nishioka, Casilla and Ryan at second base and shortstop would be plenty respectable.
