I ask the above question because Jamie Shields could be a possible piece of trade bait by the Tampa Bay Rays.  I a article posted by D Rays Bay, the Rays actually discuss trading him to the Miami Marlins for Logan Morrison.  Now that is a trade would be rejected because the Marlins are moving into a new ballpark, and they have their own pitchers in the minors. This is despite Logan's twitter happy ways.  After the Jump, what it could take for the Twins to land Shields.

The above link is included because it includes info on Shields trade value.  But the gist of it is that Shields is under contract for three more years at a total of $28 million.  With that said, his value should be about $30 million total.  We also have BJ Upton who is available for trade and could get shipped out in one massive three or four team deal.  I am not saying that the Twins will land Upton though he could be included.

Now here are the players I could give up if I were to do this trade:  Keep in mind that the Twins will likely have to send only three players to complete the trade.  Keep in mind that the Rays are going to want a power bat, but might not get it from the Twins.

• Trevor Plouffe: Despite showing power, he has been in Gardy's doghouse and could be a good offensive outfielder for the Rays.
• Kevin Slowey: Another one of the players in Gardy's doghouse, he could project to be a cheap 5th starter.
• Danny Valencia: Another player that reportedly entered Gardy's doghouse due to errors committed on the field.  However, it would be nuts for the Twins to trade him because the manager hates some of his play.
• Jim Hoey: He would be an afterthought in this trade, but somebody is looking for bullpen help, and there is a chance that the Twins might be able to unload him.
• Joe Benson: Yes he could figure into our plans if the Twins don't resign Michael Cuddyer and Jason Kubel, but he is almost major league ready.  Also, the Twins will likely be going after a veteran major league outfielder anyway as the Twins prefer that Benson and Chris Parmelee stay down in Triple A.
• Oswaldo Arcia: Twins don't like his high number of strikeouts in the minors, but could project to be a steal for another team.
• Brian Dozier or Alexi Casilla: Either could project to be a fine trade pick, but Dozier could project to be a good player for Rochester so he likely stays.

For the record, I am not thinking about trading all the above players for one person.  This is just a list of people that the Twins could trade in the off-season.  Adding Shields does help our rotation, and the starting pitching market is looking somewhat bare.  The trick for Minnesota is to make sure that we are not hosed in any deal.