How About We Just Not Trade Denard Span, Okay?

I'm allowed to be biased. This is a fan blog. I try to be as objective as I can possibly be, particularly in light of the fact that on most occasions I consider myself to be a fan of the team first, and a fan of individual players second. This afternoon I have no problem saying that I'm a big Denard Span fan. And I don't want him to be traded.

It would be easy for me to back this up with statistics, although it'd be difficult for me to figure out where to start. We can talk about speed, how important it is to get on base at the top of the lineup, defense, personality, all that stuff, but right now we're looking at a situation where the Twins are definitely considering trading one of their best and most valuable position players.

The optimist in me says that we don't know all the details yet. Of course we don't. Even if you don't believe that this front office can pull off a big trade that could work out in Minnesota's favor, the one thing that hasn't changed over the years is that they play everything close to the vest. They're notorious for keeping their mouths shut. So you can bank on the fact that 95% of what we've heard so far has probably come from either Washington, or is informed speculation on the part of reporters.

But here's the thing: if the Twins trade Span, and it's seemingly becoming more an issue of "when" than "if", they'd be selling. They'd be selling on this year, and next year, and possibly even 2013. Who leads off if Span gets traded? Ben Revere and his maybe .300 on-base percentage? Denard is your ideal leadoff man, regardless of his fluky bad 2010. He's a better player than that and we all know it. And who sells such a good player on such a great contract?

Remember when the Twins dealt Luis Castillo at the deadline a few years back? Terry Ryan tried to claim that the Twins weren't selling then, either. The fans didn't buy it, the media didn't buy it, and the team sure as hell didn't buy it. Don't spit on me and tell me it's raining. If the Twins are going to sell, just say the Twins aren't going to sell. Stating what the rest of the world already knows and is ready to accept isn't going to drive down the value of your trade chips that much. And what value they may lose, as little as it would be, is more than made up for the fact that at least you're being honest with the fans and team.

Everyone knows what situation this team is in right now. So stop playing the teasing girlfriend and just make the call.

Back to the issue at hand: there is no reason on this green earth to trade Span. Washington can keep Bernadette or whatever they choose to call their version of Jason Repko, because we've already got that player. His name is Jason Repko, and he plays the role of Jason Repko exceptionally well.

But this goes beyond common sense. I just like Denard Span. If a trade goes down I can try and be objective about it later, but right now I'm just willing time to go faster. I don't mind the Twins selling if that's what they think the best option is, but Span isn't the guy. Bring me 3pm central time Sunday, stat.