Report: Twins believed they could have outdone Mets' offer for Stroman

There are a number of "what if?" scenarios after the MLB trade deadline, and one might have been costly for the Toronto Blue Jays.

On Sunday, the Blue Jays traded ace Marcus Stroman to the New York Mets for two pitching prospects: Anthony Kay and Simeon Woods Richardson.

The Minnesota Twins were disappointed when Toronto didn't give them a chance to match the Mets' package for Stroman, one the team believes it could have outdone, sources told The Athletic's Dan Hayes.

During initial discussions about Stroman, the Twins rebuffed the Blue Jays when Toronto asked for either Royce Lewis or Alex Kirilloff, two of the club's top prospects. But the Jays didn't call Minnesota back before accepting the Mets' offer.

The Blue Jays drew criticism for their return on Stroman after the deal was completed, but general manager Ross Atkins brushed that aside on Wednesday, saying the organization is pleased with the players it received.

"I think people look at industry rankings, and industry rankings have become a big thing," Atkins told Sportsnet's Arash Madani. "For us, we love Simeon Woods Richardson and we love Anthony Kay. So we don't feel that way and we feel very good about the return."

Along with Lewis and Kiriloff, the Twins' farm system also features youngsters Brusdar Graterol, Jordan Balazovic, and Trevor Larnach, all of whom rank ahead of Kay and Woods Richardson among MLB Pipeline's top 100 prospects.