Twins have made a major splash ... so what's next?

FORT MYERS, Fla. -- Eventually, when the smoke clears from the Twins' cacophony of moves in these early days of Spring Training, they should have a fortified pitching staff and a new starting shortstop. That was the goal all along.

But nobody could have imagined that this is the way they'd get there.

Over the course of the last two days, the Twins have made three significant trades, starting with a Saturday trade that sent Mitch Garver to Texas in exchange for Isiah Kiner-Falefa. Sonny Gray came along from Cincinnati on Sunday morning in exchange for 2021 first-rounder Chase Petty, a clear improve-now move. Then, of course, late at night, they flipped Kiner-Falefa to the Yankees along with Josh Donaldson and Ben Rortvedt, landing Gio Urshela and Gary Sánchez.

Twins fans are sure to have many, many questions about what all this means. Let's see if we can answer some of them (before the Twins shake things up even more).

The Twins can't be done, right?
No, certainly not -- so buckle up.

One key of the Donaldson deal is that the Twins have now freed up the remaining $50 million guaranteed to the third baseman over the final two years of the contract he signed before the 2020 season. They still have outstanding needs, and president of baseball operations Derek Falvey said Monday that the Twins planned to take advantage of that flexibility -- though he couldn't commit to exactly what that would look like.

"I expect to take advantage of it for sure," Falvey said. "Exactly how that plays out, short term, long term, medium term, I don't know. Obviously, it clears a lot off next year as well. ... We're going to have to roll with the punches a little bit and figure out what we can add over the next few weeks leading into Opening Day."

Various national reports have supported the idea that the Twins remain active in the market, with MLB.com's Jon Paul Morosi reporting that Minnesota and Oakland have discussed trade proposals that could bring top pitchers Frankie Montas or Sean Manaea to the Twin Cities, while MLB Network insider Jon Heyman has indicated the Twins have checked in on star free-agent shortstop Trevor Story.

For as much as the Twins have already done, their roster still has holes, with Sunday night's blockbuster Yankees trade in particular opening up a much wider range of possibilities than before.

"We are having active dialogue on both sides of this thing," Falvey said. "What this really boils down to is, we normally do this over five-plus months, and now we’re doing this over a really short period of time. This is just an offseason like none other. I think this will persist."

Where does Urshela fit?
Urshela will work out at both third base and shortstop for now, with Jorge Polanco and Nick Gordon also taking part-time reps at the position. Manager Rocco Baldelli noted that the Twins will "mix up" work at shortstop for the time being, an evident indication that there's no clear-cut, full-time solution at the position in camp at the moment.

With Donaldson gone, there's a natural opening for Urshela to slide into the hot corner at least some of the time, with Luis Arraez also a candidate for time there (he filled in capably in Donaldson's absence last season) and top prospect José Miranda also pushing for a big league opportunity there. There's no clear indication of how that playing time will split for now, and it's something to keep an eye on throughout camp, especially as further transactions occur.

"I can play wherever," Urshela said. "I don't mind if I play shortstop, third base, even first base. I've played it before. Wherever they need me, I'll be there."

Where does Sánchez fit?
Though Sánchez took plenty of criticism for his defense while with the Yankees, the Twins affirmed their belief in his ability behind the plate on Monday and indicated that he'll split time there with incumbent Ryan Jeffers, who appeared to take on the starting role upon Garver's trade. Falvey said the actual breakdown of the split has yet to be determined.

"When we made the trade, we talked about how much we believe in Ryan and how much we believe in his long-term future," Falvey said. "And that doesn’t change at all. I view Ryan to be someone who we're really going to lean on at the catching position. ... Gary’s going to catch a lot. Ryan’s going to catch a lot as well."

Falvey also made it clear that the Twins believe in Sánchez's upside despite his documented inconsistency on both sides of the ball in New York, and the Twins could keep his bat in the lineup when not catching by rotating him through the designated hitter spot, where Miguel Sanó and Brent Rooker could also see time.

What do they still need?
Both Falvey and Baldelli made it clear that they acquired Kiner-Falefa from the Rangers with the full intention that he'd be their starting shortstop, with no sense that they'd flip him to another team only 35 hours later. Falvey said the deal with the Yankees came together very quickly, as New York was perceived to be the runner-up in the original Kiner-Falefa deal and still felt strongly about the shortstop.

So, the Twins still likely need a starting shortstop.

Even with Gray in tow, the Twins could use more help in the starting rotation, in which Dylan Bundy, Joe Ryan and Bailey Ober likely have spots secured ahead of a depth group headlined by Randy Dobnak and Lewis Thorpe, along with a slew of prospects likely to make an impact later in the season. There's also room for one or two relievers to fortify the bullpen.

"There’s a lot of players out there, a lot of conversations happening with clubs," Falvey said after the Gray trade. "So I wish I could tell you I know the script ahead of us. I don’t. There’s a lot of active dialogue, and we’re going to have to take it day by day."

So, starting shortstop Trevor Story, then?
It certainly seems like more of a possibility than it did 24 hours ago. With Donaldson's contract freed up, that money could go to a group of players or perhaps one splashier one. There aren't too many of those splashy free-agent pitchers left on the market.

The Twins have clearly made efforts to improve their shortstop defense with the acquisition of Andrelton Simmons in '21 and (temporary) trade for Kiner-Falefa on Saturday. They appear reluctant to give the job to Urshela or Polanco, likely with that in mind. Story reportedly wants to stick at shortstop, according to reports throughout the offseason.

He's not the only option. For instance, if a rumored trade with the A's does happen, perhaps the Twins could also take on someone like Elvis Andrus as part of that deal as a short-term solution. Jonathan Villar also remains on the free-agent market.

"I would tell you that just about every free agent that’s out there, we’ve had a conversation with some representative within their group," Falvey said. "So that’s not just true of that position, but other positions, the pitching market, other spots on the field.

"We’ve come to learn through the course of this stretch of time that Plan A is one, and then you execute Plan A, and it may change what Plan B and Plan C look like at different junctures. That’s been happening regularly with us. We’re having conversations with other clubs and other agents that we weren’t expecting to have. We’re going to continue to have conversations with all those agents. Whether the fit lines up for any of those players, I can’t say."