The Sox’ Coco Crisp, chasing a fly ball in a September game against the Orioles, is in one package for Twins lefty Johan Santana.

The Providence Journal / Bob Breidenbach

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — It now seems increasingly unlikely that the Red Sox will leave here today with Johan Santana figuratively in tow, but all is not lost for the Sox. While they may have failed to complete a deal with the Minnesota Twins for the ace left-hander, they successfully maneuvered to block the Yankees from doing so.

With talks with the Twins at an impasse, it has struck some that that was the Red Sox’ primary goal all along. They weren’t so much motivated by obtaining Santana as much as they were ensuring that he didn’t join the Yanks.

By all indications, the Red Sox have made two proposals to the Twins, neither of which has been deemed sufficient by Minnesota. One package is headed by Jacoby Ellsbury and another is led by Jon Lester and includes Coco Crisp. Both packages would be augmented by other prospects, likely chosen from a list that includes infielder Jed Lowrie and pitcher Justin Masterson.

Last night, without the Yankees to leverage, the Twins seemed intent on baiting another team to join the bidding. Despite reports otherwise, Santana is not on the Los Angeles Dodgers’ radar. The Seattle Mariners have shown some interest, and according to Peter Greenberg, Santana’s agent, so have the New York Mets.

But nothing has grabbed the Twins’ attention enough to do a deal and open the 72-hour window for Greenberg and a team to discuss a contract extension, which Santana will demand in exchange for waiving his no-trade clause.

So the Red Sox, perfectly content, sit and wait. Particularly with the Yankees on the sideline — for the time being, anyway — the Sox feel no sense of urgency to sweeten their offer and hasten some sort of resolution.

The club already has an excess of starting pitchers, and all except Curt Schilling are under the team’s control for a minimum of three years.

“We certainly respect the position the Twins are in,” said general manager Theo Epstein. “It’s their prerogative to handle it as they see fit. We’ve had an amicable dialogue throughout. We’re going to be open-minded going forward, but we don’t have any deal. … If it’s a Red Sox player (being shopped, then it would be a) Red Sox timetable. That’s how I would look at it. They’re probably doing the same thing.”

He characterized the state of the talks thusly: “It’s been an open-ended dialogue the whole time to see if there’s a mutual fit.”

Asked if each passing day represented a lessening of the Sox being able to work out a suitable deal, Epstein shrugged and said he didn’t know.

Most teams — the Sox included — are scheduled to leave here by this afternoon, after the completion of the Rule V draft. The mass exodus doesn’t preclude a deal from being done tomorrow, next week or next month.

The deliberate pace the Twins are setting has led some to believe that they are now leaning toward keeping Santana; others think that would only serve as a huge distraction. The Twins could also wait and deal him at the July 31 trade deadline if the club is out of contention next summer, but that timetable would sharply reduce his value.

Moreover, Santana would be unlikely to sign an extension just three months shy of free agency.

New Twins general manager Bill Smith has been on the job for just a few months and may be proceeding especially cautiously to guarantee that he maximizes Santana’s value.

Should that be the case, the Red Sox can afford to wait out the Twins’ indecision. Their patience to date hasn’t landed them Santana, but they haven’t eliminated themselves, either, which is more than can be said for their chief rivals.

And for now, that’s solace enough.

smcadam@projo.com