Balancing Health and Strategy: The Twins’ Approach with Pablo López and Simeon Woods Richardson

[Cody Christie]

Image courtesy of © Nick Wosika- -Imagn Images

The Minnesota Twins find themselves in an interesting position with their pitching staff. With Pablo López and Simeon Woods Richardson both working their way back from the injured list, the club must balance the short-term goal of finishing the season strong with the long-term considerations tied to each pitcher’s future. Their recent rehab outings with St. Paul provided the first glimpse of what the road back might look like.

López’s Return: A Balancing Act of Health and Trade Value
López made his first rehab start on Thursday and worked through a demanding outing. The right-hander labored in the first inning, throwing 32 pitches before being removed after hitting his 45-pitch limit in the second. He finished 1 2/3 innings, surrendering a run on four hits, walking one, and striking out two. His velocity looked encouraging, with fastballs averaging 94.3 mph and sinkers holding steady at 93.9 mph.

For López, this rehab stint is about more than just regaining his rhythm. Following the Twins’ trade deadline sell-off, López is now the club’s highest guaranteed contract, set to make $21.5 million in both 2026 and 2027. That contract status complicates the picture, because he is a team leader and would like to compete, but his performance down the stretch also doubles as an audition for other clubs should the Twins pursue a trade this winter. Minnesota will want to prove he’s healthy and effective, which makes his workload management even more delicate.

Woods Richardson’s Path Back to Stability
Woods Richardson followed López in St. Paul and tossed 3 1/3 innings, giving up four runs (three earned) on five hits, while walking one and striking out four. He threw 64 pitches, landing 40 for strikes, with his fastball sitting at 93.3 mph and topping out at 95.2. The results weren’t perfect, but the velocity and ability to miss bats remain encouraging signs for a pitcher returning from injury.

Unlike López, Woods Richardson’s situation is less about showcasing trade value and more about development. Still just 24 years old, the Twins hope he can take another step forward as a reliable rotation option. His workload down the stretch needs to be carefully managed, with an emphasis on building innings in a controlled way. Over the last two seasons, he has posted a 100 ERA+ with a K% north of 20.0% and a BB% just above 9.0%.  If he can get back to consistently pounding the zone and avoiding the big inning, Minnesota will feel much better about penciling him into next year’s plans.

How the Twins Should Handle Them Down the Stretch
The Twins are out of contention, but these rehab assignments underline that the rest of the season still matters. López’s starts should be approached with two key goals in mind: proving he is healthy and helping the front office position him as a valuable asset. That doesn’t mean pushing him to his limits. It means measured progress, targeting outings of four to five innings before letting him finish the year in the big-league rotation.

For Woods Richardson, the priority is experience and confidence. Minnesota should aim to get him stretched out to around 80–90 pitches, focusing on refining command and sequencing rather than raw results. His ability to consistently compete deep into outings will go a long way toward determining whether he’s viewed as a rotation lock or depth option moving forward.

This stretch run may not carry playoff implications, but it still holds weight for the Twins’ future. López needs to show health and effectiveness to either remain a frontline piece or become a centerpiece in a winter trade. Woods Richardson needs to show progress and stability so the team can confidently rely on him in 2026. Both pitchers represent different parts of the Twins’ puzzle, and how the club handles their usage over the next six weeks could have ripple effects far beyond this season.

How should the Twins handle these two pitchers over the season’s final month? Leave a comment and start the discussion. 

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[Rod Carews Birthday]

I think the plan with Pablo Lopez is the same regardless of whether or not the Twins want to trade him in the offseason or have him be an anchor on next year's staff.  Get him healthy and pitching well, so that we know he can be counted on.  I personally vote to NOT trade him, but I'm not going to get the phone call to register my vote.  As to SWR, again, I think it's just get him healthy and feeling good.  It sounds like the guy went through something kind of nasty, so recovering strength is key.  I think the question for him is whether they think he will still belong in the rotation as the 4/5 starter, whether he could successfully go to the bullpen, or whether they can get a team to bite on his old pedigree and limited experience in the rotation.  I'm less sure of the right answer for SWR.

[Patzky]

Is it wrong to hope Pablo gets shut down so we keep him for 26? Does it make me a bad fan..

[Doctor Gast]

I further state since Gray left, our rotation is fragile. I further advocate for all our viable SPs to be brought up & have all SP have a short leash to protect all our SP & at the same time have as many viable SPs have a good look at, in a more piggy-back/ long relief role. 

[minman1982]

At this point, I think the Twins need to give everyone who could be in the rotation next year a few starts to see what they have. We know Ryan and Ober are going to be back. Ryan is arbitration eligible for the next two seasons and while I would expect him to make more than the $3M he is getting this year, he is not going to get $20M. If the Twins trade Ryan, they are really signaling that they are not planning on being competitive in 2026. Ober is also arbitration eligible for the next two seasons. I would expect him to make less than Ryan but their salaries will likely be somewhat comparable. It would be nice to see the organization lock one of these guys up in a longer term deal, but I don't see that happening this off season.

I fully expect Lopez to get traded in the off season. The question will be what will the Twins get in return. I was sad to see him go down earlier this season because he was putting together a great year. Only 29, ceiling: ace level stuff, floor: solid number 2 SP, two years of team control, someone is going to want him. While I would love to have Lopez, Ryan, and Ober lead the rotation in 2026, I can't imagine the Twins passing up a good offer to trade Lopez.

The other guys: Festa, SWR, Abel, Zebby, Bradley: Give them all some starts and see what they can do. At least two, probably three, will be needed next season. The Twins are not going to go out and get a starter in free agency unless it is off the bottom of some other teams trash heap. Any of these guys are better options than what the Twins will be able to get in free agency.

[minman1982]

7 hours ago, Patzky said:

Is it wrong to hope Pablo gets shut down so we keep him for 26? Does it make me a bad fan..

No. I think we all want Lopez back next season. Unfortunately, I think the Twins will still try to trade him even if they shut him down the rest of this season.

[Glorybound]

Two very different injuries if you can call SWR situation an injury. SWR is with the Twins this weekend so will likely be activated for today’s game. Lopez will get at least one maybe two more starts at AAA. There are reasons to start him yet this season whether they plan to trade him or not. I definitely think he gets traded this off season. 
  I am not sure they even consider Bradley a future starter. He may get a few starts but something tells me they plan on making him a bull pen pitcher going into next year.

[Jeff K]

9 minutes ago, Glorybound said:

Two very different injuries if you can call SWR situation an injury. SWR is with the Twins this weekend so will likely be activated for today’s game. Lopez will get at least one maybe two more starts at AAA. There are reasons to start him yet this season whether they plan to trade him or not. I definitely think he gets traded this off season. 
  I am not sure they even consider Bradley a future starter. He may get a few starts but something tells me they plan on making him a bull pen pitcher going into next year.

I think Bradley is starting today for the Twins.

[Glorybound]

16 minutes ago, Jeff K said:

I think Bradley is starting today for the Twins.

Yes he is listed as today’s starter. Hopefully he can go at least 4.

[Otaknam]

I would like to see Zebby, Abel and Bradley get long looks as starters this season. Use a six man rotation with OBER, Ryan and Lopez, who will be on a pitch count anyway. Right now the rotation for 2026 looks to be solid, which is the one positive going forward. But that could easily change if either Ryan or Lopez or both get traded, likely Lopez, given his contract.

It will be interesting to see which three players get called up to end the year. My choices, but I don’t think any of them are on the 40 man roster. Still, they have earned in IMO: Fedko, since he must be the leading candidate for Twins minor league POY. And they could use an outfielder who bats right handed, who has speed and has shown power this years. Outfielder Gabe Gonzales, who they got in the Polanco trade, has also excelled this year, has hit every year, and gets on base at a high percentage. Finally, I would love to see IF Payton Eeles get a shot because it’s a great story and he has earned it. But the team would have to DFA three guys on the 40 man, so this isn’t likely to happen. 

[LambchoP]

Ryan is cheap for a SP. This is the type of players you build a rotation around. As much as I'd love to keep Pablo to mentor all our young pitchers, with his high contract I expect he'll be gone. Maybe we can get a solid MLB ready bat out of the trade. Someone who can hit like a true 1b should? A starting corner IF and a MLB ready pitcher could help in the long run....seeing the returns from the trade deadline I'm not too encouraged on what we might get for Lopez :(