3 Non-Tendered Bats the Twins Could Consider

[Nate Palmer]

Image courtesy of © Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

The Minnesota Twins will need to find more consistent offensive production in 2026. With no signs pointing to an ability to spend substantial money in the free agent market, the Twins could turn to a crop of players who were recently made available at the non-tender deadline on Friday. 

Going into the deadline, it seemed as if the Twins would be keeping an eye on catchers who hit the open market after being non-tendered. The acquisition of Alex Jackson has since then made a move for a catcher no longer needed; therefore, we will turn our attention elsewhere. Here are three players who could help fill some lineup roles for the Twins. 

Nathaniel Lowe 1B
Nathaniel Lowe was non-tendered by the Boston Red Sox, who acquired the left-handed batter mid-2025 from the Washington Nationals. MLBTR projected Lowe to be up for a raise that would land him at $13.5 million, which is too rich for the Twins if Lowe still expects something nearing that. Due to his play, the first baseman’s price should come down considerably, and the Red Sox version of Lowe could help stabilize first base and designated hitter for the Twins. 

In those 34 games with Boston, Lowe slashed .280/.370/.420 with a .790 OPS. The average and on-base percentage are well above his career marks, but the OPS is close to his career mark, in which he has held a .771 OPS. Lowe is approaching age 30, so the dip in production over the last several years is a concern, but he has still been as good as any of the Twins' current options at first base. 

Alexander Canario OF
If the Twins wanted to try to add some right-handedness to their outfield, a Derek Shelton reunion with Alexander Canario would do that. The 25-year-old got his first significant playing time with the Pirates after spending time in the majors with the Chicago Cubs, where he was once a top prospect. As a prospect, Canario was viewed as someone with good size, which could translate into good pull power, but he hasn’t seen that materialize yet in the majors. 

Canario has shown his bat at lower levels of professional baseball, producing a .850 OPS and 18 home runs with the Triple-A Iowa Cubs in 2024. Last winter in the Dominican Winter League, the right-hander had a .955 OPS. Canario seems like many Twins players who have yet to fully find a way to translate their tools into major league production. If Shelton and the Twins evaluators see something in him, yet he could be worth a flyer to capture a bat with some pop to it. 

J.J. Bleday OF
In the past several offseasons, the Twins' front office has identified a backup centerfielder to bring into the mix. J.J. Bleday has a lot of experience at the position, playing 157 games there in 2024 and another 55 this past season as a member of the Athletics. In 2024, he played 159 games with the Athletics and amassed 2.1 bWAR, a .762 OPS, and an OPS+ of 120. 

Now, Bleday is unlike those other centerfielders the Twins have employed, as he has struggled with his range in center field. If the Twins believe they can recapture his bat from 2024 and make him into the sort of defender who can spell Byron Buxton in center, there could be a platoon role for Bleday. He would be joining a very full roster of fellow left-handed outfielders, which that redundancy alone may make him a long shot for the Twins.  

What do you think? Can any of these non-tendered hitters help the Twins in 2026? Are there other non-tendered hitters you'd like to see the Twins try to sign? 

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[Nashvilletwin]

The peanut vendor in section 122 has a better chance of being signed by the Twins than these three……

[The Great Hambino]

I don't think replacement-level outfielder is very near the top of the list of Twins needs right now - they're pretty good in that department

I'd prefer they stay out of this aisle of the supermarket (nontendered hitters) altogether, but if they must go down this aisle, have it be for a 1B platoonable with Clemens

[Coach Wheels]

10 minutes ago, The Great Hambino said:

I don't think replacement-level outfielder is very near the top of the list of Twins needs right now - they're pretty good in that department

I'd prefer they stay out of this aisle of the supermarket (nontendered hitters) altogether, but if they must go down this aisle, have it be for a 1B platoonable with Clemens

I would support checking out the switch hitting catcher from Texas, Jonah Heim. Shelton might save him.

[bean5302]

Backup center fielder? Bleday makes Austin Martin look like a gold glove CF. If the Twins want a backup center fielder, they need it to come from Emma. Either via trade (my preference) or watching him flop miserably at the plate still pretending he'll be able to hit MLB pitching (not my preference).

[Permanent Twins Fan]

I don't think that the Twins need to be looking into acquiring another outfielder. The outfield position is crowded enough as it is, and getting a difference-maker in the outfield is probably out of their price range. 

[old nurse]

6 minutes ago, Coach Wheels said:

I would support checking out the switch hitting catcher from Texas, Jonah Heim. Shelton might save him.

Heim is probably a sub par bat but a durable starting catcher. He is likely to find a 6 million contract given the state of catching. Texas must have thought they are falling out of their contention window and trying to save some profit  The revenue sharing from the loss of RSNs by other teams must be a significant number 

[DJL44]

44 minutes ago, The Great Hambino said:

if they must go down this aisle, have it be for a 1B platoonable with Clemens

I'd rather have a first baseman who makes Clemens the backup at other positions.

[The Great Hambino]

Just now, DJL44 said:

I'd rather have a first baseman who makes Clemens the backup at other positions.

I would too, but I don't know if they're finding that sifting through the nontenders, at least not one that's already into their arbitration years and would only come with a year or two of control.  

My first choice would be investing in a real free agent

My first choice among things they might actually do would be to acquire a promising ready or near-ready 1B prospect in a Ryan/Lopez trade

[Nashvilletwin]

56 minutes ago, Coach Wheels said:

I would support checking out the switch hitting catcher from Texas, Jonah Heim. Shelton might save him.

They just got their backup catcher (who will be btw the starting catcher by the trade deadline after Jeffers gets moved) who needs saving for $1.8MM last week.

[Gamblerssoftball]

15 minutes ago, The Great Hambino said:

I would too, but I don't know if they're finding that sifting through the nontenders, at least not one that's already into their arbitration years and would only come with a year or two of control.  

My first choice would be investing in a real free agent

My first choice among things they might actually do would be to acquire a promising ready or near-ready 1B prospect in a Ryan/Lopez trade

The winter meetings are soon upon us. If Ryan/Lopez are in Twins uniforms after the meetings, then I'll have some hope that a free agent signing for first base is possible. Hopefully, we'll know who the minority investors are as well. We'll know a lot more in a couple of weeks. 

[sweetmusicviola16]

24 minutes ago, The Great Hambino said:

I would too, but I don't know if they're finding that sifting through the nontenders, at least not one that's already into their arbitration years and would only come with a year or two of control.  

My first choice would be investing in a real free agent

My first choice among things they might actually do would be to acquire a promising ready or near-ready 1B prospect in a Ryan/Lopez trade

imo Lowe is absolutely a "real free agent." He had a bad showing in Washington no doubt. But his 1/4 of a season in Boston were some of the best numbers of his career. This guy I think has plenty left in the tank. But there was no way Boston was going to pay him 13mil this season. I doubt anyone will. But can he find a taker at between 6-8mil? That would be my guestimate at this point in the off-season.  Which in all likelihood is beyond being a Twins signing. I don't see a Lowe signing in the Twins future.

 

We sure don't need another OFer though. No. Go with who we have and let them play. Buxton, Larnach, Wallner, Martin, Roden, Gonzalez, Rodriguez, Mendez, Jenkins. We have plenty of OFer's. 

[DocBauer]

I like Lowe of the price is right. Could they possiy get him for $10M? Would $12M be out of the Twins range if they had anything close to a $120M payroll target?

Go look at his numbers if you haven't already. He's a solid, above league average hitter with some power and doesn't have to be platooned based on career splits.

[Trov]

I see no reason to look to sign DFA outfielders.  We are so deep on them to begin with. Lowe I could see as a spring training invite or a much cheaper 1 year deal as we have a major need at first. 

[Chembry]

1 hour ago, The Great Hambino said:

I would too, but I don't know if they're finding that sifting through the nontenders, at least not one that's already into their arbitration years and would only come with a year or two of control.  

My first choice would be investing in a real free agent

My first choice among things they might actually do would be to acquire a promising ready or near-ready 1B prospect in a Ryan/Lopez trade

My first choice would be to trade for a 1B prospect as well, and there are plenty available.  Guys like Eldridge. Briceno, Ballesteros, Tre' Morgan, probably Condon or Collier would headline the trade and would probably require Ryan in return.  I seriously doubt Basallo is available.

In a vacuum, guys like Ryan Clifford, Jonathon Long, Tyler Locklear, Abimelec Ortiz, Triston Casas wouldn't require the likes or Ryan or Lopez to acquire and could help the team.  

[Chembry]

32 minutes ago, DocBauer said:

I like Lowe of the price is right. Could they possiy get him for $10M? Would $12M be out of the Twins range if they had anything close to a $120M payroll target?

Go look at his numbers if you haven't already. He's a solid, above league average hitter with some power and doesn't have to be platooned based on career splits.

I think $10M is too much for Lowe.  His salary last year was $10.5M and the Nationals couldn't find a trade partner for him.  My guess is he could be had at $6-8M/yr coming off the worst season of his career.  Pure speculation of course, but I think precedence has already been set that $10M is too much.

[PatPfund]

Right now the Twins have Larnach, Wallner, Buxton, Roden, Emma, Martin, Gonzalez,  and Mendez on the 40 man as realistic parts of the MLB team at some point in '26 (and Jenkins in the wings). Only Buxton (other than health) comes without big questions that have to be answered at some point, and I'd rather not put it off by adding somebody else's DFAs. Including at 1B/DH where some of the overflow bats will need to go.

Spend our meager FA bucks on the 'pen.

[MGX]

No to the OF's for sure we have no need. For me it's also a no on Lowe.

Lowe's splits - vs LHP - OPS - .504 & vs RHP - OPS - .762

Clemens splits - vs LHP - OPS - .482 & vs RHP - OPS - .782

Lowe was also well below average defensively while Clemens was well above average. Is Lowe really an improvement? I've seen other suggestions for Mountcastle which to me is even worse.

Mountcastle splits - vs LHP - OPS - .598 & vs RHP - OPS .672 & ok defensively. 

It would be great if we could get someone to force Clemens into a utility role where he'd be more valuable to the team, but they should actually be an improvement & not signing someone hoping they will perform better.

 

[garn from vancouver]

4 hours ago, Nashvilletwin said:

The peanut vendor in section 122 has a better chance of being signed by the Twins than these three……

i know that guy... i think he's being looked at already by the Marlins. 

[DocBauer]

1 hour ago, Chembry said:

I think $10M is too much for Lowe.  His salary last year was $10.5M and the Nationals couldn't find a trade partner for him.  My guess is he could be had at $6-8M/yr coming off the worst season of his career.  Pure speculation of course, but I think precedence has already been set that $10M is too much.

And that's the target I'm looking at as well. I don't know if he'd want a 1yr deal to bounce back for a bigger deal later, or a multi year deal for more security.

I'd really like an $8M price tag. I've just learned to usually add a little more to avoid a nasty surprise later. LOL

[LA Vikes Fan]

2 hours ago, sweetmusicviola16 said:

imo Lowe is absolutely a "real free agent." He had a bad showing in Washington no doubt. But his 1/4 of a season in Boston were some of the best numbers of his career. This guy I think has plenty left in the tank. But there was no way Boston was going to pay him 13mil this season. I doubt anyone will. But can he find a taker at between 6-8mil? That would be my guestimate at this point in the off-season.  Which in all likelihood is beyond being a Twins signing. I don't see a Lowe signing in the Twins future.

 

We sure don't need another OFer though. No. Go with who we have and let them play. Buxton, Larnach, Wallner, Martin, Roden, Gonzalez, Rodriguez, Mendez, Jenkins. We have plenty of OFer's. 

Agreed. I'd like to see them try to swing a Larnach for Spencer Steer trade with the Reds, as others have mentioned. I'd even be willing to throw in a prospect swap where they get a higher rated one than we do to make that happen. Steer becomes the primary 1B with Clemens as a UTL on the bench. Steer was a gold glove finalist at 1B and hits some. 

[Blyleven2011]

I've gotten to the point that rather than signing other teams players that are just mediocre  , let's just sit back and let our young players play the game ...

New manager , young players and maybe we'll have some exciting games , we are loaded with talent ( supposedly ) , let's prove that we have that talent  ...

Remind the players that are on the 40 man roster that there are others in the organization that are competing to take away their position and have some real competition,  there's no competition if we just keep hoarding these prospects  ...

Let the kids play that earn it  , play your best players on the mlb roster , stop with the mediocre players ...

Know when to hold them and know when to fold them would help this FO immensely  , it should definitely be FALVEY'S  last chance , he's a terrible gambler and if he fails again and is not fired , he definitely has ownership hoodwinked ...

hire Bo Jackson  , BO KNOWS BASEBALL ...

 

[RpR]

Canario for Lrarnach or Wallner, not a bad idea.

[Blyleven2011]

7 minutes ago, LA Vikes Fan said:

Agreed. I'd like to see them try to swing a Larnach for Spencer Steer trade with the Reds, as others have mentioned. I'd even be willing to throw in a prospect swap where they get a higher rated one than we do to make that happen. Steer becomes the primary 1B with Clemens as a UTL on the bench. Steer was a gold glove finalist at 1B and hits some. 

Agreed , a change of scenery is what larnach needs and he would definitely benefit in a hitters ballpark ...

Steer has better speed , plays a position of need for us and more has more versatility , Steer is a gamer and could have a couple of good seasons here as a twin  , hits right handed ...

This probably would be a trade that makes sense for both clubs  ...

Will it happen  , probably not ...

[DJL44]

1 hour ago, MGX said:

I've seen other suggestions for Mountcastle which to me is even worse.

Mountcastle splits - vs LHP - OPS - .598 & vs RHP - OPS .672 & ok defensively. 

It would be great if we could get someone to force Clemens into a utility role where he'd be more valuable to the team, but they should actually be an improvement & not signing someone hoping they will perform better.

I think Mountcastle is a decent bet to put up numbers more like his career splits - 724 OPS vs RHP and 813 OPS vs LHP.

I also think everyone is expecting that Kody Clemens is unlikely to repeat his best ever offensive performance of 2025. His career splits are 688 OPS vs RHP and 571 OPS vs LHP.

[thelanges5]

If they are doing any adding,  how about Hoskins for $5-7mil and he’s a righty. 

[AceWrigley]

I really like how many times the Twins are listed by prognosticators as a favorite landing spot for free agents . . . zero, none, nada, pffft. . . . and a dog barks somewhere out in the distance.

[DJL44]

14 minutes ago, thelanges5 said:

If they are doing any adding,  how about Hoskins for $5-7mil and he’s a righty. 

I'd be fine with that, if they can't find a better option.

[Chembry]

1 hour ago, MGX said:

No to the OF's for sure we have no need. For me it's also a no on Lowe.

Lowe's splits - vs LHP - OPS - .504 & vs RHP - OPS - .762

Clemens splits - vs LHP - OPS - .482 & vs RHP - OPS - .782

Lowe was also well below average defensively while Clemens was well above average. Is Lowe really an improvement? I've seen other suggestions for Mountcastle which to me is even worse.

Mountcastle splits - vs LHP - OPS - .598 & vs RHP - OPS .672 & ok defensively. 

It would be great if we could get someone to force Clemens into a utility role where he'd be more valuable to the team, but they should actually be an improvement & not signing someone hoping they will perform better.

 

Defensive metrics can be a bit funny.  Lowe won a GG in 2023 and was a finalist in 2024.  He won’t be a defensive liability.

[MGX]

56 minutes ago, DJL44 said:

I think Mountcastle is a decent bet to put up numbers more like his career splits - 724 OPS vs RHP and 813 OPS vs LHP.

I also think everyone is expecting that Kody Clemens is unlikely to repeat his best ever offensive performance of 2025. His career splits are 688 OPS vs RHP and 571 OPS vs LHP.

We could sign him & hope that happens, but his production has been declining for multiple seasons. Clemens has improved his productivity over multiple seasons. Last season was the 1st time he has 150+ PA's & he produced reasonably good results.

Again, I'd like to the Twins get someone who forces Clemens into a utility role where IMO he can provide more value. I just don't see Mountcastle, with his declining power numbers, as that player.