Twins Daily 2026 Top Prospects: #8 Kendry Rojas, LHP

[Cody Schoenmann]

Image courtesy of William Parmeter

Signed out of Cuba by the Toronto Blue Jays in the 2020 International Free Agent class, Kendry Rojas quickly progressed through Toronto’s minor-league system, jumping from starting his 2022 campaign in Single-A to earning a promotion to Triple-A in July 2025.

 

Kendry Rojas
Age: 23 (DOB: 11/26/02)

2025 Stats (A, Double-A, Triple-A): 69 innings pitched, 4.70 ERA, 3.77 FIP, 28.8% strikeout rate, 10.3% walk rate

ETA: 2026

2025 Ranking: NR

National Top 100 Rankings
FAN: NR | MLB:  NR | ATH: NR | TJ: NR | ESPN: NR

 

After making just one start at Triple-A Buffalo, the then-22-year-old was traded alongside left-handed hitting outfielder Alan Roden to the Minnesota Twins for right-handed reliever Louis Varland and first baseman Ty France. Similar to what Toronto did with Simeon Woods Richardson in 2021, many believe the organization aggressively promoted Rojas to inflate his trade stock right before the trade deadline.

 

The young lefty struggled at Triple-A St. Paul last season, generating a 6.59 ERA, 5.73 FIP, and a 28-to-23 strikeout to walk ratio over 27 1/3 innings pitched. Rojas cited external factors, such as the baseballs used in Triple-A, as a driving factor in his performance woes in the high minors. Yet, the most likely reason behind his struggles was that Toronto promoted him too aggressively. Regardless, Twins' decision-makers likely won’t reverse course with the now 23-year-old as the hard-throwing lefty is set to begin his 2026 campaign at Triple-A, citing notable advancements in his arsenal this spring.

 

What’s to Like

Despite posting lackluster surface stats this spring (6.75 ERA and 5.87 FIP over four innings pitched), Rojas’s stuff has caught the attention of fans and pundits alike, headlined by increased four-seam velocity. Last season, the southpaw's four-seam hovered around 94 MPH. Yet, it is sitting at 96.4 MPH, while topping out at 98.5 MPH in an appearance against Ronald Acuña Jr. on Feb. 22 (statistics below courtesy of TJStats).

His four-seam fastball could become a true plus-pitch if he can sustain his newfound velocity bump into the regular season. However, there are concerns with the shape and movement profile of the pitch, which we will get into later. Throughout his career, his best pitch has been his slider, and that trend has continued early this spring. Rojas has been able to pound the zone with his slider (hovering around 88 MPH), generating a high whiff rate against right- and left-handed hitters. Given its handedness-proof nature, he should be able to lean on the pitch going forward, making it his primary put-out pitch against all types of hitters. His change up (also sitting around 88 MPH) has also impressed this spring, primarily throwing it low in the zone to righties. Sporting a plus breaking pitch, a plus offspeed pitch, and an ascending fastball, Rojas could soon develop into an above-average major league starter and cost-controlled rotation stalwart for Minnesota for seasons to come.

 

What’s Left to Work On

To become that, however, the hard-throwing lefty will need to continue refining his four-seam. The pitch is coming out of his hand flat, evidenced by his fastball generating only 14 inches of induced vertical break (IVB) in his last appearance. The lower the IVB, the longer hitters see the ball, improving their chances of making hard contact like Boston Red Sox outfielder Jarren Duran did below:

The former Blue Jays prospect has also struggled with command in the minors, highlighted by sporting a well-below-average 15.9% walk rate with St. Paul last season. He is showing signs of improvement this spring, decreasing his walk rate to an admirable 6.7% over four innings pitched. Still, like his four-seam velocity bump, he will need to sustain these improvements into the regular season for him to become a serviceable major league starting pitcher in 2026. Again, Rojas has the potential to be a high-strikeout, high-whiff starting pitcher, especially given his handedness. He needs to hone in on his command, however, but that’s okay. He is an uber-talented 23-year-old left-handed starting pitcher. Something this organization hasn’t had since Francisco Liriano.

 

What to Look For in 2026

As noted earlier, Rojas will likely begin his 2026 campaign as part of the Triple-A St. Paul Saints starting rotation, alongside fellow young, high-upside starting pitchers in Mick Abel, Connor Prielipp, and Andrew Morris. He will continue working on refining his four-seam fastball shape, sustaining his velo bump, and sharpening his secondary pitches with the Saints' pitching development staff, with eyes toward making his major league debut come midsummer, if not earlier. Again, his surface stats with St. Paul in 2025 were nothing to write home about. Still, he has the stuff necessary to blossom into a frontline starting pitcher, ushering in Minnesota’s next wave of young starting rotation talent.

 

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[terrydactyls]

What an odd choice of video clip to put in an article about why Rojas is ranked so high.  A belt-high fastball that gets crushed over the center field wall.  Not a great recommendation.

[SF Twins Fan]

I really don't understand including any spring training numbers in articles like this.  He's pitched 4 innings.... there is no information to take from that other than potentially velocity and movement.  His ERA, FIP, Walk Rate so far this spring are all pointless stats to include.  He could be working on a new pitch or a different way to throw a current pitch.

[jmlease1]

Talent level is really high. Would be awesome to have a LHP who could generate that kind of velocity and he's got the pitches to compete if he can improve the shape on the fastball without losing that velocity. I think Toronto did him dirty by promoting him to AAA last season and the Twins compounded the mistake by sending him to Saint Paul rather than Wichita, which is concerning for how they plan to handle his development. It really felt like a "no, no, we got a MAASIVE return on Varland, a guy you're gonna see REAL soon, trust us!" flop-sweat move by the front office.

But the talent is real. He is on a lot of prospect evaluator's radar and despite the struggles in AAA he should be. 

I don't really expect to see him in MLB in 2026. Right now he's behind Matthews, Festa, Abel, Morris, and Prielipp in terms of development and readiness, even if he might be as high or higher than they are in talent. Which is fine, so long as they can develop him in AAA and have him ready to compete for a spot in 2027.

[markymark12]

90-to-32 strike out to walk ratio. Over 27 1/3 innings pitched.....

[Cody Schoenmann]

30 minutes ago, markymark12 said:

90-to-32 strike out to walk ratio. Over 27 1/3 innings pitched.....

28-to-23 strikeout to walk ratio over 27 1/3 innings pitched. I just fixed it. My bad. 

[Cris E]

Um, 27.1 IP in St Paul matches up with 28 K and 23 BB.  You need to calm down and read your data more closely.  Good young pitcher, but 27.1 IP is only 82 outs, so 90 strikeouts would be something.

[Cody Schoenmann]

2 minutes ago, Cris E said:

Um, 27.1 IP in St Paul matches up with 28 K and 23 BB.  You need to calm down and read your data more closely.  Good young pitcher, but 27.1 IP is only 82 outs, so 90 strikeouts would be something.

just put the fries in the bag bro 

[Cris E]

Good one, professional writer.  You are both funny and insightful. I am chastened. Sorry for reading your stuff, won't happen again.

[Cody Schoenmann]

1 minute ago, Cris E said:

Good one, professional writer.  You are both funny and insightful. I am chastened. Sorry for reading your stuff, won't happen again.

you are the one who condescendingly told me to calm down and read my data more closely. no reason to throw rocks and hide your hand. 

[bean5302]

@Cody Schoenmann I'm pretty critical on articles here and I found your piece to be solid. If even I'm not complaining, I wouldn't worry about it, lol.

[bean5302]

Rojas is one of those "he should be better" types. It'll take a little time in our system before we can identify whether he has the stuff but just needs a bit of mechanical polish or if his stuff just doesn't play.

I think it's clear something major changed for him between Toronto and Minnesota. Prior to joining the Twins, Rojas wasn't really known for problems with walks. Well... we sure fixed that, but changing something mechanically could certainly have that kind of impact.

[Cody Schoenmann]

33 minutes ago, bean5302 said:

@Cody Schoenmann I'm pretty critical on articles here and I found your piece to be solid. If even I'm not complaining, I wouldn't worry about it, lol.

no, i know, and i appreciate you saying that. it's just irritating when the first five comments are people being hypercritical over one small error while ignoring the actual substance of the article. 

Edited March 4 by Cody Schoenmann

[Mike Sixel]

Seriously talented. Big fan. 

[Pat]

He needs to be really good to justify trading Varland because it is doubtful that Roden is a game changer.

[bunsen82]

5 hours ago, bean5302 said:

Rojas is one of those "he should be better" types. It'll take a little time in our system before we can identify whether he has the stuff but just needs a bit of mechanical polish or if his stuff just doesn't play.

I think it's clear something major changed for him between Toronto and Minnesota. Prior to joining the Twins, Rojas wasn't really known for problems with walks. Well... we sure fixed that, but changing something mechanically could certainly have that kind of impact.

Its small sample sizes,  and we have a long road to go -  but the Varland trade as of this spring training is looking promising.  Rojas - at the very least looks like a potential closer, with the upside to be a good starter.  Roden is hitting everything right now.  The question is can he continue this stretch at the big league level.  

[Danchat]

I am bullish on Rojas, though I am curious why they were so aggressive with him pitching in AAA last year when he probably wasn't ready for it. The kid's got the stuff, now he's got to put it together - I'd anticipate he spends the whole season in AAA outside of a September cameo. If he flames out as a starter, he should be able to transition to the bullpen well and I wouldn't be surprised if he winds up as a high leverage reliever for us.

Feels like there was a major jump in quality from Rojas compared to the rest of the prospects ranked so far. Maybe that's just me.

[rdehring]

A comment and question.  I expect Abel to be part of this year's Twins rotation, not pitching in St. Paul.

Understand Liriano was a bit younger than Rojas, he was, wasn't he?  But could Rojas be considered Liriano lite?  I really hope so.

[JADBP]

1 hour ago, Danchat said:

I am bullish on Rojas, though I am curious why they were so aggressive with him pitching in AAA last year when he probably wasn't ready for it. . . .

You are right, but I think this was just Toronto again manipulating Falvey.  The jammed him up to AAA in advance of the trade deadline to make him appear to be more advanced in this development.  Another case of Falvey getting snookered in a trade.

The whole Louis Varland trade was a disaster and now we hope that Rojas can recover somewhat and at least become a 3/4 (like SWR) or an above average RP.  But, he probably needs at least another full year of development to reach his potential.  Or, as Bean5302 said, maybe his stuff doesn't play and he flames out completely.  Meanwhile, Varland was the Toronto go-to RP throughout the playoffs and WS.  WHEW...that's a lot to live up to!

[Danchat]

1 hour ago, JADBP said:

You are right, but I think this was just Toronto again manipulating Falvey.  The jammed him up to AAA in advance of the trade deadline to make him appear to be more advanced in this development.  Another case of Falvey getting snookered in a trade.

The whole Louis Varland trade was a disaster and now we hope that Rojas can recover somewhat and at least become a 3/4 (like SWR) or an above average RP.  But, he probably needs at least another full year of development to reach his potential.  Or, as Bean5302 said, maybe his stuff doesn't play and he flames out completely.  Meanwhile, Varland was the Toronto go-to RP throughout the playoffs and WS.  WHEW...that's a lot to live up to!

Would there have been a problem with starting Rojas in our AA system?

I did not like the trade and am still very apprehensive about it, but it's definitely too early to call it a disaster. Roden gets a lot of flak here for looking bad in his first what, 40 PAs as a Twin? I do agree that some here discount Varland's importance for Toronto and pointing to his ERA wasn't great, but you are right to point out his critical role for them. He's gonna be a high leverage reliver for them with 5 years of cheap control, so Rojas and Roden have a lot to prove to be worth that.

[DocBauer]

I just don't know enough about Rojas to accurately comment, other than what I read and hear about him. He was the principle GET in the Varland trade, and Roden was #2. I don't agree with him being pushed so quickly to AAA. It reminds me of when we got SWR and he was already in AA very young. And at that point, the Twins didn't want to demote him so they kept him at AA, and he struggled initially.

The same thing happened with Rojas last year, just at a higher level. And he struggled for sure. His comment about getting used to a different ball affecting him shouldn't be automatically dismissed, though it sounds silly on the surface. But it is true that from AA on down they DO use a slightly different ball. For a $B dollar industry I still find that laughable. But I'm encouraged about his stuff. And from what I'm hearing, he's looking pretty good this ST and is developing nicely. But I'd say he's probably about 8th in line for a rotation spot, and I'm hoping that if needed, it won't be until the 2nd half of the season when he's had more time to adjust to the higher level and polish his stuff.

I don't know that, generally speaking, it matters that your rotation has a LH in it. Good pitching is good pitching.  But some opponents are heavy with LH bats, and sometimes, regardless of the opponents, a LHSP just provides a different LOOK to break up the rotation and give batters a different look. It's akin to not having 2 RHSP that are curveball specialists throwing back to back.

The Twins seemingly have adjusted some of their draft approach, and trade thinking, to look harder at LH arms. And I applaud that change in approach. You still need LH arms for the pen, if a prospect doesn't turn out as a SP. Currently, the Twins have Prielipp, Rojas, Horn, Carpenter, and Hill as quality/interesting LH arms. The more numbers you have, the greater opportunity to find a legitimate LHSP for the parent club, as well as possible LHRP options.

Rogers and Thielbar, for example, were never top prospects. But like other RH examples, they turned out to be quality pen options. Funderburk MIGHT be following that example based on his end to 2025 and a good looking ST so far.

I still like the idea of Prielipp being developed as a SP. I'd still rather he becomes a quality SP, even at 25 or 26yo, rather than automatically become a reliever. To date he hasn't shown that he CAN'T be a future rotation member for the Twins. But it sure is nice to have greater QUANTITY of LH arms in the system to develop. Should Prielipp simply turn out to be a great RP, it's nice to have Rojas and Hill and others that might turn out to be rotation stalwarts. But then again, wouldn't it be outstanding if BOTH Prielipp and Rojas were legitimate SP for the Twins rotation?

Here's hoping BOTH are healthy for all of 2026 and tantalize with their projection, but neither are needed to debut until July at the earliest. 

[JADBP]

56 minutes ago, Danchat said:

Would there have been a problem with starting Rojas in our AA system?

I did not like the trade and am still very apprehensive about it, but it's definitely too early to call it a disaster. Roden gets a lot of flak here for looking bad in his first what, 40 PAs as a Twin? I do agree that some here discount Varland's importance for Toronto and pointing to his ERA wasn't great, but you are right to point out his critical role for them. He's gonna be a high leverage reliver for them with 5 years of cheap control, so Rojas and Roden have a lot to prove to be worth that.

Technically, no, but it kind of feels like a demotion.  I think the Twins have done it and they certainly have had players repeat MiLB levels, particularly are very early stages.  Once you get to AA or AAA, I don' t see them going backwards much.  Either you belong there or you're out.  If you get  as far as AA and are completely overmatched, the team usually politely gives up on the player rather than taking him back to A-ball.

I agree on Roden--he looks ok--but with Buxton locked in and Emma, Jenkins and Gabby just a step away, I'd say Roden is a 1 or 2 year placeholder.  We have Larnach, Martin and Wallner holding down the outfield now.  The Twins have also talked about using Keaschall and Clemmons in the OF.  So, how does Roden (and Outman) fit into this group?  You don't need two-three backup outfielders on the team.  

I just don't see the how he fits on the team--especially long term (that is after this year!).   

He has two MiLB options left so he could be stuffed in St. Paul as backup for injuries (again, blocking Emma). But, was this the thought process that Falvey had when he traded a superb, highly valued RP/SP with years of controlled (low) cost ahead of him? He traded a highly rated young MLB pitcher--a slightly above average, 2-pitch RP and a OFer who really doesn't fit on the team?  Sure you never have enough pitching, but you definitely can have too many outfielders!

[WarPath1211]

21 hours ago, Danchat said:

I am bullish on Rojas, though I am curious why they were so aggressive with him pitching in AAA last year when he probably wasn't ready for it.

I'm pretty sure they were aggressive because he needed to be added to the 40-man roster at the end of the season to be protected from the Rule 5 Draft.

If he's on the 40-man, he's ostensibly just a step from the big leagues and is a callup candidate. I think the wisdom was to challenge him immediately and see what he had. Even though Rojas hasn't pitched a ton in the minors due to injury, and particularly little in the upper minors,  his "prospect clock" is already pretty advanced because he signed with the Blue Jays all the way back in 2020. This is also probably why Toronto was willing to part with him, despite his talent, for a reliever, Rojas had to be on the 40-man or would almost certainly be lost in the Rule 5 draft.

[DJL44]

18 hours ago, Danchat said:

He's gonna be a high leverage reliver for them with 5 years of cheap control, so Rojas and Roden have a lot to prove to be worth that.

Varland had a 4.53 ERA for the Blue Jays (including postseason). He's arbitration eligible in 2027. He's okay, but he's just a relief pitcher.

[gman]

Preilipp in 2026, Rojas in 2027, and Hill in 2028? They don't have too many starters above High A in the whole organization, just Horn at Cedar Rapids and MacLeod at St Paul but he is not a starter anymore.I hope all 3 need to be good.