Twins Grant Liam Hendriks His Release as Bullpen Questions Grow

[Cody Christie]

Image courtesy of Peter Aiken-Imagn Images

Minnesota’s most notable right-handed bullpen addition of the offseason is no longer in camp. The Twins have granted Liam Hendriks his release, allowing the veteran to pursue an opportunity elsewhere just days before the regular season begins.

Hendriks’ contract always made this a possibility. He carried multiple opt-out dates, including one a week before Opening Day, another on May 1, and a final date on June 1. Once triggered, the Twins had a 48-hour window to either add him to the 40-man roster or release him back into free agency. Minnesota ultimately chose the latter, ending what had been a quietly intriguing spring storyline.

 

On the surface, that decision feels a bit surprising. Hendriks showed legitimate progress throughout camp. He allowed three earned runs across seven innings while striking out five and walking five. More importantly, his velocity ticked upward as the spring progressed. After sitting in the low 90s early, he began reaching the mid-90s in his most recent outings, a sign that his arm strength was trending in the right direction.

There was a path for Hendriks to matter here. At times, it even felt like more than that. Given the uncertainty surrounding the bullpen, there had been speculation that he could factor into late-inning situations or even work his way into the closer conversation if everything clicked. Instead, the Twins will move forward without him, and the relief picture becomes significantly more complicated.

 

For now, Taylor Rogers appears to be the default option to handle the ninth inning. That alone speaks to the current construction of this group. Rogers is joined by fellow left-handers Kody Funderburk, Anthony Banda, and non-roster invitee Andrew Chafin, giving Minnesota an unusually left-heavy mix of bullpen candidates.

The right-handed side offers far less certainty. Cole Sands is positioned to handle the bulk of the late-inning work to open the season, while Justin Topa and Eric Orze project more naturally into middle-inning roles. There are depth options like Travis Adams *(currently hurt) or Zak Kent who could factor into multi-inning spots, but those are hardly proven solutions for a team whose ownership has insisted will be competitive this year.

That is what makes this decision linger a bit. Hendriks may not be the dominant force he once was, and there is a fair argument that his best days are behind him. Still, this is a bullpen lacking established right-handed options and defined roles. Passing on a veteran who was showing signs of life in March is a gamble, especially when the alternatives come with just as many questions.

Stepping back, the Twins bullpen looks less like a finished product and more like a collection of maybes. There is an imbalance in handedness, limited late-inning experience, and no clear hierarchy beyond Rogers by default. Teams rarely carry four left-handed relievers, let alone a group without elite track records, and yet that is the direction Minnesota appears to be heading.

Perhaps the Twins have another move in the works. The week before Opening Day can bring trades of players on the fringes of the roster. There is also a chance that a right-handed reliever will be placed on waivers, and the Twins could claim him for nothing. Still, the Hendriks decision seems short-sighted.

Hendriks might be older and past his peak, but he also represented something this bullpen currently lacks: a potential answer. Instead, the Twins will head into the season with a relief corps that feels unsettled, unproven, and, at least for now, a bit of a mess.

What are your thoughts on the Twins releasing Hendriks? Can this bullpen be successful as currently constructed? Leave a comment and start the discussion.

 

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[DataNerd]

He hasn't been a good pitcher since 2022, and he's 37.  His average fastball then was 97-98.  He was not competing for late-innings, he was competing for the last spot in the pen.  4K/3BB is not good either.

[dberthia]

Just stop and think for a moment how bad you have to be not to make this bullpen.

[Cris E]

Hard to tell if he forced this or they were just waiting for the contract date to hit.  They gave him a solid appearance yesterday, and he was OK, but even that doesn't indicate if it was the team saying We Can Do Better or the player saying I Can Do Better. You'd think they'd be pleased with him in a non-closer role if he were only OK, so maybe he thinks there are worse pens out there with better expectations for the year. Even after the huge sell-off last year and not doing much this winter they weren't at all projected to have one of the worst bullpens in the league. Fans here are harder on them than many of the national sites: right now, with Liam off the roster, they still rank MN as #20 in relief depth by WAR.

[farmerguychris]

I don't get this.  While underwhelming as far as a signing goes, he was the best we did - so to see him leave is frustrating.  Maybe we'll see a young guy in there after all.  A failed starter I expect who does, probably have more long term upside if they can figure out life as a reliever.  Still, confusing as to what happened behind the scenes as it felt like he was going to be our best righty out of the pen.

[IndianaTwin]

As I said elsewhere, I'm a little surprised. 

And also a little disappointed -- I was rooting for the guy. 

Hopefully it's an "I'd like to test the water" and the Twins would consider taking him back if he doesn't get picked up, with possibility of starting in St. Paul if it's deemed he's not ready. However, sometimes these opt outs are a case of another team having communicated an interest to the player's agent (in a hypothetical sort of way, of course). 

[USAFChief]

7 minutes ago, IndianaTwin said:

As I said elsewhere, I'm a little surprised. 

And also a little disappointed -- I was rooting for the guy. 

Hopefully it's an "I'd like to test the water" and the Twins would consider taking him back if he doesn't get picked up, with possibility of starting in St. Paul if it's deemed he's not ready. However, sometimes these opt outs are a case of another team having communicated an interest to the player's agent (in a hypothetical sort of way, of course). 

He didn't  opt out. He was released. The Twins made this decision, not Hendricks.

[nicksaviking]

Kind of surprising, but probably not impactful. I was really hoping the Twins would be convinced to move on from Topa. Also not a fan of Orze or Kent. Or Chaffin or Banda. At least not all as a group.

I'm kind of confused why the Twins are suddenly OK with so many pitchers with control issues. It's the exact opposite approach to what was working for them most of the last half decade.

[Dave Borton]

One of those stories I was hoping not to read. Have to root for the fellow.

[DJL44]

Altavilla has pitched better. I think they'll add him instead.

[bean5302]

Hendriks may have been trending better in velo, but better still wasn't good, and he's appeared in seven games at this point. His last appearance was against Boston.

1.0 IP, 2 BBs, 2 Hits, with 3 hard hit batted balls in play.

Unlike your traditional ST player, Hendriks was playing for a roster spot. He had to bring his A game. With pedestrian swinging strike rates, poor chase rates, struggles throwing strikes and diminished velo, I guess the Twins saw enough to tell Hendriks he was not going to make opening day. I'm sure Hendriks asked for his release as a formality and the Twins granted it.

[CRF]

Was hoping he'd have enough left in the tank to be part of this sorry a** bullpen. I want to see Topa hit the bricks too. Looks like this is the way we're going into the season. Red alert...man the battle stations! 

[Twins_Fan_in_NJ]

The fact that this is even a story shows just how awful this bullpen projects to be.

[jorgenswest]

I have no idea if this is the right decision. They have seen him throwing in many workouts so it is much more than a handful of innings in spring games.

I do appreciate that they are willing to quickly move on from an older player. I hope that pattern continues.

[Chembry]

Chafin and Urshela also released today

 

[LA Vikes Fan]

Whoa! Chafin also released?! Matthews send to minors? Rotation and Bullpen coming into fous:

Rotation: Ryan, Ober, Bradley, Abel, SWR

Bullpen _

RHP - Sands, Topa, Orze, Altavilla, Kent (?)

LHP - Rogers, Banda, Funderburk.

So Able over Matthews, Funderburk over Chafin, Kent over Hendricks. Love the first 2, Meh on the last one. 

[tarheeltwinsfan]

1 hour ago, farmerguychris said:

I don't get this.  While underwhelming as far as a signing goes, he was the best we did - so to see him leave is frustrating.  Maybe we'll see a young guy in there after all.  A failed starter I expect who does, probably have more long term upside if they can figure out life as a reliever.  Still, confusing as to what happened behind the scenes as it felt like he was going to be our best righty out of the pen.

 Marco Raya  maybe?

[DuluthDuke]

Hey Funderburk gets the job! Good move Twins.

No offense to either but ditching 36 and 37 year olds on a non competitive team is the right direction.

Now about adding Lawyerson... :)

[tarheeltwinsfan]

15 minutes ago, Chembry said:

Chafin and Urshela also released today

 

I have no idea why Urshela was at spring training anyway.

[JD-TWINS]

1 hour ago, farmerguychris said:

I don't get this.  While underwhelming as far as a signing goes, he was the best we did - so to see him leave is frustrating.  Maybe we'll see a young guy in there after all.  A failed starter I expect who does, probably have more long term upside if they can figure out life as a reliever.  Still, confusing as to what happened behind the scenes as it felt like he was going to be our best righty out of the pen.

6 innings with 4 K’s & 3 Walks is nothing to get jazzed about ……. obviously, the baseball people don’t think he’s near a “best option” as a righty. He’s 37 and 3 full seasons distanced from success. They knew all this when signed on - he just didn’t show enough to push him in front of options like Klein or other young guys, that have the expectation of good health.

[JD-TWINS]

1 minute ago, tarheeltwinsfan said:

I have no idea why Urshela was at spring training anyway.

In case Royce had another catastrophic injury.

[CRF]

Not really surprised about Gio, but Chafin was kind of a surprise. I don't care how many lefties we have...I would have kept him over Topa.

[Nshore]

Topa looked better today.  There was only one scalding hot smash to the outfield wall, after which he was immediately removed for his own protection. Hendriks might have been the better bet.

[DJL44]

Do they actually have 8 options better than Chafin? Are they going to grab someone from outside the organization?

[Rosterman]

The problem is that the Twins really don't have more than one open 40-man roster spot, for sure. Of course, we can all name 3-4 guys that should be jettisoned. But they won't be.

[LA Vikes Fan]

1 hour ago, DJL44 said:

Do they actually have 8 options better than Chafin? Are they going to grab someone from outside the organization?

My guess is they pick up someone DFA'd by a better team, which of course leaves a large number of possible sources. 

[DuluthDuke]

Anyone else remember when we opened the season with Tippy Martinez, Joe Niekro and Steve Carlton in the bullpen? 600 wins and 130 saves between them and all were toast and gone by the end of April with era's over 10.

Experience has its place but a pen full of mid 30s guys is, uhh, suboptimal. It's ok to move on from from the once golden oldies..

[nicksaviking]

1 hour ago, DJL44 said:

Do they actually have 8 options better than Chafin? Are they going to grab someone from outside the organization?

He was topping out at 86 MPH. Paired with his typically terrible walk rates, I’d rather throw a dart at any random Saints reliever. Or even find something better on waivers.

[DataNerd]

13 minutes ago, nicksaviking said:

He was topping out at 86 MPH. Paired with his typically terrible walk rates, I’d rather throw a dart at any random Saints reliever. Or even find something better on waivers.

As well as a bunch of other guys in the same boat as Chafin/Hendriks.  I'd much rather get someone external, because we are going to need to go into St Paul after a month anyways.

[Twins GFP]

I am positive the $3-4M outlay here had these pitchers made the team had a huge impact on the decision to let them go.