What Opening Day Told Us About the Twins’ Bullpen Hierarchy

[Cody Christie]

Image courtesy of William Parmeter

The Minnesota Twins entered the 2026 season with as many questions in the bullpen as any MLB team. That uncertainty was largely self-inflicted. At last year’s trade deadline, the front office made the bold decision to move multiple controllable arms, shipping out Jhoan Duran, Griffin Jax, and Louis Varland in deals that reshaped the roster and, in many ways, reset the relief corps.

Those moves created opportunity, but also instability. Rather than aggressively rebuilding the bullpen over the winter, Minnesota opted for a lighter touch. Taylor Rogers headlined the additions on a modest one-year deal, while Anthony Banda and Eric Orze arrived via relatively low-cost trades. Beyond that, the Twins largely bet on internal options and incremental improvement.

So when Opening Day arrived against the Baltimore Orioles, it was not just about the final score. It was about usage. It was about trust. And perhaps most importantly, it was about what manager Derek Shelton might be telling us without ever saying a word.

Trust in Kody Funderburk
If there was one moment that stood out, it came when Shelton called on Kody Funderburk to navigate the heart of Baltimore’s lineup. That is not a casual assignment, especially in a tight game on Opening Day.

Funderburk largely delivered. His ability to handle that pocket of hitters suggests that Shelton views him as more than just a matchup lefty. Even though he was tagged with the loss after allowing a leadoff single in the seventh, the context matters more than the box score. Managers do not deploy pitchers in those spots unless they believe they can handle it. It is early, but Funderburk appears firmly inside the circle of trust.

Justin Topa with Runners On
The next decision may have been even more telling. With a runner on and no outs in the seventh inning of a tie game, Shelton turned to Justin Topa.

On the surface, it makes sense. Topa’s profile as a ground ball specialist makes him an ideal candidate to escape traffic. But there is another layer here. If Shelton were viewing Topa as his primary ninth-inning option, this may not be the spot to use him.

Instead, this usage hints at a more flexible role. Topa could be the fireman, the pitcher tasked with putting out rallies before they spiral. That is a valuable role, but it is distinct from the traditional closer label.

Rogers and Sands in the Mix
Later in the game, Taylor Rogers took the mound in the eighth inning with the Twins trailing by a run, while Cole Sands was also getting loose.

That is a high-leverage pocket, even without a lead. The fact that both pitchers were involved in that moment suggests Shelton trusts them when the game is on the line. Rogers, with his veteran pedigree, feels like a natural fit for late-inning work, but Sands’ presence in that situation is just as noteworthy.

If nothing else, it signals that the Twins may not be locking themselves into rigid roles. Instead, Shelton could be leaning toward a mix-and-match approach based on game state rather than inning.

Reading Between the Lines
One game does not define a bullpen hierarchy. Roles evolve. Performance dictates opportunity. And managers adjust as the season unfolds.

But Opening Day often provides a glimpse into initial thinking, and Shelton’s decisions in Baltimore offered a few subtle clues. Funderburk is trusted against top hitters. Topa may be the preferred option when traffic is already on the bases. Rogers and Sands look like late-inning weapons in leverage spots.

What remains unclear is the ninth inning. There was no traditional save situation, and Shelton did not tip his hand in that regard. For now, that role appears open, or at least fluid. In a bullpen without an established anchor, that may be by design.

How do you envision the bullpen being used in 2026? Leave a comment and start the discussion. 

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[JD-TWINS]

Closing “by committee” is my assumption but probably need to see a couple weeks worth of contests to have any real feel. There’s a long line of “OK arms” in the Pen and nobody really deserving of being the Closer in week one or possibly through the whole season.

[TopGunn#22]

I agree JD-Twins.  The current status is the logical path to follow until guys either claim their spot or fumble it away through ineffectiveness.  While Taylor Rogers is the "most qualified" to be our Closer, he hasn't really had that role for quite some time.

Even if Festa was healthy, (and Pablo Lopez was healthy and at the top of the Twins rotation) Festa would still be pitching in the 7th inning of so until he had proved he could be effective.  With Lopez out for the season, Festa may be considered as a possible rotation arm, depending on rotation pitchers health and effectiveness.  We had all assumed Festa would spend this season in the bullpen.  That doesn't seem a lock anymore. This scattered approach will probably continue throughout this season.  

[Linus]

I think bullpen usage will be totally match up based and will likely look different from game to game. And I think this is the right way to do it. With the talent level in the bullpen, the best chance for success is for Shelton to use them in the optimal situation regardless of inning. I’ve always that the notion of strict roles in the pen was a dumb idea, especially for non dominant relievers. 

[LA Vikes Fan]

Speaking of bullpens, don’t know if you guys saw but Jorge Alcala triggered an upward mobility clause in his contract and can now go to any team willing to up offer a 26 man roster spot. Worth trying to get him? I say yes, drop Kent. 

[Parfigliano]

2 hours ago, JD-TWINS said:

Closing “by committee” is my assumption but probably need to see a couple weeks worth of contests to have any real feel. There’s a long line of “OK arms” in the Pen and nobody really deserving of being the Closer in week one or possibly through the whole season.

Don't need a closer when you don't have 9th inning lead.

[gman]

I'm thinking that during Saturday's game there will be at least three different pitchers and Sunday the last 2. On Sunday there may also be a third reliever, a repeat of someone from game 1. The order will be shaking out until the end of April at least and then the "earned" order will start to be established.

[ashbury]

I picture what we saw Thursday and will continue to see as a combination of "let's use the first weeks to find out what we've got," and a best guess at what has a chance of working.  Topa coming in when he did, despite a rough spring, is an example.  Sands warming up and being held in reserve and then not used once the lead was gone is another.

The risk is that every member of the bullpen is not quite up to the role they are assigned.  Funderburk didn't get the lefty out to start an inning, for example, and it snowballed.  But it's not just matchups.  A Duran would bump everyone down one slot and they might do better; a Jax in addition would bump everyone down two.  It's water under the bridge of course but not having replacements for those two, plus trading away the best candidate to plug in for them, is the cause of the trouble with this part of the roster.  Talent is the issue, until we have evidence it's not, and strategy can only go so far.

[Hubie29]

It just means right side up, upside down or sideways, the bullpen stinks. 

[Jim H]

For me there are 2 basic problems with the bullpen.  Right now they no one really that fits the roles that Duran and Jax filled the last few years.  Maybe they find they are able to fill those roles by the end of season, maybe not.

The other problem has more to due with how baseball has evolved. With starters covering fewer innings during the course of the year, and more relievers being locked into one inning roles, it has gotten harder to cover the extra innings between those roles. Most teams end up using nearly 20 different relievers to fill in those innings. This creates a shuttle with AAA, and a near constant dip into the waiver wire.

So what we see now is marginal relievers giving away winnable games on a weekly basis. As long as teams are stuck in this usage pattern there are limited ways to fix the problem. One way to deal with this is to have an very deep pile of effective relievers even at the AAA level. I don't really think the Twins have that right now.

[CRF]

Way too early to read anything into it. There's not gonna be a whole lot of "closing/save" opportunities anyway. 

[oregontwin]

I don't like Topa coming in with traffic on the bases and too many outs to get. He did a good job at stranding inherited runners in 2023, but not so much in 2025; the only two years he's pitched any significant number of innings. One of those years is an outlier. If his WHIP is going to be in the 1.4 range, or even the career average of 1.33, coming in with runners already on and needing 3 outs is going to be cutting it close too much of the time. Better if he came in with at least one out already accounted for. 

[Doctor Wu]

I expect a lot of drama and changes and experiments with this bullpen over the course of the season. I'm not even sure that most of these pitchers will still be on the team when July rolls around. It's going to be a wild and bumpy ride.