Marco Raya Finally Gets the Call, Austin Voth Designated for Assignment

[Cody Christie]

The Minnesota Twins continued reshaping their pitching staff on Tuesday, announcing that right-hander Austin Voth has been designated for assignment while left-handed prospect Kendry Rojas was optioned back to Triple-A St. Paul. Taking their places on the active roster are left-hander Kody Funderburk and right-hander Marco Raya, who is set to make his major league debut.

For Raya, the move represents the culmination of a development path that has been anything but conventional.

Raya Finally Gets the Call

Since selecting Raya out of a Texas high school in the fourth round of the 2020 MLB Draft, the Twins have viewed him as one of the organization's most intriguing pitching prospects. His combination of athleticism, arm talent, and advanced feel for pitching allowed Minnesota to move him aggressively through the minor league system.

At the same time, the organization carefully monitored his workload, often limiting innings while still challenging him with aggressive promotions. That balancing act pushed Raya to Triple-A at just 21 years old in 2024, but his development as a starter eventually stalled against more advanced competition.

Rather than continue forcing the issue, Minnesota shifted Raya into a relief role last season. The transition has paid dividends. While his overall 2026 numbers don't immediately jump off the page, they don't tell the full story. Raya owns a 5.54 ERA and 1.26 WHIP at Triple-A St. Paul, but nearly all of that damage came during a disastrous April. Opposing hitters posted a 1.129 OPS against him during the season's opening month, and his ERA ballooned to 11.68.

Since then, Raya has looked like a completely different pitcher. Over the last 28 days, the right-hander has posted a 1.64 ERA with a microscopic 0.64 WHIP across 11 innings. Perhaps most encouraging has been his command. Raya has struck out 11 hitters during that stretch without issuing a single walk. The Twins are clearly betting that version of Raya can help a bullpen that continues searching for reliable innings.

Rojas Returns to St. Paul

Rojas' stay in the majors was brief. The young left-hander started Monday night's game against the Dodgers and worked two innings before turning the game over to the bullpen. While the Twins remain high on the talented southpaw, the move back to Triple-A gives the Twins fresh arms for the bullpen. 

Given Minnesota's recent pitching injuries and constant roster shuffling, it would hardly be surprising to see Rojas back in Minneapolis before long.

Voth's Twins Tenure Ends Quickly

Voth's time with Minnesota lasted just one appearance and it was clear during last night’s game that the Twins were going to keep throwing him out there with the game already lost. 

After signing a minor league contract with the Twins late last month, the veteran right-hander earned a promotion to the major league roster earlier this week. He was immediately thrown into a difficult assignment against one of baseball's most dangerous lineups.

Tasked with covering multiple innings after Rojas exited Monday's game, Voth surrendered five earned runs on 11 hits and a walk across four innings against the Dodgers. The outing pushed his season ERA even higher, but it doesn't fully reflect the veteran's recent track record.

Voth entered 2026 with a career 4.70 ERA across 360 1/3 major league innings and was effective as recently as 2024, when he posted a 3.69 ERA in 61 innings for the Seattle Mariners. He also spent last season pitching for the Chiba Lotte Marines in Japan's Nippon Professional Baseball, where he logged a respectable 3.96 ERA over 125 innings.

Even this year, Voth pitched well at Triple-A between the Blue Jays and Twins organizations, compiling a 3.65 ERA across 11 starts before receiving another big league opportunity. Unfortunately for him, the results in the majors never followed. Between Toronto and Minnesota, Voth allowed 11 earned runs over just 10 major league innings in 2026.

What Happens Next?

The Twins now have seven days to resolve Voth's DFA. During that period they can attempt to trade him, place him on outright waivers, or release him. If Voth clears waivers, he has enough service time to reject an outright assignment and elect free agency.

For Minnesota, however, the bigger story is Raya. After six years in the organization, a role change, and plenty of ups and downs along the way, one of the Twins' longest-tenured pitching prospects has finally arrived. Now comes the next challenge: proving he belongs.

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[Kenny Powers]

I believe that just about completed the 40 man Bingo card with regard to using every healthy pitcher on the 40 man roster.  Pablo and Festa were on the IL all year, so I guess Rashi is the only remaining healthy arm that hasn't pitched for the big club.  That's using the full deck!

[Dman]

I was wondering if they would give him a chance when I looked and he hadn't given up a run in June at AAA with a 0.50 WHIP.  It's time to see what he looks like at the big league level.  Congrats to Raya and I hope he is good enough to stay as he has good velocity and plus pitches.  We'll see how it goes.

[hlsballer318]

I just hope they don't try and send Raya out for multiple innings. Let him be good in one then re-assess next game.

[Possumlad]

10 Walks in 12.1 IP in May, followed by 2 Walks over 25.2 innings in May & June. That can't be random. Was it a mechanical change? If not mechanical, I assume it's psychological. Will be interesting to see if he can keep it rolling in the majors. A lot of success in the majors comes down to mental resilience.

[Aggies7]

A little surprising about Rojas? His body language was not good last night. Nor was his accuracy 

[LA Vikes Fan]

I think they sent Rojas down to stretch him out as a starter and to work on his control. There really isn't anybody in AAA ready to come up and start in the Bigs if there's another injury, and it looks like Ober and Able are both at least a few weeks away. We need a starter in waiting at AAA. I think Rojas is going to be that guy. If he stretches out and dominates there over the next 3-4 weeks, that also gives the Twins the option of bringing him up to start and moving Paredes or Prielipp to the bullpen. Moving Rojas back to AAA makes sense to me if that's the plan.

[ashbury]

6 hours ago, Cody Christie said:

The Twins now have seven days to resolve Voth's DFA. 

"Resolve"?  Only in the sense of letting the league's roster rules run their course.  There is no ticking clock the Twins are worried about.  I would be shocked if he weren't already on the waiver wire, and after that the Twins will let the waiver-claim chips fall where they may.  After he clears, I'd be only slightly less surprised if he chooses free agency in search of a better situation - he's been cut by the White Sox and Blue Jays already this season - what new team is going to encourage him with promises of an early promotion to their big club?

[jorgenswest]

I think they sent down Rojas because they didn’t let him rehab in the minors. He made one rehab appearance. Abel was supposed to be the call up on Sunday and he had a set back so they shifted to Rojas. Now he has to work on stretching out and finding his command against the Dodger line up.

Stretching Rojas out to be a starter is a good idea. It is one they should have had before ending his rehab prematurely. They could have called up Voth or Funderburk or Raya to begin with.

[Bangkok Twins Fan]

Very excited that Raya is finally getting the chance to pitch for the Twins in the majors. He has the potential to be a stellar arm in the pen. It will be interesting to say how the Twins use him and if he will be on any type of pitch/innings limit. 

[stringer bell]

One more 40-man slot cleared with the Voth DFA and they can add Abel to the 60-day IL if they need a second. 😔

As far as the bullpen goes, it would appear Gomez, Morris and Banda are the back end--not great but more often then not capable.The other spots are up for grabs with Fundy entering "last chance" territory. I think Rogers is cooked and that Adams is a best a last man in the 'pen.

Congratulations to Raya. He's finally getting a chance after encountering a lot of detours on his way to the majors. Good for him.

[Brandon]

Raya is the first of the 2020 draft class to debut 6 years later but whose counting, and we could still see a few others get a shot.  Rosario was promoted to AAA, Sabato seems to be a AAA player and that will allow for an opportunity of some kind, and wasn't CJ Culpepper from that draft as well?  If so that would be 4 out of 5 to potentially make it to the majors.  Time will tell