It's Time for the Twins to Turn Kendry Rojas Loose

[Matthew Taylor]

Image courtesy of © Jesse Johnson-Imagn Images

When the Minnesota Twins acquired Kendry Rojas from the Toronto Blue Jays at last year's trade deadline, they were betting on upside. The controversial trade that sent Louis Varland to Toronto also brought Alan Roden to the organization, but Rojas was viewed as the potential long-term prize. A fringe top-100 prospect, he featured a mid- to high-90s fastball, a devastating slider, and the kind of raw stuff that made scouts believe he could eventually settle into the middle of a major-league rotation.

There was always one major concern, though. Rojas struggled to consistently throw strikes, and that issue has followed him to Minnesota. Between Triple-A St. Paul and the Twins, Rojas has walked 44 batters in just 43 2/3 innings. The electric arsenal is still there, but the command hasn't improved enough to convince the organization he can handle the workload of a traditional starting pitcher.

If the Twins truly believed Rojas was part of their future rotation, they'd be developing him like one. Instead, they've done the opposite. Since joining the organization, Rojas has bounced between starting and relieving, without ever really fitting either role. In his two major-league starts, he lasted just two innings and four innings, respectively. With the Saints, he's started five games but has never been allowed to throw more than four innings, usually exiting after just two or three. Even when he's come out of the bullpen, he hasn't been used as a traditional late-inning reliever. Instead, he's worked one to three innings as a piggyback option or long reliever after an early exit from another pitcher.

That hybrid role is arguably the least valuable one a pitcher can fill. He's not providing the length teams expect from a starter. Nor is he being trusted to record the biggest outs at the ends of games. Instead, he's stuck somewhere in the middle, where neither his development nor his impact is being maximized. At some point, the Twins need to decide what they believe Rojas is, because the current plan isn't a long-term solution.

The organization's usage tells the story. Teams don't consistently pull starting pitchers after two, three, or four innings unless they have concerns about their ability to turn a lineup over multiple times. Rojas has premium velocity and an excellent slider, but he doesn't yet have the command, demonstrated durability or complete pitch mix to profile as a traditional starter. There's nothing wrong with that. Plenty of talented pitchers have found greater success after moving to the bullpen. In fact, the Twins have already shown exactly how to maximize this type of arm. Ironically, the blueprint belongs to the same pitcher they traded away to acquire Rojas.

Louis Varland also entered professional baseball as a starter. When that role didn't fully click, the Twins tried him as a multi-inning reliever, before eventually committing him to one inning at a time. That's when everything changed. Without worrying about pacing himself for multiple trips through the lineup, Varland was able to attack hitters with maximum effort. His velocity ticked up, and his best pitches became even more effective. The result was one of the best late-inning relievers in the American League. There's every reason to believe Rojas could follow a similar path.

He's already capable of reaching the upper 90s while pitching multiple innings. In a one-inning role, it's easy to envision him sitting comfortably in the upper 90s, while occasionally touching triple digits. More importantly, he wouldn't need to rely on a deep arsenal. He could lean heavily on his overpowering fastball and devastating slider, allowing his two best pitches to play at their highest level, instead of trying to navigate hitters multiple times with inconsistent command.

The timing also couldn't be better. The Twins suddenly have an opening for another impact left-hander after Anthony Banda landed on the injured list with a lat strain earlier this week. A power lefty capable of missing bats late in games is something every contender covets, and Rojas has the raw talent to become exactly that if the organization commits to the transition.

Right now, though, the Twins are getting the worst of both worlds. Rojas isn't developing into the type of starter who can consistently give the club five or six innings, and he isn't being allowed to become the high-leverage reliever his stuff suggests he could be. He's simply existing in between those roles, and that isn't helping either the player or the organization.

The Twins don't need another hybrid pitcher. They need impact arms, especially in the bullpen. Rojas has all the ingredients to become one, if the organization is willing to stop trying to force him into a role that no longer appears realistic. It's time to pick a lane.

Turn Kendry Rojas into a true one-inning reliever. Let him attack hitters with his fastball and slider. Let him throw every pitch at maximum effort, instead of worrying about saving something for the fourth inning. The Twins already followed this exact formula with Varland. The irony is that the player they acquired in exchange for him may need the very same treatment.

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What do you think? Should the Twins commit to Kendry Rojas as a late-inning reliever, or would you continue trying to develop him as a starter? Leave a comment below and start the conversation!

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[jorgenswest]

I think he is more valuable as a starter and would keep that door open. It is true that like Varland he may need to go to the bullpen. Varland made that conversion at age 27. Rojas is 23.

[DJL44]

They’re stretching him out to put him in the rotation. That’s reasonable when Mike Paredes is getting starts and Connor Prielipp is getting skipped to keep his innings down.

[tony&rodney]

Maybe Rojas takes Banda's spot. Rojas is flammable though. The transition back to a starting pitcher could always begin anew after the current season. The experience at the MLB level could be valuable.

[old nurse]

A starter is more necessary than a reliever. Development wise he likely should be in AAA. They need him in the majors. He hasn’t yet shown he doesn’t belong as a starter. That is why he is being used as he is  

[thelanges5]

Are they keeping him stretched out because they’re planning on trading Joe Ryan?

[Glorybound]

Is he healthy enough to turn loose? He is relatively young yet so I think they are trying to be careful not to compromise his future. It’s not like his team is in first place and he is needed to keep his team on top of the division.

[tarheeltwinsfan]

Very compelling argument for moving Rojas into a one inning relief role. I agree that should be done immediately. But it must be emphasized to him by LaTroy over and over that walks are the bane of one inning relievers.

[Dman]

Hasn't Rojas been on the IL a couple of times already this year.  I'd say the reason they are being careful is to keep him healthy.  The Twins are in a tough spot with Rojas IMO.  While a starter has more value they need to likely keep his innings down to protect his arm and putting him in the pen could jeopardize his development as a starter to some degree.

Given the Twins need both a starter and bullpen help they sure could use him in either role.  Maybe they keep the piggy back with Paredes or maybe they just give him a pen role for now.  Hard to say, but it seems hard to see him starting much this year given the control issues and likely pitch limits he will be on. 

A bullpen role might be the way to go given they need help there.  Or if this season goes south in the next couple of weeks it won't matter as they will be out of contention and they can develop him without rushing him.  Have to wait and see how the season goes and how badly they think they need him in one of those two roles.

[HerbieFan]

In the times I've seen him pitch his stuff screams late-inning, high-leverage reliever.  And then he starts walking people.  Until (If?) the command improves the hybrid role might be the best spot for him.

[rdehring]

Why?  For all we, or probably the Twins know he could be their ACE a few years from now.

[miller761]

He can always go back to starting if he develops command and 2 more pitches. Right now we are still in the chase and desperately need bullpen help. Give him a chance and take a chance the Twins can help him with command. That is a special arm and I would want to do this even if Banda was heaalthy.

[Bodie]

Relief pitchers are failed starters. 

As of yet, he is not a failed starter. 

[Mike Sixel]

I'm keeping him as a starter for now.....and I usually argue to move guys fast to the bullpen...

[Galen]

Bullpen this year...give him a starting shot next year 

[dxpavelka]

Reminds me a bit of another young left handed pitcher who spent four seasons getting a few starts here and there but pitching more often out of the pen than the rotation and by his fifth season became a starter and was rewarded with an award--The Cy Young.

[tony&rodney]

1 hour ago, Bodie said:

Relief pitchers are failed starters. 

As of yet, he is not a failed starter. 

Tell that to Chris Sale, Johan Santana, and hundreds more over the long history of baseball.

The Twins will take care of him. Whatever they decide is fine for me.

Development wise, pitching to the best hitters is a good learning experience.

[JADBP]

I couldn't agree more.  Johan was stuck in the pen for a while because he was a Rule 5 draft and they had to keep him on the team.  So, instead of sitting on the bench and throwing fake innings, why not get out there and face some MLB hitters?  Its excellent experience.  Rojas would well benefit from facing a string of tough MLBers in the biggs.  He is gonna learn that command is so mightily important!  He's gonna learn that MLBers will sit back and take those free walks all day long with a smile on their face.  Then he might bone down and work on this command.  And, he will be getting instruction all along from the Twins excellent MLB coaches.  

Personally I can't come up with a single reason NOT to bring him up in a RP role.  All this talk about "converting" him to an RP is nonsense.  He can always go back to SP once he tightens up his command and we have a full pen.  And, to say that RP is for failed starters....ummmm....I think Johann would smack you in the nose over that one!  Its a place for pitchers to get some training and experience at the MLB level--all while providing value to the team.

1 hour ago, tony&rodney said:

Tell that to Chris Sale, Johan Santana, and hundreds more over the long history of baseball.

The Twins will take care of him. Whatever they decide is fine for me.

Development wise, pitching to the best hitters is a good learning experience.

I couldn't 

[DocBauer]

This is almost totally opposite of my normal opinion...keep a young starting arm AS a starting arm for as long as possible...but I really like the idea of Rojas in the bullpen. And that doesn't preclude him moving back to the rotation one day, similar to what Santana and Liriano did.

The bullpen could really use that powerful arm/stuff in the bullpen along with Gomez and Morris and anyone else that can get their game together over the next few months. Losing Banda really hurt. (I would have liked BOTH Rojas and BANDA in the pen). And being a little wild, like Rojas is, is easier to cover when you've got nasty stuff, high K potential, and probably only throwing one inning at a time.

Losing Ryan...if it happens...really messes with this year's rotation. But currently, 2027 looks like Lopez, Bradley, Abel, Matthews, and Prielipp as the top 5, with Ober as a question mark. While depth is absolutely a concern, that's a really nice place for the rotation to start.

But what about the bullpen? And even if Banda is back, who joins him? You don't HAVE to have 2 LH options in the pen, but OH BOY, to have Banda in a middle role and Rojas blowing away hitters in the 8th inning! 

I'd like to think the Twins are smarter than me, lol, and have a plan in place for Rojas. And again, this isn't my normal stance. It's a gut feeling due to control issues and some past injury issues, that he's just destined for a back of the pen role.

We sure could use his arm there.

[bean5302]

#1 - 5.0 WAR
#2 - 4.0 WAR
#3 - 3.0 WAR
#4 - 2.0 WAR
#5 - 1.5 WAR

Elite RP - 1.75 WAR
Great RP - 1.25 WAR

Relievers are highly volatile. Consistently hitting 2.0 WAR is virtually unheard of, though it has happened for like the very pinnacle of relievers in all of baseball on occasion. 

The realistic ceiling for Rojas' value out of the pen is equivalent to a #5 starter. For whatever reason, a seemingly strange number of people on this site look at every single starting pitching prospect the Twins have and work diligently on arguments on how to convert them to a bullpen arm which will deliver minimal value.

[bean5302]

Rojas should be in the rotation.

[DocBauer]

29 minutes ago, bean5302 said:

Rojas should be in the rotation.

Not going to disagree with this statement, and in my post I made it clear it's not my normal stance. (No idea if you were speaking to my post directly or not). I really don't have a problem with him, at 23yo, still trying to gain experience and figure things out as a starter.

I'm just trying to look BIG PICTURE at the staff in it's entirety.  And I just have a "gut feeling" that Rojas' past injury history...while not significant...and his control issues makes him very "Duran-like" where his future will be as a top end RP. 

That might not equal a 1.5 WAR the way a back end SP might be calculated...provided such a pitcher is worth that, but a 1.25 WAR vs a 1.4 WAR is not such a huge difference in the context of needing a quality BP as well as a solid 5 man rotation. Further, even were Rojas to be "great" and not "elite", his actual WPA might negate any small WAR differential difference between  5th SP and his role.

It's a good arguement. Again, I'm just looking at the BIG PICTURE of building the best STAFF we can. I am not one who wants to convert all SP prospects to the pen. That's just knee jerk nonsense by some. And right now, he's the best option to add a LH that can make a difference to the bullpen. We don't have anyone else from the port side knocking at the ML door at the moment.

And he might still move back to the rotation at some point. 

[DocBauer]

Because I think it deserves it's own reply, I DO agree with the OP that they need to ultimately make a decision on Rojas, whether it be permanent, semi-permanent, or temporary. 

I think the 4 IP every 4 days has merit in MILB for 2 reasons:

1] When injuries and promotions leave a MILB team short of conventional starters, it's a good way to mix and match. 

2] I think it can be a good way to take a pitcher who just doesn't fit as a ML SP, but also might not have enough stuff to be a back end arm, and transition them to a middle man. 

Let's use Paredes as a recent example. He's never been a top prospect. But he's been successful in MILB as a pen option, and as a quasi starter at time. And while he was on NOBODY'S radar to help here in 2026, he's kinda saved the Twins butt so far. So maybe he becomes a 1-3 IP middle man, 8th man in the pen, who can give you innings every 2-3 days.

Another example: Cody Lewis, the Twins MILB pitcher of the year, has had some control and injury issues the last couple of years. He's healthy again and throwing at Wichita. Until his last poor start, he was looking at least OK. Could he ramp up his velocity a bit, refine his repertoire a bit, and still use that crazy knuckleball of his as a successful middle man? Well, then the 4 every 4 is a good way to get him built back up, gain some confidence, but never face a lineup more than 1 or 1 1/2 times.

But I DON'T like it for an arm as talented as Rojas. If the Twins have decided they are going to keep him in the rotation, then I agree they should "open him up". I get they might be building back up some after his last IL stint. But they need to let him go a good 70+ pitches and see if can get through 4-5 IP. 

But only throwing him 2+ innings doesn't utilize his potential, both for himself, as well as the Twins. 

Pick a road and follow it. I'm more worried about 2027 and beyond than I am for 2026. Get him in the pen to make a difference knowing he can also move back later, or get him stretched out and keep him as a SP for now. Just pick a lane.

[miller761]

A lot of games are won and lost in innings 7-9. Morris, Rojas and Gomez at least gives us a chance. We are still trying to win. Paredes has done a serviceable job as a #5 starter. Leave him there and put Rojas in the pen. Next year the circumstances will be entirely different more than likely... maybe he gets his chance to start then.

[weitz41]

The way they're using Rojas is one of the more confusing things they've done this year. Outside of the $ spent on the BP IMO.... All I can think of is Pablo out for the season, Festa yet to pitch any meaningful innings, Ober velo down and on the IL and SWR crashed and burned. Feels like they've had to rush him into where he is today. Plus, he had his own injury issues as well. At age 23, he should just be getting comfortable at AAA and working his way to 5+ inning an outing and 100-120 innings for the season. Let's let this cake bake for the rest of this season and maybe even till late 2027 before we worry about starter or BP.

[Major League Ready]

1 hour ago, bean5302 said:

#1 - 5.0 WAR
#2 - 4.0 WAR
#3 - 3.0 WAR
#4 - 2.0 WAR
#5 - 1.5 WAR

Elite RP - 1.75 WAR
Great RP - 1.25 WAR

Relievers are highly volatile. Consistently hitting 2.0 WAR is virtually unheard of, though it has happened for like the very pinnacle of relievers in all of baseball on occasion. 

The realistic ceiling for Rojas' value out of the pen is equivalent to a #5 starter. For whatever reason, a seemingly strange number of people on this site look at every single starting pitching prospect the Twins have and work diligently on arguments on how to convert them to a bullpen arm which will deliver minimal value.

This is a pretty pragmatic view.  However,  I generally believe SPs should not be converted to RPs until they fail as a SP.  However, I am somewhat on the fence as to let him continue to develop as a SP in AAA or put him in the Twins BP.   My 1st impulse is that developing the consistency he lacks would be best done in AAA.  Then again, I think this is a very nuanced decision, so I don't have a strong opinion.

[ashbury]

We are way behind schedule in turning Joe Ryan and Taj Bradley into bullpen pieces.  Let Rojas wait his turn.