The Twins’ Bullpen Has Walked Their Way Into a Big Problem

[Sam Caulder]

Image courtesy of Denis Poroy-Imagn Images

Whether you’re a player, a coach, a fan, or a neutral observer, there are very few things more frustrating in baseball than watching your team miss the strike zone. Balls lead to walks, walks create traffic on the bases, and baserunners lead to extended innings. For the Twins, that has been a particularly frustrating cycle throughout the 2026 season. Minnesota has the 10th-highest walk rate in baseball, at 9.4%. By itself, that’s not a huge problem. The league-average walk rate is right around 9%; being 0.4 percentage points above that mark isn’t catastrophic. But what has happened following those walks has been a much bigger problem.

There have been far too many instances throughout the year where the Twins have taken a lead into the later innings, only to watch that lead disappear because of poor command. A walk here, a hit there, another walk, and suddenly an inning that should have been over has turned into a serious threat. That was a big part of why the Twins were so aggressive at the trade deadline, adding three relievers to shore up what had been one of the biggest weaknesses on the roster. But at this point, it appears that those additions were too little, too late. The issues that plagued this bullpen for much of the season still haven’t completely gone away.

The Twins’ bullpen has issued 238 free passes this season. That’s the fourth-most of any bullpen in baseball, and as a fan, I certainly wouldn’t fault you for being frustrated by that number. That the relief unit is a weakness is no surprise. Minnesota lost several important relievers at the deadline last summer and didn’t do nearly enough to replace them during the offseason. While I applaud the front office for recognizing the problem and trying to address it at the deadline, much of this frustration and inconsistency could have been avoided with more proactivity and earlier investment.

Instead of aggressively replacing their offloaded relief arms during the offseason, Minnesota opted to piece the bullpen together. Taylor Rogers was brought back, while Eric Orze and Anthony Banda arrived via motivated sellers. Only Rogers is currently pitching for the Twins. Orze was eventually optioned to Triple-A, while Banda struggled before his season ended with a lat strain. Unsurprisingly, both of those pitchers had issues with walks.

Even some of the relievers Minnesota added during the season came with command concerns. Jeff Hoffman and Yoendrys Gómez have both posted walk rates above 12% since joining the Twins. Both pitchers had also dealt with command issues at various points in their careers before coming to Minnesota, so the Twins knew what they were getting themselves into.

A bullpen is a lot like air conditioning. You only really notice it when it isn’t working. When everything is going well, nobody’s talking about the relievers. A starter works six or seven innings, a couple of relievers come in and do their jobs, and the closer finishes things off. It’s not particularly exciting, but that’s exactly what you want from a bullpen. The problem is that the Twins haven’t been able to get that kind of consistency.

There have been stretches where the bullpen has looked excellent. There have been individual relievers who have stepped up and performed well. But there have also been far too many nights where Minnesota’s relievers have struggled to find the strike zone, putting unnecessary pressure on themselves and the defense behind them. Too many walks, too many extended innings, too many blown leads. Eventually, those things add up.

The deadline additions gave Minnesota a better group of options than it had earlier in the season, and the Twins should theoretically enter 2027 with a better bullpen than the one they started this season with. But that doesn’t mean the problem can be ignored once the offseason arrives. If this team genuinely wants to compete next season, it has to start with its late-game pitching.

The Twins have invested heavily in high-upside position-player talent via the draft, as well as young starting pitching. But none of that matters much if they can’t protect leads once they get to the sixth, seventh and eighth innings. Walks are frustrating, because they’re often avoidable. When they consistently come from the bullpen, they become even more costly.

Minnesota doesn’t need to build the best bullpen in baseball this offseason. They just need to build one that can consistently throw strikes, avoid putting unnecessary runners on base, and make a lead feel safe. After everything that happened in 2026, that should be one of the biggest priorities of the offseason. If the Twins want to be a competitive team in 2027, they can’t afford to keep walking their way out of games.

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[PuckettPond]

I was told when the Twins were buyers @ the deadline our bullpen problems were solved. 

[Linus]

An additional factor is poor team defense. Walking people and kicking the ball around is a bad combo. 

[thelanges5]

The walks have really annoyed me this year. Was expecting the twins to be one of the worst, but they are in the middle of the pack. 

[Derojo]

Quote: The Twins knew they had a bullpen problem coming into the season, and 2026 has done little to change that perception. Now, Minnesota has to figure out how to turn a glaring weakness into a strength before next season. :Unquote.

 

According to Twins Daily’s 2026 position analysis, the projected bullpen includes Twins Daily:

• Cole Sands – veteran holdover, expected to lead the group.

• Taylor Rogers – former Twins ace, now in relief; known for past dominance.

• Justin Topa – sub‑4 ERA over recent seasons.

• Liam Hendriks – 37‑year‑old wildcard; elite in 2019–2022, but limited innings in recent years due to health issues.

• Andrew Chafin – 12‑year MLB career, 3.35 ERA.

• Eric Orze – recent sub‑4 ERA seasons.

• Anthony Banda – multiple sub‑4 ERA years.

• Zak Kent – depth arm.

So Taylor Rogers is left. Every other reliever the Twins now put out there is different. Yet, you say the Twins have done little: 

 

Current 40‑Man Roster Pitchers (Relief Focus) Baseball-Reference.com

• A.J. Minter – 32‑year‑old LHP, 6'0", 215 lbs, 2013 debut.

• Andrew Morris – 24‑year‑old RHP, 6'0", 195 lbs, 2019 debut.

• Jeff Hoffman – 33‑year‑old RHP, 6'5", 235 lbs, 2012 debut.

• Travis Adams – 26‑year‑old RHP, 6'1", 197 lbs, 2019 debut.

• Yoendrys Gómez – 26‑year‑old RHP, 6'3", 212 lbs, 2017 debut.

• Kody Funderbirk

• Tommy Nance

• Hardly any changes at all. If you don't have perceived confidence, you don't. But you can't write that the Twins have done little to change our perception. The Twins have been changing their relief pitching staff all season long. BTW - I haven't caught all the changes: Kendry Rojas, who might return as a reliever.

• No, I didn't read the article, because when an opening statement is so inane; I'm not going there. 

[PuckettPond]

The best RPs are usually found from within not by over paid trades & over paid FAs. Converted short stops and failed starting pitchers are the best as Twins history is full of them.

[Parfigliano]

4 hours ago, PuckettPond said:

I was told when the Twins were buyers @ the deadline our bullpen problems were solved. 

Goes with the "bullpens are easy to construct" talk last offseason.

[TL]

Not too worried about next year’s bullpen. Morris, Hoffman, Gomez, Funderburk, Nance, Banda is a good start. Then hopefully Sands and Festa are back and you’ll also have one starter like Rojas in the pen waiting for a spot to open up.

[Riverbrian]

15 hours ago, Derojo said:

Quote: The Twins knew they had a bullpen problem coming into the season, and 2026 has done little to change that perception. Now, Minnesota has to figure out how to turn a glaring weakness into a strength before next season. :Unquote.

 

According to Twins Daily’s 2026 position analysis, the projected bullpen includes Twins Daily:

• Cole Sands – veteran holdover, expected to lead the group.

• Taylor Rogers – former Twins ace, now in relief; known for past dominance.

• Justin Topa – sub‑4 ERA over recent seasons.

• Liam Hendriks – 37‑year‑old wildcard; elite in 2019–2022, but limited innings in recent years due to health issues.

• Andrew Chafin – 12‑year MLB career, 3.35 ERA.

• Eric Orze – recent sub‑4 ERA seasons.

• Anthony Banda – multiple sub‑4 ERA years.

• Zak Kent – depth arm.

So Taylor Rogers is left. Every other reliever the Twins now put out there is different. Yet, you say the Twins have done little: 

 

Current 40‑Man Roster Pitchers (Relief Focus) Baseball-Reference.com

• A.J. Minter – 32‑year‑old LHP, 6'0", 215 lbs, 2013 debut.

• Andrew Morris – 24‑year‑old RHP, 6'0", 195 lbs, 2019 debut.

• Jeff Hoffman – 33‑year‑old RHP, 6'5", 235 lbs, 2012 debut.

• Travis Adams – 26‑year‑old RHP, 6'1", 197 lbs, 2019 debut.

• Yoendrys Gómez – 26‑year‑old RHP, 6'3", 212 lbs, 2017 debut.

• Kody Funderbirk

• Tommy Nance

• Hardly any changes at all. If you don't have perceived confidence, you don't. But you can't write that the Twins have done little to change our perception. The Twins have been changing their relief pitching staff all season long. BTW - I haven't caught all the changes: Kendry Rojas, who might return as a reliever.

• No, I didn't read the article, because when an opening statement is so inane; I'm not going there. 

The article was mostly about control problems in the bullpen but I agree with you. 

This club completely changed the bullpen and they did so via audition. Our top 4 most trusted arms in the pen according to utilization are Gomez, Morris, Minter and Hoffman and none of those 4 were here when the season started. 

I applaud the front office efforts to actively seek bullpen answers using an audition process and the necessary deadline deals.  

The result of all this change and in regards to the Article. 

Statistically:

The Bullpen since August 1

Ranks 22nd with a 4.37 ERA

Ranks 22nd with a 4.18 BB/9

The Bullpen from the start of the season to July 31.

Ranked 26th with a 4.87 ERA 

Ranked 29th with a 4.67 BB/9

We still have control issues but despite the articles assertion... we have improved in that area as a group. Gomez and Hoffman with plus 7 BB/9 are the main reason that the bullpen walk rate hasn't improved a lot. 

Subjectively... I personally feel better about the bullpen today then I did at the start of the season when I was sick to my stomach.

We will probably have to go through this same process next year. Guys we think we found will be lost and guys we thought lost will be found. 

 

[bean5302]

16 hours ago, Derojo said:

Quote: The Twins knew they had a bullpen problem coming into the season, and 2026 has done little to change that perception. Now, Minnesota has to figure out how to turn a glaring weakness into a strength before next season. :Unquote.

 

According to Twins Daily’s 2026 position analysis, the projected bullpen includes Twins Daily:

• Cole Sands – veteran holdover, expected to lead the group.

• Taylor Rogers – former Twins ace, now in relief; known for past dominance.

• Justin Topa – sub‑4 ERA over recent seasons.

• Liam Hendriks – 37‑year‑old wildcard; elite in 2019–2022, but limited innings in recent years due to health issues.

• Andrew Chafin – 12‑year MLB career, 3.35 ERA.

• Eric Orze – recent sub‑4 ERA seasons.

• Anthony Banda – multiple sub‑4 ERA years.

• Zak Kent – depth arm.

So Taylor Rogers is left. Every other reliever the Twins now put out there is different. Yet, you say the Twins have done little: 

 

Current 40‑Man Roster Pitchers (Relief Focus) Baseball-Reference.com

• A.J. Minter – 32‑year‑old LHP, 6'0", 215 lbs, 2013 debut.

• Andrew Morris – 24‑year‑old RHP, 6'0", 195 lbs, 2019 debut.

• Jeff Hoffman – 33‑year‑old RHP, 6'5", 235 lbs, 2012 debut.

• Travis Adams – 26‑year‑old RHP, 6'1", 197 lbs, 2019 debut.

• Yoendrys Gómez – 26‑year‑old RHP, 6'3", 212 lbs, 2017 debut.

• Kody Funderbirk

• Tommy Nance

• Hardly any changes at all. If you don't have perceived confidence, you don't. But you can't write that the Twins have done little to change our perception. The Twins have been changing their relief pitching staff all season long. BTW - I haven't caught all the changes: Kendry Rojas, who might return as a reliever.

• No, I didn't read the article, because when an opening statement is so inane; I'm not going there. 

That ugly, peeling paint gray shed with broken windows, a crumbled foundation, in the backyard is starting to fall over because of gaps. We need to replace it.

Twins paint it hot pink (can was open return for 50% off) with no prep work, tape broken windows, spread sand into the foundation cracks, spray foams gaps.

You... Tada!!! Fixed for $9.99! Great job!