Twins Prospect Hot Sheet: Kendry Rojas Preps for Bullpen Role

[Cody Christie]

Image courtesy of Rob Thompson, St. Paul Saints

The minor-league regular season is over, which means there are only a few more opportunities for prospects to make an impression before heading into the offseason. For some players, these final games are about building momentum. For others, they offer one last chance to show the organization where they might fit into the long-term plan.

This week's Hot Sheet features a prospect making an interesting transition on the mound, a power hitter making his case for a 40-man roster spot, and a versatile infielder looking to finish his season on a positive note.

OF Kala'i Rosario, St. Paul Saints

How He Got Here: Rosario entered the 2020 MLB Draft as the top prospect in Hawaii, but the shortened five-round format forced him to wait until the fifth round before the Twins selected him. Rosario has provided plenty of reasons for optimism throughout his professional career. He won Midwest League MVP honors and later tied for the Arizona Fall League (AFL) lead in home runs in 2023, raising expectations heading into the following season.

An elbow injury cost him roughly two months in 2024 and slowed his momentum. Rosario made up for some of that lost development time with another trip to the AFL. Last season, he spent the entire year at Double-A and continued to showcase his offensive potential, posting an .844 OPS and 131 wRC+ over 130 games.

Hitting the Hot Button: Rosario appeared in five games for the Saints this week, going 5-for-21 with a double, two home runs, four RBIs, one walk and three runs scored. He posted an .844 OPS during that stretch. The bigger picture is even more encouraging. Since being promoted to Triple-A near the beginning of August, Rosario has posted a .604 slugging percentage and .923 OPS while hitting 10 home runs in 30 games.

That recent production comes at an important time for Rosario. The Twins must add him to their 40-man roster this offseason to protect him from the Rule 5 Draft. A strong finish in St. Paul gives the organization another reason to make room for him.

LHP Kendry Rojas, St. Paul Saints

How He Got Here: Rojas steadily moved through the Toronto Blue Jays system after signing in 2021. Minnesota acquired him in last season's trade for Louis Varland, believing he had the upside to eventually become a starting pitcher.

The transition was not especially smooth. Rojas struggled during his first exposure to Triple-A, but he was just 22 years old while facing some of the best hitters of his professional career. Minnesota returned Rojas to Triple-A for the 2026 season, and he found more success while also getting an opportunity to help the Twins in a multi-inning role.

Hitting the Hot Button: Rojas made 12 appearances for Minnesota earlier this season, including four starts. Now, the organization appears to be assessing how his stuff might play in shorter outings. He started two games for the Saints this week, but neither appearance lasted particularly long. Rojas combined for four scoreless innings while allowing one hit and two walks and striking out four. The shorter outings were part of his build back from an oblique injury. 

There's a chance Minnesota gives him another look at the big-league level before the season ends—one that seemed to rise when, on Sunday, the team brought Bailey Ober in to close out a win over the Angels, signaling that all the traditional strictures on usage will be dispensed with for the final fistful of games. Even with the bullpen work, though, the Twins still view Rojas as a potential starter for the long term. Rojas can continue developing as a starter while gaining valuable experience attacking hitters in shorter, higher-leverage appearances.

2B/SS Kyle DeBarge, Wichita Wind Surge

How He Got Here: Minnesota selected DeBarge with the 33rd overall pick in the 2024 MLB Draft out of the University of Louisiana at Lafayette. DeBarge experienced the highs and lows that come with a full season at Double-A. The 2024 first-round pick still put together an intriguing statistical line, hitting 12 home runs, scoring 73 runs and stealing 41 bases while playing four different positions.

Overall, he hit .221 with a .325 on-base percentage and .677 OPS. The batting average does not immediately jump off the page, but DeBarge's versatility remains one of his biggest selling points. He spent most of his time at second base while also seeing action at shortstop and other positions, giving the organization another athletic and flexible option.

Hitting the Hot Button: DeBarge finished his Double-A season by extending his on-base streak to nine games. He also recorded his 27th multi-hit game of the season. The overall offensive numbers remain a work in progress. DeBarge finished the season with a 76 wRC+, which was 30 points lower than his mark at High-A last season.

Still, the Twins are not giving up on the former first-round selection. DeBarge is one of the more recognizable prospects Minnesota is sending to the Arizona Fall League, giving him another opportunity to work on different parts of his game. The Fall League could be particularly important for DeBarge. His defensive versatility and speed give him valuable tools, but the organization needs to see more consistent offensive production as he moves closer to the upper levels of the system.

The minor-league season is over, but the Twins still have plenty to evaluate. Rosario is making a strong argument for a spot on the 40-man roster, while Rojas is showing that his future could include more than one role on the pitching staff. DeBarge represents a different kind of evaluation. His versatility and athleticism remain intriguing, but the offensive numbers need to improve as he moves toward the upper levels of the organization.

The Arizona Fall League will provide one more opportunity for several of these prospects to make an impression. By the time spring training arrives, the Twins should have a much clearer picture of which players are ready to take the next step and which ones still need more development.

---

What stands out about this trio and their recent performance? Leave a comment and star the discussion.

View full article

[DJL44]

DeBarge could be the 13th player for the Twins, rarely playing except to pinch run and play defense.

[MeleMouth]

Putting Rojas in the BP, along with not giving Roden much of a chance in 2026, would almost be admitting a loss on the Varland trade.

[PuckettPond]

In the BP or starter Twins need more Rojas as our pitching quality is very thin. A young Rojas is better than the other guy who did not want to be here.

[killercarewoliva]

1 hour ago, MeleMouth said:

Putting Rojas in the BP, along with not giving Roden much of a chance in 2026, would almost be admitting a loss on the Varland trade.

in baseball it's hard to know and there have been some bad trades and some good trades in the past 50 years. but that thing with varland unbelievable so bad. but there is a butt. I don't think it's going to be a total loss. Rojas has pitched well. after his initial walking everybody you see the potential even when he's walking somebody the movement on his pitches. when he strikes them out, they are out and now after his latest injury. yes I would love to see him on that man one more time. let him throw that ball for a while. I think he could be a dynamic starter. that is if he has the strength to pitch that many innings at one time.

[Linus]

Excited about Rojas. Live arm and good stuff - just needs more control. DeBarge was a poor draft selection and is doubtful to ever see the bigs. I expect to read much angst about Rosario being taken in the Rule 5 draft. Don’t worry about it 

[Blyleven2011]

Sabato added to 40 man roster and also to the 28 man roster , Lewis has been suffering from a shoulder injury , Buxton will be added to the 60 day IL list for Sabato to be activated …

[MikeNC]

2 hours ago, MeleMouth said:

Putting Rojas in the BP, along with not giving Roden much of a chance in 2026, would almost be admitting a loss on the Varland trade.

Go figure!!!!  I think Rojas showed some good stuff, but wouldn't having a, say, 80% Varland in the bullpen be a nice partial recovery of the stupidest trade in Twins history?  As for the Rodent, don't get too exited by him knocking Angel's AAA-like pitching, he has been dismal against quality pitching.

[Whammy]

3 hours ago, MeleMouth said:

Putting Rojas in the BP, along with not giving Roden much of a chance in 2026, would almost be admitting a loss on the Varland trade.

So, should we pound our head against the wall trying to "win" the trade or attempt to do the best we can with the players we actually have?

[MeleMouth]

1 hour ago, Linus said:

Excited about Rojas. Live arm and good stuff - just needs more control. DeBarge was a poor draft selection and is doubtful to ever see the bigs. I expect to read much angst about Rosario being taken in the Rule 5 draft. Don’t worry about it 

It's hard to see another team taking Rosario and rostering him for a full year after he struck out more than 30% of the time in AAA.

[MeleMouth]

9 minutes ago, Whammy said:

So, should we pound our head against the wall trying to "win" the trade or attempt to do the best we can with the players we actually have?

(1) Do the best you can with the players you have. (2) Serious introspection and perhaps termination for the people involved. I don't usually call for people to be fired, particularly for one mistake, but this one was such a doozy, combining major errors in analysis with telling fantasies to yourself to justify the deal. Errors in projection happen and there are ways to get better, but self-deception is much harder to fix and can cause much more damage.

[LA Vikes Fan]

2 hours ago, killercarewoliva said:

in baseball it's hard to know and there have been some bad trades and some good trades in the past 50 years. but that thing with varland unbelievable so bad. but there is a butt. I don't think it's going to be a total loss. Rojas has pitched well. after his initial walking everybody you see the potential even when he's walking somebody the movement on his pitches. when he strikes them out, they are out and now after his latest injury. yes I would love to see him on that man one more time. let him throw that ball for a while. I think he could be a dynamic starter. that is if he has the strength to pitch that many innings at one time.

I know we all want to give and get instant grades on trades (like everything else in these days of 24 hour talking head sports coverage). This trade is the classic type that takes at least 2 seasons to evaluate since we got prospects back for established MLB talent. Toronto got a guy who's turned into very good to elite MLB reliever. We'll see if that lasts or if it's a one season phenomenon and Varland returns to the slightly above average reliever he was with the Twins. We got a hitter who's shown some strides this year - .278/.349/.375(.724) in 72 MLB ABs - and a 22 year old LH pitcher who has shown tantalizingly good stuff but no consistency yet. If Rojas is a top of rotation starter by 2028, it was a good trade. If he's a middle of rotation starter and Roden is a solid starting MLB OF, it's a good trade. If Rojas is an elite reliever, it's a good trade. If he's a solid reliever and Roden is a solid OF, it's an OK/meh trade. If Varland returns to what he was in MN or God forbid gets an arm injury, it's a good trade. Anything else, we lose. We should know by the end of 2027/beginning of 2028.   

That's the thing with trading for prospects; it takes at least 2-3 seasons before you know if you made a good deal. That's why I wasn't keen on trading Ryan or Jeffers for prospects at the deadline, and prospects is all you can get at the deadline since no contending team is likely to trade quality from the MLB roster while contending. I didn't want to wait 3 years for the payoff. I think we can contend sooner, 

[killercarewoliva]

2 minutes ago, LA Vikes Fan said:

I know we all want to give and get instant grades on trades (like everything else in these days of 24 hour talking head sports coverage). This trade is the classic type that takes at least 2 seasons to evaluate since we got prospects back for established MLB talent. Toronto got a guy who's turned into very good to elite MLB reliever. We'll see if that lasts or if it's a one season phenomenon a Varland returns to the slightly above average releiver he was with the Twins. We got a hitter who's shown some strides this year - .278/.349/.375(.724) in 72 MLB ABs - and a 22 year old LH pitcher who has shown tantalizingly good stuff but no consistency yet. If Rojas is a top of rotation starter by 2028, it was a good trade. If he's a middle of rotation starter and Roden is a solid starting MLB OF, it's a good trade. If Rojas is an elite reliever, it's a good trade. If he's a solid reliever and Roden is a solid OF, it's an OK/meh trade. If Varland returns to what he was in MN or God forbid gets an arm injury, it's a good trade. Anything else, we lose. We should know by the end of 2027/beginning of 2028.   

That's the thing with trading for prospects; it takes at least 2-3 seasons before you know if you made a good deal. That's why I wasn't keen on trading Ryan or Jeffers for prospects at the deadline, and prospects is all you can get at the deadline since no contending team is likely to trade quality from the MLB roster while contending. I didn't want to wait 3 years for the payoff. I think we can contend sooner, 

very good response sir. thank you so much for the information