The Twins' Biggest Strength Could Create a Major Dilemma

The Minnesota Twins have no shortage of pitching depth, and that's a great problem to have—especially when situations like the one they're dealing with right now pop up. At the moment, the Twins essentially have two starting rotations: a healthy one and an injured one. Their current major-league rotation consists of Joe Ryan, Taj Bradley, Connor Prielipp, Zebby Matthews, and Mike Paredes. Despite some inconsistencies, that group has managed to keep the Twins afloat while the organization waits for reinforcements.

Those reinforcements are significant, too. Pablo López, Mick Abel, Bailey Ober, David Festa, and Kendry Rojas are all currently on the injured list. Assuming they return fully healthy, that's five additional starting pitching options already in the organization. Add those names to the current group, and suddenly you're looking at 10 pitchers who could realistically make a case for a rotation spot in 2027, before considering any more young arms who progress to readiness for the bigs or the possibility that the club takes a starter with the No. 3 overall pick in next month's MLB Draft.

Having too many options is a good problem to have, but 10 starters fighting for five or six rotation spots feels a little excessive. So, what moves or decisions could the Twins make to clear up the picture? And more importantly, what could their 2027 starting rotation actually look like?

The first place to start is with the pitchers who may ultimately fit better in hybrid roles. Festa and Paredes have both given us reasons to remain intrigued. But if we're projecting forward, each may ultimately provide more value as a long reliever or spot starter, rather than full-time rotation pieces. For Festa, the stuff is intriguing, but he hasn't consistently worked deep into games. The same can be said for Paredes, who has largely been developed as a length reliever. Both pitchers have averaged fewer than five innings per start, neither has an extensive major-league track record as a starter, and both have seen their numbers worsen significantly once opposing lineups get a second or third look at them.

That's not necessarily a knock on either pitcher. Plenty of valuable arms have carved out successful careers in bullpen roles. But for the sake of this exercise, let's move Festa and Paredes out of the rotation conversation and into bullpen roles. That brings us down from 10 names to eight.

I still believe Joe Ryan will not be a member of the Twins by the start of next season. Ryan has been outstanding this year. In fact, that's part of the reason why moving him makes so much sense. The Twins entered the season with expectations of competing, but if they ultimately fall short, Ryan could become one of the most valuable starting pitchers available on the trade market. He's performing at an extremely high level. Contenders would line up for his services, and Minnesota has enough pitching depth behind him to at least entertain the possibility. Surely, such a deal would bring back a potential starter, too, so that player could go into the mix for the moment when injuries force the team to turn to its store of prospect arms.

Bailey Ober is another name worth discussing. If the Twins decide to make additional trades, Ober could certainly generate interest. He's proven he can be a reliable major-league starter despite lackluster velocity, and teams are always looking for affordable pitching. That said, given his current injury situation and the uncertainty that comes with it, I'd lean toward him remaining with the organization through the start of 2027 in what would be a contract year for him.

Matthews has had an up-and-down professional career. At times, he's looked like a potential mid-rotation starter with excellent control of the strike zone and swing-and-miss ability. At other times, he's struggled to put hitters away consistently and has been prone to giving up damaging contact. Because of that, he feels like another pitcher who could attract interest from other organizations. A team looking to buy low on upside might view Matthews as an ideal trade target. Still, if I'm making a prediction today, I think he sticks around.

That brings us to the actual projection. If I had to guess what the Twins' 2027 starting rotation looks like right now, I don't think it'll be a traditional five-man group. Given the injury history throughout this staff and the direction major-league pitching continues to trend, a six-man rotation feels increasingly likely. And if that's the route the Twins take, here's how I see it shaping up.

López would headline the group. Assuming he's healthy—and all indications suggest he should be—he remains the most accomplished starter in the organization and the obvious choice to lead the staff. Behind him, Bradley slots in as the No. 2 starter. Bradley's power arsenal and ability to miss bats give him frontline upside, and he's already shown stretches where he looks capable of dominating major-league hitters. Another offseason of development could take him to that full-on frontline starter. Abel would follow. He has flashed the raw stuff to become a major factor in the rotation if he can stay healthy and continue refining his command.

Prielipp comes next. Injuries have always been the biggest question mark, but the talent has never been in doubt. Few pitchers in the organization possess his combination of stuff and upside, and he would give opposing teams a different look from the left side in the middle of the rotation. Ober would occupy the fifth spot, giving the rotation a unit different look from the harder-throwing arms ahead of him. And finally, Matthews rounds out the six-man unit. When he's right, Matthews has shown enough to justify continued opportunities as a starter, and the Twins may ultimately decide his upside is worth betting on. That leaves Rojas as the odd man out in my book (for now).

What makes this group particularly interesting is the variety it offers. You have power arms and control specialists. You have different pitch mixes, different release points, and different ways of attacking hitters. And perhaps most importantly, you'd still have additional depth waiting in the wings. Festa, Rojas, and Paredes could all serve as bullpen weapons, spot starters, or emergency rotation options when injuries inevitably arise. Because if there's one thing we've learned over the past few years, it's that you can never have too much pitching.

The Twins may soon find themselves in a situation where they have more viable starters than available rotation spots. And while that could force some difficult decisions, it's ultimately the kind of problem every organization would love to have. That's how I see the Twins' 2027 rotation shaping up right now.

But what do you think? Which names would you keep, and which ones would you move? Let me know in the comments!