Cody Schoenmann

1 1/2 games out from the third wild card spot.

every front office makes moves like these over a 162-game season. we need to recalibrate how we view microtransactions for relievers.

Image courtesy of © Jeff Curry-Imagn Images Last Friday, Pittsburgh Pirates starting pitcher Jared Jones returned to the PNC Park mound, making his first major league start since undergoing Tommy John surgery in May 2025. The home crowd celebrated Jones’s return, as the 24-year-old pitched 4 1/3 innings against the Minnesota Twins, surrendering five earned runs over 21 batters faced. However, the hard-throwing righty’s return to Pittsburgh’s five-pitcher rotation was partially overshadowed by how Carmen Mlodzinski (who held Pittsburgh’s fifth rotation spot for most of 2026) responded to Pirates decision-makers informing him that he would be transitioned back into the bullpen upon Jones’s return. “(I’m) still communicating with the organization and the people in my corner, whether that’s my family or my agency, about what is next,” Mlodzinski said, when asked about transitioning back to the bullpen during a media scrum last Thursday. Unsurprisingly, Mlodzinski’s quote took off among national baseball media, with many criticizing the 27-year-old’s dejected response to returning to the bullpen. Many of those critiquing Mlodzinski are doing so solely to profit from the salaciousness of a conflict between player and team, but for those viewing the situation more clearly, it's easy to see why Mlodzinski would be upset about the change in roles. Through 55 innings pitched, Mlodzinski has generated a 3.76 ERA, 3.31 FIP, and a 19.3% strikeout rate, while making nine proper starts. According to Wins Above Replacement at FanGraphs (fWAR), the righty has been Pittsburgh's fourth-most valuable starting pitcher, coming in behind Braxton Ashcraft, Paul Skenes, and Mitch Keller. Mlodzinski is firmly above the Pirates’ fifth-most valuable starting pitcher, Bubba Chandler, earning 1.0 fWAR over 44 innings pitched as a starter compared to Chandler’s 0.2 fWAR over 52 innings. Still, Pittsburgh opted to keep Chandler in the rotation over Mlodzinski, seemingly due to Chandler’s far superior raw stuff and higher ceiling as a starter. Pittsburgh placed Mlodzinski on the restricted list on Sunday, citing the pitcher expressing that he wasn’t ready to pitch in the series finale against Minnesota. Big-leaguers are unpaid while on the restricted list. However, the 24-year-old’s stint on the list was short-lived, as he was reinstated Monday night. In effect, they suspended him for two days and docked his pay for the missed time. According to Jason Mackey of MLB.com, Mlodzinski didn’t request a trade, and is expected to pitch out of the bullpen in a bulk role during the club’s Tuesday night contest against the Houston Astros. Still, animosity between Mlodzinski and Pittsburgh lingers, making a trade of the 27-year-old likely before the trade deadline on August 3. If that is the case, Twins top baseball executive Jeremy Zoll should aggressively pursue an early-June trade for Mlodzinski, handing the talented righty a solidified role in Minnesota’s five-pitcher starting rotation. Like Pittsburgh, Minnesota entered the 2026 campaign with a surplus of high-end starting pitching talent, headlined by Joe Ryan, Bailey Ober, and budding stars Taj Bradley and Mick Abel. However, injuries have quickly decimated the club’s rotation depth, with Ober, Abel, and talented, young lefty Kendry Rojas on the 15-day IL for the foreseeable future. Losing these three arms, Minnesota is down to a four-pitcher rotation, headlined by Ryan, Bradley, a struggling Connor Prielipp, and an inconsistent Zebby Matthews. Mike Paredes is on the 26-man roster as a long reliever, at least for the moment, but even after the team picked up another Pirate (Justin Lawrence, a short reliever) in a cash deal Monday night, it's not clear who will start Thursday evening against the Royals. Minnesota is still in dire need of starting pitching depth, particularly if the club wants to remain in postseason contention as the dog days of summer near. ""Yeah, I think everything needs to be on the table," Zoll told reporters Monday about the apparent hole in the rotation. "We've worked through all the considerations ... but I think when you go true bullpen games, that can be challenging, but we probably need to see how we get through the next day or two and the state of the bullpen before we finalize any plans." Primarily throwing a four-seamer, splitter, sinker, and curve, Mlodzinski would instantly slot in as a valuable member of Minnesota’s starting rotation, likely filling the third spot behind Ryan and Bradley. Even if Ober, Abel, and/or Rojas return soon, Mlodzinski would be in position to retain a rotation spot, given Prileipp’s, Matthews’s, and Rojas’s inconsistency this season and the team's desire to keep Prielipp and Rojas from taking on too large a workload too quickly. Though it's hardly ideal, the team might well switch to a six-man rotation for some stretches, giving their young starters an extra day between appearances to both optimize recovery and slow their accumulation of innings. Any team that acquires Mlodzinski would want to avoid recreating the awkward series of events that has led to the promising righty’s falling out with Pittsburgh’s decision-makers. Given the injuries Twins starting pitchers have sustained this season, Mlodzinski would be all but guaranteed a rotation spot with Minnesota for the rest of the 2026 season, potentially playing an integral role in the club’s ability to return to the postseason for the first time since 2023. Besides, there's one person we know likes Mlodzinski as a starter, and who gave him that job for the first time at the end of spring training last year: then-Pirates manager Derek Shelton. "I think through the spring, we saw him not only increase in velocity, but saw him maintain the velocity, which was something that really made us feel confident that he can be a starting pitcher,” Shelton said after Mlodzinski returned to the rotation last March, having spent the previous two seasons working in relief. “It wasn't one time through the order; we saw it maintain in the fourth inning, fifth inning in Spring Training." There's familiarity between the manager and this prospective addition—and a history of the kind of trust and faith the pitcher clearly needs to feel from his superiors. There's also a glaring need. Presumably, the Pirates won't give up Mlodzinski for nothing—he remains under team control through 2029 and isn''t even arbitration-eligible until this winter. If the cost of acquiring him has been dramatically reduced by the tension between employers and employee, though, the Twins should swoop in. View full article

Kyler Fedko? The Triple-A Slugger?

Since the beginning of the 2015 MLB regular season, the Minnesota Twins have had 23 different catchers attempt a throw to second base. Of those 23 catchers, Caleb Hamilton had the slowest average pop time, averaging 2.13 seconds over three attempts in 2022. On the flip side, Ben Rortvedt averaged the fastest pop time among Twins catchers during that stretch, averaging 1.92 seconds over eight attempts in 2021. That was until Alex Jackson made his first start behind the plate as a member of the Twins last Friday. In the bottom of the third innings of last Friday night’s contest between the Twins and the Boston Red Sox, Andruw Monasterio attempted to steal second base on Connor Prielipp. Monasterio’s steal attempt was snuffed, however, as Jackson threw him out to end the bottom half of the inning. Upon throwing Monasterio out, Jackson generated the quickest pop time of any Twins catcher in the Statcast era, exchanging the ball from his glove to second base in 1.87 seconds. Vndaa09fWGw0TUFRPT1fQUFkUUJnZFhVUWNBWGxVRVV3QUhWQU5mQUZoV1cxWUFBbEFHVWdVSFZRWUJWQVpY.mp4 Jackson netting this record, if you will, shouldn’t come as a surprise to those who follow the sport. In 2025, Jackson tied for the sixth-fastest pop time of all catchers in baseball while with the Baltimore Orioles. The backstop made minimal appearances behind the plate from 2022 through 2024, due to his offensive shortcomings. However, he also tied for the fifth-fastest pop time (tied with Rortvedt, funny enough) of all major league catchers in 2021. The driving force behind his long-standing top-of-the-league pop time, however, has been his elite arm. Jackson’s throw to second base came in at 82.6 MPH, which is the 13th-fastest throw of all catchers this season. Unsurprisingly, the veteran backstop had the 15th-fastest throw down to second base last season, coming in at 83.4 MPH. Combining Jackson’s elite arm with his plus exchange time (he tied for the 12th-fastest exchange time in 2025), Minnesota has one of the best run-game mitigating catchers in baseball. Jackson’s addition to the 26-man roster came at the unfortunate expense of losing Ryan Jeffers (who was in the midst of a career year offensively) to the 10-day IL with a broken left hamate bone. Still, while Jackson won’t be able to make up for Jeffers’s absence in the batter’s box, he will add value behind the plate, likely being Minnesota’s best defensive catcher since Joe Mauer transitioned into a full-time first baseman in 2014. View full article

Image courtesy of © Eric Canha-Imagn Images After making his major-league debut on Jul. 5, 2025, Travis Adams struggled in his first cup of coffee in the majors, generating a 7.49 ERA, a 5.39 FIP, and a 31-to-17 strikeout to walk ratio over 33 2/3 innings pitched. The then-25-year-old navigated an unpredictable role, jumping between starting games and coming in as a stretch or short reliever on an appearance-to-appearance basis. Given his late struggles, Adams failed to solidify a spot on Minnesota’s 26-man roster late last season, meaning the now-26-year-old would need to compete for a spot in the club’s eight-pitcher bullpen this spring training. Unfortunately, Adams pitched only 2 2/3 innings this spring before being sidelined with right elbow inflammation in mid-March. Luckily, the righty’s elbow sustained no structural damage, and he returned to the mound on a rehab assignment at Single-A Fort Myers in mid-April, before joining the Triple-A St. Paul Saints later that month. Upon his return to St. Paul, Adams’s surface stats were uninspiring, including a 9.00 ERA over six innings pitched. Still, his 2.69 FIP suggested the right-hander had been unlucky, and that maybe something new was happening. Due to 40-man roster constraints, Minnesota promoted the struggling Adams to the parent club on May 9 when Taj Bradley was placed on the 15-day IL with right pec muscle inflammation. The former mid-level prospect made two appearances for the Twins over a four-day stretch, earning a 7.36 ERA over 3 2/3 innings pitched. Again, however, his underlying metrics suggested he was pitching better than his counting stats. Over that exceptionally small sample, Adams netted a 2.01 FIP and 25% strikeout rate, suggesting he had again been the victim of poor luck. Still, Minnesota demoted him on May 14 to make room for starting pitcher Zebby Matthews on the 26-man roster. Interestingly, Twins decision-makers were quick to provide him another opportunity, recalling him five days later after designating veteran right-handed reliever Justin Topa for assignment. (Technically, he replaced Ryan Jeffers, who was placed on the 10-day IL, but he took Topa’s spot in the bullpen.) In two appearances since May 19, Adams has been unhittable over 14 batters faced, posting a 0.00 ERA, 1.85 FIP, and 30.8% strikeout rate. The righty has generated these results over two separate two-inning appearances, against the Houston Astros on May 19 and the Boston Red Sox on May 22. Adams particularly played an integral role in Minnesota’s 8-6 comeback win against Boston, which was arguably their most impressive win of the season. He then earned his first career save against the Red Sox on Sunday. Again, I am analyzing a very small sample. Still, it appears that Adams has made meaningful strides toward becoming an effective short reliever in a bullpen desperate for serviceable internal options. Adams’s early-season success appears to be the product of an altered arsenal, highlighted by a shift in his change and cutter usage. In 2025, the righty used his changeup only 17% of the time. He's raised his usage rate to 30% this season. The pitch has an average movement profile. However, he's using it more effectively, almost exclusively throwing it low in the zone to left-handed hitters. It's posted a .104 expected batting average against (xBA) and a .108 expected slugging average against (xSLG), showcasing its effectiveness against lefties. bGJ3TDdfWGw0TUFRPT1fVWdKUlhWTUVVZ0lBWFFjTEFBQUhWUU5VQUFBTlVGa0FWMWNHQkFzQ1Z3RURBUU5m.mp4 His cutter has also made strides, with Adams using it 22% of the time this season, up from 19% in 2025. It's a truer cutter this season than last, with more backspin and less blending with his slider. Attacking hitters high in the zone, the pitch has netted a similarly impressive .166 xBA and .185 xSLG in 2026. The cutter and change have gotten more exercise, while he's all but shelved his curveball and sinker. Adams’s fastball still needs work; it has below-average velocity and an unimpressive movement profile. Yet, it appears that Adams has refined his arsenal against both left- and right-handed hitters this season. As improbable as it would have sounded even a few weeks ago, he could remain effective and finally solidify a long-term role in Minnesota’s bullpen. View full article

43 games into the 2026 MLB regular season, multiple Minnesota Twins position players are overperforming preseason expectations. Byron Buxton is tied for the third-most home runs in baseball with 15 alongside Chicago White Sox rookie Munetaka Murakami. Ryan Jeffers is on track to earn his first All-Star nod. Austin Martin is reaching base roughly 45% of his plate appearances and Brooks Lee appears to have finally developed into an above-average regular. There have been numerous success stories on the mound, too. Mick Abel and Taj Bradley look like stalwarts atop future Twins rotations. Connor Prielipp has impressed in his first cup of coffee in the majors and Joe Ryan continues to pitch like a Top-20 starting pitcher in the sport. Despite the aforementioned positive early-season surprises, Minnesota has a 19-24 record, leaving the club with an uninspiring 21.8% chance of making the playoffs, according to FanGraphs. A significant portion of the club’s early-season struggles can be attributed to them fielding the fifth-worst bullpen in baseball, according to Wins Above Replacement at FanGraphs (fWAR). Despite the Twins having one of the worst bullpen collectives in the sport, specific position players and starting pitchers have also played key roles in dragging the club down over the first two months of the season. Interestingly, however, no two players have made a greater negative impact than outfielder Matt Wallner and starting pitcher Simeon Woods Richardson. Wallner, 28, entered the 2026 regular season expected to be the club’s full-time right fielder, netting most starts against right- and left-handed starters. Through 135 plate appearances, however, the left-handed hitting corner outfielder hit .167/.259/.292 with a 58 wRC+. Wallner also struck out 39.3% of the time while producing minimal damage upon contact, evidenced by the expected slugger netting only four home runs and a below-average .125 Isolated Power (ISO). As a result, Wallner possesses the 10th-lowest wRC+ of all qualified hitters. At the same time, he generated the second-lowest fWAR (-0.8) among qualified position players in the sport, with only Tampa Bay Rays centerfielder Cedric Mullins residing below him. The Southern Miss product was also one of the worst fielders in baseball, with him netting -4.9 Defensive Runs Above Average (DEF) and -8 Defensive Runs Saved (DRS) over 284 innings played in right field this season. As a result, Wallner manufactured the fourth-lowest DEF in baseball, slotting in above only Junior Caminero, Jake Bauers, and Bryce Harper. He’s also tied for the lowest DRS in the sport alongside Oneil Cruz. Unsurprisingly, he's also tied with Kerry Carpenter, Luke Raley, and James Wood for the second-worst Outs Above Average (OAA) in right field this season, with -3. Given that Wallner is inarguably a bottom-ten hitter and bottom-five fielder in the sport, it is not hyperbolic to opine that he regressed into the worst position player in baseball. In response, the Twins optioned him to Triple-A St. Paul early Thursday morning. As mentioned earlier, Woods Richardson hasn’t been much better on the mound. Among starting pitchers with at least 40 innings pitched, Woods Richardson has the highest ERA in the sport, coming in at 7.71. He also sports the fourth-highest FIP (6.51) and second-lowest Skill Interactive ERA (SIERA), coming in at 5.91 . To add on, the 25-year-old is tied with Washington Nationals starting pitcher Zack Littell for the lowest strikeout rate (10.1%) among starting pitchers with at least 40 innings pitched and the 10th-worst hard hit rate (40.4%). Woods Richardson has served the ball on a silver platter to hitters over 42 innings, and they are unsurprisingly excelling. Unsurprisingly, Woods Richardson’s arsenal grades out very, very poorly. According to Run Value at Baseball Savant, Woods Richardson has the worst splitter in baseball, with the pitch netting a -13 run value over 206 pitches thrown. He also possesses the worst slider among starting pitchers, with the pitch netting a -6 run value over 178 pitches thrown. On a positive note, his fastball has been serviceable, generating 0 run value over 323 pitches. Still, the former top prospect’s pitches have been abysmal this season, making his poor start to the season unsurprising (Author’s note: I’m not having fun writing this article. I’ve been frowning like Florence Pugh in Midsommar for 20 minutes now). Given his inability to suppress runs and poor pitch grade, it would not be hyperbolic to opine that Woods Richardson is the worst starting pitcher in baseball. Again, many factors have played into Minnesota’s slow start to the season. Still, no two players have been more consequential than Wallner and Woods Richardson. With Martin and Trevor Larnach performing well as the new primary corner outfielders and Walker Jenkins, Emmanuel Rodriguez, Gabriel Gonzalez, Hendry Mendez, and Alan Roden waiting in the wings at Triple-A St. Paul, Wallner may never play for the Twins again. Woods Richardson’s days in the rotation are numbered if he is unable to quickly change course, given Bradley, Abel, Ryan, and Prielipp’s aforementioned early-season success and Kendry Rojas, Zebby Matthews, Ryan Gallagher, and others awaiting extended opportunities in the rotation. Minnesota is transitioning to a new era. Unfortunately, it appears as though Wallner and Woods Richardson won’t be part of it. View full article

Image courtesy of © Pablo Robles-Imagn Images Last Wednesday, the Minnesota Twins traded for Yoendrys Gómez from the Tampa Bay Rays, for cash considerations. Bouncing between the New York Yankees, Los Angeles Dodgers, Chicago White Sox, Tampa Bay, and now Minnesota since the beginning of the 2025 season, Gómez has embodied the nomadic reliever trope, being vaguely desired by many clubs but rostered long-term by none. Despite hopping between clubs, the 26-year-old finished his 2025 campaign relatively strongly, netting a 4.84 ERA, 4.85 FIP, and 22.6% strikeout rate over 48 1/3 innings pitched for the White Sox. Chicago flipped Gómez to the Rays this offseason alongside fellow right-handed reliever Steven Wilson, for outfielder Everson Pereira and utility prospect Tanner Murray. Unfortunately, he struggled to begin his 2026 campaign with Tampa Bay, posting a 6.23 ERA, 7.28 FIP, and a less impressive 15.9% strikeout rate over 17 1/3 innings. Tampa Bay had Gómez using a five-pitch mix, which isn’t unique for a right-handed reliever. The righty primarily utilized his four-seam fastball and sweeper, both of which graded out as true plus pitches. Yet, he also often used his sinker, cutter, and changeup, all of which graded out below average. Opposing hitters generated a 142 wRC+ against his sinker this season and a 303 wRC+ against his cutter while Gómez was with Tampa Bay. To preface, hitters also excelled against Gómez’s four-seamer when he pitched for Tampa Bay, with a 186 wRC+. As noted earlier, the pitch graded out well above average (121 Stuff+ at FanGraphs), suggesting his struggles were the product of bad luck rather than a low-quality pitch, but there are things to clean up. Command will be crucial. Gómez did, however, excel at throwing his sweeper with Tampa Bay, netting an elite -100 wRC+ and 125 Stuff+ at FanGraphs with the pitch. So far, albeit in a sample so small as to be almost meaningless, Minnesota has effectively cut his sinker, cutter, and changeup from his repertoire entirely, with him using his four-seamer and sweeper in 14 of his 17 pitches thrown with the Twins. Again, I am analyzing a 17-pitch sample. Still, Gómez has excelled with a two-pitch mix for the Twins, posting a 0.00 ERA, 3.13 FIP, and plus grades on both pitches through 1 2/3 innings. Gómez also earned his first save with the club on Sunday, mowing through Daniel Schneeman, Angel Martínez, and Travis Bazzana on 10 pitches. The newly acquired relief arm has been stellar in his first three appearances for Minnesota, functioning as a breath of fresh air for what has been the fourth-worst bullpen in baseball, according to Wins Above Replacement at FanGraphs (fWAR). dnZ3REtfV0ZRVkV3dEdEUT09X1VnWllBUUlBVUZFQURGSUtWZ0FIQmdGUUFBTlJWbFVBVTFJTkJBb0JVMVVEVlZBQw==.mp4 Given that Cody Laweryson, Garrett Acton, and Cole Sands are on the 15-day IL; Kody Funderburk was surprisingly demoted to Triple-A St. Paul on Sunday; and Justin Topa, Taylor Rogers, and Anthony Banda have struggled mightily to begin their respective 2026 campaigns. Minnesota’s bullpen is arguably the most volatile in the sport. Yet, with volatility comes opportunity. Andrew Morris has capitalized on his opportunities in various roles. Eric Orze has impressed despite blowing a save against the Seattle Mariners in late April. And 39-year-old Luis García has been thrust into high-leverage situations despite joining the club on Apr. 28. Given that Minnesota targeted Gómez from Tampa Bay and that he has immediately succeeded in high-leverage situations, the 26-year-old could quickly become Minnesota’s preferred high-leverage arm. View full article

i’ve long thought 3B is Brooks’s best position.

Image courtesy of © Geoff Burke-Imagn Images Brooks Lee hit the ground running faster than Cole Thomas Allen down a Washington Hilton hallway over the first week of his major league career, hitting .458/.462/.625 with a 206 wRC+ over 26 plate appearances. The switch-hitting infielder quickly cooled off, however, hitting a far less impressive .182/.233/.270 in 159 plate appearances over the final three months of the season. The eighth overall pick in the 2022 MLB Amateur Draft sputtered last season, too, hitting a modest .236/.285/.370 over 527 plate appearances. Netting a well-below-league-average 75 wRC+ over his first season-and-a-half in the majors, Lee also struggled in the field, netting -6 Outs Above Average (OAA) during that stretch, causing those who follow the club to question if he was playing his way out of the Minnesota Twins' long-term plans. Through 36 games played this season, however, the 25-year-old has broken out at the plate, rekindling the flame of optimism surrounding the former top prospect. Over 136 plate appearances, Lee is hitting .278/.331/.437 with a 114 wRC+. The Cal Poly product has also hit five home runs, continuing the plus-power profile he flashed during his sophomore campaign last season, in which he hit 16 dingers. Some of the same weaknesses remain in Lee’s player profile, particularly defensively, despite last night's heroics. Minnesota’s shortstop has netted -4 OAA, making him the fifth-worst defender at the position this season. He also has one of the weaker arms of all middle infielders in baseball, continuing a career-long trend. Still, Lee performing like one of the best offensive shortstops in the sport has largely offset his defensive shortcomings, making him one of Minnesota’s steadiest presences early this season. The past two seasons, Lee struggled from the left side of the plate, posting a 68 wRC+ over 482 plate appearances. The switch-hitting shortstop has performed dramatically better while hitting left-handed in 2026, hitting .291/.333/.456 with a 119 wRC+ over 84 plate appearances against righties this season. Right-handed pitchers are throwing Lee more strikes this season. At the same time, Lee has been more aggressive on balls in the zone than in the past two seasons, often pulling the ball hard and in the air. Lee excelling as a left-handed hitter while holding his own from the right-handed batter’s box (106 wRC+ over 52 plate appearances) has resulted in the best month-and-a-half stretch of his young career, signaling he has finally blossomed into an above-average regular. The 2026 Twins are not a good baseball club. In fact, they might be one of sport’s worst. Still, there will be a time when the seeds of the next Good Twins Team poke their head out of the dirt, germinate, and blossom into a postseason-contending 26-player collective. It just won’t be this season—or next; and maybe not even the next after that. Yet, if the progress Lee has demonstrated at the plate this season proves sustainable, he could be a core member of that club. View full article