Cody Christie

Image courtesy of Jesse Johnson-Imagn Images When the Twins traded Louis Varland to the Toronto Blue Jays at the 2025 trade deadline, the biggest piece coming back to Minnesota was Kendry Rojas. However, Alan Roden was an important part of the return, as well. Roden was viewed as a big-league-ready player who could improve the Twins' lineup immediately. That made him an intriguing addition to the trade, especially for a team looking for ways to bolster its offense without sacrificing too much of its future. Alas, Roden's role has become increasingly difficult to identify. He's continued to perform well in the minor leagues. He has shown flashes of that same production in Minnesota. He also has enough defensive versatility to find a role somewhere on the roster, if his bat can keep up as his playing time increases. However, the Twins have a crowded group of young position players competing for playing time, and Roden's path to regular at-bats appears to be disappearing. That creates one of the more interesting roster decisions of the offseason. The Pros of Keeping Alan Roden The biggest argument for keeping Roden is pretty simple: He can hit. Roden has consistently produced at Triple-A over the last couple of seasons (133 wRC+ in 2026, 122 wRC+ in 2025), giving the Twins plenty of evidence that his offensive production isn't simply the product of a small sample size. He also performed well during his limited opportunities with Minnesota this season. In 32 games, he posted a 120 wRC+. Roden didn't receive enough playing time to establish himself as an everyday player, but he showed why the Twins were interested in acquiring him in the first place. The Twins don't have to wonder whether Roden can handle Triple-A pitching. He's already answered that question. The more difficult one is whether Minnesota can give him enough major-league playing time to determine whether his offensive production translates over a larger sample. Roden has experience playing all three outfield positions, although the Twins haven't appeared particularly comfortable using him in center field. That limits his versatility to some degree, but it doesn't eliminate it entirely. First base could also become an option. Roden hasn't regularly played first base since college, so moving him there would represent something of an experiment. Still, the Twins could view first base as another way to get his bat into the lineup, if they don't believe he can be trusted as an everyday outfielder—or just don't want to put him there at the expense of higher-profile prospects. There's value in having a player who can move around the diamond while providing quality at-bats. Roden gives the Twins another left-handed option who has already demonstrated an ability to produce at Triple-A. If injuries strike or another young player struggles, having Roden available could prevent Minnesota from needing to make a more significant roster move. The Cons of Keeping Alan Roden Because Roden was a collegiate draft pick in 2022, he will already be 27 years old next season. That doesn't make him old, by any means, but it does change the calculus surrounding his development. The Twins can't treat Roden like a 22-year-old prospect who needs another year or two to figure things out. He needs to play. That creates an awkward situation. Roden still has a minor league option remaining. The Twins could theoretically send him back to Triple-A and keep him as organizational depth. But what, exactly, would Roden be proving there? He's already performed well at that level. Sending a 27-year-old back to Triple-A after he has demonstrated that he can handle the competition would feel like treading water, rather than developing a player. The larger issue is opportunity. Minnesota has several younger players who need playing time, including players the organization may view as having a higher long-term ceiling, including Walker Jenkins, Emmanuel Rodriguez, and Luke Keaschall. If Roden isn't going to receive consistent at-bats, keeping him on the 26-man roster could mean taking a roster spot away from someone who needs to play. They shouldn't do that, so if they do keep him, they have to be willing to stash him in the minors most of the time—understanding, all the while, that that's not the best thing for the player. What Would the Timeline Look Like? The Twins won't have to make just one decision on Roden. They have several options available. Roden isn't arbitration-eligible until 2029, so it seems unlikely they'll simply cut him loose. He's minimum-salaried for multiple seasons, and he still comes with roster flexibility. They could, however, trade him. Roden's age, Triple-A track record and remaining minor-league option could make him an interesting target for another organization looking for a potential major-league contributor without giving up a premium prospect. Minnesota could keep him on the roster and give him an opportunity to compete for a larger role in spring training. That would allow the organization to see whether he can force his way into the lineup. If Roden is going to be part of the 2027 Twins, Minnesota needs to find a way to give him opportunities. Maybe that means more time in the outfield. Maybe it means experimenting with him at first base. Maybe it means finding another roster fit. What doesn't make much sense is simply sending a productive 27-year-old back to Triple-A because the Twins don't know what else to do with him. The organization acquired Roden because it believed he was ready for the majors. Now, the Twins have to decide whether they still believe that. What will the Twins decide with Roden? Leave a comment and start the discussion. View full article

Image courtesy of Conor Lacefield, Midland RockHounds (photo of Marek Houston) Prospect rankings are constantly changing, but some jumps are more meaningful than others. MLB Pipeline recently completed its final Top 100 update of the 2026 calendar year. Those rankings can provide plenty of entertainment for fans, but they also have practical value for organizations trying to determine which prospects could be moved in trades to strengthen a big-league roster. For the Minnesota Twins, one of the biggest risers on the list was shortstop Marek Houston. Houston jumped from No. 71 to No. 54, tied for the second-largest rise among all prospects in the latest update. That movement is even more impressive when considering where Houston started the year. He wasn't even included in MLB Pipeline's Top 100 entering the 2026 season. So, what changed? Quite a bit. Houston's Bat Took a Significant Step Forward Houston entered professional baseball with a reputation for being an outstanding defensive shortstop who could hit enough to become an everyday player. The question was whether his offensive game would develop enough to raise his overall ceiling. His 2026 season provided an encouraging answer. Houston spent the entire year between High-A Cedar Rapids and Double-A Wichita, producing a .312/.392/.455 slash line with 12 home runs, 28 doubles, 50 stolen bases and a 120 wRC+ over 116 games. The production remained relatively consistent after his promotion to Double-A. At Cedar Rapids, Houston hit .325/.406/.461 with an .867 OPS. He posted a .301/.379/.450 line with an .829 OPS at Wichita. His wRC+ remained above league average at both stops, a particularly encouraging development for a player who was viewed more as a glove-first prospect coming out of college. Houston's offensive profile isn't built around one overwhelming tool. Instead, it is becoming a combination of contact ability, plate discipline, speed and enough emerging power to make pitchers pay for mistakes. There was a brief period late in the summer when it looked like the grind of his first full professional season might be catching up with him. Houston struggled during August (.580 OPS), but he quickly found his stroke again. He finished the season on a 10-game hitting streak, batting .405 with eight strikeouts and seven walks across 50 plate appearances. He had a .941 OPS in September, which was higher than his season average. That type of finish matters. Houston didn't simply survive his first full season. He responded to his first significant slump and finished the year looking like the player who had forced the Twins to challenge him with a Double-A assignment. The Glove Gives Houston a High Floor Even if Houston's offensive development had been slower, there would still be plenty to like about his long-term outlook because of his defense. Houston was regarded as one of the best defensive shortstops in the 2025 draft class, and that reputation has carried into professional baseball. His actions are smooth, his range allows him to make plays on both sides of the bag, and he has more than enough arm strength for the position. That combination is important. There are plenty of prospects who can hit their way into a Top 100 ranking. Houston's defensive ability gives him a much stronger floor because he doesn't need to become an elite offensive player to provide value. He has a chance to be a plus defender at shortstop at the major-league level, with the range and arm strength to remain at the position. That gives the Twins an extremely valuable combination: a player who can potentially provide Gold Glove-caliber defense while also contributing offensively. It's also one reason Houston could move relatively quickly through the organization. Speed is another major part of the profile. Houston's speed is easy to overlook when discussing his development, because his defensive ability and improving bat receive so much attention. It shouldn't be overlooked, though, if only because it augments and facilitates both of those tools. He stole 27 bases during his three-year Wake Forest career, including 19 steals in 2025. He was successful on 19 of 21 attempts during his junior season, helping establish the speed that would become an even bigger part of his professional game. Houston took that part of his game to another level in 2026. He stole 50 bases between Cedar Rapids and Wichita, giving him 57 stolen bases in his first two professional seasons. That is more than just a nice statistical addition. His speed complements the rest of his offensive profile. A player who gets on base at a solid clip, puts the ball in play and can immediately turn a single or walk into scoring position becomes much more dangerous when he also plays a premium defensive position. Houston doesn't need to become a 20-home-run hitter to have an impact. His ability to get on base and create pressure with his legs gives the offensive profile another dimension. Where Can Houston Still Improve? The biggest question is consistency at the plate. Houston has already made significant strides, but there is still room for the offensive profile to become more complete. The easiest path toward a Top 50 ranking would be adding a little more power without sacrificing the skills that have made him successful. Houston will probably always be more of a hit-and-on-base player than a pure power hitter. That's not a bad thing. But he can continue adjusting his swing to create more loft and generate harder contact in the air. That was an area of focus throughout the 2026 season. Houston has continued working with the Twins on his swing path since joining the organization, and the results have been encouraging. The goal hasn't been to sell out for power. Instead, he has worked to find better line-drive angles and barrel the baseball more consistently. Adding strength and muscle has also helped address some of the questions surrounding his future impact at the plate. If Houston can turn some of those line drives into extra-base hits without losing his contact skills, patience or speed, his offensive ceiling will continue to rise. Houston's jump from No. 71 to No. 54 on MLB Pipeline's Top 100 isn't simply the result of a strong batting average or a prospect evaluator falling in love with a hot streak. It's the result of a player improving in multiple areas at once. The defense was already a major strength. The speed was already evident. What Houston needed to show was that his bat could hold up against professional pitching and eventually against more advanced competition. He did that. Houston went from being outside the Top 100 entering the season to becoming a Top 55 prospect after completing his first full professional campaign. He reached Double-A, stole 50 bases, posted a 120 wRC+ and demonstrated that his offensive game has more upside than originally expected. There is still work to do. More power would make his profile considerably more dangerous and could eventually push him into the Top 50. But that's the exciting part for the Twins. Houston doesn't need to completely reinvent himself to become a legitimate major-league shortstop. He already has the glove, speed and contact ability. If the offensive adjustments he's making continue to produce better quality of contact, his prospect stock could keep climbing in 2027. And considering where he started this year, it would be foolish to assume No. 54 is anywhere close to his final destination. How high will Houston rise on other national top-100 lists? Leave a comment and start the discussion. View full article

Image courtesy of Bruce Kluckhohn-Imagn Images The Minnesota Twins aren't for sale. At least, that's what Tom Pohlad wants everyone to believe. After spending roughly 10 months exploring a sale of the franchise, the Pohlad family pulled the Twins off the market in August 2025. Rather than finding a new controlling owner, the family brought in several limited partners to help address the organization's significant debt while maintaining majority control. That decision eventually led to Tom Pohlad taking over as the team's controlling owner. At the end of the 2025 season, he made it clear that the family had no plans to reopen the sale process. “I can’t say that my enjoyment in the role is the sole reason for how long we intend to be owners, but I can tell you that we’re long-term oriented,” Pohlad said. “We’ve got big goals and a lot of work to do, and it’s going to take some time. We are in this for the long haul.” Pohlad doubled down on that sentiment. “We are reenergized, for sure,” he added. “After a trying two years and that sale process, I’m frankly surprised at how energized we are, to be honest with you.” That sounds pretty definitive. Then came a report from Pioneer Press columnist Charley Walters. “A sale of the Twins to the New York-based global investment firm Varde Partners, which has an office in Minneapolis and in 2025 became a Twins limited partner to help the franchise out of $500 million in debt, is said to be heating up. Varde Partners reportedly manages $15 billion in assets.” Suddenly, the question isn't whether the Twins are for sale. It's whether the groundwork for another sale has already been laid. Värde Is Already Inside the Building There is an important distinction between what the Pohlad family did in 2025 and what Walters is now reporting. The family didn't simply abandon the sale process and walk away. It brought investors into the ownership group. Värde Partners co-founder George Hicks became one of those limited partners. The ownership restructuring also included Glick Family Investments and Minnesota Wild owner Craig Leipold. The group took minority positions while the Pohlads retained control. Reports indicated the transaction valued the Twins at approximately $1.75 billion and helped eliminate a significant portion of the franchise's roughly $400 million to $500 million debt. That was presented as a way for the Pohlads to remain owners while putting the franchise on stronger financial footing. And, to be fair, that's exactly what it could have been. But there is another way to look at it. Värde already has a financial interest in the franchise. Its co-founder is already part of the ownership group. The company understands the team's finances. It has relationships with the Pohlads. It knows Target Field. It knows the Minnesota market. If Värde eventually wanted to increase its investment and acquire control, it wouldn't be starting from scratch. That's a pretty significant advantage. It also makes the timing of a potential sale particularly interesting. The Twins Are Suddenly Worth a Lot More When the Pohlads explored selling the Twins, the reported asking price was $1.75 billion. That number doesn't look nearly as impressive today. The San Diego Padres were sold in 2026 for a reported $3.9 billion valuation. The Los Angeles Angels then surpassed that figure, with Stan Kroenke agreeing to purchase the franchise for an MLB-record $4 billion valuation. Obviously, every franchise is different. Los Angeles has a massive market, while San Diego offers its own unique advantages. The Twins aren't suddenly a $4 billion franchise simply because two other teams changed hands. But MLB franchise valuations are clearly moving upward. And that's where the timing gets fascinating. If the Pohlads really wanted to sell, waiting until the market demonstrated that buyers were willing to spend $3.9 billion and $4 billion for MLB teams would be a pretty good strategy. The family's previous sale attempt was complicated by the Twins' debt, declining local media revenue and questions about the organization's financial outlook. The limited-partner investment helped address some of those concerns. Now the franchise could potentially be presented to buyers with less debt, a new ownership structure and an MLB market that has established dramatically higher valuations. That's a much different sales pitch. The Labor Fight Could Change Everything There is another piece of this puzzle that could make a potential sale even more intriguing: baseball's economic system. MLB owners are scheduled to lock out players on December 1 if the two sides fail to reach a new collective bargaining agreement. The biggest sticking point is the league's push for a salary cap, something the MLB Players Association has repeatedly opposed. MLB has also proposed a salary floor as part of its economic system. That could have a major impact on the Twins. A salary cap would limit the spending advantages of the richest organizations. But a salary floor would force teams near the bottom of the payroll rankings to spend considerably more. For a franchise that has spent recent years operating with one of the league's lower payrolls, that could result in more spending on the roster. It could also make the Twins more attractive to prospective buyers. If the new economic system guarantees a minimum level of spending across the league while providing greater cost certainty from revenue sharing, buyers could view MLB franchises as even more valuable assets. And if the Pohlads were able to sell the Twins for substantially more than the $1.75 billion they reportedly sought previously, the financial incentive would be enormous. Especially after the family has already reduced the franchise's debt burden through minority investment. So, Are the Pohlads Selling? There isn't enough evidence to say that the Pohlads are secretly selling the Twins. In fact, the public evidence currently points the other direction. Tom Pohlad has repeatedly talked about being committed to the organization. The family retained control when it could have sold. Tom took over as controlling owner. And the addition of minority partners was specifically structured to allow the Pohlads to remain in charge. But Walters' report is difficult to ignore. If Värde is seriously discussing purchasing the Twins, the most important question isn't necessarily whether the Pohlads have secretly changed their minds. It is whether the family has discovered that owning the Twins might be worth considerably more than it was when they first decided to explore a sale. The Angels just sold for $4 billion. The Padres just sold for $3.9 billion. The Pohlads were previously looking for $1.75 billion. Those numbers make the decision to sell look very different than it did two years ago. Maybe the Pohlads really are in this for the long haul. Maybe Tom Pohlad genuinely is reenergized and wants to lead the Twins toward another championship. Or maybe the family has simply put itself in a much better position to sell the franchise whenever the right offer comes along. And if Värde is already sitting at the table, that offer might not have to travel very far. Will the Pohlads sell the Twins? Leave a comment and start the discussion. View full article

Image courtesy of © Mitch Stringer-Imagn Images The Minnesota Twins are entering another important offseason with plenty of questions surrounding the roster, but some of the first decisions will come down to simple arithmetic. MLB Trade Rumors recently released its annual arbitration projections, giving the public an early estimate of what arbitration-eligible players could earn for the upcoming season. Two names stand out for the Twins, not because of the projected salaries, but because of what those salaries could mean for the team's offseason plans. Trevor Larnach is projected to earn $6.3 million in 2027. Royce Lewis is projected at $5.1 million. Neither number is outrageous. In fact, both could be reasonable salaries if the players perform at or near their previous levels. That's exactly what makes these decisions interesting. The Twins have to determine whether those players (at the projected salaries) represent useful assets, roster complications, or both. Trevor Larnach Larnach's projected $6.3-million salary feels relatively modest when compared to his potential production. FanGraphs valued Larnach at $17.9 million during the 2026 season, making the projected arbitration salary roughly one-third of the value he provided. That doesn't mean the Twins should automatically keep him, but it certainly gives the organization a reason to avoid giving away the asset simply because it doesn't have a perfect spot for him. The bigger question is playing time. Larnach appeared in 122 games in 2026 and hit .269/.352/.436 with 13 home runs, 23 doubles and a 121 OPS+, while being shielded from facing left-handed pitchers. Those aren't numbers a team should casually remove from its lineup. But the Twins also have to figure out where Larnach fits. If the organization believes it can improve at first base, add another outfielder or give more opportunities to younger players, Larnach could become part of an increasingly crowded roster. His arbitration salary is affordable enough that Minnesota doesn't have to make a decision before the arbitration deadline. Last offseason, the Twins offered Larnach arbitration with the hope that a trade would eventually materialize. It didn't. Instead, the team went into spring training with a player it had seemingly hoped to move. They also tried to move him at the trade deadline before Houston’s owner nixed the deal. The Twins don't want to repeat that cycle. They do, however, have value on their hands, and they need to decide on a way to optimize it. Royce Lewis Lewis presents a similar question, but with significantly more upside and considerably more uncertainty. His projected $5.1-million salary is higher than the $4.3-million value FanGraphs assigned to his 2026 season. On the surface, that isn't a great return. But looking only at 2026 would be a mistake. Lewis provided substantially more value from 2023 through 2025, and he continues to have upside, if he can put it all together. The problem is that the Twins have spent enough time dealing with injuries and inconsistency. His future role is no longer obvious. That creates the potential for a very familiar offseason scenario. The Twins could offer him arbitration, because $5.1 million is a manageable number and because they believe there is a trade market for a talented player. However, if they try that, they might discover that moving him isn't as easy as anticipated. Suddenly, Lewis is occupying a roster spot—and not just any roster spot. He could affect how the Twins approach first base. He could affect how they distribute playing time around the infield. He could influence whether the club believes it has room for another veteran bat. This is where arbitration decisions become more complicated than simply asking whether a player is worth his projected salary. The question is whether the player is worth the opportunity cost attached to that salary and roster spot; Lewis probably isn't. Holding an Asset The Twins have used arbitration in this manner before. The basic strategy is understandable. Rather than non-tendering a player or allowing him to walk away for nothing, the team offers arbitration, retains the player's rights, and tries to find a trade that makes sense. In theory, it gives the front office leverage. The player has value. The contract is known. Other teams have an opportunity to acquire him. Minnesota doesn't have to sell low simply because it's decided the player isn't part of its long-term plans. The problem comes when the trade doesn't happen. One example is Kyle Farmer in 2024. The Twins had a veteran infielder under contract who could provide useful depth, but his presence also complicated the organization's efforts to create opportunities for younger players. Larnach became another example last offseason. Minnesota apparently saw enough value in retaining him to go through the arbitration process, but no trade that met the organization's expectations materialized. There's a roster inertia enforced by arbitration. The abstract fear of losing a player "for nothing" can lead a team to hold onto someone they should part with. Once a contract has been tendered, though, moving the player sometimes yields less value than expected—which can lead a club not to move said player at all, locking in a mediocre option. For a team with a deep roster and limited payroll flexibility, that can become especially problematic. A $5-million or $6-million player isn't expensive in a vacuum, by baseball standards. But if that player prevents the organization from adding someone it believes is a better fit, the real cost is much higher. That's why the Lewis and Larnach decision could be particularly important. The Two-Step Shuffle There's nothing wrong with offering arbitration to a player the Twins would prefer to trade. In fact, it can be smart roster management. The mistake would be assuming that the trade will eventually happen. The Twins need to enter the offseason with clear priorities. If Lewis is part of those plans, keep him and build around him. If Larnach is part of those plans, give him a defined role. If either player is viewed primarily as a trade asset, though, the Twins need to understand what happens if the market doesn't cooperate. That final question is perhaps the most important. The Twins can't afford to make an arbitration decision in November and then make their roster decisions in February, as though the first decision never happened. Both Larnach and Lewis have enough talent to be useful pieces of a competitive team. Their projected salaries make them relatively affordable. But affordable players can still create expensive roster decisions. The two-step shuffle only works if the Twins know where they want to end up. Will both Lewis and Larnach be on the 2026 Twins? Does their relatively low arbitration estimate change the team’s view of the players? Leave a comment and start the discussion. View full article

Image courtesy of Denis Poroy-Imagn Images The Minnesota Twins have traditionally been hesitant to spend significant money on bullpen help. Taylor Rogers, Eric Orze and Anthony Banda were their idea of a relief boost over the winter. They eventually tried to correct course at this year's trade deadline, adding Jeff Hoffman, A.J. Minter, and Tommy Nance to a bullpen that needed reinforcements. Those improvements gave the team more options, but the results were unsatisfying. The Twins struggled down the stretch, leaving questions about whether the organization needs to take a more aggressive approach to building its bullpen. That puts a decision in front of new general manager Jeremy Zoll. Will he follow the strategy used by his predecessor, Derek Falvey, or will the Twins finally make a meaningful financial investment in their bullpen? Let's break it down. The Pros of Adding a Big Bullpen Arm The biggest benefit of adding a proven reliever would be improving the team from the beginning of the season. The Twins' bullpen was a mess during the first few months of last season, with a -2.08 WPA through April 30. Waiting until the trade deadline meant Minnesota had to spend prospect capital to address a problem that had already cost the team valuable games. Adding a major bullpen piece during the winter would allow the organization to enter spring training with a more established group. The Twins also have a better baseline heading into this offseason. Hoffman, Andrew Morris, and Yoendrys Gomez give Minnesota some options toward the back end. However, Morris and Gomez clearly tired during the team’s second-half collapse. If Hoffman remains healthy and performs the way he did after joining the Twins, the team already has one significant piece in place. Still, the bullpen needs another quality left-handed option. Minter showed how valuable that type of arm can be. Finding someone of his caliber could give the Twins a much-needed weapon against opposing left-handed hitters while also providing another high-leverage option. There's another benefit to acting during the winter: it costs money rather than prospects. The Twins learned at the trade deadline that quality relievers can require significant prospect capital. Signing a reliever in free agency means giving up financial resources, but it doesn't require sending one of the organization's young players to another team. For a club trying to build around a younger core, that distinction matters. The Cons of Adding a Big Bullpen Arm The problem is that bullpen arms are fickle. Relievers can burn brightly for a few seasons before their performance suddenly fades. Others can have one outstanding season and struggle to replicate it. Because relievers generally work in smaller sample sizes, a handful of poor outings can dramatically change the perception of an entire season. That makes spending big money on a reliever a risky proposition. The Twins won't have unlimited financial flexibility this winter. If the organization commits a significant portion of its available payroll to a reliever, that player needs to perform. There isn't much room for Minnesota to absorb an expensive bullpen contract that doesn't work. And that's the biggest issue with trying to find a surefire bullpen option. There isn't one. Even the best relievers carry some level of risk. Injuries happen. Velocity changes. Command disappears. A pitch that was nearly unhittable one season can become much easier to square up the next. The Twins could also explore an internal solution. Instead of spending heavily on another reliever, Minnesota could move one of its current starting pitching options into the bullpen. Zebby Matthews, David Festa, or Kendry Rojas could potentially provide another option if the organization believes their best path to helping the team is in shorter outings. That approach would save money, but it also comes with its own uncertainty. What Would the Timeline Look Like? Timing could be a major factor in Minnesota's decision. The Twins will have roughly a month between the end of the World Series and the beginning of the December 1 lockout. That creates a relatively small window for teams to make significant moves before negotiations between MLB and the players potentially bring the offseason to a halt. The last time baseball dealt with a lockout, five years ago, free-agent activity accelerated before the deadline. Teams and players had an incentive to get deals completed rather than risk entering an uncertain period without contracts in place. The same thing could happen this winter. If the Twins decide they want to add a significant bullpen piece, they may not be able to wait for the market to develop over several months. The best options could be off the board before December arrives. Otherwise, Minnesota could find itself scrambling after the lockout ends to sign the remaining free agents and get them into camp on time. There is no guarantee the lockout will be short. If it stretches into spring training, teams could have even less time to prepare for the season. That makes early offseason planning particularly important. The Verdict The Twins probably don't need to make the biggest bullpen splash on the market, but they should be open to making a meaningful investment. Their bullpen was too unreliable for too much of last season, and waiting until the trade deadline proved expensive in terms of prospect capital. Minnesota enters this offseason with a better foundation than it had a year ago, but adding another proven high-leverage arm, particularly a left-hander, could make a significant difference. The challenge is finding the right player at the right price. Zoll doesn't need to recreate the bullpen with one signing. He needs to identify whether there is a reliever worth committing real money to and determine whether that investment gives the Twins a better chance to win in April, May, and June rather than waiting for another deadline correction. After years of taking a relatively conservative approach to bullpen spending, this could be one of the clearest opportunities for Zoll to establish a different philosophy. The question is whether the Twins are willing to pay for it. Should the Twins invest in the bullpen this winter? Leave a comment and start the discussion. View full article

Image courtesy of Brian Bradshaw Sevald-Imagn Images The Minnesota Twins have spent the last few years making payroll decisions that require a calculator, a spreadsheet, and (probably) a small support group. The next one is right around the corner, as Joe Ryan presents an interesting problem for Jeremy Zoll and the front office this winter. MLB Trade Rumors projects Ryan to earn approximately $9.6 million through arbitration for the 2027 season. That's a significant raise from the $6.2 million he earned in 2025, but in the current starting pitching market, it might also qualify as something Twins fans haven't seen enough of lately: a bargain. The question is whether that bargain makes Ryan more valuable to the Twins or more attractive to other teams. It should do both, of course, but will it do one more than the other? And if so, what action will that prompt from the team? Ryan Might Be One of the Best Starters on the Market The 2026-27 free-agent starting pitching class isn't exactly overflowing with top-of-the-rotation options. The current top five starting pitchers on the market are probably: LHP Tarik Skubal LHP Trevor Rogers RHP Freddy Peralta RHP Michael King RHP Kevin Gausman Ryan isn't part of that free-agent group, because he's under team control through arbitration. But if he were available alongside those pitchers, there's a reasonable argument that he'd rank second on the entire market. At worst, he would be difficult to place lower than fifth. That's important, because the pitchers ahead of him are going to cost significantly more than $10 million. Skubal will land a massive multi-year contract; it could be more than $400 million. Peralta, King, Rogers and Gausman will have plenty of teams interested in their services, and although only Rogers is likely to sniff a nine-figure deal, any of the four might earn $20 million per year or more. Ryan doesn't come with such a burdensome price tag. A team could acquire him and pay roughly $10 million for one season, without committing to four, five or six years on a free-agent contract. If a trade suitor believes Ryan is one of the best starting pitchers available this winter, paying him $9.6 million for 2027 could look remarkably inexpensive. One way or another, Zoll's phone will buzz. The Twins Would Be Selling a Valuable Asset This is where the Ryan conversation becomes complicated. The Twins don't need to trade Ryan. They might actually have a very good reason to keep him. Minnesota's rotation faces plenty of questions heading into 2027. There are young arms who could emerge, but there are also durability questions, guys who are more project than prospect, and plenty of uncertainty. Ryan is the known commodity. He's been one of the organization's most reliable starters, and his ability to miss bats isn't easily replaced internally. FanGraphs pegs his value at more than $17 million in every big-league season since his rookie year, and his strikeout skills are a huge part of that. The Twins can't simply trade Ryan because another team is willing to offer a couple of prospects. He's a linchpin of their rotation. Unless they see trouble under the hood, they should only deal him if they get back a package that bolsters them in the present, as well as the future. As argued previously, that kind of value might just not be there. His second-half performances have been a problem, which is a reason for the Twins to consider moving him but also a drag on the value teams might give up to get him. Again, though, the money matters—and it works in the team's favor, either way. The $9.6 Million Question Imagine you're a team that needs starting pitching. You can sign one of the top free agents and give that pitcher a multi-year contract worth anywhere from $19 million to $35 million per season. Then, you have to keep your fingers crossed that he stays healthy and performs at a high level for the life of the contract. Alternatively, you can trade prospects for Ryan and pay him less than $10 million for 2027. The latter option suddenly looks pretty appealing. Ryan's projected arbitration salary doesn't make him cheap in a vacuum. But baseball contracts don't exist in a vacuum. They exist in comparison to the alternatives, and the alternatives are expensive. Ryan's second halves are worrisome, but many of the other top starters available come with some yellow flags of their own. Most teams would rather have a guy who wears down every summer and battles nagging leg issues than one who's already wearing two elbow scars or has shoulder soreness all over his medical history. So, Should the Twins Trade Him? This is where things get uncomfortable. If the Twins are serious about competing in 2027, keeping Ryan makes a lot of sense. If they're more interested in continuing to reshape the roster around a younger core, Ryan might be one of the best players to cash in. The projected $9.6 million salary makes that decision harder, not easier. If Ryan were projected to make $20 million, teams might be less aggressive in trade talks. If the free-agent market were loaded with comparable starters, his trade value might also be lower. Instead, Minnesota has a starting pitcher who could arguably rank near the top of the free-agent class and cost less than half what some comparable hurlers will. That's a pretty attractive asset. The Twins have to determine whether that asset is more valuable on the mound or as a piece to acquire others—which comes down to what those other pieces turn out to be. Does Ryan’s projected arbitration salary make him a more attractive trade candidate? Leave a comment and start the discussion. View full article