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I'll start out by acknowledging what you already know: young and controllable arms are very valuable in baseball. For that reason, none of these decisions will or should be taken lightly. We've seen countless times how a small shift in pitching role, or a minor tweak to mechanics or pitch mix, can completely turn around a wayward pitcher. The Twins won't be eager to move on from any of these five, who have all shown some level of potential while pitching on the big-league stage. With that said, the front office will likely be seeking to shake things up on the pitching staff this offseason, targeting new talents and projects to take on. There are currently four open spots on the 40-man roster, but those could be claimed quickly as the Twins fulfill needs in the rotation and position-player corps. After being extended arbitration earlier this month, Jorge Alcala will likely be given every chance to overcome his injuries and make the 2024 bullpen, although that isn't a lock. The following five could be considered less likely to make it through the offseason without exiting the organization via DFA or minor trade. Jordan Balazovic, RHP Heading into the 2020 season, we had Balazovic ranked as the fifth-best prospect in the Twins system. He would move up to the status of No. 1 pitching prospect when Brusdar Graterol – ranked one spot ahead – was traded shortly thereafter. At the time, Balazovic was coming off a stellar year in Single-A, and at age 21 was on track to eventually impact an MLB rotation. Unfortunately, since the lost COVID season, the righty has struggled with pretty much everything: control, hits, home runs. The 2023 season was especially tumultuous for Balazovic; he missed time in spring training after an off-the-field altercation, and once again got rocked at Triple-A. He did break through to the majors with 18 appearances, but gave up 12 walks and five homers in 24 innings. A smokescreen of unsustainable early success gave way to the reality of an overmatched pitcher. “Jordan was really good about identifying and being honest with the way he was throwing the ball,” manager Rocco Baldelli said when Balazovic was demoted in late August. “He said, ‘I just have to get in the zone.’ … I liked him taking that level of responsibility on. He was very direct and that felt good. He knows what he’s trying to accomplish.” Balazovic proceeded to issue 11 walks with four strikeouts in 10 innings for the Saints after getting sent down. A brutal end to a brutal year that leaves the 25-year-old's future here in limbo. He still has some traits to like – namely a big frame and a fastball that can elevate in the zone – but it's fairly to easy imagine the front office moving on and picking a new arm to develop with this roster spot. Josh Winder, RHP The Twins were very high on Winder coming out of spring training in 2022, to the point that they surprisingly kept him on the Opening Day roster. He was impressive early on, before familiar shoulder issues cropped up and derailed his season. Winder has since been unable to shake those recurring right shoulder woes, and was limited to just 70 ineffective innings between the majors and Triple-A this season. He stands 6-foot-5 with a great slider, giving him a strong reliever profile, and even throws 95 to boot. The problem is that Winder's fastball, despite its velocity, has been a batting-practice pitch in the majors, yielding a .537 wOBA this year and .485 last year. Simply non-viable. He turned 27 in October. Cole Sands, RHP Sands has been up and down over the past couple of seasons, filling in as needed with 26 appearances (three starts) and 52 innings. The sum result has been a 4.99 ERA and 5.06 FIP – not good. He's in a very similar boat as Winder, running dangerously close to the "Quadruple-A player" designation at age 26 with no real record of MLB success. I think the Twins will be a little more inclined to keep Sands over Winder because he is younger, has been healthier, and his fastball at least shows signs of being usable. Plus Sands has a really interesting secondary mix that is worth building around as a reliever. Brent Headrick, LHP The left-hander was a somewhat surprising add to the 40-man roster last offseason, in that he wasn't really on the prospect radar. The Twins liked his ability to factor as immediate major-league depth, and they were valid in assessing him as such. Headrick made 14 appearances for the big-league club in 2023, handling the load capably at times. Still, his performance could hardy be described as impressive. Headrick finished with a 6.31 ERA and 6.10 FIP in 26 innings for the Twins. His performance in Triple-A also wasn't great (4.68 ERA in 75 innings) but as a hard-throwing lefty who can provide length and strike people out, I don't think Headrick is especially likely to exit. Simeon Woods Richardson, RHP I don't really believe Woods Richardson is at risk of being dumped this offseason, which is why he's at the bottom of this list. He's young enough to have upside, and seasoned enough to offer big-league depth. But the theoretical upside in his game is fading fast. Woods Richardson's 2023 season was discouraging in almost every way. His velocity dwindled, his stuff lagged and his numbers were dreadful, even though he was seemingly healthy throughout the season. To put his 19.3% K-rate at Triple-A in some context, it was lower than Randy Dobnak's. The right-hander is still only 23 and I suspect the Twins would at least let him loose in a full-time relief role before letting him loose. That said, it wouldn't surprise me if he was a toss-in for some trade package this offseason. Managing pitchers like these is a delicate balance. You never want to give up too early, but holding too long can mean costing yourself opportunities to roster and develop different arms. We'll see where the Twins land this offseason on these five fringe figures in the team's pitching plans.

Box Score Starting Pitcher: Bailey Ober, 5.0 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 3 BB, 3 K (97 pitches, 60 strikes, 61.9%) Home Runs: Willi Castro (9) Top 3 WPA: Willi Castro (.353), Jorge Polanco (.207), Kyle Farmer (.172) Win Probability Chart (via FanGraphs) In the first two games of this Cincinnati series, the Twins were dealt two significant blows on the injury front, with Carlos Correa departing Monday’s game after the first inning with an aggravated left foot plantar fasciitis and Royce Lewis limping out of Tuesday’s game in the eighth with an apparent hamstring injury. But news emerged earlier today that helped calm Twins fans down a bit. Shortly before today’s game, the Twins placed Correa on the 10-day Injured List and recalled Trevor Larnach from Triple-A St. Paul. However, as reported by MLB.com’s Do-Hyoung Park, Correa has a full-thickness tear to the central cortex of the area, and that tear might facilitate the healing process. Also, Bally Sports North's Audra Martin reported during the broadcast that Royce Lewis was able to ride the stationary bike in the clubhouse this morning and that his condition is "much better than expected." On to the game, and neither offense was able to bother their opposing starters much during the first two innings. Bailey Ober, the 346th pick in the 2017 Draft, and Hunter Greene, the 2nd overall pick the Twins passed on to select Royce Lewis, didn’t allow any hits in that span. But things changed in the third, as both of them pitched themselves into jams. Andrew Stevenson hit a leadoff double and was followed by a single from Christian Vázquez. Greene, however, managed to retire the next three batters and end the threat. Ober was also ambushed in the bottom of the inning and he couldn’t keep the zero on the board. Will Benson worked a leadoff walk, and a couple of at-bats later, Ober hit Jonathan India on the shoulder to put two men on with only one out. TJ Friedl stepped up to the plate and slapped a base hit to left to score Benson. Spencer Steer then hit a long flyball to center that, fortunately, was caught by Michael A. Taylor for the second out, but both runners moved into scoring position. After an eight-pitch at-bat, Ober struck out Jake Fraley, to end a 35-pitch inning for him. Greene dominated Minnesota’s offense throughout this game, including eight strikeouts through four innings. After a shaky third, Ober gave up a home run to former Twin Christian Encarnacion-Strand to lead off the bottom of the fourth, making it 2-0 Reds. This time, though, he was able to navigate through the inning without much risk. Ober settled in well and completed five innings on 96 pitches before Josh Winder took over in the sixth. Castro brings the Twins back… Twice! Greene struck out Max Kepler to lead off the top of the seventh, making it 13 punch outs for him in the afternoon – already a career-high for him. When it seemed like the Twins offense would get nothing against him, Willi Castro went yard for a second consecutive game, the first time he’s done so this season. That was all the damage the Twins could inflict, as Greene picked up his 14th strikeout on the day on his way to complete seven innings. Winder had tossed a quick, easy sixth, before giving up a leadoff triple to Benson in the seventh. That’s when things got weird. Luke Maile made a bunt attempt, the ball went into play, and he was initially out. David Bell noticed the ball had hit Maile on the fingers and challenged the call, and a review showed the ball hit Maile in the box and was ruled dead, turning Maile’s failed bunt attempt into a strike, and allowing the at-bat to continue. On the very next pitch, Maile hit a bloop single to shallow left, driving in Benson from third and making it 3-1 Reds. Minnesota didn’t give up, and they made this a one-run game again in the eighth, once Greene was no longer in the game. Vázquez doubled to deep right to lead off the inning, and after Larnach flied out, Édouard Julien got his first hit of the day, a bloop single to center, deep enough to score Vázquez. After Jhoan Durán pitched around a leadoff walk to deliver a scoreless eighth, the Twins were ready to rally in the ninth. Castro was once again the headliner. Facing reliever Alexis Díaz, he hit a leadoff bunt single, then immediately tried stealing second. He succeeded, and more, as Maile made an awful throw to second, allowing Castro to advance to third. Kyle Farmer smacked a single to right to score Castro and tie the game. Vázquez drew a one-out walk, prompting a pitching change. But that was useless. After striking out Larnach for the second out, Sam Moll intentionally walked Ryan Jeffers to face Jorge Polanco next and load the bases. Polo wasted no time, and jumped on the very first pitch for a base hit down the middle, scoring Farmer and Vázquez and giving the Twins their first lead of the afternoon, 5-3. One week after giving up a game-winning home run to the Rays in the ninth, Griffin Jax was given another late high-leverage opportunity today. He came in to pitch the ninth, and despite giving up a leadoff walk, he was able to retire the side and record his third save of the season. Postgame interview What’s Next? The Twins head back to the Twin Cities, where they’ll have a day off on Thursday and kick off their final homestand of the season the next day. They host the Los Angeles Angels for a three-gamer over the weekend, with game one scheduled for 7:10 pm CDT on Friday. Pablo López (10-8, 3.58 ERA) takes the mound for Minnesota, while the Angels’ starter is yet to be determined. Bullpen Usage Spreadsheet SAT SUN MON TUE WED TOT Keuchel 0 0 58 0 0 58 Winder 25 0 0 0 29 54 Pagán 0 22 0 8 0 30 Durán 9 0 0 0 21 30 Jax 0 13 0 0 17 30 Funderburk 0 0 0 20 0 20 Thielbar 0 0 0 16 0 16 Floro 0 0 0 16 0 16 Varland 0 0 0 0 0 0

About a month ago, the Twins were losing handily to the Tigers when Josh Winder took the mound. Minnesota wasn’t expecting greatness; they just needed someone to eat outs in order for the game to continue to its dreadful conclusion. Sitting 2-0 against Matt Vierling, Winder uncorked his offering: Vierling looks perplexed. He is perplexed. He got the 2-0 heater he was expecting, but the pitch ran way more than he predicted, causing a foul off his foot, and an extended stare into space as he thinks “huh.” There’s a reason he acted that way; Winder is a four-seam guy, with movement dead and true. Yet, his offering here bored like it was looking for diamonds. What’s going on here? It’s a sinker; he threw a sinker. Winder has been underwhelming since joining the Twins, perhaps making it easy for some to write off his entire profile. You shouldn’t! Winder is a master spinner, firing junk that flummoxes hitters. His slider? Batters slugged .320 off it in 2022 and are slugging .256 this year; the change is similarly effective. The problem has been the four-seam fastball: hitters transform into prime Barry Bonds against it. That’s actually incorrect—they’ve been better than Bonds, slugging .713 against it last season and .905 in 2023. .905! That would be an incredible OPS. Why was his fastball so tasty? I don’t know the exact reason—I watch from behind a screen, not in the batter’s box—but we do have some other numbers that can explain his problems. You’ve probably heard a little about vertical approach angle. It was a big deal when Joe Ryan and Bailey Ober first came up, as their strange, oddly effective heaters blew hitters away despite unimpressive velocity. The gist is this: throwing from a lower slot makes high fastballs look extra-jumpy. They get that bonus ride that tricks hitters and hitters’ bats, and it’s usually whiff-city when a batter attempts to hit it when it's up in the zone. Winder… doesn’t enjoy this advantage. His angle is much higher than those two, keeping those high fastballs “on plane” before inevitably getting smacked into Wisconsin. A high approach angle by itself isn’t a death sentence—Félix Bautista basically drops pitches from the clouds, and he’s pretty good—but an average one, when combined with average fastball movement—which Winder has—turns his ERA sour and musty. I wish I could tell you that the sinker has magically turned Winder into a great pitcher, but that isn’t true; he’s walked more batters than he’s struck out since debuting the pitch on August 16th. His ERA sparkles at 1.69. His peripherals belch. The sinker alone has done well, though, in a miniscule sample. It's been especially helpful against righties, which is good; Winder has demonstrated reversed splits in his MLB career, with righties slugging .495 against him while lefties have only been good for a .367 mark. Frankly, it’s incredible that Winder introduced a foreign pitch on the fly. The offseason is usually when hurlers head to the drawing board and design a fresh offering; just ask Pablo López. But, when batters are slugging, *cough,* .905 against a pitch, that does tend to expedite change, especially for a player still battling for a secure role. I don’t know if the pitch will lead to the success that was promised for Winder, but it is encouraging that he’s proactively looking for solutions. Sometimes, quality performance is just one pitch away.

Through five outings and 5 1/3 innings, Kody Funderburk has a 1.69 ERA and has struck out one-third of the hitters he’s faced. The only blemish was a poorly-timed homer allowed against Cleveland. The Twins are surely hoping that they have an emerging piece of the current and future bullpen. So far so good. Funderburk was thrust into enough leverage in his MLB debut to pitch two innings en route to a win against Cleveland. Two days later, he entered in a huge spot and allowed a backbreaking three-run homer, though only one run was charged to him. On Wednesday, he came into a one-run game with two runners on and no outs and shut down Cleveland once more. Rocco Baldelli clearly trusts him, perhaps out of necessity. It’s an interesting development considering the front offices' refusal to call him up to the MLB roster until it was absolutely necessary, regardless of how well he pitched. At the deadline, the Twins declined to meaningfully upgrade the bullpen. Their lone acquisition Dylan Floro has been just as unreliable as the fringe MLB relievers they chose to roster all season such as Cole Sands and Josh Winder. Even Duran and Jax have struggled mightily in recent weeks. The front office waited until they had no choice but to call up Funderburk, who had been absolutely dominant in St. Paul all season. Based on Funderburk’s usage, it seems as though Baldelli had been waiting on those reinforcements for a long time. Can he continue with the success he’s shown in a small sample? The small sample of Funderburk’s pitch mix is interesting so far. His slider has been dominant, drawing whiffs nearly half of the time it’s thrown. It has a hilarious .008 xBA and .024 xSLG so far, a truly dominant pitch. On the polar opposite end, the four-seam has allowed a .345 xBA and .791 xSLG. It could be skewed by the one homer allowed in 31 pitches, but it’s something worth keeping an eye on. We’ve seen pitchers such as Josh Winder come up and have fastballs that get consistently crushed. Not being able to ever throw a fastball makes life hard as a pitcher. Unlike Winder, Funderburk has a backup plan. His sinker is oddly two ticks harder than the four-seam and has allowed a .131 xBA and .144 xSLG in addition to a 4-degree launch angle. Hopefully, the four-seam can come around to provide Funderburk with some whiffs, but if not, it appears he has the ability to make batters pound the ball into the ground and avoid major damage. Sinkers can sometimes be used to limit platoon splits as well. Funderburk looks like he could be more than a lefty specialist. His slider is effective regardless of the handedness of opposing hitters, and his two different fastballs give him the ability to adjust as he acclimates to the MLB level. At this point, the question is likely whether Funderburk has time to earn a postseason roster spot rather than whether he’ll stick around in the majors through the season. Kody Funderburk’s debut was long awaited, but it appears he’s ready to make an impact now that he’s up. With Caleb Thielbar as the only other lefty in the bullpen, Funderburk has the chance to help the Twins through September and hopefully even October. Not to mention being a potential piece in 2024. The wait was worth it.

Box Score Starting Pitcher: Kenta Maeda - 5 IP, 9 H, 3 ER, 2 BB, 3 K (80 Pitches, 50 Strikes, 62.5% Strikes) Home Runs: Royce Lewis (10) Bottom WPA: Josh Winder (-.361), Cole Sands (-.276), Christian Vazquez (-.258) Win Probability Chart (via FanGraphs) The Twins looked to sweep the Rangers in their final preview for round one of the playoffs. Jon Gray took the hill for Texas, and Kenta Maeda countered for Minnesota. The Sunday matinee saw former Twins and new Twins star in the action, but ultimately the former Twins outlasted the current squad, and the twelve Twins left on base and six arms left in the bullpen tell the story of the game. Maeda Doesn't Like Garv-Sauce Texas attacked the scoreboard first again on Sunday, with former Twins catcher Mitch Garver delicately placing a Maeda slider that didn't slide just far enough into the left field bleachers. To make matters worse, Garver did this mean-spirited thing with two runners on, making the score 3-0 Rangers before Twins fans were even warmed up. With nine pitchers getting used on Saturday, a short start wasn't an option for Maeda. Maeda continued to give up contact and walks, seven hits and two walks in only three innings of work to be specific. And yet, Maeda was able to elicit ground outs and weak contact to escape these threats, keeping the Twins within striking distance as the game headed into the middle innings. Twins Offense Doesn't Like Gray-Sauce Edouard Julien led off the game with a double off of the wall in left field. The Twins didn't generate another hit against Gray until the top of the fourth when Carlos Correa smacked a single to center. Gray continually fooled the batters, with four of his early strikeouts being on called third strikes. Andrew Stevenson tried to bounce one off of Gray's pitching hand, and reached when Gray couldn't corral it in. He got Christian Vazquez to swing and miss, however, ending the threat in the fourth on his seventh strikeout for the day. Royce Lewis Needs a Sauce, and Twins Fans Would Buy All of It In the top of the fifth inning, Julien got his second hit of the game with one out. Jorge Polanco followed with a walk. Lewis followed by ripping a foul ball straight backward into the home plate umpire's face. After a short delay, everyone got back into their positions, and Lewis straightened it out this time to tie the game at 3-3. The Twins weren't done yet, Correa singled, Matt Wallner laced a 144 mph missile to right field (OK... 114 mph), and a jut-out in the foul territory fence saved a run by funneling the ball directly to the right fielder. After a Stevenson walk, the Twins were on the verge of breaking things wide open with the bases loaded and two outs. Christian Vazquez stepped up to the plate... and then sat back down after striking out as the Twins had to settle with the tie. Who's Left in the Bullpen? Not many relievers didn't see action Saturday night for both squads, so when Maeda and Gray exited after five innings each, the Twins and Rangers scrambled to find a way to complete the ballgame. The Rangers went to lefty Brock Burke in the top of the sixth, and struck out two more Twins for a quick inning. The Twins went to long-man Cole Sands, and he mowed through his first two opponents quickly as well. Then, Sands walked Marcus Semien, gave up a single to Corey Seager, walked Nathaniel Lowe, and chucked a baseball behind Adolis Garcia's back that allowed Semien to score to give the Rangers a 4-3 lead. 31 pitches later, Garcia struck out and the Twins turned to the last third of the game needing a comeback. Burke stayed in for the top of the seventh, and Lewis and Max Kepler greeted him with singles to knock him out of the game. Chris Stratton came in next and Correa hit a Metrodome classic to left to tie the game 4-4. The Twins once again failed to knock in the go-ahead run, as Stevenson and Vazquez both bounced out to first base to end yet another threat. 10 runners left on base through seven innings usually comes back to bite at team, and it didn't take long for that big bite to take place. Again, it tasted like Garv-sauce. Royce-sauce! The Twins' hopes for a comeback again rested on Lewis, who came up with one down and two on in the top of the eighth inning after Jordan Luplow and Polanco worked excellent patience into consecutive walks off of Jose Leclerc. Once again, Royce-sauce delivered a delicious swing to plate Luplow and knot the game 5-5. Will Smith then entered the game to neutralize Kepler, only to walk him to load the bases after a successful double steal to put the go ahead run at third with less than two outs. Correa was next man up, and he neutralized Kepler himself by bouncing into his 29th double play and leaving another couple of Twins on the pond. The bottom of the eighth saw lefty Kody Funderburk take the mound for the Twins, and things looked bleak after Leody Taveras ripped a lead-off double. Kody brought the Funder though, and stranded Taveras at third (after getting Semien, Seager and Lowe) to send the game to the ninth still tied. Willi Castro made his reappearance in the lineup by pinch-hitting for Wallner in the top of the ninth, and Kyle Farmer pinch-hit for Stevenson as well, and neither found a way to hit in a pinch en route to a no-run inning. Josh Winder was called upon to get the Twins into extra innings again, but that hope didn't last long as Adolis Garcia wiped away his 0-4 day with one big swing to send Rangers fans home happy and Twins fans to their phones to check the Guardians score. Until We Meet Again... If the playoffs began today, the Rangers would travel to Target Field as a wild card participant. Between now and October 3rd will be much scoreboard watching and hand-wringing by both clubs. The Twins took five of seven from the Rangers during the regular season, and could have won them all. They also could have easily gone two and five, with many close games and bullpen issues all around. This potential matchup could be the best the Twins could hope for to beat their playoff curse, but the rest of this week will go a long ways towards determining if they get that chance at first place in the first place. Post-Game Interview What’s Next? The Twins open their last series against the Guardians on Tuesday, with RHP Pablo Lopez (9-7, 3.72 ERA) facing new Guardians waiver man RHP Lucas Giolito (7-11, 4.45 ERA). Giolito managed going 1-4 with a 7.24 ERA in August for the Angels, but when with the White Sox he faced the Twins three times and only surrendered two runs over 18 innings. Which version of Giolito will be standing on the mound Tuesday? First pitch at Cleveland is scheduled for 5:10pm CDT. Bullpen Usage Spreadsheet WED THU FRI SAT SUN TOT Durán 20 0 9 21 0 50 Sands 0 0 0 0 50 50 Funderburk 8 0 0 9 14 31 Thielbar 16 0 8 6 0 30 Jax 8 0 11 7 0 26 Pagán 0 0 0 24 0 24 Headrick 0 0 0 15 0 15 Winder 0 0 0 6 5 11 Floro 0 0 0 8 0 8

Box Score SP: Pablo Lopez 5 IP, 10 H, 5 ER, 1 BB, 4 K (91 pitches, 58 strikes (66%) Home Runs: Royce Lewis (6), Kyle Farmer (8), Ryan Jeffers (10), Matthew A. Taylor (19) Top 3 WPA: Ryan Jeffers (.341), Carlos Correa (.256), Royce Lewis (.219) Bottom 3 WPA: Max Kepler (-.291), Pablo Lopez (-.325), Jordan Luplow (-.70) Win Probability Chart (via FanGraphs) Pablo Lopez, who came into tonight's game with 19 straight scoreless innings, had the streak abruptly ended with Marcus Semien's home run off his first offering of the night. The Rangers kept the pressure on throughout the game, but the Twins countered with timely defense. In the second inning, Travis Jankowski bunted for a base hit and went first to third on a single from Ezequiel Duran to right. With the Rangers threatening, Lopez induced an inning-ending double play, proving that it will be vital for the Twins' defense to make key plays in this series. The heat and humidity Minnesota is experiencing likely aided in the baseball carrying at Target Field, and there was no lack of action. Kyle Farmer matched Semien's solo home run to tie up the game. But the Rangers weren't done. Lopez struggled heavily in the third inning. Corey Seager added another solo shot, and Texas followed with a pair of singles and a walk to load the bases. Jankowski drove in two more, putting the Rangers up 4-1. The Twins battled back with a solo home run from Michael A. Taylor, bringing the score closer to 4-2, but Leody Taveras answered back with his solo home run -- the third home run of the night on Lopez -- and the Rangers a 5-2 lead. In the 5th, Michael A. Taylor added another solo home run to close the gap, 5-3. Lewis continued to help the Twins battle back with another solo home run in the bottom of the sixth, closing the gap to a one-run game and the Twins fourth home run. The Twins called on Josh Winder in the sixth inning. Winder hasn't seen action in eight days, but as a Virginia kid, he has played in this heat his whole life and seemed unphased as he gave the Twins their first 1-2-3 inning of the game. Winder did well and returned to have another scoreless seventh and eighth. It was the first time Winder had gone that long all season, and it provided a much-needed rest for a bullpen that was depleted in the Milwaukee series! In the eighth inning, Matt Wallner and Carlos Correa matched doubles to tie the game with no outs. With the bases loaded, the Rangers brought lefty Will Smith to face Max Kepler and Edouard Julien. The Twins called on Ryan Jeffers as a pinch hitter. Jeffers hit a go-ahead two-run home run to push the Twins ahead 7-5, complete with an epic bat flip! Jeffers is now a .571 hitter in pinch-hit situations. The Twins got a strong finish, and it was fun watching Griffin Jax come out in the ninth inning to close out the game, and he did so in fiery fashion. Griffin struck out Semien before walking Seager, and he was visibly frustrated as the officiating appeared questionable to both sides all night. Lowe grounded into a double play to Donovan Solano, Carlos Correa and ended with Joey Gallo on first base. The crowd erupted as the Twins won their first of the four-game series and handed the Rangers their seventh loss in a row. See you all tomorrow night! What’s Next? The Twins continue their homestand with three more games from Texas in this series before coming head to head with Cleveland. Friday 7:10 pm CDT: RHP Sonny Gray (6-6, 3.15 ERA) vs. RHP Dane Dunning (9-5, 3.19 ERA) Saturday 6:15 pm CDT: RHP XX (7-6, 3.77 ERA) vs. RHP Max Scherzer (7-6, 3.77 ERA) Sunday 12:35 pm CDT: RHP Bailey Ober (6-6, 3.41 ERA) vs. LHP Jordan Montgomery (8-10, 3.12 ERA) Postgame Interviews Bullpen Usage Spreadsheet

The Twins seem to find themselves backing into comfort zones when it comes to roster decisions on occasion. Sometimes it’s because of veteran status or it’s a player they personally like. Sometimes they’re just being overly protective of depth. Whatever the reason is currently, it simply isn’t justifiable to continue with how they’ve managed the bottom half of the bullpen. The middle of the Twins bullpen has picked up a lot of slack recently between Emilio Pagán and Caleb Thielbar. Griffin Jax and Jhoan Duran have been struggling, which is bound to happen to even the best relievers in baseball. It’s also expected that the bottom part of a bullpen shouldn’t exactly be rock solid. After all, that’s why they’re at the bottom. The way the Twins are using the low-leverage parts of their bullpen simply makes no sense as we approach September. The team has been adamant in regards to keeping a long reliever on the roster. So much so, in fact, that coming out of spring training, it cost them several high-leverage relievers such as Danny Coulombe (2.77 ERA in 39 IP) and Jeff Hoffman (2.86 ERA in 34 2/3 IP) who both looked great in the spring. If having a long reliever really is that important to them, that’s fine. Minor league relievers being cut loose and going on to success can be overlooked. The Twins are taking it to another level though, and completely wasting opportunities and at least one roster spot. By currently rostering Cole Sands and Josh Winder, the Twins are playing with a hand tied behind their back when it comes to the bullpen, and it’s completely self-inflicted. Let’s start with Cole Sands. He’s actually been electric in St. Paul with a 1.64 ERA and near 40% K rate. In his time bouncing up and down with the Twins, he’s barely pitched. In fact, despite being completely healthy, he’s made three appearances, all with the Saints, since July 20th. He’s thrown only 4 1/3 innings in just under a month. In Wednesday’s game when the Twins were down four runs, they needed an inning filled. Instead of going to Sands who hadn’t pitched in over a week and actually has promising numbers in St. Paul, they went to supposed long reliever Josh Winder, who allowed a run that put Detroit over the edge to eventually win 8-7. Sands’ lack of usage is puzzling. If they aren’t going to let him pitch, why is he here? The easier question to ask has more to do with Josh Winder. At this point, it’s becoming time to wonder why Winder is an option in the MLB bullpen at all. He had an ERA over 6.00 in Triple-A and an ERA over 5.00 in the big leagues. In 11 appearances with the Twins this season, he’s only held the opposing team scoreless three times. There’s a difference between rostering a long reliever/mop-up man and continuing to give opportunities to pitchers who should be working on things in the minors. Winder is a former top prospect who still has hopes of recapturing the pedigree. He should be focusing on making adjustments against lower competition. Whatever the reason behind the Twins continuing to give Winder these chances, it's time to try something else. Perhaps they see something in him long-term, but there’s zero reason to let him try to find it in the big leagues at this point. At the very least, when a one-inning opportunity comes up, they should be giving it to Sands who has at least been able to get minor-league hitters out this year. Another usable middle-reliever developing would be a big boost down the stretch, and that’s not going to happen by giving opportunities to arms who are struggling so mightily. At this point, the Twins should be looking for upside in the lowest leverage rungs of the bullpen ladder. At the very least they shouldn’t be allocating those spots to players they’re never going to let pitch. A recent hot stretch by Ronny Henriquez should make him an option to get some runway in the majors. It shouldn’t be a problem to add Kody Funderburk to the 40-man, who has dominated Triple-A all season since his promotion just two weeks into the season. The Twins seem intent on making things as difficult as possible when it comes to the bullpen. It almost seems like they’re trying to show the world just how unimportant the bullpen is. It’s time they try to make improvements for the first time all year and give some different names an opportunity. What they’re doing right now isn’t helping anybody.

Ronny Henriquez has had his fair share of ups and downs in his Twins career. Acquired as part of the Mitch Garver deal, he’s gone from a starting pitching prospect to a relief prospect before injuries wiped him off the map. Henriquez may finally be righting the ship, and the Twins may be smart to see if they can hop aboard. The Twins perhaps waited too long to transition Henriquez to a full-time reliever. His body has been a red flag for his future as a starting pitcher, as his listed 5’10 height is considered extremely generous. He was making starts well into the 2022 season despite suffering from crippling home run issues. The Twins clearly liked what they saw when he finally landed in the bullpen, as they called him up for three appearances at the end of the season as a reliever. Henriquez began this season on the shelf after experiencing some elbow problems this spring. He didn’t make his first appearance until May, and the results as a whole have been less than impressive. In just under 40 innings, Henriquez’s 5.50 ERA looked earned when looking at his 18.8% strikeout rate compared to his 14.8% walk rate. He’s likely been off the Twins' radar when it comes to being a call-up, but things may finally be clicking. It’s an incredibly small sample, but a dominant one. Henriquez has a fastball that plays up in the mid-to-high 90s with an impressive changeup and usable slider. As a reliever, he should have all the tools he needs to contribute to an MLB bullpen. The walk issues he’s shown have never been seen before in his career, contributing to the theory that he may have just needed time to get his feel back after a worrisome injury and subsequent time off. It’s also the first season of his career where he’s been able to fully focus on the routine of being a reliever. Henriquez is already on the 40-man roster at the age of 23. The Twins have also been rostering multiple bulk relievers for several weeks now. As a former prospect of at least some pedigree, it’s likely Henriquez doesn’t need to show a ton more in Triple-A to find his way into the MLB bullpen mix. Considering their willingness to call him up in 2022, they’ve likely been waiting around for any signs that something has clicked. The Twins have plenty of options to cycle out in order to take a shot on Henriquez. First and foremost, they don’t need Josh Winder and Cole Sands in the same bullpen, as historically they’ve gone weeks without needing to use a bulk reliever, let alone two. Especially if Dallas Keuchel is no longer in the rotation, the need just isn’t there often enough. Jordan Balazovic also has regressed in unfortunate fashion. After filling more of a bulk relief role in Triple-A, he was thrust into more of a traditional relief role upon his debut. It’s possible more seasoning in Triple-A would benefit him if the Twins insist on having multiple long relievers on their MLB roster. Ronny Henriquez is clearly a pitcher the Twins saw something in at the end of 2022, and if he looks like he’s found his groove, it costs them little to see how it translates to the big league bullpen which is in need of someone to step up. Should Henriquez have to show he’s flipped the switch a bit longer? Should they call him up as soon as possible? Let us know below!

Box Score Dallas Keuchel: 1 2/3 IP, 6 H, 6 ER, 2 BB, 0 K Home Runs: Jorge Polanco (7), Max Kepler (19) Bottom 3 WPA: Dallas Keuchel (-.486), Ryan Jeffers (-.073), Joey Gallo (-.054) Win Probability Chart (via FanGraphs) For a moment, it appeared to be 2019 again; the last time the Twins played at Citizens Bank Park, Jorge Polanco hit for the cycle and Max Kepler homered in all three games. Four years later, the two went back-to-back in the 2nd inning, giving Minnesota a quick 2-0 lead. That would be the apex of the game, though, as Dallas Keuchel imploded in the 2nd inning, allowing enough hits to get himself removed before the third out could be had. It was a bludgeoning dynamic and brutal; the Phillies cracked six hits, churning in just as many runs as everything Keuchel threw was walloped into empty grass. Even the two outs he earned brought in runs. Batted balls failed to find gloves, instead banging around the field, creating chaos and scoring runs as the visions of his double plays on Sunday become distant and unrecognizable. Across 10 balls in play, Keuchel allowed an average exit velocity of 95.5. To his credit, at least, the Phillies terrorized every pitcher the Twins threw out there; Josh Winder could only last two frames before giving way to Brent Headrick; neither man survived without allowing multiple earned runs. In the background—as Minnesota’s pitchers allowed contact loud and obtrusive—the Twins settled into their usual routine against left-handed starters, with flashes of scoring potential drowned in their monolith of muck. Cristopher Sánchez did as Keuchel was supposed to, coaxing nine groundouts over six frames to earn a workman-like win. If you looked closely, there were three generations of crafty lefties at the stadium: Keuchel—whose remaining playing days appear few—Sánchez, who looks well-suited to join the ranks of tricky southpaws of year’s past, and Jim Kaat, who likely watched Keuchel with the painful eye of a player who knows all too well how a start like his could occur. The rest of the game was the slow, inevitable march towards 27 outs. It’s baseball at its least compelling; runs scored by either side feel like vain roadblocks on the way to the inevitable conclusions. Relievers replace each other endlessly. Hits and walks? Pointless. A decent lawyer could argue they never happened. Sometimes time can appear to move backwards during these Twilight Zone frames creating infinite, inconsequential baseball. Jordan Luplow eventually pitched, placing the perfect bow on top of this awful game. Notes: Dallas Keuchel has not struck out a batter in 6 2/3 innings with the Twins. Max Kepler is one homer away from tying his second-highest single-season homer total. He is many home runs away from reaching the 36 he hit in 2019. Jordan Luplow has now been involved in three instances of a position player pitching since joining the Twins; Saturday was his first on the mound venture with his new club. Carlos Correa extended his hitting streak to seven games. Post-Game Interview: What’s Next? The Twins and Phillies will play the second game of their series at 5:05 PM on Saturday; Pablo López will start against Taijuan Walker. Bullpen Usage Spreadsheet

Box Score SP: Sonny Gray, 6 IP, 7 H, 2 ER, 0 BB, 10 K (90 pitches, 65 strikes (72% strikes)) Home Runs: None Bottom 3 WPA: Gray (-.097), Willi Castro (-.115), Jordan Luplow (-.074) Win Probability Chart That's Not How to Support Your Starter Miguel Cabrera ranks at the top of the list for "no need to rush your throw to get him out at first base." Unfortunately, Jorge Polanco did anyway in the bottom of the first inning. Cabrera hit a harmless chopper up the middle with two outs and Riley Greene at second base. Polanco slung it on the run, wide of Donovan Solano at first base, and Greene never stopped running until it was 1-0 Tigers. Eduardo Rodriguez is a Different Kind of Left-Handed Starter Fresh off of their seven-run outburst against left-handed starter Joey Wentz, the Twins experienced a reality check against Rodriguez and his 1.05 WHIP. They managed to clutter the bases with two outs in the first inning and again in the third inning, with Carlos Correa's singles accounting for both run-scoring opportunities. A Willi Castro groundout and a leaping catch by Javier Baez on a Jordan Luplow liner ended the threats. Tigers Go Station to Station Against Gray The Twins' failure to cash in on runners in scoring position became more troubling when Gray imploded in the bottom of the fourth. The inning started with a phantom pitch clock violation against Gray, and four straight hits later, the score was 3-1, with runners on the corners with nobody out. Christian Vazquez took care of the first out by throwing out Zach McKinstry at second on an attempted steal. Gray struck out Nick Maton and got Jake Rogers to ground out to second to end the threat. The Twins Outfield Keeps the Score Close Castro and Matt Wallner made sliding, diving, beautiful catches to end threats in the third and fifth innings, or else this game could have been a mirror image of last night's lopsided affair. Gray racked up ten strikeouts through the first six innings and provided a quality start, but the offense remained ice-cold against Rodriguez through the middle innings. The streaky Twins offense only accumulated four singles over the first seven innings against the dominant lefty. To the Bullpens We Go Josh Winder came in to pitch the bottom of the seventh inning since Gray had gone 90 pitches. All went well, except for the 2-2 fastball that Rogers parked into the left field bleachers to make the score 4-0. If the Twins were going to stage a late-inning rally, they picked an excellent team to be facing. The studs of the Tiger bullpen all have ERAs over 4.00, and they rank 18th overall in the MLB at giving up home runs. Polanco got a double in the eighth, but Correa and pinch-hitting Edouard Julien could not bring him home. The bottom of the eighth saw Winder begin to unwind as he filled the bases with only one out. He almost got out of the jam, but Zack Short delivered with two outs, plating two more runs with a single, making it 6-0 Tigers. The only drama left in the game was whether or not the Twins would get shut out. Polanco stroked a double to the gap in right in the bottom of the ninth, but he became the eighth Twins runner left on base, and Vazquez became the seventh batter to get out with runners in scoring position. The illusions of having success against left-handed pitching evaporated tonight, and it will be interesting to see how the Twins respond in their next opportunity to break the stigma. Other Notes Solano left the game after singling in the bottom of the third inning when he stumbled awkwardly back to first base after making a wide turn. He beat the throw back but had to be replaced by Joey Gallo. If Solano is to miss more time, Gallo becomes the primary first base option unless a call-up arises. Cabrera continues to collect milestones and standing ovations on his farewell tour, and with two more hits tonight, he reached 3142, passing Tony Gwynn and tying Robin Yount for 20th on the all-time hits list. What's Next? The Twins send RHP Bailey Ober (6-5, 3.21 ERA) to the mound to face Tigers RHP Alex Faedo (2-4, 5.80 ERA). While this looks like a signed, sealed, and delivered win, Faedo recently went six scoreless against the Padres on July 23. First pitch is scheduled for 5:40pm CDT. Postgame Interview Bullpen Usage Spreadsheet FRI SAT SUN MON TUE TOT Winder 0 0 0 0 42 42 Headrick 0 0 0 41 0 41 Floro 19 0 20 0 0 39 Thielbar 12 0 17 0 0 29 Pagán 11 0 18 0 0 29 Jax 0 0 27 0 0 27 Balazovic 0 26 0 0 0 26 Durán 19 0 0 0 0 19

Box Score Starting Pitcher: Joe Ryan, 4.0 IP, 9 H, 7 R, 7 ER, 1 BB, 4 K (103 pitches, 66 strikes, 64%) Home Runs: Matt Wallner (6) Bottom 3 WPA: Joe Ryan (-.345), Edouard Julien (-.066), Kyle Farmer / Christian Vazquez (-.028) Win Probability Chart (via FanGraphs) Ryan gets punished by the long ball early With two days off since his last time out, Joe Ryan had a full week to regroup after his rough outing against the Mariners, in which he gave up four runs and failed to complete four innings. Rocco Baldelli stood by him after that start. He spoke to Twins Radio before today’s game, saying how he believes Ryan is perfectly capable of relying less on his fastball and a bit more on his secondary offerings. "I have complete faith in Joe Ryan and the way that he can go out there and miss bats and get outs," Baldelli said before tonight’s game. "He's going to swing upward from where he's at right now. That's the way I feel about it." Having the support of your manager is essential, but it ultimately isn’t enough by itself. Ryan came to tonight’s game throwing his four-seamer 61% of the time through the first three innings, slightly above his season average of 57.5%. The Cardinals hitters clearly prepared for that, and the outcome couldn’t have been more disastrous for the Twins' talented young starter. After a long -- but scoreless -- first inning, the St. Louis lineup feasted off Ryan in the following two innings. Joe gave up three home runs in the second, including a two-run rocket to deep center by Lars Nootbaar that gave the Cardinals a comfortable 4-0 lead. With St. Louis’ starter Dakota Hudson having a phenomenal start to this game and mercilessly dominating the Twins’ offense, Ryan was on his own, too. The third inning wasn’t any easier for Ryan. He gave up a leadoff double to Nolan Arenado and a single to Wilson Contreras next. Then, it was Alec Burleson’s turn to punish his four-seamer, crushing it to the corner right for a three-run shot to make it 7-0 Cardinals. Ryan came back for the fourth and struck out three to end another tough start for him. He managed 12 outs on 103 pitches a week after needing 95 pitches for 11 outs. He has now allowed 37 earned runs in his last nine starts (6.89 ERA) and has thrown four or fewer innings in back-to-back starts for the first time in his big-league career. The offense gets no-hit through five-plus As much as Ryan’s outing was painful to watch, trust me, watching the offense tonight was excruciating. Twins hitters couldn’t get Hudson to break out a sweat for most of this game, putting up awful at-bats. The Cardinals starter took a no-hitter into the sixth, and his pitch count didn’t hit 70 until the seventh. But it was precisely in the seventh that Hudson seemed to start running out of gas. After Édouard Julien struck out on five pitches to lead off the inning, Jorge Polanco had a crucial 11-pitch at-bat -- seemingly the first quality at-bat by a Minnesota hitter all night. Though Polanco struck out, Hudson started to struggle after that at-bat: Max Kepler drew a five-pitch walk, and Kyle Farmer got hit by a pitch next. Then, Matt Wallner stepped up to the plate and smacked a three-run shot to deep center to put Minnesota on the board. Josh Winder came into the game to eat up innings after Ryan’s shortened inning, and he was brilliant for three innings -- his fifth multi-inning outing this season --, keeping alive Minnesota’s slight chances for a comeback. Following Wallner’s home run in the seventh, hopes went up again for the Twins when Joey Gallo led off the eighth with a single. But those hopes were short-lived, as Michael A. Taylor grounded into a force out and Julien grounded into an inning-ending double play later one, Minnesota’s third of the night. Caleb Thielbar made his first big-league appearance since early June by tossing a scoreless eighth and lowering his season ERA now to 1.59. Then, Donovan Solano hit a one-out single in the ninth, with Farmer and Wallner set to hit after him. Hopes for a rally were reignited for a second, but both of them struck out to end it. Postgame interview SAT SUN MON TUE WED TOT Winder 40 0 0 0 36 76 Jax 0 22 0 14 0 36 Balazovic 33 0 0 0 0 33 Pagán 0 6 0 16 0 22 Durán 0 0 0 14 0 14 Morán 11 0 0 0 0 11 Floro 0 11 0 0 0 11 Thielbar 0 0 0 0 11 11

The Twins bullpen is currently a house of cards held up by Griffin Jax and Jhoan Duran. Dylan Floro has a lot to like in the profile but has struggled this year and even at his best slots in behind the big two. With injuries and uncertainty across the board throughout the rest of the receiving corps, the Twins should be looking to acquire one more reliever for the stretch run. The Twins have reached a troubling level of uncertainty in their bullpen. On days when Jax and Duran aren’t available, they often have to use multiple fringe MLB-caliber arms, and even Jax has blown several leads over the last week or so. The fringes of the bullpen are filled out by rarely called-upon names such as Cole Sands, as well as waiver claims and relievers who struggle to even get Triple-A hitters out such as Oliver Ortega and Josh Winder. It’s no certainty that help is on the way internally. They find themselves in this spot despite surprisingly quality innings from Emilio Pagán, as well as getting a collection of great innings from José De León and Brock Stewart before both went down with injury. Caleb Thielbar just began a rehab assignment, though he’ll surely be brought along slowly. He’s no guarantee to return to form from his oblique issue, as we saw earlier this season when he returned for one appearance and immediately hit the IL again. It’s a fun idea to rely on the dominant Brock Stewart’s return, but after being shut down for what was considered maintenance, a month has passed and there is still no timeline for a rehab assignment. Relying on either to save the bullpen could prove costly. In addition, there are no immediate options within the system. After Oliver Ortega was optioned, the Twins called Josh Winder up for depth. The former intriguing starting prospect has struggled to get Triple-A hitters out as a reliever this season. Brent Headrick is stretched out to start and should probably stay that way. Ronny Henriquez, a once-promising prospect himself, has been a complete mess in Triple-A in between injuries. Outside of the 40-man roster, a few names such as Cody Laweryson and Kody Funderburk have flashed at times, but there are no standout options to potentially become bullpen staples. In short, the only real help that’s coming internally is from Thielbar and Stewart, neither of which should be relied on too heavily. Recently acquired Dylan Floro would likely slot in behind these two if all are healthy, making him more of a depth option rather than a legitimate go-to guy like this recovering duo can be. Adding another high-leverage arm as insurance in the event that Thielbar or Stewart can't come back has little downside. Worst case scenario the Twins wind up with too many reliable relievers. One more potential high-leverage arm would help the Twins tremendously given the health questions they're facing in the final months of the season. With the offense coming around a bit and the starting pitching starting to falter, they should be doing all they can to acquire one more bullpen piece and make the end of games as air-tight as possible. Do you agree?

Box Score Starting Pitcher: Joe Ryan, 3.2 IP, 7 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 2 BB, 7 K (95 pitches, 63 strikes, 66.3%) Home Runs: Christian Vázquez (3), Édouard Julien (10), Matt Wallner 2 (4) Bottom 3 WPA: Joe Ryan (-.305), Max Kepler (-.207), Jordan Balazovic (-.190) Win Probability Chart (via FanGraphs) Ryan gives up two homers, three runs early When Twins and Mariners met for the first time last week, All-Star centerfielder Julio Rodríguez didn’t cause Minnesota much trouble, going 1-for-10 with five strikeouts and only a walk to show for against Twins’ pitching. In this second encounter between the two teams, though, he has been a real thorn in the Twins’ side. After picking up three hits in the first two games of the series, including two home runs that powered the M’s comeback on Tuesday, he was at it again right out of the gate this afternoon. He got ahead on the count against Joe Ryan in the game’s first at-bat and ended up hitting a leadoff double after six pitches. Teoscar Hernández pushed Rodríguez across on a one-out bloop single giving Seattle their first lead of the day. The Twins’ offense struggled to get anything going against Mariners’ starter Bryce Miller to start this game, allowing Seattle to add on and increase their lead. Ryan quickly retired the first two batters he faced in the second, then was one strike away from retiring Dylan Moore, but the struggling shortstop took him deep for the second home run of the game. Back to the top of the Seattle order in the third, Rodríguez picked up where he left off and crushed a no-doubter to the second deck in left field, making it 3-0 Mariners. Ryan is in trouble again, but the offense hits three homers The bats finally got into the game during the third, and they also punished Miller with the long ball. Christian Vázquez jumped on the very first pitch of his at-bat to hit a one-out solo shot to center-left and put the Twins on the board. A couple of at-bats later, it was Édouard Julien’s turn to take Miller deep. Exactly like Vázquez, Eddy jumped on the first pitch he saw, hitting a line drive that cleared the left field track by a few feet. Suddenly, the Twins cut their deficit to only one run. But it simply wasn’t Ryan’s day, as Seattle batters seem to have him absolutely figured out. The Mariners swung on only 34% of his pitches outside the zone in this game, while Ryan has been getting hitters to swing at his outside pitches almost 40% of the time this season. With that, it didn’t take long for Seattle to get him in trouble again. Ryan loaded the bases before recording an out in the fourth inning, then gave up a single to Kolten Wong that scored the Mariners’ fourth run. Ryan managed to strike out the next two batters, but with his pitch count nearing a hundred, Rocco Baldelli decided to bring Jordan Balazovic into the game, making this Ryan’s second-shortest outing of the season. Balazovic got Hernández to fly out, avoiding any further damage. In the bottom of the inning, Matt Wallner hit his first home run of the afternoon, and once again, the Twins were within a run, trailing 4-3. Mariners explode to build a five-run lead, but the Twins answer back Balazovic remained in the game for the fifth, and with 14 pitches, he had retired two batters and allowed a walk. He failed to retire Cade Marlowe next, instead giving up an eight-pitch walk, which would cost him highly on the next at-bat. Moore, who before this game had homered only twice all year, hit his second home run of the day, a 429-feet bomb to left-center, making it 7-3 Mariners. Rodríguez led off the sixth inning with another double, this time against Josh Winder, and he scored on the next at-bat after Eugenio Suárez smashed a long single off the right-center field wall. Seattle had its biggest lead of the afternoon, heading into the bottom of the sixth. For many teams, an 8-3 deficit this late would be too much to overcome. But this Twins team simply refuses to quit as of late. Minnesota’s offense rallied for four runs in the sixth and cut the Mariners’ lead to only one run once again. Wallner kicked things off with his second solo home run of the game, a rare opposite-field monster shot by a lefty that landed in the second deck. Willi Castro flied out to put Miller within an out of finishing the inning, but Trevor Larnach doubled and scored next on a Kyle Farmer single to shallow center, making it 8-5 Mariners and immediately ending Miller’s day. Reliever Matt Brash took over, but he wasn’t able to stop the two-out bleeding. Joey Gallo hit a long fly ball to deep right, and Rodríguez couldn’t make the play, allowing Farmer to score and Gallo to reach second. Then, Vázquez, Minnesota’s seventh player to bat in the inning, joined the party and grounded to right to bring Gallo home and close the gap even more, cutting Seattle’s lead to 8-7. Winder preserves the one-run deficit, but the rally falls short Winder gave up two hits and a run in the sixth, but he did a fantastic job the rest of the way. He retired all the remaining batters faced (11 in a row) without allowing a single hit or walk while striking out four and throwing 75% strikes. But the offense went down in order in the seventh and stranded its only runner in the eighth. Minnesota would need their offense to step up once more to complete their rally in the bottom of the ninth. Things started off well, with Vázquez finding a gap in the middle for a leadoff groundball single. But reliever Andrés Muñoz managed to induce three groundball outs next, and the Mariners prevailed in the end. Postgame interview SAT SUN MON TUE WED TOT Balazovic 7 0 12 0 32 51 Jax 16 8 19 0 0 43 Durán 21 16 0 0 0 37 Winder 0 0 0 0 36 36 Pagán 0 11 0 19 0 30 J. López 0 9 12 0 0 21 Morán 0 0 5 14 0 19 Sands 0 0 0 0 0 0

Box Score Starting Pitcher: Joe Ryan, 7.0 IP, 7 H, 6 R, 6 ER, 0 BB, 7 K (99 pitches, 74 strikes, 74.7%) Home Runs: Alex Kirilloff (4) Bottom 3 WPA: Joe Ryan (-.382), Joey Gallo (-.073), Carlos Correa (-.052) Win Probability Chart (via FanGraphs) Twins strike first, but Detroit chooses violence Looking to bounce back from a disappointing loss on Thursday, the Twins turned to Joe Ryan tonight, and they were hoping the offense would remain hot. Minnesota came into this game having scored at least four runs in each of its last five games, something they’ve done only one other time this season. With Detroit going with a bullpen game, Minnesota was in business early. After a scoreless first inning, the Twins put the game’s first run on the board in the second. Facing reliever Mason Englert, Alex Kirilloff hit a leadoff home run, his first since May 21. And the bats weren’t done: Donovan Solano grounded down the middle next, and a couple of at-bats later, Joey Gallo smoked a double to the corner right for his 500th career hit. But instead of having two men in scoring position with only one out, Solano made a baserunning blunder in that Gallo double and was tagged for the second out. The inning was over moments later, and Gallo was stranded. Wasting those opportunities proved costly for Minnesota. Just like the Twins, the Tigers are also having a tremendous offensive outburst, as the team had scored at least five runs in six of their seven games prior to tonight. They opened the third with four consecutive singles, tying the game on an RBI groundball from former Twin Jonathan Schoop. Édouard Julien failed to make the play that originated the leadoff single, so not only the Tigers tied the game, but they also took the lead later on a Kerry Carpenter sac-fly that could’ve been out number three but instead brought Eric Haase home. To keep this a one-run game and give the offense another chance, Ryan needed to take care of Javier Báez next, with men on the corners. Ryan tried to get him with a splitter, but Báez obliterated it for a long three-run shot to deep left, making it 5-1 Detroit. In the fourth, the Tigers added on with a Matt Vierling solo shot, and for the first time this season, Ryan allowed six runs in a game. This was also the second time in the year in which he gave up two home runs in a game. Bats produce runners, but no more runs Similarly to last night’s game, the Twins lineup was dominated by the Tigers' bullpen, failing to produce any more runs. But they didn’t go down without at least a little fight. In the bottom of the fourth, Solano lined a single to center and was followed by a Royce Lewis walk. But the rally was over when Gallo grounded into an inning-ending double play. After the fourth inning, Ryan settled down and delivered three scoreless to close out his start. He allowed one hit (a double) but struck out four in that span. The bullpen took over, with Josh Winder tossing a scoreless eighth. He was brought back to pitch the ninth and gave up a solo home run to Vierling, his second of the night, scoring Detroit’s seventh run. A miraculous rally didn’t come even close to happening in the bottom of the ninth, as the offense went down in order to end the blowout. Postgame interview What’s Next? The series goes on this Saturday, with game three scheduled to start at 1:10 pm CDT. Minnesota's starting pitcher has yet to be determined, while lefty Joey Wentz (1-6, 7.23 ERA) is expected to toe the rubber for Detroit. Bullpen Usage Spreadsheet MON TUE WED THU FRI TOT Winder 0 38 0 0 32 70 J. López 0 0 0 32 0 32 Pagán 0 0 0 24 0 24 De León 0 24 0 0 0 24 Morán 0 0 0 22 0 22 Stewart 0 0 14 0 0 14 Durán 0 0 12 0 0 12 Jax 0 0 11 0 0 11

Major League Baseball's 2023 Draft is scheduled to start on July 9, 2023. Each team prepares for the draft with a specific plan, and sometimes those plans play out better than others. To prepare fans for the upcoming draft, this series will examine recent Twins drafts and how those players have performed so far in their professional careers. First Round: Trevor Larnach The Twins drafted Larnach with the 20th overall pick after a strong college season where he helped Oregon State win the College World Series. Three players taken behind Larnach (2.0 WAR) have accumulated more WAR so far in their MLB careers, including Nico Hoerner (8.1 WAR), Shane McClanahan (7.4 WAR), and Jake McCarthy (2.6 WAR). Larnach quickly impacted the Twins organization by winning the organization's Minor League Player of the Year award in his first full season. His most significant issue at the big-league level has been making consistent contact with offspeed and breaking pitches. He's part of the team's young core, and the Twins hope he can be a number-five hitter in the lineup for most of the next decade. Second Round: Ryan Jeffers Some were surprised the Twins drafted Jeffers this high because he was seen as a bat-first catcher with little defensive value. His outlook has changed significantly since signing with the Twins. He is a tremendous pitch framer and has improved his throwing arm this season. Jeffers has accumulated more WAR than any other second-round pick from the 2018 MLB Draft. Over the last two seasons, he struggled to find his swing with an 84 OPS+. His 2023 campaign started strongly with a 126 OPS+, ranking sixth in WAR among AL catchers. Minnesota lost their third-round pick in 2018 after signing Josh Donaldson. He had declined a qualifying offer by the Atlanta Braves, so draft pick compensation was tied to his signing. It is likely one of the reasons the Twins were able to sign him because some other teams would have had to forfeit a higher draft pick. His free-agent market didn't meet his expectations, and the Twins had to pivot from their plans to sign a free-agent starting pitcher. Other MLB Contributors: Cole Sands, Josh Winder The Twins took Sands with their fifth-round pick, and Winder was selected in the seventh round. Both players were starting pitchers throughout their minor-league careers but have shifted to a long-relief at the big-league level. Sands has posted a 2.96 ERA with a 1.40 WHIP in 11 relief appearances over the last two seasons. Winder made 15 appearances (11 starts) for the Twins in 2022, so he has less experience in a relief role. He dealt with a shoulder injury during spring training, and the team hopes a bullpen role will help him to stay healthy and improve his performance. Other Notable Picks: Michael Helman, Kody Funderburk, DaShawn Keirsey, Chris Williams Helman was taken in the 11th round and reached Triple-A last season. He's posted a .763 OPS with the Saints while playing multiple infield and outfield positions. Last season, he accumulated 20 home runs and 40 stolen bases between Double- and Triple-A. His best chance at a role with the Twins is being a super utility player, but he is currently on the IL with a dislocated left shoulder. Minnesota took Funderburk in the 15th round, and he's developed into an intriguing left-handed reliever. He has a chance to be the next Caleb Thielbar, especially if he can continue to post a strikeout rate above 13 K/9. He's given up too many hits in the upper minors, but he has been able to avoid home runs. The Twins will likely need bullpen replacements later in the season, and Funderburk is a prime candidate to add relief depth. Keirsey, a fourth-round pick, has played the last two seasons at Double-A. In 2022, he hit .271/.329/.395 (.724) with 36 extra-base hits and 42 steals in 121 games. He has ten extra-base hits in his first 31 games in 2023 while going 16-for-19 in stolen base attempts. His defense is strong in center field, so he could fill a backup outfielder role at the big-league level. Also in the Organization Regi Grace: He shifted to a relief role last season and is currently pitching for Cedar Rapids. His K/9 rate has been higher than 11.0 over the last two seasons. Charles Mack: Mack is in his second season with Cedar Rapids, being used as one of the team's primary catchers. Last season, he had 15 extra-base hits in 57 games. Willie Joe Garry: Over the last two seasons, the organization has used him at all three outfield positions, with most of his defensive innings coming in center field. He has a career .625 OPS across five professional seasons. Andrew Cabezas: After the pandemic, Cabezas shifted to a relief role. In 2022, he posted a 3.31 ERA with a 1.04 WHIP at High- and Double-A. Austin Schulfer: Last year, he pitched in relief for the organization's two highest affiliates, striking out nearly ten batters per nine with a 1.04 WHIP. He's in the Saints bullpen this year and has a sub-3.00 ERA to begin the year. Zach Neff: He is currently on the 60-day IL and hasn't pitched in the organization since 2021. Denny Bentley: In 2022, he posted a 3.56 ERA with 1.37 WHIP and 11.8 K/8. The Twins sent Bentley to the AFL last season to build off a strong 2022 campaign. He has yet to pitch in 2023. OTHER POSTS IN THE SERIES -2017 Draft Retrospective -2016 Draft Retrospective What are your impressions of the 2018 draft class? Who will have the most significant impact on the Twins? Leave a COMMENT and start the discussion.

What does it take for a starting pitching prospect to torpedo off of global Top 100 prospect lists aside from injury? Jordan Balazovic showed us in 2022, when he spent his entire season in Triple-A St. Paul allowing 2.55 HR/9 innings, and finishing with a 7.39 ERA in just over 70 innings. It was quite the uphill battle to regain the lost prospect status, and that was before he suffered a broken jaw during an off-field altercation at the beginning of spring training, resulting in him being the first player sent out of Major League camp. Fortunately, since returning to the mound, Balazovic has shown that he has the talent to wipe away the past. The Twins appear to have changed their view on their 2016 fifth-round pick. He began the season as a traditional reliever and has since moved back to making scheduled starts for the Saints. The Twins remain consistent in saying that they look at Balazovic as more of a potential bullpen piece for the MLB roster this season despite his starter’s workload thus far. If that’s the case, Balazovic is nearing the point where he’s more than deserving of a look. It’s been a small sample thus far in 2023 for Balazovic, but it’s hard not to be impressed. In 18 2/3 innings, the 6’5 right-hander has posted a 33.8% K rate and a 2.89 ERA with matching peripherals. Most notably, he’s allowed just one homer after struggling with the long ball in 2022. His walks have been uncharacteristically high at 14.3%, but it’s the only real blemish on his otherwise dominant line to begin 2023. Balazovic is currently built up to around 70 pitches per outing and has been able to maintain his mid-to-high-90s velocity along the way. He has secondaries to face off against hitters on both sides of the plate between his slider and splitter, though it's worth noting that during his last outing hitters did a decidedly better job of staying on him in his fourth inning. It's possible he's just destined for a bullpen role at this point rather than starting. The Twins have been churning multiple bullpen spots to begin the season, and while the bullpen performance has been acceptable as a whole, they’ve had some relievers struggle mightily. Unfortunately, Jorge Alcala appears to be a husk of his pre-elbow injury self, as his velocity remains down 2+ mph, and he continues to allow a barrage of homers. Cole Sands had an opportunity to stake his claim to a bullpen role on Saturday and subsequently allowed five walks in mop-up duty. Simeon Woods Richardson and Brent Headrick likely need to maintain their Triple-A starting jobs at this point due to the injuries to the MLB rotation. Balazovic conveniently is on the 40-man roster already as well. There are a few ways the Twins could use Balazovic. He’s built up to fill a true bulk reliever role, but that spot has been rarely utilized so far this season and regardless of how well he pitches, it would remain a revolving door with whatever pitcher filling it being optioned immediately after each appearance. They also appear to be dead set on the struggling Jorge Alcala being a multi-inning reliever, and they’ve declined to send him right back to St. Paul following his outings so far. If they want to give him a chance to cement himself onto the big league roster, they could simply send Alcala down to see if he can right the ship while giving Balazovic a chance to snag that job. He wouldn’t be so stretched to fill multiple innings and can have a real opportunity to work his way up the bullpen hierarchy. Whatever the Twins decide for his role, Balazovic is at the doorstep of his Major League debut. His main competition if Sands or Alcala are optioned back to St. Paul is likely Ronny Henriquez fresh off a rehab assignment and Josh Winder who has been an absolute disaster since being moved to the bullpen. Having just thrown over 70 pitches Sunday, it may be a few days until Balazovic is available to throw again. When that day comes, should he get the call?

Playing against the Miami Marlins for their second road series of the year, Rocco Baldelli’s Twins put up double-digit runs for the first time. Joey Gallo, Trevor Larnach, Max Kepler, and Ryan Jeffers all went deep for Minnesota, and the 11 runs made it a laugher against Skip Schumaker’s club. Making his first start of the season, Tyler Mahle looked great as he tossed five innings of one-run ball. Punching out seven and walking just one, his velocity was mid-90’s and the stuff was reminiscent of a guy the front office flipped Spencer Steer and Christian Encarnacion-Strand for. As the game was in hand, Cole Sands got his first action of the year in a long relief role, and his usage brings about the question as to where Minnesota goes with that bullpen spot. Sands is a former starter, and his 28 pitches certainly weren’t taxing even while working around five hits in two innings. However, the bottom of the Minnesota bullpen has always been somewhat of a shuttle spot for this regime, and that should be expected to continue in 2023. Here are five candidates that should be expected to factor in: Randy Dobnak Now healthy for the first time in roughly a year, Dobnak is back with the Saints and looking to return to the major-league level. He no longer has a 40-man roster spot after being DFA’d last September, but the Twins have plenty of money sunk into his development. Preferring to start, and having done so in his first outing of 2023 for St. Paul, Dobnak could be used in a long relief role for Minnesota. He’s a bit down the pecking order when it comes to starting arms, and being used as a multi-inning guy makes a good deal of sense. Josh Winder Winder has struggled to stay healthy over the course of his career, and that’s why the Twins have transitioned him to a relief role. Looking to put less of a tax on his arm, Winder could play up well in shorter stints. His stuff looked good for Minnesota last year across 67 innings and the 6.3 K/9 could see a boost as a reliever. I don’t think anyone would expect Winder to break out as a late-inning guy, but he certainly could factor in as a strong middle reliever. Jose De Leon Once dangled as a trade piece by the Los Angeles Dodgers in exchange for Brian Dozier, De Leon wound up in Minnesota this year anyways. He’s no longer the shiny prospect and has had injury concerns of his own, but he could pitch his way into the Twins plans. As a reliever his strikeout numbers have jumped, and he knows how to get big leaguers out. De Leon didn’t see a ton of run with the Reds, and he has just 48 Major League innings under his belt, but an opportunity with Minnesota could present itself. Dereck Rodriguez We have seen Ivan Rodriguez’s son pitch in the Twins system over the years, and he finally made his Twins debut for Minnesota last year. Rodriguez has never recaptured the rookie magic from his debut with the San Francisco Giants, but maybe he can fine tune things in shorter outings. With a starter background, he certainly has the ability to push for longer outings. Rodriguez has been around the game for a long time, and he certainly wouldn’t be caught off guard by the moment. Brent Headrick Yet to make his Major League debut, Headrick was added to the Twins 40-man roster this offseason. He worked mostly as a starter between Cedar Rapids and Wichita last year, and the home run uptick was misleading at Double-A considering five came in his first outing. Working as a reliever for the Saints, Headrick definitely has the ability to eat innings. He is a lefty with big strikeout stuff, and that could play up even more out of the bullpen. Right now it’s only Jovani Moran and Caleb Thielbar as southpaws in the Twins pen, and Danny Coulombe went to Baltimore. Headrick has a clear path to the big leagues if he can force the club’s hand, and clearly the organization thinks highly of him in protecting his Rule 5 status over the winter. Who else would you like to see factor into the Twins bullpen shuttle this season?

For several years, Josh Winder has repeatedly dealt with the vague “shoulder impingement” diagnosis. Once considered an up-and-coming starting pitcher after posting a 1.98 ERA across 54 Double-A innings in 2021, the injuries have finally forced the Twins to forego stretching him out into a starter this season. Aside from injuries, Winder had several other red flags that clouded his future as a starting pitcher. He looked the part of a mid-rotation arm when his fastball velocity was there, but it was often inconsistent. The pitch allowed a .713 slugging % in his debut 2022 season. His slider and changeup each garnered 30+% whiff rates, but his overall 16.4% strikeout rate ranked in the 10th percentile league-wide. Having a pitch get punished so severely and not being able to punch hitters out was a difficult tightrope to walk. Could we see improvements across the board out of the bullpen? The first hope, of course, is that a 100+ inning starter’s workload allows Winder to be available for the entirety of a season for the first time in years. There’s also hope for a dramatic improvement in performance as well. The Twins may have plans for Winder to change the shape of his fastball which could be behind his struggles with the pitch. Regardless of any tweaks, his 94 mph average in 2022 as a starter paints a rosy picture of what kind of velocity the pitch could pick up. We’d seen 95s and 96s on occasion from Winder when healthy, and the hope is that we could see him sit in the mid to high 90s if he’s a one-inning reliever, creating more margin for error on the pitch. The Twins have also shown they’re not shy regarding having relievers throw their best pitch most of the time. From Matt Wisler to the current success of Griffin Jax, there’s no reason to believe that Winder won’t be throwing a ton of sliders considering it’s arguably his best pitch. Allowing a .186 batting average against and .320 slugging %, it’s possible we see him bully right-handed hitters with his breaking ball and use a mid to high 90s fastball as a secondary as we’ve seen with Griffin Jax. Unlike Jax when he moved to relief in 2022, Winder already has a ready-to-use changeup, making him a formidable matchup regardless of the handedness of the hitter. The pitch received a 50 future grade on Fangraph’s scouting scale and while it wasn’t quite as dominant as the slider in 2022, the pitch was more than adequate at getting hitters out and generating whiffs. It would be a stretch to call Josh Winder becoming a valuable reliever a smashing success, but it’s a route many starting pitching prospects take among all baseball teams. Despite his peak 2021 minor league season suggesting a future as a starter, things can change quickly in a pitcher’s career, and Winder’s red flags and injuries appear to have finally proven to be too much for the Twins. With him already manning a 40-man roster spot, a move to the bullpen not only offers hope of keeping Winder on the field but also fast-tracks him to possibly contributing to the MLB team should he hit the ground running in his new role. At 26 years old, it was time to try something new given the last few lost seasons Josh Winder has endured. He’s still a talented pitcher, but it may be time for the Twins to get value from him at the Major League level any way they can. The bullpen may be the most straightforward option. Are the Twins making the right choice not stretching Winder out into a starter? Should he stay in the bullpen moving forward? Let us know below.

The Twins have played with using a long reliever in the bullpen at times in the last few years and found that the role is inconsistent and sometimes not worth the trouble. In 2021, Randy Dobnak made the team as a long reliever as the team’s assumed sixth starter. The downside became evident almost immediately. When starters exited in a close game, it made more sense to go to a high-leverage reliever to keep the game intact. The Twins almost never found themselves having a sizable lead or deficit when the starter exited. Dobnak would go upwards of a week without throwing a single pitch, and he looked like that was very much the case when he did finally get some action. It can be argued that we learned that a long reliever role can’t be filled by a legitimate starting pitching option, at least not if you want them to develop or be ready to fill in if a member of the rotation goes down. This leaves the role to such a specific type of player that it becomes kind of hard to believe the Twins would actually choose to dedicate a roster spot to such a role. That being said, Rocco Baldelli continues to hint that he would prefer to go this route, so it’s worthwhile to explore some options on who could fill such a role. Cole Sands Sands is already walking the starter/reliever tightrope. The Twins were clear they weren’t planning on anyone making a formal switch from starting to relieving this spring, but Sands was listed as the closest arm to doing so. Sands already holds a 40-man roster spot and has options remaining, making him a prime candidate to serve as a long man on Opening Day. He also made spot appearances in this role in 2022 on occasion. Sands is far from the next man up in the rotation, and for this reason, may serve this role better than someone like Bailey Ober who needs to be ready to fill a traditional starter’s role on a moment’s notice. Sands could use the opportunity to acclimate himself to a bullpen job, which seems like an eventual certainty for his career. He should still be able to provide 3+ innings of work in a pinch as well, which makes him a decent candidate. Randy Dobnak While a long shot, it could once again be Dobnak to fill a long relief role. At this point, he’s buried in the rotational depth chart. He finally appears to be healthy, and while his unbelievable numbers in his debut are unlikely to be repeated, Dobnak could be serviceable and durable, making him a solid fit. The issue of course is Dobnak’s lack of a 40-man spot after being outrighted off the 40-man roster this winter. The Twins can easily make space if they feel he’s the best man for the job. Though the money they committed to Dobnak is inconsequential, they do owe him a few million in the next few years. If he’s in a good place health-wise, the Twins could very well decide to get their money’s worth and see if Dobnak can make a resurgence in a different role. He’s been used more or less as a starter so far this spring, meaning he should be physically capable of filling bulk innings if his previously ailing finger is right. José De León The deepest of sleepers, De León is a former top prospect that was discussed as part of a return for Brian Dozier back when he was in the Dodgers system. Injuries have derailed a once-promising career, but he’s still fighting for a roster spot at 30 years old. De León came out on Sunday and showed that he still had plenty left in the tank, allowing two hits and one run in three spring innings and striking out six. De León may not have a 40-man spot or options, but the right-hander is in a perfect situation with the Twins able to open a spot on the 40-man roster with ease. Rather than putting one of their young arms in an inconsistent role, the Twins could opt for adding a veteran to fill this job while being prepared to cut bait if it goes poorly. Keep an eye on De León’s performance in the World Baseball Classic in the coming weeks as well, as he’ll be departing to pitch for Puerto Rico this week. There are other candidates that could take a long relief role and do reasonably well, but it’s likely the Twins avoid using young prospects such as Josh Winder or Simeon Woods Richardson because of the inconsistency that comes along with the job. Instead expect the Twins to look towards former starters turned relievers or more of the veteran expendable types to fill the role, if the Twins choose to go this route at all. Are there any candidates you’d like to see take the long reliever role? Should the Twins bother using a long reliever at all? Let us know below!

Gone are the days of Terry Mulholland. At least in Minnesota, you will rarely see a strange man sitting at the end of the bullpen bench who will, five times a month, run in to pitch four or five innings of low-leverage relief, only to retreat into the shadows until the next week, when his arm is needed again. The Twins tried to employ such a pitcher in 2021 when Randy Dobnak broke camp with the club as a long reliever. However, the team struggled to find him regular work, which had two adverse effects—it used a bullpen spot, and Dobnak (who was very much in their plans fresh off his five-year extension) could not continue to develop with the erratic schedule. That is not to say that the team doesn’t send guys out to eat innings occasionally; it simply works differently in the modern game. Instead of retreating to the end of the bench, they typically ride the green line back to St. Paul in favor of a fresh arm. The bullpen seems set in most people’s minds, with some hierarchy featuring Jhoan Durán, Jorge López, Griffin Jax, Caleb Thielbar, Emilio Pagán, Jorge Alcala, Jovani Moran, and Trevor Megill—each of whom has seen a good deal of Major League work. However, all are considered short relievers to one degree or another. This concentration of short relievers became a point of consternation in 2022, as the bullpen was stretched to cover four to six innings most nights. The team tried not to throw players on back-to-back games either, and you don’t need to be a math major to understand why that’s untenable with an eight-man bullpen. Twins Manager Rocco Baldelli doesn’t want to face that again this year, and a long reliever is a big part of that. “I personally think our best bullpen has, and always has, one option that can give you 50-75 pitches out of the bullpen. I’d like to carry someone like that at all times.”, Rocco said Friday to Twins Daily’s John Bonnes and the other Twins beat writers. “Is that going to be the case? No, we probably won’t be able to do that in all 162. But I think having someone like in the vast majority of our games will be very helpful. I also think we have those guys.” Given that, we may see the likes of Cole Sands, Josh Winder, Jordan Balazovic, Ronny Henriquez, or Brent Headrick called up to do something similar. Sands, Winder, Henriquez, and Headrick may be prime candidates, as they seem most likely to be relievers eventually (though Henriquez is also dealing with a sore elbow.). Calling a player up like this is more the exception than the rule when it comes to divvying up innings, though. Although the Twins could roster someone like Dobnak or Sands to be a-low leverage option, it’s debatable whether that will happen practically. I’m interested in speculating on how the Twins might get bulk work from this group—even if that doesn’t mean employing a true fulltime long reliever. I dug through 2022 usage patterns for Twins relievers with more than 15 innings and five relief appearances.Four types of usage profiles emerged in doing this. Short Relief The first is true short relief. Players like Joe Smith, Thielbar, López, and Michael Fulmer rarely threw more than an inning, and none had an appearance of two or more innings. They were also the most likely to be used on back-to-back days, with each over 20% of their appearances on zero days’ rest. Long Relief On the other side of the spectrum were pitchers predominantly used in long relief. There were two of those guys—Sands and Aaron Sanchez. Sanchez threw five relief outings, pitching 5, 3.1, 3, 3, and 1.2 innings. Had he been on the roster all season, he would have been a true long reliever, but he only filled this role in September after rosters were expanded. However, the Twins signed him as a minor league free agent this winter, so he is another option to fill this role at least partially. Multi-Inning Relief Then we get to the guys who were used somewhere in the middle, which is probably the modern version of a long reliever. Some of these guys were green line regulars, like Moran and Jharel Cotton. They threw more than one inning between 25% and 50% of the time, often when ahead by more than four runs or trailing. Although Moran and Cotton were sent down after multi-inning appearances several times, Trevor Megill remained on the roster after his initial call-up in 2022, despite having options remaining and throwing more than an inning 30% of the time. Megill’s usage was a bit all over the place in terms of leverage, and he may present the biggest question mark regarding his role for the 2023 bullpen, assuming he breaks camp with the team. Role Changers Finally, we have a group of pitchers that fluctuated between groups. The most pleasant surprises last year were Durán and Jax. Both players began the season as freshly-converted starters pitching multiple innings in the middle innings, but they transformed into predominantly one-inning guys. Both threw more than an inning about a quarter of the time, but most of those appearances came at the beginning of the year. For example, Jax recorded more than three outs just thrice in the last 100 games of the season. In the opposite direction, Emilio Pagán and Tyler Duffey began the season as single-inning options. They were converted into Cotton-esque innings-eaters by the end of the season due to performance reasons. Pagán, in particular, was an interesting case, as he took on more innings but was also relied on to throw in back-to-back games quite often. If there is one positive trait most can agree on, it’s that Pagán possesses a rubber arm. So What Will We See? At the beginning of the season, at least, the betting money would have to be on Megill, Moran, and Pagán being run out for multi-inning appearances. Suppose Pagán continues his improvements from late in the year (ironically in his new, low-leverage role). In that case, he may be in line for a hybrid role, lower on the bullpen hierarchy, but still trusted in some close games, depending on the rest status of other arms. Many fans are clamoring for Moran to be used as a second lefty rather than a long reliever, and if he develops control, he may be more suited for that role. Similarly, if Megill stops leaving balls middle-middle, he can ride his 100 MPH fastball a long way. Bulk innings may be given to whichever arm is freshest from that group, and if one emerges as a primary or secondary setup man, they may actually lead the bullpen in innings, taking the Griffin Jax path. There may be a rotating cast of waiver claims, semi-prospects, and minor league veterans at the end of the pen, soaking up innings before returning to St. Paul, or being jettisoned into the sun, never to be seen or heard from again. However, between Pagán, Moran, and Megill, the Twins may have a group who can fill multiple innings at a time while also seeing a moderate amount of medium-to-high-leverage innings.

Entering last season, Jhoan Duran had been a starting pitcher for his entire career. A lengthy injury history made the Twins reconsider his long-term role with the club. He was shifted to the bullpen and became one of the team's most valuable assets. Only some players can be as successful in transitioning to the bullpen, but there are multiple players the Twins may consider shifting to a bullpen role during the upcoming season. Josh Winder joined the Twins organization as a seventh-round pick in the 2018 MLB Draft from Virginia Military Institute. He made nine starts (38 1/3 innings) in rookie ball after signing and posted a 3.72 ERA with a 1.11 WHIP and 42 strikeouts. During 2019, he spent the year at Low-A and lowered his ERA to 2.65 with a 118-to-30 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 125 2/3 innings. Winder led the Midwest League in ERA and WHIP during the 2019 season. He was putting himself on the prospect map, but then the pandemic took away a season. Winder added strength during the shutdown and saw his velocity jump coming into 2021. The Twins had Winder skip High-A coming out of the pandemic, which meant he split time between Double-A and Triple-A. Due to injury, his season started in May, but he dominated for Wichita. In 10 games, he had a 1.98 ERA and a 0.93 WHIP with 10.7 K/9. The Twins promoted him to Triple-A, but shoulder fatigue ended his season after four starts at that level. It was a disappointing end to what could have been a breakout season. Season in Review 2022 Last spring, Winder was in the running to win a spot in the starting rotation before the team signed Chris Archer at the end of March. He still made the Opening Day roster to help add depth out of the bullpen. His first five appearances were strong as he limited the opposition to four earned runs in 22 1/3 innings. However, he struggled in his subsequent two appearances and ended up on the Injured List with a right shoulder impingement. He worked his way back to the big-league level, but his shoulder continued to bother him throughout the season. He went on the Triple-A Injury List in July with right shoulder impingement syndrome and didn't throw a bullpen until the middle of August. He returned to the big leagues in September, but the Twins had already fallen out of the division race. Overall, he made 15 appearances with the Twins, and four were out of the bullpen. He posted a 4.70 ERA with a 1.30 WHIP and a 47-to-18 strikeout-to-walk ratio. Projections for 2023 Winder is coming off a somewhat eventful off-season. His name popped up in trade rumors because he was the initial trade piece requested by the Royals for Michael A. Taylor. Minnesota balked at that request, and Kansas City lowered its asking price to two relievers, Evan Sisk and Steven Cruz. Both pitchers are considered relievers, and this might point to the Twins believing Winder can still be an asset as a starting pitcher. Winder also dealt with shoulder issues as he started ramping up for the season, which means he's a little behind entering camp. Early in his career, Winder's fastball sat in the low 90s, but he averaged 94 mph last season and can hit in the upper-90s. His slider velocity sits in the mid-80s, and he throws this pitch a third of the time. His changeup and curve have helped him to keep big-league batters off-balanced, and his increase in velocity makes those pitches more of a weapon. He pounds the strike zone and limits walks, which can be ideal for a starting pitcher. Summary For 2023, the Twins need to find a way to keep Winder healthy no matter what role he fulfills for the organization. The Twins have worked to alter his mechanics, but his shoulder has been problematic for multiple seasons. During instructional league play in 2020, his velocity was even higher than what he has showcased in big-league action. These totals were in smaller sample sizes, which might indicate the bullpen being his long-term role. His college experience means he will be 26 years old for the entire 2023 season. Winder will start the year on track to be a starter, but his shoulder concerns mean the team should shift him to the bullpen in 2023. Can Winder's shoulder hold up to the rigors of being a starter? Leave a COMMENT and start the discussion. OTHER POSTS IN THE SERIES -Ronny Henriquez

For once, the Twins have some depth to their pitching staff with a mix of holdovers and younger arms in both the rotation and the bullpen. After a 2022 in which they turned Jhoan Duran and Griffin Jax from starters to impact relievers, many have become interested in what struggling starting pitching prospect could be the next to follow that path. There are plenty of candidates to be fair. For now however, it doesn’t sound as though we’ll see those plans play out immediately. Such a small piece of news but so much to draw from it. Assuming health, Bailey Ober appears to be headed for Triple-A to begin 2023 due to the MLB rotation depth. For once, however, the Triple-A rotation will be tons of fun with names such as Louie Varland, Simeon Woods Richardson , and Jordan Balazovic behind him. It’s going to be a treat to attend CHS Field this summer to see some legitimate young arms throwing every day. With only limited spots in the Saints rotation, the Twins immediate plans to keep everyone starting is interesting. Not being too quick to transition starters into the bullpen is good practice. Especially considering the health questions in the Twins rotation, it’s good to make sure there are as many arms as possible to step in if things go south. For now, it appears the last spot in St. Paul is a three-way battle with names such as Ronny Henriquez, Cole Sands, and Josh Winder. With a few injuries this spring, those three options for the #5 spot in St. Paul could all find themselves starting games consistently. It may quickly become an issue that works itself out. It’s also just much easier to transition a pitcher from a starter to a reliever in a hurry than it is vice versa If the Twins health holds through the spring and they reconsider a few of their young arms, they could switch them over in no time as they did with Sands and Henriquez down the stretch in 2022. It may not have them as ready to relieve as they would be had they been preparing from Day 1, but some guys are able to flip the switch very quickly. Not committing young arms to those spots also opens up a few more possibilities. The Twins may not have as much Opening Day bullpen depth with all of these young arms remaining starters, but they can go and get external depth to build up even more. As of February 15, players such as Royce Lewis and Chris Paddack can all be put on the 60-Day IL, opening 40-man spots. It’ll be interesting to see how the Twins choose to fill these spots, but it’s probably safe to bet on one addition to the bullpen at the very least. The reliever market has been nearly bare for some time now, but a few fits still exist. They’ve already been linked to Chaska native Brad Hand, who’s far from the bullpen ace he once was but has continued to limit hard contact. Several other arms remain that they could take fliers on such as Will Smith or Trevor Rosenthal. They’re also due for their yearly waiver claim that makes the Opening Day roster. If they have any moves left to make, it’s easy to see at least one of them being a reliever because of the position-player logjam, and the Twins have at least two 40-man spots to fill if they feel inclined to make an addition. It also may be too early to rule out a trade. It’s been reported that the Twins are likely to hold onto Max Kepler, but this could easily be posturing on the Twins part. The left-handed hitting outfield depth is to a point where it can be argued that it doesn’t make sense. They aren’t trading recently-signed Joey Gallo, and Trevor Larnach’s value is likely at a low point despite a hope that he can still become an impact hitter to pair with the plus defense that graded out in 2022. This still leaves Kepler as the likeliest player shipped out if a trade is made. As a "two-ish" win player who gets most of his value from defense at this point, he’s certainly a candidate to be sent out in a trade involving a reliever. The Twins are left with a non-obvious answer for the next man up if one of the current MLB bullpen arms misses time. The Triple-A bullpen likely won’t have a young, obvious option to get the call if needed early in the season, although any acquisitions would likely push Jovani Moran into that spot once again (to this writer’s exhaustion). It’s likely that as the year goes on, we start to see some of these pitchers transition into the bullpen depending on the Twins MLB roster needs and how the young arms perform in the rotation. Sands is noted as the closest one to making this switch after struggling all-around last season. Henriquez got hit far too hard as a Triple-A starter in 2022. Winder’s shoulder appears to be a chronic issue at this point. If any of these issues persist, look for the Twins to pivot quickly off of their preseason plans to keep these arms in the rotation. By season’s end, we’ll likely be seeing a few of them making appearances out of the bullpen.

Rocco Baldelli has to be feeling good about having some starting pitchers put down in ink. Derek Falvey and Thad Levine haven’t stocked the Minnesota rotation with a high-level of talent in recent years, largely opting for upside plays. Now the Twins have at least a few arms that should be seen as high-level talent, but to what extent can any of the arms Minnesota employs be counted on? Sonny Gray It’s become a trend for starting pitchers to contribute less innings in recent seasons. Bullpens have emerged as a force late in games, and that’s going to limit the length for any starting arm. That said, Gray threw just 119 2/3 innings during his first year with the Twins, his lowest total of his career. He dealt with hamstring problems throughout the year, and while he did look like a staff ace at times, he was also unavailable in key moments. Tyler Mahle Acquired at the trade deadline from the Cincinnati Reds, Mahle has the makings of a true ace. His underlying metrics are eye-popping, and seeing him take a step forward is hardly a lofty expectation. He did deal with shoulder issues earlier in the summer however, and they then popped up again with Minnesota. The Twins got just 16 1/3 innings from their newly acquired talent, and he couldn’t make it through more than two innings in his final outing of the season. He’d been relatively healthy prior to 2022, but shoulder issues are never good for a pitcher. Kenta Maeda The Twins got a near-Cy Young winner in 2020 when Maeda posted a 2.70 ERA during the truncated season. He then threw just over 100 innings in 2021 and posted a 4.66 ERA. Having undergone Tommy John surgery and not making it back for 2022, it will have been nearly two years since Maeda last pitched in a big league game. Sure, there’s lots to like here and the track record on UCL surgeries isn’t what it once was, but Maeda will be 35 next season and the question marks couldn’t be larger. Joe Ryan You can certainly make the argument that there’s questions as to whether Ryan can handle good lineups as he struggled against stiff competition for most of 2022. What is much more certain is that the former Tampa Bay Rays prospect appears to be a pillar of health. He has remained a constant on the field since becoming a big leaguer, and while he’s probably more a number three starter than anything else, you can count on him to take the ball every fifth day. Bailey Ober Minnesota came up with some found money in developing Ober as a strong starter despite being a 12th round draft pick. He’s never pitched more than 92 1/3 innings during any pro season however, and has consistently been able to give much less. Injuries have been a consistent theme during the course of his career, and while effective, he’s largely been unavailable. Josh Winder Similar to Ober, Winder has only sparingly shown an ability to be available. He threw 125 2/3 innings during his first full professional season in 2019, and then failed to top 90 innings in either of the two seasons since. Winder is a good depth arm that can back up the end of a good rotation, but he’s certainly a question mark to remain healthy. Chris Paddack Acquired from the San Diego Padres in the Taylor Rogers trade, it was Paddack that drew Minnesota’s attention more than Emilio Pagan. Unfortunately he was available for a depressed price because of his injury concern. He’s now undergone a second Tommy John surgery, and won’t be back until mid-summer at the earliest. He looked sharp in his limited exposure for Minnesota, but counting on him in any real capacity is tough. Beyond those names there’s the group including Simeon Woods Richardson and Louie Varland. The Twins hope to have some of their pipeline produce in 2023 and beyond. Maybe Jordan Balazovic can find whatever he lost a season ago, and maybe there’s another guy or two that pop up to become relevant. The reality is, while Minnesota needs a top-tier arm to start a playoff game, they probably need one simply because of the uncertainty that surrounds who will be available, and for how long, in 2023.

The jury is still out on the starting rotation for the Twins, but it looks like Sonny Gray is the anchor, with Joe Ryan, Kenta Maeda, Bailey Ober, and Tyler Mahle penciled into spots with question marks. If the team experiences anything like they did last season, injuries always loom heavily with this club. Taking on one more starter would benefit the club immensely, especially with uncertainty about Kenta Maeda's health and how he might pitch following surgery. Even with Sonny Gray and Joe Ryan at the top of the rotation, Carlos Rodon would easily be the team's ace, something that the Twins have not had of late. Jose Berrios was the closest the Twins have come to an ace in a long time, and the fans and club need more at the top of their rotation if they want to compete. With the Giants in 2022, Rodón had a 2.88 ERA and led the majors with a 2.25 FIP. He finished second in the National League with 237 strikeouts and hit double-digits 11 times, a franchise record. Rodón made a career-high 31 starts, putting aside (at least for now) the concerns about his shoulder that limited his market a year ago. 2022 was his best season since entering the majors. At 29 years old, his market this offseason should include a lot of teams. Watching pitchers like Jacob de Grom, Justin Verlander, and C.C. Sabathia, Rodón has the potential to continue for several seasons, provided he can stay healthy. His contract last offseason was a two-year $44 million deal with the Giants, but it included an opt-out clause that he took advantage of after the season. Since 2015, he has outperformed his contract and is worth more than what he made. The team that signs him this offseason will give up a draft pick as San Francisco made him a qualifying offer, which he declined. However, that should not stop him from getting at least four years with an average annual value of over $25 million. He pitched for a long time with the White Sox and knows the AL Central Division. However, it can be assumed that Rodon will be courted by nearly every team that intends to contend for a playoff spot in 2023 and beyond. As the non-tender deadline creeps up, additional players will become available. Several pitchers could potentially fill the Twins need, but Rodón would be a good fit in the league, division, and clubhouse.