Headlines

  • Rangers Hire Skip Schumaker As Manager
  • Albert Pujols To Interview For Angels’ Managerial Vacancy, May Be “Leading Choice”
  • Bill Schmidt Will Not Return As Rockies’ GM
  • Brian Snitker Will Not Return As Braves’ Manager In 2026
  • Angels To Have New Manager In 2026
  • Rays Sale To Patrick Zalupski’s Group Officially Completed
  • Previous
  • Next
Register
Login
  • Hoops Rumors
  • Pro Football Rumors
  • Pro Hockey Rumors

MLB Trade Rumors

Remove Ads
  • Home
  • Teams
    • AL East
      • Baltimore Orioles
      • Boston Red Sox
      • New York Yankees
      • Tampa Bay Rays
      • Toronto Blue Jays
    • AL Central
      • Chicago White Sox
      • Cleveland Guardians
      • Detroit Tigers
      • Kansas City Royals
      • Minnesota Twins
    • AL West
      • Athletics
      • Houston Astros
      • Los Angeles Angels
      • Seattle Mariners
      • Texas Rangers
    • NL East
      • Atlanta Braves
      • Miami Marlins
      • New York Mets
      • Philadelphia Phillies
      • Washington Nationals
    • NL Central
      • Chicago Cubs
      • Cincinnati Reds
      • Milwaukee Brewers
      • Pittsburgh Pirates
      • St. Louis Cardinals
    • NL West
      • Arizona Diamondbacks
      • Colorado Rockies
      • Los Angeles Dodgers
      • San Diego Padres
      • San Francisco Giants
  • About
    • MLB Trade Rumors
    • Tim Dierkes
    • Writing team
    • Advertise
    • Archives
  • Contact
  • Tools
    • 2025-26 MLB Free Agent List
    • 2026-27 MLB Free Agent List
    • Contract Tracker
    • Transaction Tracker
    • Agency Database
  • NBA/NFL/NHL
    • Hoops Rumors
    • Pro Football Rumors
    • Pro Hockey Rumors
  • App
  • Chats
Go To Pro Hockey Rumors
Go To Hoops Rumors

Michael Tonkin To Open Season On Injured List

By Nick Deeds | March 16, 2025 at 1:05pm CDT

The Twins will be without right-hander Michael Tonkin to start the season, according to a report from Phil Miller of the Star Tribune. Miller adds that the club’s plan is for Tonkin to remain in extended Spring Training for “a few weeks” to build back up to pitching. Tonkin has been sidelined in recent days by a mild rotator cuff strain.

While the news isn’t especially surprising given the nature of rotator cuff issues, it’s nonetheless a disappointing update for both Tonkin and Twins fans. The 35-year-old righty was a 30th-round pick by Minnesota all the way back in 2008 and debuted with the club during the 2013 season. Across parts of five seasons in Minnesota, Tonkin posted a relatively pedestrian 4.43 ERA (95 ERA+) with a 4.57 FIP in 146 1/3 innings of work. That somewhat middling performance in his first stint with Minnesota led Tonkin to head overseas for the 2018 season. In 51 innings for Japan’s Nippon Ham Fighters that year, the right-hander posted a solid 3.71 ERA before returning stateside.

After his brief stay in NPB, Tonkin bounced between several minor league systems and independent teams before finally resurfacing in the majors with Atlanta back in 2023. He posted a solid enough 4.28 ERA (102 ERA+) with the Braves that year and was picked up by the Mets on a major league deal prior to the 2024 season. The righty’s stint in Queens did not go especially well, with ten runs (four earned) allowed in five appearances that led him to be designated for assignment in early April.

The righty bounced between the Mets, Twins, and Yankees via the waiver wire early in the 2024 season and eventually settled in the Bronx for the first half. He posted strong numbers with the club but was squeezed off the roster in late August, leading him back to Minnesota. In his final 51 games (70 1/3 innings of work) last year, Tonkin pitched to a strong 3.33 ERA and 3.27 FIP with a 25.2% strikeout rate. Those solid numbers were enough for the Twins to keep Tonkin in the fold for his age-35 season, but now he’ll be shelved to begin the season. An exact timetable for his return to action isn’t entirely clear, though given that Tonkin is expected to spend at least a few weeks in extended Spring Training it seems as though late April or early May could be a reasonable expectation for his return to the majors.

In other Twins bullpen news, right-hander Brock Stewart exited yesterday’s game due to a hamstring issue. Miller reports that Stewart suffered a “mild” hamstring strain but tested well in the aftermath of the injury and shouldn’t be shut down for very long, with the righty likely to resume throwing at some point this week. While Stewart’s 5.17 ERA in 16 games for the Twins last year was hardly exceptional, his 30% strikeout rate and 3.80 FIP were both intriguing enough to make him a valuable piece of the Twins’ bullpen mix headed into this year and today’s announcement regarding Tonkin figures to make him all the more important to the club’s relief depth come Opening Day. Stewart will likely be joined in the middle of the club’s bullpen by Jorge Alcala and Cole Sands as things currently stand, assuming he doesn’t suffer a setback prior to the start of the season.

Share Repost Send via email

Minnesota Twins Brock Stewart Michael Tonkin

White Sox Release Joey Gallo Ahead Of Move To Pitching
Main
Blue Jays Sign Justin Bruihl To Minors Deal
View Comments (8)
Post a Comment

8 Comments

  1. ForDoingNothing

    7 months ago

    Might as well add Royce Lewis to this article as well smh

    2
    Reply
  2. DylanMooreIsAThirdBaseman

    7 months ago

    Not another Tonkin incident. Where we going off to war now?

    6
    Reply
    • AHH-Rox

      7 months ago

      Tonkin leaving a gulf in the Twins bullpen.

      2
      Reply
    • swinging wood

      7 months ago

      False Flags Fly Forever

      3
      Reply
      • Hammerin' Hank

        7 months ago

        Best comment of the day, swinging wood

        2
        Reply
  3. Hammerin' Hank

    7 months ago

    Will this injury keep him from going out and Honky Tonkin?

    2
    Reply
  4. Old York

    7 months ago

    More bullpen fodder constantly flowing arms in and out.

    Reply
  5. Dumpster Divin Theo

    7 months ago

    Maybe he’d be off playing another sport. Frisbee, badminton , golf?

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Please login to leave a reply.

Log in Register

    Top Stories

    Rangers Hire Skip Schumaker As Manager

    Albert Pujols To Interview For Angels’ Managerial Vacancy, May Be “Leading Choice”

    Bill Schmidt Will Not Return As Rockies’ GM

    Brian Snitker Will Not Return As Braves’ Manager In 2026

    Angels To Have New Manager In 2026

    Rays Sale To Patrick Zalupski’s Group Officially Completed

    Guardians Promote Chase DeLauter For Wild Card Series

    Bruce Bochy Will Not Return As Rangers Manager Amid “Financial Uncertainty”

    Liam Hendriks Undergoes Ulnar Nerve Transposition Surgery

    Twins Fire Rocco Baldelli

    Giants Fire Bob Melvin

    Pirates Sign Manager Don Kelly To Extension

    Pete Alonso To Opt Out Of Mets Contract, Enter Free Agency

    Padres Place Ramón Laureano On Injured List Due To Finger Fracture

    Willson Contreras Will Consider Waiving No-Trade Clause But Prefers To Remain With Cardinals

    Cade Horton To Miss At Least One Playoff Series Due To Rib Fracture

    MLB To Take Over Mariners’ Broadcasts In 2026

    Nolan Arenado More Open To Waiving No-Trade Clause As Cardinals Plan To Rebuild

    Sonny Gray Will Consider Waiving No-Trade Clause This Offseason

    Nationals To Hire Paul Toboni As President Of Baseball Operations

    Recent

    Brett Phillips Retires

    MLBTR Chat Transcript

    AL East Notes: ALDS, Rodriguez, Weaver, Orioles

    Jackson Chourio Day-To-Day After “Inconclusive” MRI

    Nick Hundley “Strongly” In Giants’ Managerial Mix

    Coaching Notes: Royals, Pirates, Diamondbacks

    Mets’ Andy Green Declining To Be Considered For Managerial Vacancies

    Alex Anthopoulos Discusses Managerial Vacancy, Offseason Plans

    Harrison Bader To Undergo Imaging For Groin Injury

    Torii Hunter Expected To Be Considered In Angels’ Managerial Search

    MLBTR Newsletter - Hot stove highlights in your inbox, five days a week

    Latest Rumors & News

    Latest Rumors & News

    • Every MLB Trade In July
    Trade Rumors App for iOS and Android App Store Google Play

    MLBTR Features

    MLBTR Features

    • Remove Ads, Support Our Writers
    • Front Office Originals
    • Tim Dierkes' MLB Mailbag
    • Front Office Fantasy Baseball
    • MLBTR Podcast
    • 2025-26 MLB Free Agent List
    • 2026-27 MLB Free Agent List
    • Contract Tracker
    • Transaction Tracker
    • Extension Tracker
    • Agency Database
    • MLBTR On Twitter
    • MLBTR On Facebook
    • Team Facebook Pages
    • How To Set Up Notifications For Breaking News
    • Hoops Rumors
    • Pro Football Rumors
    • Pro Hockey Rumors

    Rumors By Team

    • Angels Rumors
    • Astros Rumors
    • Athletics Rumors
    • Blue Jays Rumors
    • Braves Rumors
    • Brewers Rumors
    • Cardinals Rumors
    • Cubs Rumors
    • Diamondbacks Rumors
    • Dodgers Rumors
    • Giants Rumors
    • Guardians Rumors
    • Mariners Rumors
    • Marlins Rumors
    • Mets Rumors
    • Nationals Rumors
    • Orioles Rumors
    • Padres Rumors
    • Phillies Rumors
    • Pirates Rumors
    • Rangers Rumors
    • Rays Rumors
    • Red Sox Rumors
    • Reds Rumors
    • Rockies Rumors
    • Royals Rumors
    • Tigers Rumors
    • Twins Rumors
    • White Sox Rumors
    • Yankees Rumors

    Navigation

    • Sitemap
    • Archives
    • RSS/Twitter Feeds By Team

    MLBTR INFO

    • Advertise
    • About
    • Commenting Policy
    • Privacy Policy

    Connect

    • Contact Us
    • Twitter
    • Facebook
    • RSS Feed

    MLB Trade Rumors is not affiliated with Major League Baseball, MLB or MLB.com

    Do not Sell or Share My Personal Information

    hide arrows scroll to top

    Register

    Desktop Version | Switch To Mobile Version