The Twins announced Thursday that they’ve outrighted five players off the 40-man roster. Infielder Jose Miranda, lefties Genesis Cabrera and Anthony Misiewicz, and righties Michael Tonkin and Thomas Hatch all went unclaimed on waivers and have elected free agency. Minnesota has seven vacancies on its 40-man roster.
Miranda, 27, is the most notable of the bunch. He’s a former second-round pick and top-100 prospect who posted a strong debut effort with the 2022 Twins, hitting .268/.325/.426 (116 wRC+) with 15 homers and 25 doubles in 483 turns at the plate. That included an awful three-week start to his MLB career that saw him optioned back to Triple-A St. Paul. Upon returning to the majors, he mashed at a .286/.346/.461 clip in just over 400 plate appearances.
A shoulder injury ruined Miranda’s 2023 season, however. He opened the season at third base but hit just .211/.263/.303 before undergoing surgery. Miranda bounced back in 2024, slashing .284/.322/.441 (114 wRC+) in 121 big league games. Repeated back injuries shortened his season, however, and his 2025 campaign was a disaster. Miranda went 6-for-36 in the majors and spent the rest of the season in Triple-A, where he hit just .195/.272/.296 in 371 plate appearances.
There’s little doubting that Miranda is a talented hitter at his core. The question is whether he can rebound from the shoulder and back injuries that have dragged down his once-promising career. Given that he’s always been a bat-first player with a questionable glove at both infield corners, it’s imperative that he gets back on track in the batter’s box. He’ll be a depth option and moderate upside play for teams seeking help at the corners. Miranda has pronounced reverse splits in his career, so he’s not a great option for a team looking for a righty bat to help its attack against left-handed opponents.
The rest of today’s outrights/free agent elections were widely expected. Each of Cabrera, Misiewicz, Tonkin and Hatch were depth arms who were thrust into larger roles following the deadline fire sale. They’ll all be candidates for minor league deals this winter.
Cabrera nearly tied a major league record this year, pitching for four teams in one season. He’s a hard-throwing, command-challenged lefty reliever who’s bounced all over the league since 2019 and has a career 4.24 ERA with an 11% walk rate.
Misiewicz has pitched for six big league clubs and has a 4.86 ERA in 120 1/3 big league innings — only 4 2/3 of which came with the Twins this year. He had some success with the Mariners as a rookie in 2020 but has struggled to an ERA north of 5.00 since.
Tonkin was originally a Twins draftee. This season marked his third stint with the team. He’s pitched in parts of eight MLB seasons and also spent a year in Japan. In 329 2/3 innings, the soon-to-be 36-year-old righty has a 4.23 ERA.
Hatch, like Tonkin, is a righty with below-average velocity who’s bounced around MLB for several seasons and also spent a year in Japan. He pitched 34 innings with an ERA near 6.00 for the Twins in 2025 and now has a 5.24 earned run average in 103 frames at the MLB level. He just turned 31 in late September.
At least Miranda will have the 12 consecutive hit record. Had high hopes for him. Too bad couldn’t come back from the shoulder issues
Man, that loss of Miranda kinda hurts. He looked like a real future piece of the team at one point. Really hope he catches on elsewhere and emphasizes the need for better player development in Minnesota.
I ha high hopes for Miranda and still hoped he could turn it around this Spring
3rd times the charm lol
They’ll be back. The Twins have playing time to burn and they never like to give up on a prospect. (I mean they should, but they never do.)
mickey Gaspar deshawn kiersey and pierson ohl didn’t get cut? seriously.
It’s a long offseason. This is probably enough cuts to make space for the guys they plan to add or are debating adding to the 40-man next month, plus maybe a Rule 5 pick. Ohl probably will stick around as optionable pen depth. I can easily see Keirsey and Gasper being cut as they make moves over the winter.