Twins Sign Taylor Rogers
The Twins announced they’ve brought back old friend Taylor Rogers on a one-year deal. It’s reportedly a $2MM contract. Rogers, who’s represented by Frontline Athlete Management, spent the 2016-21 seasons in Minnesota, spending the latter three as their closer and earning an All-Star nod in 2021.
A reunion with the 35-year-old Rogers makes sense for a Twins club that’s in dire need of steady arms in the bullpen. While the left-hander isn’t close to the peak form he showed late in his original run with Minnesota, he pitched to a solid 3.38 ERA with an above-average 24% strikeout rate in 50 2/3 innings between the Reds and Cubs in 2025. Rogers’ 10.4% walk rate was the second-highest of his lengthy career and more than double the 4.3% mark he posted over his best three seasons as a Twin (2019-21), but he was a useful middle relief arm in both Cincinnati and Chicago this past season.
Beyond the decline in command, Rogers has seen a fundamental decline in the strength of his repertoire. He averaged 95.7 mph on his sinker and 84 mph on his slider back in 2021. In 2025, those pitches were carried respective average velocities of 92.7 mph and 78.4 mph. Accordingly, Rogers has seen a notable drop in his swinging-strike rate and significant upticks in his opponents’ contact rate.
Rogers was traded from the Twins to the Padres just prior to Opening Day in 2022 — a deal that brought Chris Paddack and Emilio Pagan back to Minnesota. (Brent Rooker was also shipped to San Diego in that deal, but he was cut loose by both the Friars and Royals before breaking out with the A’s.) He went on to sign a three-year, $33MM deal with the Giants, who traded him to the Reds late last offseason.
The Giants seemed to quickly sour on using Rogers in high-leverage spots. He collected a dozen holds and a pair of saves while pitching decently in year one of his contract but was moved to a middle-relief capacity the following season. In terms of leverage index, Rogers has worked primarily in low-leverage spots over the past two seasons. On the whole, the results over the life of that three-year contract were sound (3.16 ERA), but Rogers’ rate stats have faded steadily.
Even a lesser version of Rogers than the one remembered and beloved by many Twins fans will be an improvement to a Minnesota bullpen that was gutted at last year’s trade deadline. The Twins traded five relievers — Jhoan Duran, Griffin Jax, Louis Varland, Danny Coulombe, Brock Stewart — as part of a fire sale that netted a combination of MLB-ready young players (e.g. Mick Abel, Taj Bradley, Alan Roden) and well-regarded prospects (e.g. Eduardo Tait, Kendry Rojas). That slate of trades decimated what had been one of the best bullpens in the sport; Twins relievers posted the fourth-worst ERA in the sport following last year’s deadline.
There’s virtually no certainty in the Twins’ bullpen at present. Rogers immediately becomes the most experienced member of the group and, for now anyway, could be an option for high-leverage spots or even save opportunities. He’ll join Justin Topa, Cole Sands and Kody Funderburk (who excelled down the stretch following last year’s fire sale) as the only current members of the bullpen with even one full year of major league service time.
The Twins have a deep collection of young starters, several of whom could end up in the ‘pen over the long run, but there’s clearly room to add another veteran arm here — if not multiple arms. Rogers’ modest $2MM guarantee bumps Minnesota’s payroll to just under $109MM, per RosterResource’s estimates.
That’s around $25MM lower than last year’s mark, so even with ownership scaling back payroll, the front office should still have sufficient resources to bring in another arm. Hard-throwing righty Seranthony Dominguez is among the relievers to whom the Twins have reportedly spoken, while other yet-unsigned relief options of note include Michael Kopech, Nick Martinez, Tommy Kahnle, Paul Sewald and Coulombe.
Aaron Gleeman and Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic first reported the agreement and salary.
Twins Designate Vidal Brujan For Assignment
The Twins have designated recently claimed infielder/outfielder Vidal Brujan for assignment, per a club announcement. His spot on the 40-man roster goes to infielder Tristan Gray, whose previously reported acquisition from the Red Sox is now official. Minnesota’s 40-man roster remains at capacity.
Minnesota claimed Brujan off waivers one week ago, designating catcher/infielder Mickey Gasper (who’s since been claimed by the Nationals) for assignment in a corresponding move. They’ll now presumably try to pass Brujan through waivers themselves in an effort to stash him in Triple-A St. Paul as a depth option. Brujan is out of minor league options and faced an uphill battle in making the roster, so the quick turnaround on this morning’s DFA isn’t all that surprising.
Now 28 years old, Brujan held a spot on Baseball America’s Top 100 prospect rankings for four years but has yet to put things together in the majors. He’s seen big league time in five straight seasons between the Rays, Marlins, Cubs, Braves and Orioles (one plate appearance) but turned in just a .199//.267/.276 batting line in 645 trips to the batter’s box. He used to rate as a plus runner but sat in just the 37th percentile of big leaguers with last year’s average sprint speed, per Statcast.
Despite the lack of major league production, Brujan has been a useful and versatile player in Triple-A. He’s taken just over 1000 turns at the plate at the top minor league level and logged a collective .273/.356/.450 line with a nice 10.6% walk rate and a 16.5% strikeout rate that’s considerably lower than average. The switch-hitting Brujan was originally signed by the Rays as a 16-year-old middle infielder, but he’s gained considerable experience across all three outfield spots in recent seasons and now has more than 1500 career innings on the grass.
Gray, who is displacing Brujan on the 40-man roster, has virtually no outfield experience of which to speak but has experience across all four infield spots. Critically, he also has a minor league option remaining, so he can provide similar versatility around the infield but more flexibility from a roster vantage point.
The Twins will have five days to trade Brujan before he has to be placed on waivers (though he can be placed on waivers at any point prior to that five-day deadline as well). Waivers are a 48-hour process, so we’ll have an outcome on Brujan’s DFA within the next week.
Twins To Acquire Tristan Gray
8:13am: Catching prospect Nate Baez is headed to Boston in exchange for Gray’s services, as reported by Jeff Passan of ESPN. Baez, 24, was a 12th-round selection by Minnesota in the 2022 draft and hit .278/.371/.423 in 96 games split between the High-A and Double-A levels last year.
7:41am: The Red Sox are trading infielder Tristan Gray to the Twins, according to a report from Chris Cotillo of MassLive. The return Boston will receive in exchange for Gray’s services is not yet clear. Minnesota will need to make a corresponding move to add Gray to the 40-man roster, assuming the return to Boston is not a player on the 40-man.
Gray, 30 in March, was a 13th-round pick by the Pirates back in 2017 who has received sporadic playing time at the big league level over the past three seasons. After short stints with the Rays, Marlins, and A’s that added up to just 36 total plate appearances across the 2023 and ’24 seasons, Gray got his longest big league opportunity with Tampa last year. In 86 trips to the plate across 30 games, Gray slashed .231/.282/.410 with a wRC+ of 89 while splitting time between all four infield spots. He was traded to the Red Sox at the outset of the offseason but is now on the move once again.
Interestingly, despite being a left-handed hitter Gray did his best work against fellow southpaws. Two of his three home runs came against same-handed pitching last year, and his career slash line against lefties is .360/.407/.680 in 27 trips to the plate as opposed to a much less impressive .163/.223/.279 line in 95 trips to the plate against right-handers. Of course, using left/right splits with a sample size that small can often be misleading, so it’s fair to wonder how much Gray’s reverse platoon splits would hold up if given a longer leash in the majors. It’s hard to believe that Gray would be able to keep up a career OPS north of 1.000 against lefties at the big league level, if exposed to major league pitching long-term.
Regardless of the unusual shape of his production, Gray is a career .242/.310/.472 hitter at the Triple-A level with experience all over the infield. While he hasn’t gotten much of an opportunity to show what he can do in the majors to this point, perhaps Minnesota will be the place where he gets that chance. The Twins have Luke Keaschall at second base, Brooks Lee at shortstop, and Royce Lewis at third base headed into the season. Gray isn’t going to bump any of those high-upside talents from their positions, but each comes with a significant injury history that could create opportunities in the majors throughout the season.
Headed into Spring Training, Gray figures to compete for a utility infield role on the Twins’ bench. There’s plenty of internal competition for that role already. Kody Clemens and Austin Martin are likely viewed as the favorites for that sort of role given their solid production last season, and players like Vidal Brujan, Eric Wagaman, and Ryan Kreidler could also find themselves in the mix for a bench job. It’s a deep enough group with enough big league experience that Gray figures to face an uphill battle making the team’s roster out of camp, but perhaps injuries elsewhere on the roster could allow him to find his way back to the majors sometime this year.
Rich Hill Not Planning To Play In 2026
Left-hander Rich Hill doesn’t want to use the word but it seems to be leaning towards retirement. Appearing on the Baseball Isn’t Boring podcast, Hill was asked by host Rob Bradford if he was retiring and said “I don’t have any plans on playing next year.” The situation is somewhat analogous to that of Joe Kelly, who announced on the same podcast last month that he didn’t want to use the word “retire” but wasn’t planning on playing anymore.
“I’m looking for open possibilities to stay in the game of baseball and be a contributory factor,” Hill continued. “I enjoy the work aspect of whatever it might be that’s next. I think that’s one thing that… why athletes get hired in other positions and other… outside of sports is because they are highly-driven people that want to succeed. And that’s something that I’m looking forward to.”
It’s not shocking that Hill is slowly wafting into the next stage of his career. Though he did pitch in the 2025 season, he was easily the oldest player in the league. He was 45 years old when he suited up for the Royals and will turn 46 in March. Though he has continued pitching to an age when most other players have called it quits long ago, he did so with some unconventional approaches. He waited until midseason to sign in 2024 in a deliberate attempt to be more fresh for a stretch run.
If this is indeed the end, it will wrap up one of the more unique arcs of a player in recent history. Hill was drafted by the Cubs way back in 2002 and made his major league debut in 2005. He didn’t find immediate success but had a really good season in 2007, posting a 3.92 earned run average over 32 starts.
But from there, he went into a really challenging period of his career. He struggled with results and health for many years, leading him to be bounced between the majors and minors and between various different organizations. From 2008 to 2014, he tossed a total of 153 innings split between the Cubs, Baltimore, Boston, Cleveland, the Angels and Yankees. He posted a 5.41 ERA over that stretch.
2015 would turn out to be an incredible comeback season. He started the year on a minor league deal with the Nationals. He opted out of that contract in June and signed with the Long Island Ducks of the independent Atlantic League. He made just two starts for that club but struck out 21 opponents in 11 innings. That was enough to get him back into affiliated baseball via a minor league deal with the Red Sox.
Boston called him up in September and he made four starts as the season was winding down. In those, he logged 29 innings with a 1.55 ERA. He had a mammoth 34% strikeout rate, a tiny 4.7% walk rate and a strong 48.4% ground ball rate. That was a tiny sample size but the Athletics made a bet on it, signing Hill to a one-year, $6MM deal for 2016. That wager paid off handsomely, with Hill giving the A’s 14 starts with a 2.25 ERA.
At that year’s deadline, he was traded to the Dodgers alongside Josh Reddick, with the A’s getting Frankie Montas, Grant Holmes, and Jharel Cotton in return. Hill gave the Dodgers six starts with an ERA of 1.83 and then three postseason starts with a 3.46 ERA.
The Dodgers were happy enough with that showing to bring Hill back via a three-year, $48MM contract. That was a pretty staggering deal for a 37-year-old who was not too far removed from being in indy ball but it worked out well. He logged 327 innings over those three seasons with a 3.30 ERA, plus 37 postseason innings with a 2.43 ERA.
After that deal ran its course, Hill went into his 40s and mercenary mode. He signed a series of one-year deal with the Twins, Rays, Red Sox and Pirates. In 2023, he seemed to wear down as the season went along, not surprising for a 43-year-old. His 4.76 ERA with Pittsburgh was still respectable but he collapsed after a deadline deal to the Padres, posting an 8.23 ERA after the swap.
As mentioned, he then tried to think outside the box to continue as an effective big league pitcher. He planned to intentionally sign at midseason in 2024 in order to spend more time with his family and also save his bullets for the second half and postseason. He stayed unsigned until inking a minor league deal with the Red Sox in August. He did get called up but only for four relief appearances before being released. In 2025, he signed a minor league deal with the Royals in May. He got called up in July but was designated for assignment after just two starts.
Given the unusual shape of his career and his willingness to buck conventions, it’s possible he’ll change his mind and find his way back to the mound. But if Hill doesn’t make it back to the majors, he will finish with 1,418 innings tossed over 388 games for 14 different clubs. In that time, he posted a 4.02 ERA but will likely be best remembered for the 2015-2021 run which saw him post a 3.15 ERA in his late 30s and early 40s. Baseball Reference pegs his career earnings over $75MM, most of that coming to Hill in his late-career surge. We at MLB Trade Rumors salute him on a fine career, which may or may not be done, and wish him the best on whatever is next.
Photo courtesy of Peter Aiken, Imagn Images
Twins Hire Ryan Pressly For Player Development Role
Retired right-hander Ryan Pressly has been hired by the Twins, reports Jon Heyman of The New York Post. According to Declan Goff of SKOR North, Pressly will be working in player development with both major and minor leaguers.
Pressly, 37, just announced his retirement as a player a couple of days ago. It seems he doesn’t plan to sit by the fire smoking a pipe and reading the paper. He has quickly launched the next stage of his life with this gig with the Twins.
Presumably, Pressly has a lot of wisdom to pass on to younger players after the twists and turns of his baseball journey. He just wrapped up a professional career that lasted almost two decades. He was drafted by the Red Sox with an 11th-round pick back in 2007. He was never really a top prospect and was left unprotected in the 2012 Rule 5 draft, which is how the Twins were able to get him from the Sox.
That proved to be the springboard for him to establish himself as a major leaguer for 13 seasons. The Twins traded him to the Astros in 2018 but that doesn’t seem to have created any sour feelings between him and the organization, based on the fact that he is now rejoining the Twins in a new capacity.
Now he’ll pivot to helping other players who are in the earlier stages of their journeys. This is the second time in a week that the Twins have brought back one of their recently-retired players for a new role. Michael A. Taylor was hired as an outfield instructor a week ago.
Photo courtesy of Brad Rempel, Imagn Images
Ryan Pressly Announces Retirement
Two-time All-Star reliever Ryan Pressly has decided to retire after 13 Major League seasons. In a statement to The Athletic’s Chandler Rome and Ken Rosenthal, Pressly said his decision is “bittersweet, but what a ride it’s been….The friendships — from bullpen brothers to vets who mentored me along the way — those bonds last a lifetime. I’ll miss the banter in the ‘pen, the inside jokes that kept us loose on those high-leverage nights. But I’m fired up for this next chapter with my family, and chasing whatever adventure comes next.”
Pressly retires with a 3.33 ERA, 25.2% strikeout rate, 48.5% grounder rate, and 7.2% walk rate over 691 1/3 career innings with the Twins, Astros, and Cubs. Since the start of the 2013 season, only six pitchers have appeared in more games than Pressly, who made 667 trips from the bullpen to the mound.
Never a big velocity pitcher, Pressly succeeded thanks to an excellent slider-curveball combination, and a ton of spin on both his curve and fastball. From 2017-25, Pressly ranked in no less than the 99th percentile of all pitchers in curveball spin, and no less than the 95th percentile in fastball spin rate. These fantastic spin rates helped Pressly miss a lot of bats, and turn a lot of hard contact into easy outs on the ground.
Originally an 11th-round pick for the Red Sox back in the 2007 draft, Pressly never pitched for Boston at the MLB level, as the Twins plucked him out of Boston’s farm system in the 2012 Rule 5 Draft. Pressly had never even pitched at the Triple-A level before making his big league debut with Minnesota in 2013, but he hit the ground running with a 3.87 ERA over 49 games and 76 2/3 frames, immediately establishing himself as a multi-inning bullpen workhorse.
Injuries and a couple of stints in the minors interrupted Pressly’s time with the Twins, but his solid work saw him receive more high-leverage opportunities. By the time Minnesota dealt Pressly to Houston at the 2018 trade deadline, the right-hander was acting as the Twins’ set-up man, and he continued that role in the Astros’ relief corps. Pressly was outstanding down the stretch for the Astros in 2018, and his excellent work as a set-up man in 2019 earned Pressly his first All-Star nod.
This led to another promotion to the closer’s job in 2020, kicking off a four-year stint that saw Pressly record 102 saves in 118 chances while recording a 2.99 ERA, 31.5% strikeout rate, and 6.2% walk rate. Despite this high-profile role on a playoff regular, Pressly’s success flew somewhat under the radar — perhaps because he never received many free agent headlines since the Astros kept (wisely) extending him.
Pressly inked a two-year, $17.5MM deal in advance of the 2019 season that became a three-year, $27.5MM deal after he reached enough appearances to trigger a vesting option for the third year. In April 2022, Pressly signed another extension that ended up paying him $42MM over a three-year span (2023-25) once he hit another vesting threshold. While it’s possible Pressly might’ve banked a bit more money if he’d tested the open market, he was very happy playing close to home (Pressly hails from Dallas and his wife is from Houston) and playing for a frequent contender.
The Astros’ regular trips to the postseason allowed Pressly the chance to shine on the biggest stages in baseball, and he delivered with a 2.78 ERA over 45 1/3 career playoff innings, including a streak of 22 2/3 innings without allowing an earned run. Pressly’s run in Houston was highlighted by the team’s World Series title in 2022, and he threw the final inning of the Astros’ combined no-hitter in Game 4, and he picked up the save in both Game 5 and the clinching Game 6.
Despite Pressly’s continued success at closer, the Astros chose to double down on their relief depth by acquiring Josh Hader during the 2023-24 offseason, which resulted in Pressly’s return to a set-up role. While he continued to pitch well, his $14MM price tag got a bit too hefty for an Astros team trying to limit its luxury tax bill, and Pressly agreed to waive his no-trade protection to approve a deal to the Cubs last winter. Unfortunately for Pressly, he struggled in what ended up being his final MLB season, and Chicago released the reliever in August.
It was a little surprising that Pressly didn’t catch on anywhere following the release, and both the Twins and Astros were reportedly considering reunions. Retirement was apparently an option for Pressly even over the summer, however, and after some time to weigh the decision, he has decided to walk away from the game at age 37.
We at MLB Trade Rumors congratulate Pressly on an excellent career, and we wish him the best in his post-playing endeavors.
Twins Sign Victor Caratini
The Twins announced the signing of catcher Victor Caratini to a two-year contract. It’s reportedly a $14MM deal for the ACES client.
Caratini, now 32, was a free agent a couple of years ago. He signed a two-year, $12MM deal with the Astros at that time. That pact ended up working out fairly well for Houston. The switch hitter got into 201 games over those two seasons and stepped to the plate 660 times. His 7% walk rate was on the low side but he hit 20 home runs and kept his strikeout rate down to a modest 17.9% clip. He had a combined .263 /.329/.406 line with the Astros, production which translated to a wRC+ of 108.
His work behind the plate has been more of a mixed bag. Outlets like FanGraphs, Statcast and Baseball Prospectus give him solid framing grades. FanGraphs and Statcast don’t look kindly on his work with the running game but both BP and Statcast are fond of his blocking skills.
The overall package was still worth 2.7 wins above replacement over the past two seasons, according to FanGraphs. At the beginning of the offseason, MLBTR predicted Caratini for a $14MM deal over two years. He has hit that mark exactly.
The Twins already have a pretty strong catcher in Ryan Jeffers but it’s possible to see how he and Caratini could co-exist on the same roster. Jeffers hits from the right side and has pretty noticeable platoon splits in his career. He has a .270/.371/.475 line and 138 wRC+ against southpaws but a .226/.299/.396 line and 94 wRC+ otherwise. The switch-hitting Caratini has generally been more balanced. He had a .208/.306/.434 line and 108 wRC+ against lefties last year and a .268/.327/.399 line and 104 wRC+ against righties.
Caratini has also dabbled at first base, with 463 2/3 innings at that spot in his career, including 97 last year. The Twins project to have Josh Bell at first base, another switch hitter. Bell has pretty neutral career splits but hit just .151/.250/.302 against lefties last year. A tiny .162 batting average on balls in play surely hurt him in the split but the Twins might want to at least have a contingency plan in place in case Bell’s struggles against southpaws continue.
Perhaps the plan is for Caratini to share time with Jeffers behind the plate, occasionally protecting him from tough righties, while also playing first on occasion. With Jeffers an impending free agent, Caratini could then take on a more prominent role in 2027.
It’s also possible that Jeffers ends up on the trade block. He will make $6.7MM in his final year before hitting the open market. Signing Caratini and then flipping Jeffers would be a relatively cash-neutral move for the Twins, which would bring back whatever Jeffers could get on the trade market.
The Twins also have Alex Jackson on the roster. He was acquired from the Orioles in November. He and the Twins avoided arbitration earlier this month by agreeing to a $1.35MM salary. Jhonny Pereda is also on the 40-man but he is still optionable and could be kept in Triple-A.
If the Twins plan to hang onto both Caratini and Jeffers, then Jackson could get squeezed from the roster, since he is out of options. If he were to be passed through waivers, he would likely stick around as non-roster depth. He has more than three years of service time but less than five. That means he would have the right to elect free agency but would have to forfeit his remaining salary commitments in exercising that right.
Time will tell about the domino effects. For now, the Twins have made a modest upgrade to their roster. Minnesota is looking to scale back payroll relative to 2025 but have some powder dry. They cut a lot of money from the budget last year by trading Carlos Correa and almost their entire bullpen. It’s been suggested they could look to start the 2026 season in the range of $115MM. RosterResource pegs them at $107MM, assuming the Caratini guarantee is evenly distributed.
The bullpen could still use a bit of help and maybe they still have some spending capacity for that. Trading Jeffers would give them a bit more breathing room, while also potentially bringing back something useful.
For the catching market more generally, it’s possible there’s a mini run happening here in the middle of January. The offseason started with J.T. Realmuto as the top available free agent, followed by Caratini and Danny Jansen. The Rangers non-tendered Jonah Heim in November and then signed Jansen in December but the market stayed on the quiet side for a while, perhaps due to the Phillies exploring the possibility of signing Bo Bichette. Going down that road likely would have prevented the Phils from having enough money to re-sign Realmuto.
In the past 24 hours, a lot has changed. The Dodgers reached a deal with Kyle Tucker. The Mets, who were hoping to sign Tucker, pivoted to Bichette via a short-term deal with big average annual values. The Phils, who offered Bichette a longer deal with less annually, then pivoted to reaching a new agreement with Realmuto.
That left Caratini as the clear top option remaining in free agency. According to Bob Nightengale of USA Today, the Phils viewed him as a backup plan if they didn’t get something done with Realmuto. It is perhaps not a coincidence then that the Twins have snatched up Caratini just a few hours after the reported of Realmuto going back to Philly.
The Astros had some interest in bringing Caratini back but figured he would get a better paycheck and a bigger role elsewhere, reports Chandler Rome of The Athletic. Just before this reported agreement with the Twins, Chris Cotillo of MassLive floated Caratini as a potential fit for the Red Sox. There are presumably other teams looking for catching upgrades as well.
With Realmuto and Caratini both coming off the board today, the market looks noticeably less exciting. Heim is one of the more notable free agents still available, alongside Luke Maile, Elias Díaz, Reese McGuire, Christian Vázquez, Mitch Garver and Gary Sánchez. Perhaps that will work to Minnesota’s advantage if they are looking to make Jeffers available.
Robert Murray of FanSided first reported the Twins and Caratini had a two-year deal. Mark Feinsand of MLB.com reported the $14MM guarantee. Photos courtesy of Brett Davis, Tim Heitman, Imagn Images
Twins Claim Vidal Brujan, Designate Mickey Gasper
The Twins announced Wednesday that they’ve claimed infielder/outfielder Vidal Brujan off waivers from the Braves, who’d designated him for assignment last week. In a corresponding move, Minnesota designated catcher/infielder Mickey Gasper for assignment. The Twins’ 40-man roster remains at capacity.
Originally signed by the Rays as an amateur out of the Dominican Republic, Brujan spent four years (2019-22) holding a spot on Baseball America’s top-100 prospect list. He’s now 28 years old, out of minor league options, and has yet to hit at the major league level, however.
Brujan split the 2025 campaign between the Cubs, Orioles (one plate appearance) and Braves. The switch-hitter came to the plate 95 times overall and slashed .253/.305/.310 in that time. He’s now logged MLB action in each of the past five seasons — suiting up for the Rays and Marlins in addition to that 2025 trio of clubs — but mustered only a tepid .199/.267/.276 batting line in 645 turns at the plate.
Brujan’s once-plus speed has fallen off considerably. Statcast pegged him in the 37th percentile of big leaguers last season in terms of average sprint speed. He has decent contact skills (21.6% strikeout rate since ’22), draws walks at a nearly average clip (7.8% in that same span) and has experience at every position on the diamond other than catcher (including 3 2/3 innings of mop-up relief).
Though he hasn’t hit in the majors, Brujan has a solid track record in Triple-A, where he’s slashed .273/.356/.450 with a 10.6% walk rate and just a 16.5% strikeout rate in a little over 1000 plate appearances. Since he’s out of minor league options, the Twins won’t be able to send him to Triple-A unless he first clears waivers.
That presents something of a “logjam” of fringe-y, out-of-options players in the Twins’ bench mix. Backup catcher Alex Jackson was acquired in a trade and signed to a $1.35MM contract for the upcoming season. His spot is presumably safe. Brujan will compete with outfielder James Outman (acquired from the Dodgers in exchange for Brock Stewart this past July), former top prospect Edouard Julien and utilityman Kody Clemens — all out of options themselves — for a spot on Minnesota’s bench. It’s also plausible that the Twins simply hope to stash him as depth in Triple-A and will try to run Brujan through waivers themselves in the weeks ahead.
The 30-year-old Gasper, acquired from the Red Sox in a Dec. 2024 trade that sent left-hander Jovani Moran to Boston, loses his 40-man spot in the wake of today’s claim. He appeared in 45 games for the Twins and took 110 plate appearances, batting .158/.257/.232 with a pair of homers. Like Brujan, he’s a switch-hitter with a strong Triple-A track record but no MLB success of which to speak. Gasper raked at a .285/.385/.531 clip with the Twins’ Triple-A affiliate in St. Paul this past season and carries a lifetime .303/.406/.512 batting line at the top minor league level.
Gasper’s minor league track record, unique defensive versatility and pair of remaining minor league options could net him a look from another club, whether via waiver claim or perhaps a small trade. He’s not considered a good defensive catcher, but he’s an interesting third option at the position and is a switch-hitter to boot. Gasper has spent more time at first base than behind the plate in his pro career, and he’s also logged nearly 400 innings at second base in addition to cameos at the hot corner and in left field.
Twins Have Shown Interest In Seranthony Domínguez
The Twins have shown interest in free agent right-hander Seranthony Domínguez, reports Darren Wolfson of KSTP. However, Wolfson also notes that this was last month and brief. Domínguez remains unsigned, so it’s possible the Twins circle back to him as the offseason progresses.
Minnesota certainly has to do something about its bullpen. The 2025 club fell back in the standings in the summer, which prompted the front office to get into seller mode. They leaned hard into selling from the relief corps. Controllable arms Jhoan Duran, Griffin Jax, Louis Varland and Brock Stewart were all sent packing, alongside rental arm Danny Coulombe.
That left the Twins with a hodgepodge bullpen for the stretch run, consisting of waiver claimees and veteran journeymen. Minnesota’s relievers had a collective 4.93 earned run average over August and September, which was better than just three other clubs in the majors.
Coming into the offseason, it was expected that Minnesota would continue as sellers, perhaps trading big leaguers like Joe Ryan or maybe even Byron Buxton. Instead, the club is planning to hold those guys and will attempt to return to contention this year.
That’s admirable but there’s work to be done to improve a club that finished 70-92 last year. Internal improvements would go a long way but external additions will also be necessary. The bullpen is largely unchanged from the end of 2025. Their most notable pick-up of the offseason so far has been to acquire Eric Orze, who has just 43 1/3 innings of big league experience, from the Rays.
Domínguez, 31, has had a fairly quiet offseason in terms of public rumors. The only other club connected to him so far is the Red Sox, who reportedly had interest in him over a month ago. It’s possible that his market picks up soon. Pitchers and catchers will be reporting to spring training in less than a month in some cases, depending on the team and if players are participating in the World Baseball Classic.
Also, many of the top relievers have come off the board. Edwin Díaz, Devin Williams, Robert Suarez, Ryan Helsley, Phil Maton, Tyler Rogers, Brad Keller, Pete Fairbanks, Kyle Finnegan, Kenley Jansen and many others have been signed. Domínguez is one of the better arms still out there, alongside David Robertson, Liam Hendriks, Justin Wilson, Michael Kopech and others.
Domínguez has been able to get decent amounts of strikeouts and grounders in his career but also with some control issues. He averages in the upper 90s with his four-seamer and sinker while also throwing a slider, sweeper and changeup. He added a splitter and a curveball last year and threw the split 16.6% of the time, scrapping the change and the slider, according to Statcast.
He divided 2025 between the Orioles and Blue Jays, logging 62 2/3 innings with a 3.16 ERA. He struck out 30.3% of batters faced and kept the ball on the ground at a 43.1% pace but also gave out free passes to 13.8% of opponents. He then made 12 appearances for the Jays in the postseason with a 3.18 ERA, though with more walks than strikeouts.
The Twins are dropping the payroll a bit relative to 2025 but seem to have some powder dry, thanks to the money they saved by trading those aforementioned relievers as well as Carlos Correa at the deadline. RosterResource estimates the Twins for a payroll just north of $100MM this year, well below last year’s $142MM Opening Day figure, per Cot’s Baseball Contracts.
Some reporting has suggested the Twins could look to end up in the $115MM range by the end of this offseason. That would likely leave enough to sign Domínguez in a vacuum but they presumably will want to add multiple relievers, while the righty should have interest from other clubs.
Photo courtesy of Nick Turchiaro, Imagn Images
Twins Hire Michael A. Taylor As Outfield Instructor
The Twins have hired recently retired outfielder Michael A. Taylor as an outfield instructor, per Bobby Nightengale of the Minneapolis Star Tribune. He won’t be a member of the big league coaching staff but will be in camp for several weeks this spring and will visit the Twins’ minor league affiliates to work with their up-and-coming outfielders throughout the 2026 season.
Taylor, 34, retired following the 2025 season. He played in parts of 12 major league seasons and spent the 2023 season as a member of the Twins, hitting .220/.278/.442 with a career-high 21 home runs. Taylor spent his final season in 2025 with the White Sox and also played with the Nationals, Royals and Pirates (under new Twins skipper Derek Shelton). He retired as a career .232/.288/.379 hitter with 109 home runs, 128 steals, 156 doubles and 15 triples in 3801 major league plate appearances.
It was below-average production on the whole, but Taylor’s calling card was always his defense and baserunning. He played 7473 innings of center field in his major league career and logged outstanding marks in both Defensive Runs Saved (83) and Outs Above Average (58). His work in the corners was more limited but also above-average, per both metrics. Overall, Taylor finished his playing days with 97 DRS and 61 OAA in just under 9000 defensive innings. He chipped in 128 steals in 163 tries — a 79% success rate.
Taylor “only” won one Gold Glove in his big league career, although that’s due to his frequent status as a fourth outfielder. His penchant for strikeouts (and thus batting average/on-base percentage marks) kept him from picking up enough innings in the outfield to garner consideration in most seasons. On a rate basis, however, Taylor is one of the elite defenders of this generation — at any position. From the time of his 2014 debut through his final game late this season, only six players amassed more DRS than his 97: Kevin Kiermaier, Nolan Arenado, Andrelton Simmons, Mookie Betts, Jason Heyward and Matt Chapman. His 61 OAA tie him for 12th among all big leaguers in that same window.
Though the role with the Twins is a relatively limited one, Nightengale suggests that the intent is to give Taylor some experience working with younger players as he gauges whether he wants to pursue a second act in baseball as a coach. For the time being, a Twins organization that has a long lineage of plus defenders in center field — Taylor briefly among them — will have one of the better outfield defenders in recent memory working with its young players in an effort to continue that hallmark.