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Eiberson Castellano

Mickey Gasper, DaShawn Keirsey Make Twins’ Roster; Twins Exploring Bullpen Market

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March 25: Castellano has cleared waivers and been returned to the Phillies, per Nightengale.

March 24: The Twins optioned infielder/outfielder Austin Martin to Triple-A St. Paul this morning, per a team announcement. They’ve also informed catcher/infielder Mickey Gasper and outfielder DaShawn Keirsey Jr. that they’ll break camp on the Opening Day roster, per Betsy Helfand of the St. Paul Pioneer Press. That sequence likely locks infielder Edouard Julien into the final spot on the position-player side of the roster.

Gasper, 29, came to the Twins in a December trade sending lefty reliever Jovani Moran back to the Red Sox. He has just 18 MLB plate appearances to his credit, but Gasper is a .317/.422/.498 hitter in 70 Triple-A games and a .276/.401/.455 batter in 176 Double-A games. He’s had a big camp, batting .308/.417/.487 with more walks than strikeouts. Gasper’s status was briefly up in the air after an infield collision yesterday resulted in a laceration on his ankle that required six stitches. He’s patched up and been cleared to start the season on a big league roster for the first time in an eight-year professional career.

Like Gasper, the 27-year-old Keirsey is a 2018 draftee who’s making his first Opening Day roster. He hit .275/.375/.375 this spring and is coming off a .300/.368/.476 performance in Triple-A last year. Keirsey is a plus runner and outfield defender who can handle all three slots. He made a brief big league debut last year, getting into six games and going 2-for-13 with a homer in that debut effort.

The pitching side is largely set, but Minnesota does appear to have one bullpen vacancy, at least in the short term. Righty Brock Stewart was already on the mend from arthroscopic shoulder surgery and also suffered a hamstring strain in camp. He’ll start the 2025 season on the injured list alongside Michael Tonkin, who’s dealing with a shoulder strain.

On top of Stewart’s injury, the Twins have already informed Rule 5 pick Eiberson Castellano that he won’t make the club. He’ll presumably be placed on waivers soon if he hasn’t been already. Bobby Nightengale of the Minneapolis Star Tribune adds that they’ve also told non-roster relievers Scott Blewett and Anthony Misiewicz that they won’t make the club. Both will head to Triple-A.

Both Nightengale and Dan Hayes of The Athletic suggest Minnesota could look to bring in a reliever who’s not currently a part of the organization. There’s space to place a waiver claim or scoop up a veteran who’d been a non-roster invitee with another club but has since opted out. Jalen Beeks, Adam Ottavino, Drew Pomeranz, Ross Stripling and Jake Woodford are among the names who were recently granted their release after triggering opt-out clauses. Righty Tyler Phillips was DFA by the Phillies over the weekend, too.

Brooks Lee To Open Season On Injured List

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The Twins informed reporters (including Betsy Helfand of the St. Paul Pioneer Press) that infielder Brooks Lee and reliever Brock Stewart will both begin the season on the injured list. What’s more, Helfand notes that Rule 5 selection Eiberson Castellano has been informed that he will not make the team.

Lee, 24, has been sidelined in recent days by lower back tightness. The eighth overall pick in the 2022 draft, Lee is a former consensus top-50 prospect in the sport but hit just .221/.265/.320 in 50 games during his rookie season with the Twins last year. Even so, he entered camp as the clear favorite to handle second base duties for Minnesota on a regular basis this year and looked solid enough in Spring Training this year. Unfortunately for the youngster, he’ll now spend at least the first week of the season on the injured list, though a specific timeline for his return to action has not yet been made clear.

Losing Lee from the roster would be far more manageable for the Twins if they weren’t already set to go without Royce Lewis to open the season after he was sidelined by a moderate hamstring strain last week. Lewis was poised to serve as the club’s everyday third baseman, and with both him and Lee out of commission the Twins will now have to fill two spots on the infield with only shortstop Carlos Correa and first baseman Ty France locked into their current positions. Fortunately for Minnesota, they do have fairly solid depth options to help handle the injuries. Jose Miranda turned in a solid season for the Twins in 2024 while splitting time between first and third base, and should be able to step in for Lewis at the hot corner rather seamlessly. Meanwhile, Edouard Julien had an excellent rookie season as the club’s starting second baseman in 2023, and despite a sophomore slump last year should be a viable fill-in option for the club.

If the Twins aren’t comfortable with either Miranda or Julien starting on a regular basis, they also have super utility man Willi Castro available. Castro isn’t penciled in for a regular position on the diamond, but already figured to be play nearly everyday while bouncing around the infield and outfield offering breathers to the club’s regulars. A roughly average .251/.334/.395 hitter in 282 games since arriving in Minnesota prior to 2023, Castro has ample experience all around the diamond and could be called upon to handle either second or third base regularly as needed. Meanwhile, Austin Martin and Mickey Gasper appear to be the most likely candidates to fill Lee and Lewis’s roster spots, taking on the bench roles previously set to be occupied by Julien and Miranda.

As for Stewart, the right-hander suffered a “mild” hamstring strain last weekend. The issue doesn’t appear likely to keep him off the club’s roster long-term, but for the time being he’ll opening the season on the 15-day injured list. While Stewart struggled to a 5.17 ERA in 16 games with the Twins last year, he struck out 30% of opponents and posted a solid 3.80 FIP that left clear room for a big step forward in 2025. That opportunity will be put on hold for the time being, however, as the Twins will instead turn to pieces like Justin Topa, Jorge Alcala, and Cole Sands to handle the middle innings from the right-hand side.

Meanwhile, Castellano’s future is in question after he was informed he would not be making the club’s roster. The 23-year-old signed with the Phillies out of Venezuela and made his pro debut back in 2021. He made it up to the Double-A level with the Phillies last year, pitching to a 3.79 ERA in 40 1/3 innings at the level. That intrigued the Twins enough for them to take a shot on him in the Rule 5 draft, though his 7.59 ERA in 10 2/3 innings during camp suggested he may be overmatched at the big league level. With Castellano set to not make the club’s roster, the Twins can either put the righty on waivers and offer him back to the Phillies if he clears, or else they could attempt to work out a trade with Philadelphia in order to acquire the full rights to Castellano and simply option him to the minor leagues.

2024 Rule 5 Draft Results

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The 2024 Rule 5 draft took place this afternoon at the Winter Meetings in Dallas. The results of the draft are below.

As a refresher, the Rule 5 draft is a way for players potentially talented enough for the big leagues but blocked by their current clubs to find opportunities elsewhere. Any players that were 18 and under at the time of their original signing and have played five professional seasons, and any players who signed at 19 years of age or older at signing that now have four professional seasons, who are not on a club’s 40-man roster are eligible to be selected in the Rule 5 draft.

Though the amateur (Rule 4) draft now has a lottery to determine the selection order, the Rule 5 draft still goes the old-fashioned way of reverse order of standings from the season that just ended. Clubs need to have an open 40-man roster spot in order to make a pick but aren’t obligated to make a selection on their turn. If they do make a pick, they will have to pay $100K to the team they select from. The selected players must stay on the active roster (or injured list) for the entire 2025 season or else be placed on waivers. If they clear waivers, they must be offered back to their original team. They cannot be optioned to the minors.

Last year’s edition saw some key players change clubs. The A’s took Mitch Spence from the Yankees with the top pick and kept him all year. Justin Slaten was plucked from the Rangers by the Mets and then traded to the Red Sox. Players like Anthony Santander and Ryan Pressly have been notable picks in other recent years while guys like George Bell and Roberto Clemente are found deeper in the history books.

Here are this year’s picks…

  1. White Sox: RHP Shane Smith (Brewers) (Jonathan Mayo of MLB Pipeline relayed the pick on Bluesky prior to the draft)
  2. Rockies: pass
  3. Marlins: C Liam Hicks (Tigers)
  4. Angels: LHP Garrett McDaniels (Dodgers)
  5. Athletics: RHP Noah Murdock (Royals)
  6. Nationals: RHP Evan Reifert (Rays)
  7. Blue Jays: RHP Angel Bastardo (Red Sox)
  8. Pirates: pass
  9. Reds: 2B Cooper Bowman (Athletics)
  10. Rangers: pass
  11. Giants: pass
  12. Rays: LHP Nate Lavender (Mets)
  13. Red Sox: pass
  14. Twins: RHP Eiberson Castellano (Phillies)
  15. Cardinals: pass
  16. Cubs: 3B Gage Workman (Tigers)
  17. Mariners: pass
  18. Royals: pass
  19. Tigers: pass
  20. Astros: pass
  21. Mets: pass
  22. D-backs: pass
  23. Braves: RHP Anderson Pilar (Marlins)
  24. Orioles: pass
  25. Guardians: pass
  26. Padres: RHP Juan Nunez (Orioles)
  27. Brewers: LHP Connor Thomas (Cardinals)
  28. Yankees: pass
  29. Phillies: RHP Mike Vasil (Mets); Phillies later traded Vasil to Rays for cash considerations, per announcements from both clubs.
  30. Dodgers: pass

Second round (all but one club passed)

The minor league phase of the Rule 5 draft also occurred this afternoon. Those players will not go onto the selecting teams’ 40-man roster. Right-hander Hobie Harris, who pitched for the Nationals in 2023 and signed a minor league deal with the Mets last month, was taken by the Red Sox.

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