Walker Jenkins

The Twins on Thursday optioned outfielder Matt Wallner and righty Travis Adams to Triple-A St. Paul. Utilityman Ryan Kreidler and right-hander Zebby Matthews were recalled in their place.

It’s the first time in more than two years that Wallner has been optioned. He’s been Minnesota’s Opening Day right fielder in each of the past two seasons and has handled the lion’s share of the playing time at the position along the way (though he’s frequently been platooned). Wallner has 70-grade power from the left side of the plate but strikes out far too frequently to take full advantage of it.

That hasn’t stopped him from being productive in the past. From 2023-25, Wallner turned in a hearty .231/.345/.493 batting line with 49 homers in 907 plate appearances. He walked at a 10.8% clip but struck out in 31.9% of his plate appearances. The Minnesota native (Forest Lake) averaged just under 92 mph off the bat with a hard-hit rate just over 48%. He’s not a very good defender, but the slug-heavy approach was potent enough to make him worth about five wins above replacement in 255 games, per both FanGraphs and Baseball-Reference.

The 2026 season has been a disaster, however. Wallner has appeared in 33 games and posted a .167/.259/.292 slash. His already-high strikeout rate has exploded to 39.3%. His walk rate has dropped to a career-low 7.4%.

Over the past month, Wallner has just seven hits in 67 trips to the plate (58 official at-bats), and he hasn’t impacted the ball when he does manage to make contact. He’s averaging just 88.4 mph off the bat this season, and over the past 30 days that number is all the way down to 85.4 mph. His 28.6% hard-hit rate in that span ranks 221st among the 250 players who’ve taken at least 60 plate appearances — not exactly what a team wants from a slugging, power-over-hit corner outfielder who needs plenty of extra-base hits to offset substandard glovework.

If Wallner spends at least 20 days in St. Paul, he’ll burn the final of his three minor league option years. That’s particularly notable with Wallner also set to reach arbitration for the first time this winter. If he continues at a rate this poor or has merely an average-ish finish to his season whenever he returns, the Twins will have a decision to make. Wallner won’t break the bank in his first trip through the arb process, but he’s hit for enough power in his pre-arb platform to make a couple million dollars or so. Given that he’d be out of minor league options in an organization with several high-end corner outfield prospects on the horizon, Wallner’s standing within his hometown organization appears to be very much on the line.

The Twins have 2023 No. 5 overall pick Walker Jenkins on the cusp of the majors. Jenkins currently ranks as the No. 4 prospect in the entire sport, per Baseball America. He’s not hitting for power in Triple-A this year but is slashing .256/.396/.389 with 19 walks to 18 strikeouts. There’s reason to think more power is on tap, too. Jenkins is averaging 91.5 mph off the bat and has maxed out at 112 mph. Many of his games have been played in frosty Midwest weather thus far, but temperatures are beginning to rise as summer approaches. Jenkins has been down since May 3 with a shoulder sprain suffered on a collision with the outfield wall, but there’s yet to be any indication he’ll be sidelined for a significant period.

Minnesota also has 23-year-old Emmanuel Rodríguez over in St. Paul. He’s not quite as touted as Wallner but sits 38th on BA’s latest top-100 refresh. Were Rodríguez healthy, he may have even gotten the call to replace Wallner. He’s currently out with a muscle strain in his left hand but was slashing .247/.417/.506 with a colossal 21.3% walk rate in 108 plate appearances. That’s not just some early, small-sample weirdness either. Rodríguez has walked in a staggering 21.6% of his professional appearances, including 21.4% of his 350 total plate appearances in Triple-A. He’s also incredibly strikeout-prone (career 30%) with plus raw power and speed as well as good outfield defense. He could be a three-true-outcomes poster boy while also providing value on the bases and with the glove.

Even beyond that pair of touted prospects, the Twins are flush in corner outfield options. Trevor Larnach is having a decent bounceback season, though he’s somewhat similar to Wallner in many ways. He’s a former top draft pick and well-regarded prospect with a power-over-hit track record who isn’t making hard contact at all in 2026. Austin Martin has stepped up as a regular in the outfield and is hitting .300/.405/.385 with a pair of homers, 17 steals and nearly as many walks as strikeouts in 306 plate appearances dating back to last season.

Minnesota also added now-26-year-old Alan Roden from the Jays in last year’s Louis Varland trade. He’s out with a shoulder injury in St. Paul but has consistently thrashed Triple-A pitching and could get a real look if he’s able to return this summer. Prospect Gabriel Gonzalez had a down year in 2024, bounced back with a huge 2025 and was added to the 40-man roster, and has now struggled again to begin the 2026 season. He just turned 22 in January, however, so some struggles in his first full season at Triple-A aren’t shocking. They just promoted Hendry Mendez (acquired in last year’s Harrison Bader trade) to Triple-A after a big start in Double-A. He’s hitting .306/.400/.486 overall.

Suffice it to say, the Twins are deep in candidates to flank Byron Buxton in the corners. That depth makes Wallner’s poor performance all the more problematic for the 28-year-old slugger. The Twins will try to get him back on track in St. Paul for now, but there are plenty of younger options breathing down his neck.

Matthews’ return is of some note here as well. He’s a former top-100 prospect who’s been hot in Triple-A of late (2.67 ERA, 28-to-7 K/BB ratio in his past five starts/27 innings) who’ll get another chance in the rotation due to injuries. Minnesota lost Pablo López (UCL surgery) and David Festa (shoulder impingement) before the season started. Mick Abel (elbow/triceps inflammation) and breakout righty Taj Bradley (pectoral inflammation) are currently on the 15-day IL. Matthews hasn’t found success in parts of two prior big league seasons, but he’s still 25 and now has another chance to show he can stick in the majors with a good impression. Simeon Woods Richardson has struggled badly, so even if Bradley and Abel get healthy, there could be a spot for Matthews moving forward.