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Matthews has a chance to win a rotation spot for the Twins this spring, and one more spot is now open in the wake of Pablo Lopez's elbow injury, Matthew Leach of MLB.com reports.
Leach surmised that Taj Bradley and Simeon Woods Richardson were likely ahead of Matthews in the pecking order to begin spring training, but Lopez's injury now opens up a third spot in the rotation. Mick Abel and David Festa (shoulder) are also options for the Twins.
Matthews is not scheduled to make a start this weekend in Philadelphia.
Matthews had tentatively lined up to pitch the regular-season finale Sunday, but the Twins have Simeon Woods Richardson scheduled to take the ball that day instead. The righty bounced back from a couple rough outings to throw seven innings of one-run ball versus the Rangers on Tuesday in what turned out to be his final start of the season. Matthews will finish with a 5.56 ERA, 1.49 WHIP and 88:24 K:BB over 79.1 frames covering 16 starts for Minnesota in 2025.
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Twins' Zebby Matthews: Fires seven strong innings
Rotowire
Matthews (5-6) got the win Tuesday against the Rangers, allowing one run on four hits while striking out six in seven innings. He did not issue a walk.
Matthews allowed a solo home run to Joc Pederson on just his second pitch of the game but shut down the Rangers from there. Tuesday's performance was an excellent bounce-back effort from Matthews after he was shelled his last time out, tying his career worst in runs allowed (nine) while setting a new career worst in hits allowed (11). The quality start was Matthews' third in his last five outings in what's been a strong finish to an up-and-down season for the 25-year-old. Matthews lines up for one additional road start this weekend against the Phillies.
Twins' Zebby Matthews: Knocked around in sixth loss
Rotowire
Matthews (4-6) took the loss Tuesday, allowing nine runs on 11 hits and two walks over three innings in a 10-9 loss against the Yankees. He struck out two.
Matthews was tagged for runs in each of the three innings he worked Tuesday, failing to find a groove before being pulled. The 25-year-old has endured a tough season, posting a 5.97 ERA and 1.58 WHIP across 15 starts and 72.1 innings. Still, there are reasons for optimism in his underlying metrics, including a 3.85 FIP and 3.4 K/BB pointing to better potential than the surface stats suggest.
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