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Twins' Walker Jenkins: Expected to be ready for MiLB season
Rotowire
Jenkins (hamstring) is expected to be ready for the start of the Triple-A St. Paul Saints season, the Minnesota Star Tribune reports.
Jenkins was diagnosed with a Grade 1 left hamstring strain March 1, but he could return to play in a minor-league game this week. The 21-year-old received a taste of the Triple-A level late last year and has a decent chance of making his MLB debut at some point in 2026.
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Twins' Trevor Larnach: Scratched with left side soreness
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Larnach was a pregame scratch from Sunday's lineup because of left side soreness, the Minnesota Star Tribune reports. "As of right now, we don't think it's significant enough to get [medical] imaging," Manager Derek Shelton said.
Larnach will be evaluated again Monday. It doesn't sound like a serious injury at this point, but if he's not ready for Opening Day then both Alan Roden and James Outman would likely make the major league roster as one of the two outfielders is likely to begin the season in the minors.
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Twins' Jose Olivares: Out after elbow surgery
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Olivares had surgery to remove a bone spur from his elbow in early October, and he will start the season on the minor league injured list, Bobby Nightengale of the Minnesota Star Tribune reports.
Olivares had a 4.11 ERA and 111:59 K:BB in 96.1 innings at High-A Cedar Rapids last season. His strong strikeout rates make him a mildly intriguing prospect, but he was left off the 40-man roster this offseason and went unclaimed in the Rule 5 Draft.
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Twins' Joe Ryan: Won't pitch for Team USA
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Ryan will no longer pitch for Team USA in the World Baseball Classic, Bobby Nightengale of The Minnesota Star Tribune reports.
Ryan was in the pitcher pool for the WBC, but Team USA elected to add Blue Jays closer Jeff Hoffman to the roster instead. Ryan made his spring debut Tuesday after recovering from a back injury that flared up in mid-February. The 29-year-old right-hander is projected to serve as the Twins' starter for Opening Day against the Orioles on March 26. He tossed a career-high 171 innings across 31 regular-season games in 2025 and finished with a 3.42 ERA, 1.04 WHIP and 194:39 K:BB.
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Twins' Taylor Rogers: Still in unsettled closer mix
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Rogers has a 4.50 ERA this spring with a 6:3 K:BB in four innings. He's still likely in the mix to close games but manager Derek Shelton said he has no plans for how he'll distribute save opportunities, Matthew Leach of MLB.com reports.
Rogers has the most experience closing games in the bullpen, but his declining velocity to an average fastball of 92.8 mph last season from a peak of 95.8 mph in 2021 may not make him ideal as the primary closer. He still had a decent 9.4 K/9 last season, so he could be part of a committee. However, at this point it's unclear how the Twins will divide up the opportunities to finish games among an unsettled bullpen that also includes Justin Topa, Cole Sands and Liam Hendriks.
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Twins' Kody Clemens: No clear path to regular role
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Clemens doesn't appear to have a set regular role in the lineup with the Twins signing Josh Bell and with several left-handed outfielders on the roster, Aaron Gleeman of The Athletic reports.
Clemens began the offseason looking like the team's starter at first base or at least the left-handed part of a platoon at the position. However, the Twins may not want to use Trevor Larnach in the outfield rather than DH against lefties, which would move Bell to first base, and Luke Keaschall looks set to play second base. Clemens hit .216/.284/.442 with 19 home runs last season in a breakout season and made significant strides in his batted-ball metrics with a 48.3 percent hard-hit rate and 12 percent barrel rate. His ability to play second base and first base should help find ways to get him into the lineup eventually, but he may find few at-bats early in the season unless the Twins trade a left-handed-hitting outfielder.
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Twins' Matt Wallner: Solid start to spring
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Wallner went 2-for-3 in Friday's Grapefruit League loss to Boston. He's hitting .290 (9-for-31) with a home run this spring.
It's reassuring to see Wallner having a good spring as a terrible spring in 2024 resulted in a slow start to the regular season and an early demotion to the minors. Wallner looks set to start in right field and could have a breakout season after some bad luck last year. Wallner reduced his problematic strikeout rate below 30 percent for the first time in his career (29.1%) and had the best contact rate of his career (66.1%), but he had just a .775 OPS, with a .228 BABIP likely playing a factor.
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Twins' Kody Funderburk: May not make Opening Day roster
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Funderburk may not make the Opening Day roster with four left-handed relievers competing for a spot in the bullpen, the Minneapolis Star Tribune reports. Funderburk has a 1.59 ERA and 6:1 K:BB in 5.2 innings this spring.
It's odd that Funderburk is on the roster bubble considering he's having a strong spring and coming off a strong second half. He had a 2.61 ERA and 21:8 K:BB in 20.2 innings after the All-Star break last year. Still, he's seen as behind veterans Taylor Rogers, Anthony Banda and Andrew Chafin. It seems unlikely the Twins would have four left-handed relievers in the bullpen, so Funderburk may be the odd man out. A trade of one of the lefty relievers also seems like a possibility.
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Twins' Ryan Kreidler: Could win roster spot
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Kreidler appears to be the leading candidate to win a utility infield role with the Twins, Matthew Leach of MLB.com reports.
He'd make the team based on his glove, as he's hit just .138/.208/.176 over parts of four major-league seasons and is only a career .236/.342/.401 hitter in the minors. The Twins don't have a clear backup shortstop on the roster, so Kreidler is battling Orlando Arcia for the backup shortstop role.
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Twins' Alan Roden: May not win roster spot
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Roden went 2-for-5 in Friday's Grapefruit League loss to Boston. Despite hitting .323 (10-for-31) with a home run this spring, both Matthew Leach of MLB.com and The Athletic project Roden to not make the Opening Day roster.
James Outman is having a strong spring and is out of options, so it's thought the Twins will send Roden to the minors to begin the season. However, the Twins' outfield situation is still in flux. The team has too many left-handed-hitting outfielders and a trade late in spring training seems possible. Roden could still win a role as a strong-side platoon player in left field if he wins a spot over Outman.
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Twins' Mick Abel: Ends scoreless streak
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Abel gave up two earned runs over 3.1 innings with four strikeouts and one walk Friday, ending a 10-inning scoreless streak. He has a 1.35 ERA with a 17:1 K:BB in 13.1 innings this spring.
Abel is likely competing with Zebby Matthews for the fifth starter role. This was his first speed bump in otherwise stellar spring. A high walk rate (6.5 BB/9 in the majors last season) has been a problem, so his great control this spring is encouraging. He's making a strong case to begin the season in the rotation, but he'll likely be the odd man out since he has minor-league options left. Still the competition between him and Matthews will likely come down to the final week of spring training.
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Twins' Liam Hendriks: Throws scoreless inning
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Hendriks (elbow) threw a scoreless inning with a strikeout Thursday and has a 2.25 ERA and 2:2 K:BB ratio in four innings this spring. He averaged 93.6 mph on the six fastballs he threw during the outing.
Hendriks has looked healthy this spring but his velocity is down from a 94.9-mph average fastball in 2025 and 95.4 mph in 2023. It's not clear if Hendriks will even make the Opening Day roster at this point, but he's still potentially in the closer mix. The signs for Hendriks are encouraging after undergoing right elbow ulnar nerve transposition with posterior interosseous nerve release surgery in September.
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Twins' James Outman: In OF mix with hot spring
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Outman is hitting .280 (7-for-25) with two home runs and six stolen bases this spring. He remains in the mix to win a spot on the major-league roster, though the outfield competition is still unsettled, The Athletic reports.
Outman is out of minor-league options, which could help his case to win a final roster spot. The Twins have a glut of left-handed hitting outfielders, however, which could hurt his case. Outman is likely competing with Alan Roden for the final spot. Outman looked like a potential star in 2023 when he hit 23 home runs and a .790 OPS as a rookie in 151 games, but he has struggled since. He hit just .147 with a .558 OPS and four home runs in 37 games after he was traded to the Twins last season. If he makes the roster in a reserve role, he could be a source of stolen bases in deeper fantasy leagues.
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Twins' Austin Martin: Still in OF mix
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Martin went 0-for-3 in Thursday's win over Boston and is hitting just .231 (6-for-21) with three stolen bases this spring. Despite the lackluster spring, he's still seen as making the final roster and getting regular time as a platoon option in left field, the Minnesota Star Tribune reports.
Martin is a right-handed batter in a left-handed heavy outfield, but he could still begin the campaign in more of an everyday role rather than a short-side platoon. The 26-year-old has also had some playing time at second base this spring, so he could get some time there as well. Martin got regular duty the final two months last season and made the most of it by hitting .282 with a 113 wRC+. While he lacks power, he had 11 stolen bases in just 50 games in the majors last season.
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Twins' Bailey Ober: Velocity remains down
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Ober allowed one run on five hits and one walk while striking out two over 2.2 innings during Thursday's Grapefruit League game against the Red Sox. According to Aaron Gleeman of The Athletic, the right-hander averaged 88.8 mph with his fastball.
Ober's fastball was sitting in the lower 90s early in camp, but it averaged 89.9 mph during his spring debut last week and ticked even lower Thursday. The 30-year-old's average velocity of 90.3 mph in 2025 was a career low as he struggled to a career-worst 5.10 ERA and 1.30 WHIP, and the trend so far in spring training is a concerning development.
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Twins' Cole Sands: Remains in closer competition
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Twins manager Derek Shelton said he has no idea who his closer will be this season, but Matthew Leach of MLB.com reports that Sands is still a possibility. "I'm still trying to figure it out. Sometimes, that's the answer where you're trying not to answer it," Shelton said. "I've probably done that before. But right now, I'm trying to figure it out. I don't think we have an idea of what's going to happen."
We wouldn't read too much into this report as Sands is one of a handful of candidates to close or share a committee along with Taylor Rogers, Liam Hendriks, Justin Topa and a series of lefties including Anthony Banda and Andrew Chafin, but he has a chance to finish games. Sands had a breakout season as a reliever in 2024, but he took a step back last season with just a 21.4 percent strikeout rate, down from 29.1 percent. Sands has given up three runs in five innings with a 4:2 K:BB this spring.
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Twins' David Festa: Expected to begin season on IL
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Festa (shoulder) remains shut down from throwing and is expected to begin the season on the injured list, the Minnesota Star Tribune reports.
Festa was shut down in late February due to a shoulder impingement and received an injection to address the injury. The 26-year-old could begin playing catch next week, but his buildup may take a while given that he's also coming back from thoracic outlet syndrome, which he was diagnosed with in September.
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Twins' Julian Merryweather: Begins running
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Merryweather (hamstring) played catch Wednesday and did some running in front of the training staff, the Minnesota Star Tribune reports.
Merryweather suffered a Grade 1 left hamstring strain Feb. 24 and was expected to need about 3-to-4 weeks to recover. It looks like he's candidate to begin the season on the injured list but has yet to be ruled out for Opening Day.
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Twins' Charlee Soto: Delayed start to season
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Soto (elbow) is expected to be sidelined until late April or early May, the Minnesota Star Tribune reports.
Soto underwent surgery to remove a partially detached bone spur in August, so it's not surprising he'll be eased into action this spring. The No. 34 overall pick of the 2023 First-Year Player Draft has thrown three bullpen sessions in spring training, so he's making significant progress in his rehab program.
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Twins' Joe Ryan: Makes spring debut
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Ryan (back) threw three scoreless innings in his spring debut Tuesday with two walks and no strikeouts. "We'll talk and check in this week and see where we're at, but I think things are looking pretty good," Ryan said of his chances to pitch in the WBC according to Declan Goff of SKOR North.
Ryan said his back felt good during the outing where he threw 48 pitches. It remains to be seen if he'll join Team USA for the second round of the WBC, but it sounds like he has a good chance to be ready for Opening Day. Ryan was scratched ahead of his first scheduled spring start Feb. 21 when he experienced tightness on the right side of his back. An MRI revealed only inflammation and he was able to begin throwing soon afterward.
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