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Victor Caratini Victor Caratini Making third straight start
Wed, Apr 1, 2026, 2:46 PM
Caratini will start at first base and bat seventh in Wednesday's game against the Royals.
Analysis: Caratini will be included in the lineup for the third game in a row, with two starts coming at first base and one at catcher. With the Twins facing a lefty starter (Noah Cameron) for the second straight game, Caratini will fill in at first base for the left-handed-hitting Kody Clemens, who should continue to occupy the large side of a platoon moving forward. Caratini's playing time versus right-handed pitching will likely be more sporadic, but he'll see occasional starts against them either at catcher or designated hitter. |
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Kody Clemens Kody Clemens Taking seat against lefty
Wed, Apr 1, 2026, 2:40 PM
Clemens is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Royals.
Analysis: With the Twins facing a lefty starter (Noah Cameron) for the second day in a row, the left-handed-hitting Clemens will hit the bench for another game. Victor Caratini will step in for Clemens at first base and bat seventh. |
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Trevor Larnach Trevor Larnach Sitting against lefty again
Wed, Apr 1, 2026, 2:39 PM
Larnach is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Royals.
Analysis: With the Twins facing a lefty starter (Noah Cameron) for the second day in a row, the left-handed-hitting Larnach will head to the bench for another game. Austin Martin will take Larnach's spot in left field and will bat leadoff. |
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Simeon Woods Richardson Simeon Woods Richardson Suffers tough-luck loss
Mon, Mar 30, 2026, 9:38 PM
Woods Richardson (0-1) took the loss Monday against the Royals after allowing two runs on five hits and one walk while striking out two across five innings.
Analysis: Woods Richardson surrendered both of his runs on one swing of the bat, as he gave up a two-run homer to Kyle Isbel in the bottom of the second inning. Woods Richardson otherwise managed to work his way through Kansas City's lineup without damage, despite firing only 45 of his 83 pitches for strikes. Fantasy managers will likely be disappointed by the lack of swing-and-miss stuff Monday after the right-hander posted a 16:5 K:BB across 20 innings during spring training. |
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Luke Keaschall Luke Keaschall Used as No. 3 hitter
Mon, Mar 30, 2026, 9:08 AM
Keaschall went 1-for-4 with a walk in Sunday's loss at Baltimore and is hitting .182 (2-for-11) this season. He's hit third in the batting order in all three games this season.
Analysis: Keaschall may be better suited to hit leadoff in Minnesota's lineup due to his high OBP (.382 last season), but new Twins manager Derek Shelton went with a platoon of Austin Martin and Kody Clemens in the leadoff role to begin the season. While Keaschall played some outfield in spring training, he's only played second base so far this season. |
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Mick Abel Mick Abel Makes season debut in relief
Sun, Mar 29, 2026, 6:19 PM
Abel (0-1) was the pitcher of record in Sunday's 8-6 loss to the Orioles after allowing five earned runs on eight hits and four walks while striking out four batters over 3.1 innings of relief.
Analysis: Manager Derek Shelton told Matthew Leach of MLB.com on March 20 that Abel would be part of the Twins' season-opening rotation, but the 24-year-old will have to wait a little bit to make his first start. Due to a pair of early off days, the Twins are able to temporarily get by with a four-man rotation, so Abel was available in the bullpen for the season-opening series with the Orioles and ended up making in 2026 debut Sunday with starter Bailey Ober getting chased after four innings. Abel lacked control and was hit hard in the relief outing, which will likely give fantasy managers some pause about including him in lineups once his turn in the rotation comes up. The right-hander tentatively lines up to make his first start during next weekend's home series versus the Rays. |
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Drew Smith Drew Smith Lands MiLB deal with Minnesota
Sun, Mar 29, 2026, 6:07 PM
Smith signed a minor-league contract with Minnesota on Sunday, Aaron Gleeman of The Athletic reports.
Analysis: The 32-year-old righty owns a 3.48 ERA and 1.28 WHIP over 192 career appearances in the majors, but after missing the entire 2025 season while recovering from his second Tommy John surgery, he had to settle for a minor-league deal with the Nationals in free agency this winter. Smith was released after he was unable to win a spot in Washington's season-opening bullpen, but he quickly found work in a new organization. He's expected to report to Triple-A St. Paul and could be in the mix for a call-up quickly if he shows that he's regained his pre-surgery velocity and command. |
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John Brebbia John Brebbia Lands MiLB deal with Minnesota
Sun, Mar 29, 2026, 6:05 PM
Brebbia signed a minor-league contract with Minnesota on Sunday, Aaron Gleeman of The Athletic reports.
Analysis: Brebbia will report to Triple-A St. Paul, but given the unsettled state Minnesota bullpen, he may not have to wait long to get a look in the majors. Cut by the Rockies coming out of spring training, Brebbia, 35, owns a 4.04 ERA and 1.24 WHIP over 378.1 career innings in the majors across stops with St. Louis, San Francisco, the White Sox, Atlanta and Detroit. |
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Bailey Ober Bailey Ober Goes four innings in no-decision
Sun, Mar 29, 2026, 4:26 PM
Ober did not factor into the decision Sunday against Baltimore, allowing three runs on four hits and a walk across four innings. He struck out one.
Analysis: Ober kept the Orioles off the board for three innings before Tyler O'Neill cut Minnesota's lead to 4-3 with a three-run homer in the fourth. The 30-year-old Ober's fastball velocity remains a concern - it averaged just 89.8 MPH Sunday after sitting at 90.3 last season. Ober struggled overall in 2025, posting a 5.10 ERA with a 1.30 WHIP and 120 strikeouts across 27 starts (146.1 innings). |
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David Festa David Festa Not yet throwing off mound
Sun, Mar 29, 2026, 11:52 AM
Festa (shoulder) is about two weeks from beginning to pitch off a mound, Twins General Manager Jeremy Zoll told the Minnesota Star Tribune.
Analysis: Festa recently resumed a throwing program after being shut down in late February due to a right shoulder impingement. However it sounds like he'll need several weeks before he can begin a minor-league rehab assignment. Festa was already coming back from thoracic outlet syndrome, which he dealt with last September, so expect the Twins to be cautious with his return. |
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Kendry Rojas Kendry Rojas Working back from hamstring strain
Sun, Mar 29, 2026, 11:47 AM
Rojas (hamstring) is scheduled to face hitters in simulated at-bats March 31, the Minnesota Star Tribune reports.
Analysis: Rojas has started the minor-league season on the Triple-A injured list with a right hamstring strain. The 23-year-old southpaw was acquired from Toronto at the deadline in the Louis Varland deal. |
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Austin Martin Austin Martin Out against righty again
Sun, Mar 29, 2026, 10:13 AM
Martin is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Orioles, Aaron Gleeman of The Athletic reports.
Analysis: After manning left field and occupying the leadoff spot in the Twins' season opener Thursday against Orioles southpaw Trevor Rogers, the right-handed-hitting Martin has dropped out of the lineup for two straight games while Minnesota has faced right-handed starters. At least in the early stages of the campaign, Martin looks like he may have to settle for the short side of a platoon in the corner outfield with Trevor Larnach or Matt Wallner. |
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Kody Clemens Kody Clemens Second straight start vs. RHP
Sun, Mar 29, 2026, 10:07 AM
Clemens will start at first base and bat leadoff in Sunday's game against the Orioles, Aaron Gleeman of The Athletic reports.
Analysis: After taking a seat against lefty Trevor Rogers in Thursday's season opener, the left-handed-hitting Clemens has now handled the leadoff role in two straight contests, with the Twins facing righties on both occasions. At least for the early part of the season, Clemens looks set to occupy the strong side of a platoon at first base with either Josh Bell or Victor Caratini. |
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Ryan Jeffers Ryan Jeffers Receiving breather Sunday
Sun, Mar 29, 2026, 9:48 AM
Jeffers is out of the lineup for Sunday's game at Baltimore, Aaron Gleeman of The Athletic reports.
Analysis: Jeffers started behind the plate in the first two games of the year and went 1-for-7 with a walk and three strikeouts. He'll get some rest in the series finale while Victor Caratini serves as the catcher for Bailey Ober on Sunday. |
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Brooks Lee Brooks Lee Not in Sunday's lineup
Sun, Mar 29, 2026, 9:46 AM
Lee is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Orioles, Aaron Gleeman of The Athletic reports.
Analysis: Lee has gone 0-for-6 with three strikeouts in the first two games of the season and will head to the bench for the series finale in Baltimore. Tristan Gray will take over at shortstop Sunday for the Twins. |
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Royce Lewis Royce Lewis Goes deep in Saturday's win
Sat, Mar 28, 2026, 7:12 PM
Lewis went 1-for-3 with a two-run home run and a walk in Saturday's 4-1 win over the Orioles.
Analysis: Lewis hit eighth in the order for the second straight game to open the season, but he provided the big hit for the Twins, driving a Kyle Bradish sinker over the left-field wall to give Minnesota a 3-1 lead in the fifth inning. Through two games, Lewis is 1-for-5 at the plate with the home run and walk. |
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Cole Sands Cole Sands Converts first save opportunity
Sat, Mar 28, 2026, 7:06 PM
Sands walked one and struck out two over a scoreless and hitless inning to earn the save in Saturday's 4-1 win over the Orioles.
Analysis: The Twins' closer competition was one to watch during spring training, and manager Derek Shelton called on Sands in the ninth inning for Minnesota's first save opportunity. The situation will likely remain fluid, but Sands appears to be the preferred choice out of the gates to begin the 2026 season. |
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Taj Bradley Taj Bradley Strikes out nine over 4.1 innings
Sat, Mar 28, 2026, 6:58 PM
Bradley allowed one run on three hits and three walks across 4.1 innings in Saturday's 4-1 win over the Orioles. He struck out nine.
Analysis: Bradley won a spot in the Twins' rotation over the spring and continued racking up the strikeouts against Baltimore. His fastball remained up compared to 2025, as he averaged 97.4 mph in Saturday's outing compared to 96.2 mph from a season ago. However, walks remained an issue, contributing to Bradley being unable to get deep enough into the game to factor into the decision. Bradley's next start should line up for Friday's home opener against Bradley's former Rays teammates. |
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Taylor Rogers Taylor Rogers Used in eighth inning
Thu, Mar 26, 2026, 10:06 PM
Rogers allowed one hit while striking out one over a scoreless inning in Thursday's 2-1 loss against Baltimore.
Analysis: Rogers was used in the eighth inning in a game the Twins were trailing 2-1. It was a high-leverage situation but Cole Sands was warming up in case the Twins tied the game or had a lead. Rogers may still figure into the closer mix, but manager Derek Shelton has said he's still figuring out his bullpen and roles will be determined by performance early in the season. |
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Austin Martin Austin Martin Bats leadoff
Thu, Mar 26, 2026, 9:56 PM
Martin went 1-for-3 with a stolen base in Thursday's loss against the Orioles. He started in left field and batted leadoff.
Analysis: It looks like Martin will bat leadoff against left-handed starters as he platoons in left field with James Outman or Trevor Larnach. Martin did make a mental error by throwing to the wrong base which led to a run, so he could be in the manger's doghouse in the short term. |
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