With the ownership situation still unresolved, no definitive word on payroll and several enticing veteran players left on the roster after last season’s teardown, the Minnesota Twins have become an MLB-wide trending topic for the hot stove since the offseason began.

But on Friday, The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal reported that the Twins intend to hang onto their star players — Byron Buxton, Joe Ryan and Pablo López — and build around them for 2026.

Rosenthal’s report is the opposite of the majority of Twins rumors reported over the past month, most of which speculated they would trade López and/or Ryan, each with two seasons left before free agency, to cash them in for younger talent with an eye on the future.

From there, further speculation was that once the Twins took the step of trading front-line pitching, it would then be logical that Buxton, who wants to play for a winning team, would inform the front office he was willing to waive his no-trade clause.

Following Rosenthal’s report and the possible shift in the Twins’ presumed offseason plan, The Athletic’s Dan Hayes and Aaron Gleeman discuss what it could mean in the bigger picture ahead of the Winter Meetings, which begin Monday in Orlando, Fla.

Hayes: Aaron, I know a lot of fans in Twins Territory are surprised by this report. Everyone on social media has believed the opposite would happen and is still preparing for it. Admittedly, I’ve been on the fence. The tricky nature of the ongoing ownership situation (more on that in a bit) made me skeptical the Twins would be able to start building toward being competitive.

But team president Derek Falvey has been adamant this is the direction he wants to go since the general managers’ meetings in Las Vegas last month. With a new manager in place, Falvey wants to best support Derek Shelton by giving him a strong starting rotation. I believed Falvey when he said it, I just wasn’t sure what orders he’d eventually receive from the Pohlads.

What’s your takeaway on this and the other reports we’ve recently seen?

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Byron Buxton records the first @Twins cycle since 2019 and the first cycle at Target Field! pic.twitter.com/x4RWPNIMpf

— MLB (@MLB) November 25, 2025

Gleeman: To the surprise of no one, I will express a general level of skepticism about the Twins beginning the season with Buxton, Ryan and López on the roster. I’m not doubting the reporting or that the front office would prefer to keep all three players, but early December proclamations aren’t exactly set in stone, and I’m certain other teams won’t stop calling.

But let’s assume for a moment the Twins do keep Buxton, Ryan and López. They would still need substantial help for, among other things, the gutted bullpen and at least one or two quality hitters to boost a lineup that has struggled since mid-2024. Keeping the trio is a good thing, but far less so if the front office is unwilling or unable to surround them with more talent on the roster.

And that’s where everything reverts to ownership, again. Given that the current payroll is about $95 million — compared to $135 million in 2025 and 2024 — the front office should have lots of spending room to bring in that help. But if, as feared, the Pohlads cut payroll again, it will be hard to add substantial pieces without also subtracting salaries.

You mentioned the Twins want to start “building toward being competitive.” And that’s great. But keeping three players they already had isn’t building. It’s just not tearing more down. Coming off a 92-loss season, the goal shouldn’t be to keep the same roster. More talent is needed and several big holes need filling. But that will require a lot more spending, of which I’m extremely skeptical.

According to Rosenthal, the Twins are saying they have “mild flexibility to make additions.”

Hayes: The “mild flexibility” to add is different language from a month ago, when no certainty was attached to their hope. It feels as if there have been some assurances that they can proceed forward and add an undetermined amount of payroll.

Team sources are indicating the partial sale of the club, with limited partners joining the Pohlads, remains on track to be finalized before the year ends, which tracks with what MLB commissioner Rob Manfred said last month.

Still, skepticism is healthy. The Twins will continue to listen to offers, as they always do, because it’s a smart practice. If some team offered them a lopsided trade that immediately helps them in multiple big-league spots, they should probably make that deal.

We have to assume they have a little money, but we’ll never get a number pinned down. Last offseason, Falvey convinced ownership to sign off on a modest sum ($10 million) to add Harrison Bader, Danny Coulombe and Ty France. I wouldn’t be surprised if they moved around some of the money on the roster to be able to add more. But it’s all a tricky endeavor.

Let’s say they traded Trevor Larnach and Bailey Ober and reallocated $9 million. If you had $15-25 million to spend, how would you direct those resources?

Gleeman: I wrote a pair of articles last month, highlighting the inexpensive free-agent hitters and free-agent pitchers the Twins could/should target. There are a few more names I’d add to the lists among the 66 players who have since been non-tendered, so the pool is even deeper now.

If given roughly $20-$25 million to spend, I’d aim for two setup-caliber relievers and a first baseman who can plug into the middle of the lineup. I think that’s doable, and it would at least address the most glaring roster weaknesses for which they lack in-house options. Of course, having to trade a starter like Ober just to have room to spend under a $110 million payroll would be disheartening.

Career save No. 450 for Kenley Jansen!

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— MLB (@MLB) April 9, 2025

I’d look to target one right-handed reliever such as Kenley Jansen, Tyler Rogers, Kyle Finnegan, Shawn Armstrong or Pierce Johnson, and one left-hander such as Taylor Rogers, Caleb Ferguson, Gregory Soto, Caleb Thielbar or Coulombe. That shouldn’t cost more than $10-$15 million.

And then with the remaining $10 million or so, I’d look to add the best possible bat from a group that includes Josh Bell, Nathaniel Lowe, Rhys Hoskins, Paul Goldschmidt, Miguel Andujar and Austin Hays. (And there are plenty of similar trade options, for hitters and relievers, too.)

To be clear, I think that’s basically the least the Twins can do and claim to be trying to surround Buxton, Ryan and López with a competitive roster. Add a couple of good relievers and a solid bat, and maybe I could begin to see an 80-something win team if I squint. And if it all must fit under a $110 million payroll, it’s going to be very hard to be in a better position than that.

I’ll flip it back to you with the same question. Assume they keep the star trio and have only $20-$25 million or so in spending ability, however they get there. What would you be looking to do?

Hayes: My priorities would be a right-handed “best bat out there” who could complement Kody Clemens at first base, one reliever, and then I’d want to add someone who can handle shortstop.

I liked what I heard from Falvey about Brooks Lee improving defensively by working on lateral movement. That seems actionable and realistic. Lee was slightly below average on Statcast for range. They don’t need him to be a ton better. What they need is for him to hit better and more consistently to justify his neutral range. Yet, I’d still want an option to step in, especially with the injury histories of Lee, Royce Lewis and Luke Keaschall.

Your bullpen would be more certain than mine. But I think one reality for this team is it’s going to need young players to step up, and I like the chances of Connor Prielipp or Marco Raya making that leap more immediately than another shortstop on the 40-man — even if I liked what Ryan Fitzgerald brought last year.

Connor Prielipp with the @WindSurgeICT yesterday:

3.2 IP / 3 H / 2 R / 0 BB / 6 K #MNTwins pic.twitter.com/CYxglJ8vdD

— Twins Player Development (@TwinsPlayerDev) May 22, 2025

I don’t know if any of this is realistic with payroll. Maybe Falvey can convince ownership that there are bargains to be had and they can reach $120 million. But once again, this all seems like a lot of work to get to 80-something projected wins. Even though I believe they want to keep their guys, I still wonder if a trade offer comes along that helps them solve multiple issues and forces their hand.

Gleeman: My worry is that keeping Buxton, Ryan and López without doing much more than the bare minimum to surround them with an improved roster might just be delaying the inevitable. It’s a half-measure, stuck between competing and rebuilding.

Instead of trading them now, the Twins would seemingly be setting up a scenario in which they take a crack at competitiveness in the first half and, if that fails, go into fire sale mode for the second straight trade deadline. At that point, no one would be able to deny it’s a rebuild with a straight face.

Is that better than ripping off the Band-Aid now? Sure, in that it comes with some chance of a winning first half that would eliminate the need to trade away the best veterans on the team. But it’s also not likely to be a very good chance, because the Twins will probably need more help than a $110 million payroll could provide.

I’ll always sign up for the chance to watch more Byron Buxton, though.