Since the offseason officially began in early November, Minnesota Twins starting pitchers Pablo López and Joe Ryan have been two of the most speculated-about players in baseball, with many pundits predicting one or both of the frontline arms to be moved this winter. Reports from The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal have now downplayed the likelihood of López and/or Ryan being moved, but that doesn’t mean team decision-makers won’t part ways with their surplus starting pitching to fill roster holes. In fact, they should make a concerted effort to do just that.
After the frontline duo of López and Ryan, Minnesota’s rotation is projected to include Bailey Ober, Simeon Woods Richardson, and Taj Bradley. The quintet of Zebby Matthews, David Festa, Mick Abel, Andrew Morris, and Kendry Rojas could fill Triple-A St. Paul’s starting rotation, giving the club 10 major league-caliber (or at least promising) starting pitchers between the two levels. At the same time, the organization is deficient at multiple positions, with first base and the middle infield being the most glaring areas of need.
Instead of parting ways with one of their two frontline arms, the club would be wise to dip into its depth, trading Ober or one of their inexperienced, high-upside arms (like Matthews, Festa, or Abel) to fill holes on the position player side. The return packages Minnesota would receive for Ober, Woods Richardson, or one of their inexperienced arms would be meaningfully less exciting than what they could net for López or Ryan. Still, the club could find itself in a win-win scenario by trading one or more, adding much-needed talent and depth while clearing up the logjam at the back end of the rotation.
Ober, in particular, is an interesting trade chip, given that there are multiple avenues for Minnesota to extract value for him this offseason. The 30-year-old is expected to earn $4.6 million in arbitration, making him an enticing, low-cost veteran arm hoping to rebound from his worst season in the majors. Could the Twins swap him with the Baltimore Orioles for right-handed hitting first baseman Ryan Mountcastle, who also had a lackluster 2025 campaign? Certainly, though Minnesota would only do that if they can also get a secondary piece in the trade. Alternatively, the front office could flip Ober for multiple prospects, clearing roughly $5 million from the club’s payroll and providing them more spending flexibility. That money could go toward a position player like Miguel Andujar, Rhys Hoskins, or Isiah Kiner-Falefa, on a one-year contract.
Given that Woods Richardson, Bradley, Matthews, Festa, and Abel are pre-arbitration players set to earn the league minimum in 2026, trading them wouldn’t provide the same savings potential as trading Ober would. Instead, the intent of moving them would be to net similar value, with the club targeting cost-effective major league-ready position player talent. Minnesota could swap one of its young pitchers for a player like Boston Red Sox first baseman Triston Casas or Arizona Diamondbacks infielder Jordan Lawlar. New York Mets position players Mark Vientos and Luisangel Acuña are also intriguing names the Twins could pursue.
Starting pitching is Minnesota’s strength. The club has frontline talent under multiple seasons of control and a surplus of high-upside depth. Instead of parting ways with one of their top arms in López or Ryan, the club should instead dip into its depth, trading one or more of Ober, Woods Richardson, Bradley, Matthews, Festa, or Abel to address holes on the position player side. The Twins have the depth necessary to absorb the loss of one or more arms. Team decision-makers should make an effort to address their lack of well-rounded positional talent and increase their chances of making the postseason in 2026.