The Minnesota Twins will have more money to spend this off-season than previously anticipated, but the payroll is still not expected to exceed $115 million for the 2026 season. The Twins have already spent $7 million by signing first baseman Josh Bell to a one-year deal on Tuesday, leaving just around $15 million to spend in free agency.
Now that they have an everyday first baseman, their next priority is to fill the vacancies in their bullpen. With $15 million still available to spend in their free agent budget, the Twins could sign two to three relievers with well-established high-leverage experience.
Here are three names the Twins can now afford to pursue to bolster their bullpen.
A name that has been floated around as an ideal reliever target for the Twins this offseason, Shawn Armstrong was one of the most dominant arms in the Texas Rangers’ bullpen in 2025. He made 71 relief appearances and pitched to a 2.31 ERA, 0.81 WHIP, along with a 26.1% strikeout rate and 7% walk rate over 74 innings of work.
Armstrong was also in the top 90th percentile for expected ERA (2.98) and expected opponents’ batting average (.203). He doesn’t throw the hardest fastball in the game, averaging 93.8 MPH last year. Still, opposing batters had trouble hitting off it with a .167 batting average on the season over 76 plate appearances.
Armstrong is one of the ideal candidates the Twins could land within their price range this offseason. He only earned $1.125 million with the Rangers in 2025, but he will get a pay bump after such a dominant season. Even if they offer him a one-year, $5 million deal, Armstrong is one reliever the Twins should not pass up on now that they have more money to spend.
Taylor Clark missed most of 2024 due to knee surgery and a toe injury, and only pitched for the Brewers’ Triple-A affiliate. However, returned to the Kansas City Royals with a bounce-back performance last year.
Clarke was a stable force in the Royals’ bullpen for 2025, pitching to a 3.25 ERA, 0.85 WHIP, 21.4% strikeout rate, and a most impressive 4.4% walk rate over 51 relief appearances. The low walk rate put Clarke in the 97th percentile in the league, making him a valuable candidate to pursue when Pierson Ohl is the only reliever on the Twins roster who had a walk rate below 6.8%.
Clarke only earned $1.25 million in 2025, so he will come relatively cheap compared to the other names on this list. Clarke will undoubtedly earn himself a raise in 2026, especially with the low walk rate. Any team in need of bullpen upgrades will want a pitcher of Clarke’s caliber to hold down the strike zone.
A journeyman over the last three seasons, Jacob Webb has been a stable, high-leverage reliever for the Los Angeles Angels, Baltimore Orioles, and Texas Rangers. Webb pitched in 55 games over 2025 with the Rangers and had an even 3.00 ERA, 21.7% strikeout rate, 7.1% walk rate, and 1.03 WHIP over 66 innings of relief.
The Rangers often used Webb in a long relief role with a few high-leverage opportunities mixed in between. Webb pitched poorly in April and May, pitching to a 5.26 ERA over 25 ⅔ innings.
However, Webb was dominant the rest of the season, with a 1.56 ERA over 40 ⅓ innings from June on. Webb dealt with back spasms that caused him to miss nearly a month from late July through August, but he finished the season without further injury issues.
Webb only earned $1.25 million last year and is still eligible for his third year of arbitration salary with whatever team signs him. Along with his standard numbers, Webb is also strong at inducing weak contact from opposing hitters. His average exit velocity of 86.6 puts him in the top 95th percentile in baseball, indicating he could pitch late innings for the Twins next year.