As the offseason market churns, the most significant news for the Twins comes from moves that affect off-the-field dealings and less the ones that directly affect on-field competition. The club recently revealed further details about the limited partners purchasing minority interests in the club. Of course, the Pohlads stole the spotlight in that announcement by ousting brother Joe for brother Tom. 

On the field, the Twins have signed Josh Bell to bolster their lineup and replaced free agent Christian Vázquez with Alex Jackson via a trade with Baltimore. A lot of questions remain regarding the bullpen, but an early offseason trade to acquire Eric Orze from the Rays is the most significant relief pitcher addition to date. 

Instead of dwelling on the Twins’ needs, let’s turn to what the rest of the AL Central has done and what the Twins might be up against in 2026. 

Cleveland Guardians
In light of the news that the Guardians will certainly be without Emmanuel Clase and Luis Ortiz while both face federal charges related to rigging bets, the AL Central foes have spent most of their additions on bullpen arms. Shawn Armstrong will bring his veteran presence to Cleveland, after one of the best seasons of his career as he enters his age-35 season. 

Kolby Allard and Jakob Junis also represent depth arms that Cleveland will need to replace, either through other signings (like Connor Brogdon and Colin Holderman, whom they’ve also scooped up so far) or from within. Beyond the bullpen, this Cleveland team is currently slated to be the same one we saw last offseason, with familiar names like José Ramírez and Steven Kwan leading the offense. We must remember that this was a group good enough to win the division last season. 

Additions:

Signed RP Connor Brogdon to a 1-year deal. 2025 fWAR: -0.3

Signed RP Colin Holderman to a 1-year deal. 2025 fWAR: 0.1

Signed RP Shawn Armstrong to a 1-year deal. 2025 fWAR: 1.4

RP Justin Bruihl (acquired from Toronto). 2025 fWAR: 0.0

OF Stuart Fairchild (MiLB deal). 2025 fWAR: 0.0

Subtractions:

Still on the Board:

Chicago White Sox
The White Sox will hope to see many of their young players take the next step in 2026, but they have—if nothing else—added some intriguing names to their talent mix. Munetaka Murakami comes over from Japan on a two-year deal, in a bit of a surprise signing. Murakami could become another South Side power bat that the Twins will be forced to pay attention to. 

Sean Newcomb will add some desperately needed length to the White Sox rotation, which is slated to be led by last season’s Rule 5 pick, Shane Smith. Anthony Kay is a fellow left-handed starter who will come back to the States after a stint in Asia. The White Sox will hope that Kay’s 1.74 ERA over 155 innings will translate back to the United States, as it has for others before him making that same transition. 

Additions:

SP/RP Sean Newcomb to a 1-year deal. 2025 fWAR: 1.7

1B/3B Munetaka Murakami to a 2-year deal. 2025 fWAR: NPB

SP Anthony Kay to a 2-year deal. 2025 fWAR: NPB

SP/RP Chris Murphy (acquired from Boston) 2025 fWAR: -0.2

OF Everson Pereira (Acquired from Tampa Bay). 2025 fWAR: -0.5

Subtractions:

Still on the Board:

Losing Tyler Alexander and potentially Mike Tauchman will leave the White Sox with the biggest production voids. The team will only succeed if the young players develop, as the baseball world got a glimpse of last season. While the hill looks steep, it could prove unwise to completely overlook an offensive core of Chase Meidroth, Kyle Teel, and Colson Montgomery, now joined by Murakami. 

Detroit Tigers
For much of 2025, Detroit looked like the team to beat in the AL Central. There are still many reasons why they look that way going into 2026. Among all the trade rumors, Tarik Skubal is arguably one of the best starting pitchers in baseball and is still a Tiger. Gleyber Torres is returning to the team to maintain the middle of a formidable lineup, with Kerry Carpenter, Riley Greene, and Spencer Torkelson. 

On the pitching side, the Tigers have made some significant additions to their bullpen. Kenley Jansen is slated to take over the closer’s role as he chases 500 career saves. Kyle Finnegan will bring ample setup experience to deepen the Tigers’ bullpen. 

Additions:

RP Kenley Jansen to a 1-year deal. 2025 fWAR: 0.6

RP Kyle Finnegan to a 2-year deal. 2025 fWAR: 1.2

2B Gleyber Torres (accepted qualifying offer). 2025 fWAR: 2.6

SP/RP Drew Anderson to a 1-year deal. 2025 fWAR: KBO

Subtractions:

RP Chase Lee (traded to Toronto). 2025 fWAR: -0.1

SP Randy Dobnak (minor league deal with Seattle) 2025 fWAR: -0.1

RP Alex Lange (signed with Kansas City) 2025 fWAR: 0.0

RP Jason Foley (signed with San Francisco). 2025 fWAR: DNP

Still on the Board:

While the Tigers are certainly losing a lot of recognizable names, those names did not quite perform as hoped. Jansen and Finnegan bring some name recognition with them as well, and Detroit will hope they bring their 2025 production with them. 

Kansas City Royals
The Royals were initially viewed as a team with limited payroll flexibility heading into the offseason. That hasn’t stopped them from making some trades and deals, and specifically dealing from a place of depth: their pitching staff. Most of Twins Territory didn’t believe the Royals would be competitive last season, even after a series of signings. Unfortunately, they were competitive, and the Royals only seemed to strengthen themselves. Kansas City has added to its roster with the acquisition of lefty Matt Strahm (one of my favorite moves of the offseason) and outfielder Isaac Collins, both acquired via trade. 

Additions:

RP Matt Strahm (acquired from Philadelphia). 2025 fWAR: 1.5

RP Nick Mears (acquired from Milwaukee). 2025 fWAR: 0.5

OF Isaac Collins (acquired from Milwaukee). 2025 fWAR: 2.6

OF Lane Thomas to a 1-year deal. 2025 fWAR: -0.5

RP Alex Lange to a 1-year deal. 2025 fWAR: 0.0

OF Kameron Misner (acquired from Tampa Bay). 2025 fWAR: 0.3

SP Mason Black (acquired from San Fransisco). 2025 fWAR: -0.1

C Salvador Perez re-signed to 2-year deal. 2025 fWAR: 0.5 

Subtractions:

Still on the Board:

Mike Yastrzemski certainly represented value as a solid MLB regular last season, so losing him shouldn’t be entirely overlooked. At the same time, the Royals look ready to reload in the outfield and should continue to compete for the AL Central. Not to mention, there still seems to be steam around a desire to acquire outfielder Jarren Duran from the Boston Red Sox. 

What do these division moves mean for the Twins?
Clearly, some AL Central foes have strengthened themselves, while the Twins haven’t done much. The AL Central does continue to be the AL Central. With the Twins still having a strong starting pitching core, they should be able to put themselves in a position to compete throughout the season, as none of the division teams have seemed to separate themselves from the rest of the pack.Â