When the Twins packed up and headed north from spring training in March, there were still pressing questions about their bullpen. After the team dealt Jhoan Duran, Griffin Jax and Louie Varland at last summer’s trade deadline, a big one was who could step up and pitch high-leverage this season?
The Twins found one of the answers waiting in the wings in the Triple-A rotation, 24-year-old rookie Andrew Morris.
Minnesota Twins pitcher Andrew Morris wipes his face as he walks off the field during the fifth inning of a baseball game against the Kansas City Royals, Sunday, June 7, 2026, in Minneapolis. (Matt Krohn / Associated Press)
“When I caught him in spring training picking up a spot start, did I expect him to be throwing 100 (mph) out of our bullpen?” catcher Ryan Jeffers said. “Absolutely not, but it’s really cool to see. He’s an absolute bulldog.”
The Twins turned to Morris early in the season, calling him up on April 11, and he has filled a variety of roles since. At the beginning of the season, he was still stretched out and throwing multiple innings in each outing, and even started a couple of bullpen games. Lately, he has settled in nicely as a high-leverage option out of the ‘pen.
Entering Tuesday night’s game at Cleveland, Morris has not given up a run since June 10, a stretch that spans 18 innings over 16 games.
“Getting to experience everything, from being in Fenway and pitching in those moments and having (Taylor Rogers) come save me, to being able to just go out there and just get guys out and dominate … makes everything the next time feel more normal, I guess,” Morris said. “It’s good to be able to do everything and know that I’ve been in every situation possible for the most part.”
Entering Tuesday, Morris had posted a 3.26 earned-run average in 47 innings pitched. That’s the most innings from any Twins reliever, and his 36 appearances were tied for third with Eric Orze, who is not currently in the major leagues.
The Twins have converted a number of young starters into strong relievers in recent years — Duran, Jax, and Varland among them — and Morris could be the next success story.
“The thing we talked about with Andrew is the transition from being a starter, going from that four-day bulk thing in Triple-A, and then going into a major league bullpen was just learning how to do it,” manager Derek Shelton said. “We’ve seen the stuff play up. It’s just getting the reps. It’s getting continued leveraged situations, and he’s solidified himself in the back end of our bullpen.”
Morris and Yoendrys Gomez, who has 11 saves and a 1.65 ERA since being picked up in a minor trade with Tampa Bay in early May, have proved dependable at the back end of what has been a shaky bullpen.
What makes Morris well-suited for high leverage opportunities, Shelton said, is his “lack of heartbeat.” He doesn’t get too high or too low, the manager said, and all the changes thrown at him haven’t seemed to affect him much.
“It’s starting to feel normal, for sure,” Morris said. “It’s building confidence along the way. I feel like every day I’m still learning something, getting to learn from all these guys.”
Since the middle of June, Morris has primarily appeared in games from the seventh inning and later.
While he said he believes he’s ready to go all the time, no matter the situation, having some knowledge of when he might appear in a game does “kind of help me feel some consistency,” he said.
“Guys have started to grab ahold of identities, and he’s one of those guys that you want … on the mound. That’s one of those guys,” Jeffers said. “He’s been good.”