RHP Michael Tonkin  
Age on Opening Day 2026: 36 
Service Time: 5 years, 44 days.

2023 Salary: $750,000
2024 Salary: $1,000,000
2025 Salary: $1,000,000 
MLB Trade Rumor Estimate: $1.4 million

Background
A California native, the Twins drafted Michael Tonkin in the 30th round of the 2008 draft. His “claim to fame” at that point was being Jason Kubel’s brother-in-law. He has carved out a pretty solid career of his own to this point. He made his MLB debut with nine games in 2013. He pitched in 141 games (149 K in 146 1/3 innings) for the Twins from 2013 through 2018. 

In 2018, he pitched in Japan. He came back to the States in 2019 but pitched in a variety of cities and leagues. In 2019, he pitched for Long Island (Atlantic League), Reno (Diamondbacks) and Nashville (Brewers). Like most, he didn’t pitch in 2020. He returned to Long Island in 2021 but also pitched some for Tijuana in the Mexican League. He signed with the Braves in 2022 and pitched well for Triple-A Gwinnett. He was 5-2, had 16 saves, and dominated with 73 strikeouts and just 15 walks in 48 1/3 innings. He pitched in one game for Gwinnett in 2023 before making his return to the big leagues after five years out of the league. He pitched in 45 games for Atlanta and was 7-3 with a save in 80 innings.   

2024 was a transaction-filled season for Tonkin. He signed with the Mets in the offseason and pitched in three games before being DFAd. The Twins claimed him on April 9th. He gave up two runs over two innings in one game before the Twins DFAd him. The Mets claimed him and he pitched in back-to-back games against the Dodgers before they DFAd him again. The Yankees claimed him, and he made two appearances in April. That means that he pitched for four MLB teams in MLB games before the calendar turned to May. Fortunately, he was able to stick in The Bronx for a while. He gave up just two earned runs in MayHe gave up two earned runs in 13 appearances in June. He struggled in July and gave up runs in six of his 10 outings, but never more than two runs. In August, he pitched in seven games and gave up runs in four of them including three runs twice. The Yankees DFAd him near the end of August. The Twins were mid-collapse, so he pitched in 20 games for the Twins to end the season. Overall in 13 games for the Twins, he posted a 3.86 ERA. In 16 1/3 innings, he had seven walks and 22 strikeouts. Combined with his success with the Yankees, the Twins tendered him a contract for 2025, avoiding arbitration. 

2025 Season
Tonkin came to spring training and in March, he was diagnosed with a rotator cuff strain. He began a rehab assignment in late April but after just one game he was pulled off of the rehab assignment because of biceps tendinitis. He went on the 60-Day Injured List. A month later (early June), he returned to the Saints to continue his rehab. It wasn’t long before Tonkin came off of the IL and was DFAd. Unclaimed, he stayed with the Twins and continued pitching for the Saints. He began July with six games in which he went 8 1/3 innings and gave up no runs on one hit and two walks. He had 11 strikeouts. He was back. He made one more appearance in St. Paul before rejoining the big league club. Shortly after the trade deadline, he was thrown into more late-inning, high-leverage situations. He had a stretch of six games in mid-August in which he gave up no runs over 7 2/3 innings. In that stretch, he gave up no hits, walked three and struck out seven. It was a season of ups and downs. 

Twins 2025 Stats: 21 G, 24 IP, 20 H, 8 BB, 19 K, 4.88 ERA, 1.17 WHIP

Twins Depth at his Position (Right-Handed Relief Pitchers)
40-man roster: Travis Adams, David Festa, Thomas Hatch, Cody Laweryson, Pierson Ohl,  
Arbitration-Eligible: Cole Sands, Justin Topa, 
Triple-A: Marco Raya (40), Cory Lewis, Jarret Whorff, Matt Canterino, 
Double-A: Mike Paredes, Jacob Wosinski, Hunter Hoopes, John Stankiewicz, 

Summary: This is kind of a weird summary to write since an MLB bullpen will likely include eight relief pitchers, and one or two are left-handed, so there are options. The other thing to consider is Triple-A starters and young MLB guys could move to the bullpen and take a spot. So, this is certainly not a full list. Could David Festa and/or Zebby Matthews move to the bullpen? Could Connor Prielipp impress enough in spring training or early in the season to be considered for a bullpen job? The best story would be Matt Canterino being fully healthy and finally getting a 

Why the Twins Should Offer Him Arbitration
First and foremost, in today’s game, $1.4 million is not much money. While I can’t imagine anyone seeing Tonkin as a late-inning, high-leverage option at this point, Tonkin still has enough velocity and a solid sweeper when he is on. He can be a solid middle-innings innings eater who can also handle the stress of a tough situation and come back again. There is value in having a couple of veterans on a roster and in a bullpen. It may be even more important in what could be a difficult season in 2026. While the future may be for the 20 somethings, guys who throw harder and have a certain presence, having a guy who has been there and done that, seem ups and downs, and played in different environments around the world. Granted, you don’t necessarily pay a lot for those intangibles and experience, there is value in it. 

Why the Twins Should Non-Tender Him 
The Twins do have a lot of arms that could pitch in the big leagues in 2026. We saw several young pitchers make their debuts this year. Pitchers like Travis Adams, Pierson Ohl, and Cody Laweryson got their first taste of the big leagues in 2026. Depending on trade plans surrounding the current top starters, there could be enough starting pitchers that some couple be moved into the bullpen and get called up. Guys like Connor Prielipp and Marco Raya who had starts and innings and pitch limits could come up and pitch three innings twice a week or something. Could flamethrowers like Festa, Matthews, Bradley or Abel go the Varland Route and dominate out of the bullpen? With so many arms hopefully earning opportunities, it would be easy to say a guy like Tonkin could be non-tendered particularly if you don’t believe that player won’t be willing or able to share lessons learned and their experiences to help the young players. (There is unquantifiable value in that, no question!)  

Projection
Honestly, I think that the Twins should attempt to do with Tonkin what they did last year. It would appear that the Twins went to Tonkin and his representatives with a dollar value they were comfortable with. Last year that was $1 million. Maybe for 2026 that number can be $1 million to $1.15 million. It is enough that it’s worth the player taking, knowing if they’re non-tendered, they’re more likely to get a minor-league deal with nothing guaranteed. In addition, the Twins have used the tactic of signing a reliever each year to a deal maybe 25% over the league minimum. That way, the Twins can DFA him knowing that he isn’t likely to be claimed. They can get him to Triple-A and keep him pitching, ready to rejoin the big league club as needed. We’ve seen that in recent years with Jharel Cotton, Jay Jackson, and even Tonkin last year. 

If Tonkin isn’t willing to sign for the $1 million to $1.15 million offer, then I would non-tender him. I’d try to offer him a minor-league contract with a spring invitation, but he might get other offers. And, frankly, the Twins (and all other teams) will sign multiple pitchers to minor-league details that can fill a similar role.  

What do you think about Michael Tonkin, and his potential role in 2026? Consider his stats and your observations when watching him pitch, and his pitches, are there reasons they should keep him? Easy DFA? Work out some other agreement? What would you do?