Left-handed pitcher Connor Prielipp, who potentially could help fill a large void in the 2026 bullpen, is one of six prospects the Twins added to their 40-man roster on Tuesday evening.

The team’s 2025 minor-league pitcher of the year, Prielipp, will attend his first big-league camp in February alongside pitchers Kendry Rojas, Andrew Morris, and John Klein, and outfielders Hendry Mendez and Gabriel Gonzalez, each of whom was also added to the 40-man roster before Tuesday’s 5 p.m. deadline.

The Twins also added immediate bullpen help when they acquired reliever Eric Orze from the Tampa Bay Rays in exchange for minor-league pitcher Jacob Kisting on Tuesday evening.

Eligible prospects who weren’t added to the 40-man roster are now available to be selected by any teams in next month’s Rule 5 Draft.

Ozre posted a 3.02 ERA while striking out 40 in 41 2/3 innings for Tampa Bay in 33 games last season.

But Derek Falvey made it clear last week at the general managers meetings in Las Vegas that the Twins are excited about Prielipp, who combined for 98 strikeouts in a career-high 82 2/3 innings last season between Double A and Triple A.

Along with current big leaguers Travis Adams and Pierson Ohl, Falvey identified Prielipp and Triple-A pitcher Marco Raya as two possibilities to assume multiple vacancies in a bullpen that was decimated by the trades of five relievers at the July 31 trade deadline.

Orze, 28, features an elite changeup and posted a 3.02 ERA while striking out 40 in 41 2/3 innings for Tampa Bay in 33 games last season.

“I am excited about some of the arms we have at Triple A and Double A over the last couple of years that while they haven’t always hit their stride as starters, they might have an ability to impact us in different ways,” Falvey said last week. “I’d hate to put too much pressure on any of them, but you see Connor Prielipp throw the way he can at times, you see Marco Raya throw the way he has. … I’m excited about that group in aggregate and we’re going to figure out how to make it all work together.”

The Twins selected Prielipp, a Tomah, Wisc native, with the 48th overall pick in the 2022 amateur draft while drafting Raya in the fourth round of the abbreviated 2020 draft.

Raya, who was added to the 40-man roster a year ago, struck out 102 batters in a career-high 98 2/3 innings last season but struggled with control at St. Paul, walking 57 batters and posting a 6.02 ERA.

Prior to Tuesday’s additions, the Twins’ 40-man roster stood at 30, with Cole Sands and Justin Topa boasting the most relief experience in the group. Ohl and Adams each debuted after the trade deadline last season, pitching in a variety of roles, including making several spot starts each.

With a large collection of starters already at the majors and several more in the high minors, the Twins potentially are looking to convert some of those pitchers to relief.

“When you look across the game at good bullpens that emerge from within, a lot of them are starters that transitioned,” Falvey said. “We ourselves had multiple of those, whether it’s Griffin Jax or Jhoan Duran or others that came through our system as starters. I wouldn’t expect that to be any different. There are a couple of guys in our system right now that might be swingmen, might be starters that may fit better in a one-inning role, or one-to-two inning role.”

Though he was drafted in 2022, Prielipp has accrued only 112 2/3 innings pitched as a pro because of health issues. Prielipp, who had Tommy John surgery in 2021 at Alabama, missed most of the 2023 season and part of 2024 after surgeons repaired his ulnar collateral ligament with an internal brace.

Acquired in the trade that sent Louis Varland to Toronto, Rojas is a big left-handed arm the Twins are excited about, despite his struggles at Triple A after arriving in August.

The Twins also acquired Mendez at the deadline in a deal that shipped Harrison Bader to Philadelphia. Late in the season, the Twins floated the idea of moving Mendez, who produced an .891 OPS in 23 plate appearances at the Arizona Fall League, from the outfield to first base.

A top-100 prospect when he was acquired from Seattle in the Jorge Polanco trade, Gonzalez, 21, had a breakout year. The outfielder batted .329/.395/.513 with 15 home runs and 38 doubles across three levels, finishing the season at Triple-A St. Paul.

Following a slow start to the season, Morris, who was invited to big league camp this past spring, posted a 3.45 ERA with 29 strikeouts and only four walks in 31 1/3 innings for St. Paul after he returned from a forearm injury in August.

Last week, The Athletic’s Aaron Gleeman wrote about Klein, an undrafted Minnesota native who had a breakout season between Wichita and St. Paul, striking out 128 batters in 106 1/3 innings. “Klein has added strength to his 6-foot-5 frame and velocity to what is now a mid-90s fastball fronting a five-pitch mix. While not a high-profile prospect, Klein is still only 23 years old, and his stock-raising season no doubt caught plenty of opposing scouts’ eyes.”

Among the prospects the Twins exposed to next month’s Rule 5 draft is outfielder Kala’i Rosario, who had a monster season at Double-A Wichita. Despite a big strikeout total, Rosario hit 30 doubles, 25 homers and stole 32 bases while producing at a .256/.358/.487 clip.