{"id":455939,"date":"2025-12-01T16:05:11","date_gmt":"2025-12-01T16:05:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/455939\/"},"modified":"2025-12-01T16:05:11","modified_gmt":"2025-12-01T16:05:11","slug":"minnesota-twins-2026-opening-day-roster-projection-v-1-0-twins","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/455939\/","title":{"rendered":"Minnesota Twins 2026 Opening Day Roster Projection, v. 1.0 – Twins"},"content":{"rendered":"

\n\tThe Minnesota Twins have been somewhat active early this offseason, protecting six prospects from Rule 5 Draft eligibility; trading pitching prospect Jacob Kisting<\/a> to the Tampa Bay Rays for right-handed reliever Eric Orze<\/a>; and swapping Triple-A utility player Payton Eeles<\/a> for former Baltimore Orioles backup catcher Alex Jackson<\/a>. More moves should occur this offseason. Still, it’s vital to take note of where the club’s 26-man roster currently stands. Which players could form Minnesota’s 2026 Opening Day roster, if the season began tomorrow?\n<\/p>\n

\n\tCatchers (2): Ryan Jeffers<\/a>, Alex Jackson
Since 2023, catcher has been the easiest position to project for the Twins, with Jeffers and veteran backstop Christian V\u00e0zquez fixed in a 50\/50 split at the position. With V\u00e1zquez parting ways with the organization this offseason, team decision-makers elected to bring in a new veteran backstop to team with Jeffers.\n<\/p>\n

\n\tExpected to earn roughly $1.8 million in arbitration this offseason, Jackson is a much more cost-effective option than V\u00e1zquez, who was earning $10 million annually. At this stage of their respective careers, Jackson is a defensive upgrade from V\u00e0zquez. He has more pop in his bat, though the utility of that power is limited by a catastrophic 40.7% career strikeout rate. Jeffers will be a bellcow behind the plate for the first time in his career. As the sturdy backstop enters his final season of team control, the front office would be wise to lock him up<\/a>.\n<\/p>\n

\n\tInfielders (6): Kody Clemens<\/a>, Luke Keaschall<\/a>, Royce Lewis<\/a>, Brooks Lee<\/a>, Ryan Fitzgerald<\/a>, Edouard Julien<\/a>
As things stand, Minnesota’s primary infield configuration entering next season is clear-cut, with Clemens at first base, Keaschall at second, Lewis patrolling third, and Lee at shortstop. Team decision-makers could bring in a right-handed-hitting corner infielder like Miguel Andujar<\/a> or Rhys Hoskins<\/a> to pair with Clemens at first. Unless and until that happens, though, the club’s primary starting infield group is set.\n<\/p>\n

\n\tFitzgerald is penciled in as the backup shortstop and third baseman. Yet, the front office could elect to acquire a higher-upside option like Isiah Kiner-Falefa<\/a> or Jordan Lawlar<\/a>, pushing Fitzgerald back to the fringes of the 40-man roster. Julien could enter the season occasionally\u00a0mixing in at first base<\/a>, second base, and designated hitter. Still, given his poor performance at the plate and in the field the past two seasons, that spot on the roster is written in pencil, not pen.\n<\/p>\n

\n\tJulien is out of minor-league options, meaning the club would risk losing him on waivers if they elect not to award him a 26-man roster spot out of spring training. That risk shouldn’t stop the front office from scouring the trade market and free agency for an infielder with a higher offensive and defensive floor.\n<\/p>\n

\n\tOutfielders (5): Austin Martin<\/a>, Byron Buxton<\/a>, Matt Wallner<\/a>, Alan Roden<\/a>, Trevor Larnach<\/a>
James Outman<\/a> is a notable omission from this five-player corps.\u00a0The left-handed-hitting outfielder struggled in his brief stint with Minnesota, generating an alarming 52 wRC+ and 43.3% strikeout rate over 104 plate appearances. Outman is a viable defender at all three outfield positions. Still, given his significant offensive struggles over the past two seasons, I project the 28-year-old to be the odd player out of the Twins’ outfield crunch.\n<\/p>\n

\n\tGetting the nod over Outman, Roden could mix in at center (as Buxton’s backup) and right field, while forming a platoon in left<\/a> with Martin. Despite being listed as an outfielder, Larnach projects to be the club’s primary designated hitter against right-handed starting pitching. The left-handed-hitting veteran could be moved this offseason. Strangely, though, Minnesota appeared to hitch its wagon to Larnach for at least one more season after tendering him a 2026 contract, which (despite popular sentiment) is a sound decision. The 28-year-old has been an above-average hitter (111 wRC+ over 967 plate appearances) the past two seasons.\n<\/p>\n

\n\tWallner will enter the season as the club’s primary right fielder, hoping to regain his well-above-average 2023 and 2024 form at the plate. The husky Minnesotan could also mix in at designated hitter with Larnach. Despite recent trade rumors, Buxton is expected to remain the Twins’ center fielder, playing an integral role in their ability to (eventually) return to the postseason.\n<\/p>\n

\n\tStarting Rotation (5): Pablo L\u00f3pez<\/a>, Joe Ryan<\/a>, Bailey Ober<\/a>, Simeon Woods Richardson<\/a>, Taj Bradley<\/a>
Trade speculation will continue to swirl around L\u00f3pez and Ryan all winter. The two will form one of the AL’s best frontline duos as long as they remain with the organization. Ober is penciled in as Minnesota’s third starter, hoping to rebound from his second-least effective season as a major-league starting pitcher. This trio could give Minnesota one of baseball’s best rotations in 2026. Yet, questions surrounding roster status (L\u00f3pez and Ryan) and effectiveness (Ober) raise significant questions about whether that outcome will become a reality next season.\n<\/p>\n

\n\tWoods Richardson impressed late last season, posting a 3.52 ERA, 3.95 FIP, and a 38-to-11 strikeout to walk ratio over 30 2\/3 innings after the trade deadline. The 25-year-old has become a fixture in Minnesota’s starting rotation, earning the fourth spot entering next season while potentially developing into one of the club’s frontline arms if L\u00f3pez or Ryan are traded.\n<\/p>\n

\n\tIf Bradley wins the fifth and final spot in the club’s rotation, David Festa<\/a>, Zebby Matthews<\/a>, and Mick Abel<\/a> will likely enter 2026 as the club’s primary Triple-A starting pitching depth options, alongside Andrew Morris<\/a> and Kendry Rojas<\/a>. Bradley could still blossom into a frontline major-league arm, but he’ll need to refine his secondary pitches to reach that potential.\u00a0\n<\/p>\n

\n\tBullpen (8): Cole Sands<\/a>, Kody Funderburk<\/a>, Justin Topa<\/a>, Eric Orze, Connor Prielipp<\/a>, Pierson Ohl<\/a>, Marco Raya<\/a>, John Klein<\/a>
Those who follow the Twins won’t like hearing this, but the eight pitchers who form the club’s 2026 Opening Day bullpen might already be in the organization. Sands, Funderburk, Topa, and Orze are all but guaranteed spots entering next season. This quartet will likely earn most of the early-season high-leverage situations, with Sands being the primary closer. They should be closers by committee, with all four earning save opportunities.\n<\/p>\n

\n\tThe final four bullpen spots could be a smorgasbord of young, inexperienced arms. Derek Falvey named Prielipp and Raya as candidates to enter 2026 in the club’s bullpen. Ohl and his near-elite changeup impressed in short relief opportunities last season, giving him an inside track to an Opening Day relief role. The one surprise in this collective is Klein earning the final spot over Travis Adams<\/a>, but given Adams’s significant struggles in the majors last season and Klein’s superior stuff, Klein should have the inside track.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Minnesota Twins have been somewhat active early this offseason, protecting six prospects from Rule 5 Draft eligibility;…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":455940,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2388],"tags":[5,1391,2223,461,413,822,60,3190,4,1997,408,1252,148],"class_list":{"0":"post-455939","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-minnesota-twins","8":"tag-baseball","9":"tag-brooks-lee","10":"tag-byron-buxton","11":"tag-kody-clemens","12":"tag-luke-keaschall","13":"tag-minnesota","14":"tag-minnesota-twins","15":"tag-minnesotatwins","16":"tag-mlb","17":"tag-pablo-lopez","18":"tag-royce-lewis","19":"tag-ryan-jeffers","20":"tag-twins"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@mlb\/115645167900102960","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/455939","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=455939"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/455939\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/455940"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=455939"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=455939"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=455939"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}