\n\tWith only ten days remaining until pitchers and catchers report to Fort Myers, the Minnesota Twins bullpen remains very much a work in progress. There are arms on hand, ideas on the table, and a front office that knows this group will not look the same on Opening Day as it does right now. What that final version becomes is still open for debate.\n<\/p>\n
\n\tGeneral manager Jeremy Zoll has been clear that the bullpen is the central focus as camp approaches, and the path to improvement is not limited to one obvious move.\n<\/p>\n
\n\tBuilding a Bullpen
\u201cFor sure, I think it\u2019s the most obvious area of need coming into the offseason,\u201d Zoll said. That acknowledgement sets the tone for everything else. The Twins know the bullpen needs help, and they know it cannot be solved by a single signing alone.\n<\/p>\n
\n\tZoll pointed to Taylor Rogers<\/a> as \u201ca step in that direction,\u201d but emphasized that help can arrive from multiple angles. \u201cHelp in that regard is going to come in all shapes and sizes,\u201d he said, whether that means \u201cmore major league signings,\u201d or working through \u201cthe NRI process and waiver claims and DFA trades.\u201d\n<\/p>\n \n\tThat creative approach has been a calling card for the organization before. Zoll noted that the Twins have \u201cshown the ability to build bullpens well in the past in creative ways and different ways.\u201d It is a reminder that the most effective relief groups are not always the most expensive ones. Configuration, opportunity, and internal development often matter just as much as name recognition.\n<\/p>\n \n\tStill a Goal to Add a Right-Handed Reliever \n\t\u201cI think that feels like the most obvious opportunity for us to find ways to raise the floor and improve the club,\u201d Zoll said. That phrasing matters. This is not just about chasing upside but about stability. After the bullpen turnover of last summer, Minnesota could use more certainty in the middle and late innings.\n<\/p>\n \n\tZoll also hinted that timing may work in the Twins’ favor. \u201cThe trade market is starting to open up more as some of the dominoes are falling across the rest of the league,\u201d he said. Whether that addition comes via free agency or trade remains unclear, but the next couple of weeks could provide more clarity as other teams finalize their plans.\n<\/p>\n \n\tStarters Tabbed for Relief Conversion \n\t\u201cDefinitely, internal conversations continue on that,\u201d Zoll said. What he was careful to emphasize is that nothing has been decided yet. The Twins have not told anyone that a move to relief is coming, and they are waiting to see how things unfold.\n<\/p>\n \n\tSeveral factors complicate that decision. Minnesota likes its starting depth, and with it being a World Baseball Classic year, there will be multiple starters heading to that tournament. Zoll acknowledged that \u201cthere\u2019ll be a number of innings available,\u201d and the club wants to avoid limiting itself too early if injuries pop up during camp. Some names to keep an eye on are Connor Prielipp<\/a> and Marco Raya<\/a>, who Derek Falvey mentioned by name earlier this winter.\u00a0\n<\/p>\n \n\tStill, the track record is there. Zoll referenced previous success stories like Griffin Jax<\/a> and Louis Varland<\/a>, noting that it remains an internal topic as the Twins continue to evaluate how best to deploy their arms.\n<\/p>\n \n\tWho Is the Team\u2019s Closer? \n\t\u201cI think it\u2019s a topic,\u201d Zoll said, while also pointing out that building bullpens continues to evolve. \u201cI think there’s a lot of different ways that you can get to having a successful \u2018pen, and also want to make sure we’re giving various guys opportunities to take that step forward.\u201d Rather than locking into a single name, the Twins want to see which pitchers take a step forward.\n<\/p>\n \n\tZoll mentioned Cole Sands<\/a> and Justin Topa<\/a> as pitchers who handled late-inning opportunities last season and remain very much in the mix. \u201cThink they can really contribute,\u201d he said, reinforcing the idea that the closer role could evolve naturally once the roster takes its final shape.\n<\/p>\n \n\tFor now, Zoll is not interested in rushing to label roles before the group is fully built. It will be \u201can ongoing discussion,\u201d and one that likely carries into camp itself.\n<\/p>\n \n\tAs spring training approaches, the Twins bullpen sits in a familiar place. There are questions, possibilities, and a front office confident that answers will come, even if they arrive later than fans might prefer.\n<\/p>\n \n\tIs this bullpen missing one final move, or will internal growth have to carry the group early in the season? Leave a comment and start the discussion.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"With only ten days remaining until pitchers and catchers report to Fort Myers, the Minnesota Twins bullpen remains…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":550497,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2388],"tags":[5,9707,38145,4576,822,60,3190,4,6922,148],"class_list":["post-550496","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-minnesota-twins","tag-baseball","tag-cole-sands","tag-jeremy-zoll","tag-justin-topa","tag-minnesota","tag-minnesota-twins","tag-minnesotatwins","tag-mlb","tag-taylor-rogers","tag-twins"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@mlb\/116001646161951611","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/550496","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=550496"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/550496\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/550497"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=550496"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=550496"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=550496"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
While creativity is important, there is still a very clear type of arm the Twins would like to add. A reliable right-handed reliever remains high on the list.\n<\/p>\n
One of the more interesting questions is whether any starters could eventually slide into bullpen roles. It is a topic the Twins have revisited successfully in the past.\n<\/p>\n
Perhaps the most unsettled question of all is who finishes games when the season begins. At the moment, there is no clear answer.\n<\/p>\n