MN Twins Tab Two Veterans for Key 2026 Starting Roles

Last summer the Minnesota Twins went scorched earth at the trade deadline. Ownership ordered a selloff of massive proportions, and it left Rocco Baldelli with a skeleton of a roster.

Now, the organization is headed towards a payroll shy of $100 million for the first time since 2014 and they’re looking for all the bargain bin deals they can find, both from inside and outside the organization. In other words, the expectation for “open” roster spots in 2026 is little more than a warm body.

Of course, Ryan Jeffers clears that by quite a bit, especially off an impressive 2025. Kody Clemens, on the other hand, does not. Either way, it appears both are ticketed for serious playing time this season, under new manager Derek Shelton.

Ryan Jeffers to get more time behind Minnesota Twins dish

When the MN Twins season ended back in September, Christian Vazquez saw his three-year, $30 million deal come to an end. To fill his backup role to Jeffers, president Derek Falvey traded for veteran catcher, Alex Jackson.

Jeffers started 80, 81 and 73 games behind the plate the past three seasons, splitting time evenly with Vázquez. Presumably, the 2026 plan is for Jeffers to start 100-plus games, with Jackson — projected to make $1.8 million via arbitration — taking the remaining 50 or so. Jeffers could also be a trade candidate ahead of his walk year.

Aaron Gleeman – The Athletic

During the recent general managers’ meetings, Twins president Derek Falvey made it clear Jeffers would handle the bulk of the catching duties: “We’ll intend for him to take down a lot of the games,” a message the veteran said is music to his ears.

Dan Hayes – The Athletic

Asking Ryan Jeffers to play 100-plus games behind the dish is a big jump from what he is used to. He has played in 119 and 122 games the past two seasons respectively, but only 80 and 81 of those games came as the starting catcher.

Minnesota remained relatively steadfast that splitting time, despite Vazquez owning just a 57 OPS+, was the most straightforward way to keep Jeffers’ production up.

He batted .266/.356/.397 last season, and the .490 slugging percentage from 2023 was nowhere to be seen. It remains questionable if a larger workload won’t simply sap his output even further.

Cody Clemens is (probably) your 2026 MN Twins first baseman

Unfortunately, the answers at first base aren’t as obvious, after the Twins traded Gold Glove winning first baseman Ty France and lack funds to find a suitable replacement.

Cody Clemens was a waiver claim after being dumped by the Philadelphia Phillies. His 91 OPS+ in 112 games was a career high. However, he had just a .482 OPS lefties with a .782 OPS against righties wasn’t exactly earth-shattering either.

Dan Hayes and Aaron Gleeman of The Athletic believe Shelton already has his first baseman on the 40-man roster, in Clemens, even after his lackluster performance at the plate in 2025, when given regular playing time.

My assumption coming into the offseason was that adding a good veteran bat at first base would be a priority, but instead, Falvey has indicated the job might be Clemens’ to lose…If the Twins aren’t even going to be in the market for a mid-tier free-agent first baseman — along the lines of, say, Carlos Santana two years ago — then that’s a pretty strong indication they’re not serious about investing in the roster. 

Aaron Gleeman – The Athletic

It’s a relative assumption that the MN Twins aren’t interested in putting their best foot forward this season. Using Clemens as an every day first baseman would be completely indicative of that. Also, Edouard Julien is a lefty as well, negating any platoon option there.

Bullpen could see young faces round out roles

There is next to nothing left for the Minnesota Twins bullpen after the trade deadline. It’s the most important and necessary place for Derek Falvey to rebuild this offseason.

Thankfully for him, it’s also a relatively cheap area to make additions. That doesn’t stop either Hayes or Gleeman from opining that young arms may fill key roles.

Prielipp and Raya were identified by Falvey as bullpen options earlier this month, and you can see the upside, but both will face big learning curves.

Dan Hayes – The Athletic

It makes sense for both Prielipp and Raya to be involved in the Twins bullpen this season. The former has struggled to stay healthy, but turned in 82 2/3 innings this season and had 98 strikeouts.

Raya flopped in a massive way this season and his starting prospects could be all but gone. Despite being at Triple-A, he owned a 6.02 ERA and had 57 walks to his 102 strikeouts.

Both players realistically look like upside plays in the bullpen. If things settle in right, they could eventually move their way back into starting plans.

What all of these situations add up to though, is a franchise looking to cut the closest corners for the cheapest figure imaginable.