Injured MN Twins Starters Nearing Return, Including Pablo Lopez…

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Zebby Matthews, Minnesota Twins
Credit: Ed Szczepanski-Imagn Images

It’s looking more and more likely that the Minnesota Twins will stand pat at the trade deadline. There are just two weeks left before Derek Falvey must make any final decisions, however. So with the team sitting at 47-49, anything is still possible.

The last few deadlines, Minnesota has opted against making any substantive deadline moves, which has left players in the clubhouse frustrated. This time around, the team is underachieving and chasing a wild card spot aggressively may be foolish.

Minnesota Twins expecting to get healthier very soon…

At the same time, the impending change in ownership and questions surrounding the future of the front office makes it unlikely that they’ll go into full-sell mode, either. And a look just down the road, shows a team that should continue to get healthier, especially in their starting rotation.

Pablo Lopez, Minnesota Twins
Credit: Erik Williams-USA TODAY Sports

Since the beginning of June, the MN Twins’ rotation has been without Pablo Lopez and Zebby Matthews, who suffered separate shoulder injuries during a series in Sacramento. About a month later, a struggling Bailey Ober joined them on the injured list with hip pain.

According to recent reporting out of The Athletic, by Dan Hayes, all three pitchers are on the road back to the active roster, some sooner than others. Also expected to join the fray soon, is infielder Luke Keaschall, who broke his arm on a HBP in May, after a flaming one-week start to his MLB career.

Zebby Matthews joining the Twins rotation first

It shouldn’t be a shock that Zebby Matthews is nearing a return for the Minnesota Twins, immediately out of the All-Star break. He threw a rehab game for the St. Paul Saints on Sunday, and absolutely punished the Triple-A hitters he faced for four innings. (1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 9 K).

“The current situation is a crapshoot, though Zebby Matthews’ performance at Triple A on Sunday offers encouragement. Matthews struck out nine in four scoreless innings, which leads one to believe he’ll return to the majors soon.”

Dan Hayes – The Athletic

As of Thursday, the Minnesota Twins are yet to set their probable starters for the upcoming three-game series in Colorado, which begins Friday. It’s possible Matthews is in their plans, and it wouldn’t surprise me if the Twins utilize long-reliever Travis Adams, in a piggyback spot, to give Zebby some training wheels for his return start.

Adams has taken two turns with an opener for Rocco Baldelli. Across eight innings he has allowed seven runs (six earned) on 11 hits. His last time out, a four inning appearance Pittsburgh, Adams earned the win, allowing just two runs (one earned).

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Matthews has hardly been a sure thing for the Twins this season. He has a 5.21 ERA (3.08 FIP) in four starts (19 innings), but his last start was his best one.

But from a pure stuff standpoint, Zebby might be the most talented pitcher in the rotation, toting a 97-98 MPH fastball with pinpoint precision and and nasty offspeed stuff that keeps hitters guessing, when he is right.

Bailey Ober and Luke Keaschall starting rehab assignments

Unlike Matthews, Bailey Ober has had just a minimal stay on the injured list. Dealing with hip discomfort that resulted in a 9.00 ERA across 30 innings in June, Ober pitched terribly. The Twins continued to run him out to the mound, suggesting mechanical tweaks were necessary. They finally gave in, and Hayes is reporting the hip issue has now finally cleared up.

“With his hip inflammation resolved, Bailey Ober is throwing bullpen sessions and won’t need much time, either. Still, it wouldn’t be surprising to see Ober make one rehab start since he and the Twins spent the last week trying to clean up mechanical flaws in his delivery.” – Dan Hayes

Ober will make that rehab start on Friday, and he’s being joined by rookie infielder Luke Keaschall.

It will be very interesting to see what Ober looks like. If the velocity and stuff still look diminished, it will be difficult to trust the Twins assessment that he can be competitive the rest of the way. Keaschall is more straightforward as imaging clearly suggests his broken forearm is healed.

Minnesota got just a seven-game sample size from Keaschall before a hit by pitch stopped his hot streak. He went 7-for-19 with three doubles, five stolen bases, and a 2/5 K/BB. If that level of production rejoins the offense the the lineup will be better for it. Keaschall suffered his forearm fracture at the end of April and was looking to get comfortable back in the box last week.

Royce Lewis, Willi Castro, and Brooks Lee are all healthy now. That presumably takes some options away from Keaschall. That said, he could spend time all over the infield, including first base as a better platoon partner with Kody Clemens than Ty France has been.

No matter what, if Keaschall and Ober are healthy and look ready to produce, the Minnesota Twins will find room.

Pablo Lopez planning to pitch through injury for MN Twins

Of those pitchers hurt, no injury is more significant than ace Pablo Lopez. The shoulder strain is the same injury that ended Joe Ryan’s season last year. The timeline presented was 8-12 weeks, but Lopez won’t have additional time to get back to 100%.

“I have to be smart about it. That doesn’t mean that you’re not going to be able to throw with an MRI showing a little bit of something. And that’s also when I have to be honest, be like, ‘Hey, I feel like I can push myself.’ Now, it’s like I know that I can still perform while my body continues to do its thing and heal.”

Pablo Lopez

The reality that Lopez won’t return in a full capacity this year is tough to swallow. Even with the extended time off, he’ll be pushing himself to work through different levels of hesitation. Lopez is extremely intelligent and knows his body very well. What level of competitiveness he can provide could go a long ways to determining Minnesota’s yearly outcome.

Lopez is having the best season of his career. With a 2.82 ERA (2.98 FIP) and 61/14 K/BB across 60 2/3 innings, it’s almost a guarantee he would have been an All-Star if healthy. That’s why the Minnesota Twins want him back. The part they have to weigh is at what cost it comes.

That’s probably where Lopez’s knowledge of himself comes in. With the ability to see imaging at any point, it Minnesota will be heavily reliant upon the feedback that Lopez provides. He’ll need to be real with himself, and upfront about his capacity as well.

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A quality arm at the level that Lopez is will be far-and-away more impactful than anything the Twins can do at the trade deadline. They don’t need him to feel as though he must shoulder that load, literally and figuratively, however.

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