Since, things have gone back downhill. The New York Yankees nearly swept Minnesota, and the Detroit Tigers are on the verge of mopping them up in a four-game series sweep. Rocco Baldelli has plenty of fresh faces, and he’ll get another one on Sunday.

Alan Roden was placed on the injured list with James Outman (acquired for Brock Stewart) taking his roster spot Saturday. The thumb injury was something we speculated could be significant, and that’s now proven true.

Genesis Cabrera promoted to MN Twins

With Roden’s thumb injury being a long-term issue, as was the case for Minnesota Twins prospect Emmanuel Rodriguez, his season ends as he now moves to the 60-day injured list. That allowed for Minnesota to select the contract of recently signed pitcher Genesis Cabrera.

We have made the following roster moves: pic.twitter.com/QQUMb8h9qr

— Minnesota Twins (@Twins) August 17, 2025

The 28-year-old is a big league veteran with seven seasons of big league experience. Once he hits the diamond for the MN Twins, he’ll have played for four different teams this summer alone.

Across 28 major league innings in 2025, Cabrera owns a 5.79 ERA (5.65 FIP). He has allowed a whopping seven home runs, which has been at the crux of his ineffectiveness. Cabrera also has just a 22/7 K/BB.

Serviceable for the Cardinals and Blue Jays last season, Cabrera posted a 4.04 ERA (4.44 FIP) in 55 2/3 innings. He carried a 9.4 K/9 and allowed just a total of eight home runs in that span. It’s possible Minnesota thinks they can get that sort of production from him down the stretch.

Related: Injury Forces Twins to Swap Out Traded Outfielders

Travis Adams was moved off the 26-man roster to accommodate Cabrera. He has a 7.71 ERA (5.90 FIP) across 23 1/3 innings. Adams pitched on Saturday and threw 1 1/3 innings allowing one run and four walks against the Tigers.

Roden’s rookie season ends after 55 big league games. He posted a .191/.261/.294 line with two home runs and a 37/8 K/BB. He will compete for a corner outfield spot amongst a crowded MN Twins group next spring.

Where are the top acquired starters?

Genesis Cabrera is just the latest arm tasked with giving the Twins more length out of the bullpen. Of course, if they just used a rotation of capable starters, it may not be necessary to rifle through new long relievers every few days.

Yes, both Simeon Woods Richardson and Pablo Lopez are hurt and working their way back. But neither newcomers, Taj Bradley or Mick Abel, are hurt. The tandem was acquired at the trade deadline, have already pitched at the big league level, and are seemingly a big part of Minnesota’s future.

Yet… they’re in St. Paul. And while Bradley has not been very good for the Saints, coughing up seven runs on 16 hits in just 10 2/3 innings. The same can’t be said about Abel, a former MLB closer and Phillies top 100 prospect, who owns a 1.76 ERA across 15 1/3 innings, plus a 23/6 K/BB to boot.

Mick Abel’s three AAA starts since joining the Twins from the Jhoan Duran trade: 15.1 IP, 7 H, 3 R, 6 BB, 23 K, 1.76 ERA. pic.twitter.com/QazduwBuSr

— Bobby Nightengale (@nightengalejr) August 17, 2025

There’s no reason for Minnesota to be holding Abel down in St. Paul when their rotation could be a proving ground for his future success. It’s not service time related with Abel as he has roughly 31 days, and would not hit the 172 necessary to lose a year by the end of the season.

Although he pitched on Saturday for St. Paul, the plan could have easily been for him to assume Sunday’s vacant rotation spot for Minnesota. The severity of Roden’s injured thumb didn’t change overnight.

Related: Traded Minnesota Twins Reliever Carted Off Field

Still, as the Twins continue to roll out a depleted starting rotation, they put band-aids on a bullet hole by cycling through dart throws in the bullpen. Abel is showing he’s ready. Hopefully someone listens soon.

Alan Roden was the only player acquired immediately added to the active roster. The rookie outfielder from the Toronto Blue Jays played left field and factored into multiple spots in Minnesota’s lineup.

Unfortunately Roden initially hurt his thumb on a catch up against the wall. He then further injured it on a sliding out at home plate. Now he’s headed to the injured list and Minnesota has a vacancy.

James Outman joins Minnesota Twins

An MRI revealed that Alan Roden has a thumb sprain. The MN Twins are going to be without his services for a while, and if prospect Emmanuel Rodriguez’s history is anything to glean on, it may be season-ending. Enter James Outman.

We have made the following roster move: pic.twitter.com/gqX8H5aAHz

— Minnesota Twins (@Twins) August 16, 2025

Minnesota acquired Outman from the Los Angeles Dodgers as the return for reliever Brock Stewart. Stewart, while under team control, was treated as more of a rental due to his injury history. Good thing the Dodgers built themselves insurance because their new reliever is already on the injured list.

Outman is a post-hype prospect that has spent parts of the last four seasons in the big leagues. Across 230 career games he owns a .224/.330/.401 line with 30 homers. He’s also carrying a 261/90 K/BB.

Whatever he's been working on, it's paying off. @james_outman drills a solo homer to right, his third of the season, making it 3-0. He now has a nine-game hit streak and 6 XBH in his last 8 games (2 2B, 3B, 3 HR). He also has 8 RBI in his last 5 games pic.twitter.com/bUeoAhQXMN

— St. Paul Saints (@StPaulSaints) August 16, 2025

Those numbers are a far-cry from the .882 OPS he has in the minors. Last season he batted .279/.390/.543 in 69 games for Triple-A Oklahoma City. The Pacific Coast League is a hitter’s paradise, but Minnesota needs to see more of that at the big league level.

Related: Traded Minnesota Twins Pitcher Going Back on IL

Outman will presumably be given all of Roden’s playing time. Minnesota has him in left field and batting 9th against the Tigers on Saturday. He’s a plus-defender and will work in left field as well as immediately becoming the best centerfielder not-named Byron Buxton on the roster.

MN Twins open tryouts continue

Roden was being worked around different spots in the lineup, and was allowed to show his ability in a new organization. Obviously that gets cut short due to an injury, but he’ll look to work back before the end of the season or parlay the experience into a 26-man roster role next season.

The Twins have slow-played their deadline acquisitions and kept a good amount of them at Triple-A thus far. Outman beats both Mick Abel and Taj Bradley to the big leagues for the MN Twins.

Related: Traded Minnesota Twins Reliever Carted Off Field

In recent seasons the Twins have employed insurance plans for Buxton in the form of Michael A. Taylor and Harrison Bader. They could opt to do that again next season, but Outman could also just fill that role. He doesn’t hit arbitration until 2027, and the Pohlad’s are always interested in a minimum salary.

Both on the mound, and the fringes or the lineup, Minnesota will need to use their remaining games to evaluate potential to stick around next season. At 57-65, they have 40 more games this year to develop opinions.

At 51-57, the Twins still have 54 games to play in the regular season. They aren’t going to make the playoffs, but they still have to field a team (likely against the Pohlad’s better wishes).

After dealing away 11 players, ten of which were on the big league roster, the minor league system had to be shuffled. Thankfully the St. Paul Saints are in Toledo, just a two-hour drive, and a gaggle of their talent is headed to Progressive field.

Rocco Baldelli gets nine players to fill out MN Twins active roster

The Guardians are still going to take the field on Friday night against the MN Twins, and that means Baldelli needs a 26-man roster. That requires a significant amount of maneuvering, but at least the incoming Saints could carpool.

We have made the following roster moves: pic.twitter.com/2EQQgeE19V

— Minnesota Twins (@Twins) August 1, 2025

Martin will be making his 2025 Twins debut. He was left off the Opening Day roster, and injuries cost him multiple opportunities for a promotion early on. In 32 games for St. Paul Martin has hit .319/.431/.398. He doesn’t hit for power, and he isn’t stealing bases, but he’s worked as a slap-hitting utility player.

The MN Twins demoted Julien after a poor start to the season. It took a while for him to get going at Triple-A. Over his last 43 games though, he is batting .320/.432/.582 with 10 homers. He’s still got a good command of the strike zone, and appears to be a bit more aggressive.

Adams and Ohl are quick returned after both were recently optioned. They are joined by veteran pitchers Erasmo Ramirez and Jose Urena making their Minnesota Twins debuts. Urena and Ramirez needed their contracts to be purchased and added to the 40-man roster.

Related: What to Make of the Craziest Trade Deadline in Minnesota Twins History

Taj Bradley was assigned to the St. Paul Saints roster. He will likely slot into the starting rotation for Minnesota at some point in the not-so-distant future. Bailey Ober should join him, and likely beat him there.

The only new face to come from outside the organization is Alan Roden. A former third round pick for Toronto, Roden has played 43 games as a rookie this season. He owns a .204/.283/.306 slash line with one home run and a 24/8 K/BB.

Having already made a plethora of moves, the Twins president of baseball operations sent two more relievers packing as the clock struck zero.

Griffin Jax and Louie Varland both have new homes. That means Minnesota sent out a whopping five of their eight relievers to new teams prior to the deadline.

Griffin Jax goes from MN Twins to Tampa Bay Rays

It was expected that Griffin Jax could be traded along with closer Jhoan Duran. The latter went first to the Philadelphia Phillies. The former was held onto until the waning seconds, but he’s now headed to the Tampa Bay Rays.

The Minnesota Twins are getting Taj Bradley in the Griffin Jax deal, per source,

— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) July 31, 2025

Jax is 30 years old and under team control through 2027. He is making just $2.37 million this season, and despite a gaudy 4.50 ERA, he owns a 2.00 FIP and has been as dominant as ever.

With a 1.5 fWAR, Jax has the best mark among Twins relievers, and is actually above the 1.3 fWAR owned by Jhoan Duran. The tally makes him the 5th-best reliever in baseball by fWAR.

The Rays sent Taj Bradley to the Minnesota Twins. He’s a former fifth round pick (2018) and was a top 25 prospect in baseball as recently as 2023.

Taj Bradley's 7th K pic.twitter.com/EDk6q7Z559

— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) April 12, 2025

Bradley has made 69 appearances (67 starts) across three seasons at the big league level for the Rays. The numbers haven’t worked in his favor yet, though. He owns just a 4.70 ERA (4.33 FIP) and his 9.6 K/9 has been watered down by a 3.3 BB/9 and 1.5 HR/9.

Related: Twins Move Lefty Reliever Danny Coulombe to Texas Rangers

Minnesota will look to push his development towards the player that owns a 2.90 ERA across 366 1/3 minor league innings. Bradley is not arbitration eligible until 2027 and is under team control through 2030.

Blue Jays grab Varland and France from MN Twins

It wasn’t just Jax that was traded up against the deadline. Louie Varland and Ty France both found themselves headed elsewhere, and they’ll need their passports to get there.

LHP Kendrys Rojas and OF Alan Roden are going to Minnesota, per source. #BlueJays https://t.co/7oB4MSdbli

— Mitch Bannon (@MitchBannon) July 31, 2025

The Varland inclusion is an interesting one. Toronto was in the market for a leverage bullpen arm, and after missing out on other options, they apparently approached Minnesota about the remade starter. Ty France had little value as a first baseman with an 86 OPS+, but his $1 million contract was easy to throw in.

It’s jarring to see the Minnesota-native Varland, who’s under team control through 2031, leave. He owns a 2.02 ERA (2.89 FIP) this season and has been used a ridiculous 51 times already. A true development story, that one should sting a bit.

Kendrys Rojas is a left-handed pitcher and the fifth best prospect in the Blue Jays organization per MLB Pipeline. The 22-year-old Cuban reached Triple-A this season. He has 11 appearances (10 starts) across four levels in 2025 and owns a 3.46 ERA. In 252 2/3 minor league innings he has a 3.31 ERA with a 10.6 K/9.

Related: MN Twins Shock the World: Carlos Correa Back to Astros

Alan Roden is a Wisconsin-native that made his big league debut this season. He was third-round pick out of Creighton in 2022. The left-handed outfielder has a .204/.283/.306 slash line in 43 big league games this year. In 32 games with Triple-A Buffalo he owns a .918 OPS, and he has an .866 OPS across 298 total minor league games.