Last week the Minnesota Twins informed Rule 5 Draft pick (RHP) Eiberson Castellano he would not make the team. In the Rule 5 Draft bylaws, a drafting team ( in this case the Twins) must pay the originating team (the Phillies) $100,000 to take away one of their unprotected, eligible prospects (Castellano).

But if that Rule 5 pick, however, is removed from his new team’s 26-man roster during the next year league year, he goes on waivers for other teams to add to their active roster. If no team claims him, the released Rule 5 draft pick is offered back to his original team for half ($50,000) of what they were paid for him.

Eiberson Castellano clears waivers, leaves Minnesota Twins for Philadelphia Phillies

And that’s exactly what happened to Castellano on Tuesday, after 29 other teams passed on claiming him for their 26-man roster before the start of the 2025 MLB regular season. He was offered back to the Phillies, who paid half of the Twins’ money back, in order to get Castellano back in their organization.

Twins Rule 5 pick Eiberson Castellano cleared waivers and was returned back to the Phillies.

— Bobby Nightengale (@nightengalejr) March 25, 2025

This spring, Castellano worked 10 2/3 innings across seven games. He allowed ten runs (nine earned) on nine hits. The part that sank him was a 13/10 K/BB rate. If there’s something a Rule 5 pitcher absolutely cannot do during Spring Training, it’s give up free passes.

There was some thought that Castellano could secure the final bullpen spot after both Michael Tonkin and Brock Stewart went down. He would have operated as a long man for a unit that should be among the best in the big leagues. Baldelli certainly couldn’t have that arm allowing games to blow up worse though. Dobnak had a 7/3 K/BB in six scoreless innings this spring.

Last season in 103 2/3 innings between High-A and Double-A for the Phillies, Castellano posted a 3.99 ERA with an 11.8 K/9 and 2.5 BB/9. It’s likely he rebounds just fine and sees success repeating Double-A and moving up to Triple-A.

Related: Old Friend Makes Minnesota Twins Final Opening Day Roster

It’s always difficult to make the leap to the big leagues as a Rule 5 selection. There is always a reason that the original club didn’t see value in adding the player to their 40-man roster. Castellano’s experience with the Twins could springboard him into a nice season.

Brock Stewart is not going to be in the bullpen this week, after he suffered a hamstring injury earlier in camp. He’s back on the mound and pitching in spring games again, but he is being handled carefully after undergoing offseason shoulder surgery. 

Then, there’s former top prospect Brooks Lee, who was scratched from the MN Twins’ lineup last week with a back injury, a chronic issue he’ll have to learn how to maintain if he’s going to have a successful Big League career. But with Opening Day taking place this week in St. Louis, the final 26-man roster is starting to take shape.

Minnesota Twins make decisions on Brooks Lee and Eiberson Castellano

After Lee was scratched on Thursday, the MN Twins suggested his status was day-to-day. Unfortunately, his chronic back pain will not allow him to return that early, and it’s almost certain, at this point, that he too misses Opening Day.

#MNTwins roster starting to take shape. Rule 5 pitcher Eiberson Castellanos has learned he won't make the team. Brock Stewart and Brooks Lee are starting the season on the IL.
Four players for three spots on position side.
One reliever job up for grabs.

— DanHayesMLB (@DanHayesMLB) March 23, 2025

Lee struggled during his first season at the big league level. Across 50 games as a rookie, the 2022 No. 8 overall pick batted slashed a frustrating .221/.265/.320 with 10 extra-base hits (three home runs) and a 27/11 K/BB.

As a prospect, Lee has crushed fastballs. He’s a pure hitter who makes a lot of solid contact. That got lost last season, which could have been a byproduct of his back issues. The hope would be that Minnesota can get him right quickly this time around, and he can be a viable option for the majority of the season.

Related: Minnesota Twins Pitcher to Begin Season on Injured List

Another announcement came with the Lee news in the form of a Rule 5 decision. Eiberson Castellano was the Phillies minor league pitcher of the year last season and got scooped up by Minnesota. Across 10 2/3 innings during Grapefruit League play, Castellano put up a 13/10 K/BB and sealed his fate.

The Twins likely wanted to carry Castellano, but they needed to see enough from him to warrant it. Now Minnesota must expose Castellano back to waivers. If he clears, then they could attempt to work out a trade with Philadelphia. They did have preliminary talks prior to selecting him in the Rule 5 Draft, so that remains a possible outcome.

What do the Minnesota Twins do with their bullpen?

Things have changed quite a bit since our latest roster projection. Royce Lewis is going to begin the year on the injured list. Stewart and Lee will join him there. Minnesota needed to make eight more decisions as of Saturday night. Castellano and Lee cross two off that list.

The bullpen options remaining in camp include veterans Scott Blewett and Anthony Misiewicz. The former pitched for Minnesota last season and has had a good spring. He has a 5/2 K/BB across six innings. However, Blewett has been informed he will not make the team.

Related: Chronic Back Injury Causing Problems for MN Twins Infielder Again

The latter has 115 2/3 major league innings under his belt, and a 7/1 K/BB this spring. He is a viable option for the final bullpen spot. Minnesota will also be scouring the waiver wire to see who is released. Another path forward could be to recall someone like Kody Funderburk, who was previously cut from camp.

Misiewicz is with the Twins as a non-roster invitee. He signed as a free agent this offseason. Like Funderburk, Misiewicz is left-handed and would give Minnesota a second southpaw to pair with Danny Coulombe in relief.

Who takes the final position player spot for the Twins?

On the position player side of things it comes down to the group of Mickey Gasper, Austin Martin, DaShawn Keirsey Jr., Armando Alvarez, Edouard Julien, and Mike Ford. Gasper looked to already have an inside track, and Julien gets helped by Lee’s injury. The final outfield spot is where the most contentious battle comes.

Keirsey Jr. has had a solid spring with a .243/.356/.351 slash line. He’s a better outfielder than Martin, and is arguably the same or better speed threat. Unfortunately he’s left-handed and that puts him at a disadvantage considering Trevor Larnach and Matt Wallner’s handedness.

DaShawn Keirsey Jr. drives in the go-ahead run vs. #RedSox. Twins end up with the 2-1 win.

Keirsey has more than earned a shot at considerable time in the majors this year. Opportunity awaits.#MNTwins pic.twitter.com/nMMALbHfiM

— Talkin' Twins (@TalkinTwins) March 21, 2025

Martin has batted just .243/.310/.270 across 43 plate appearances this spring. He won’t ever hit for power, but is a contact guy who utilizes his speed and has successfully stolen three bases in three attempts this spring. It seems like being right-handed will give him the role, but Minnesota could decide otherwise.

Related: New MN Twins Starting Outfielder Named 2025 Breakout Candidate

Rocco Baldelli has just a couple of days left to set his Opening Day roster. The Minnesota Twins are projected to win the AL Central this season. Even with a few bumps coming out of the spring, they are well-positioned. The good news, at least for now, is that none of these injury issues seem to be too incredibly long term.

The marathon towards October is about to kick off. Minnesota must run it in a much more complete fashion than they did last season.

They lost their first position player when Royce Lewis strained his hamstring last week. Michael Tonkin is nursing an injury as well, and will begin the year on the injured list. He was a bottom-tier bullpen option regardless. Unfortunately he’s is going to be joined by another, much higher-tier, bullpen arm as well.

Brock Stewart begins season on injured list for Minnesota Twins

Plenty of steam has been percolating about the Minnesota Twins having the best bullpen in baseball this coming year. That could be true if they are healthy. Unfortunately, that same reality existed last year and they left Fort Myers with multiple players on the injured list. The first big blow this time around comes in the form of Brock Stewart starting the year on the injured list.

“Brock Stewart threw around 20 pitches in a minor league game Saturday against the Boston Red Sox’s Class AAA club, but it’ll likely be a couple of weeks before he is pitching in a major league game.

Stewart was informed he will begin the season on the Twins’ 15-day injured list. His buildup this spring was slightly delayed after he underwent arthroscopic shoulder surgery last August, and he exited an outing March 15 with a minor hamstring issue.”

Bobby Nightengale – Star Tribune

Related: Minnesota Twins Bullpen Harboring Dark Horse Stud Nobody is Talking About

There was always a level of uncertainty as to whether Stewart would begin the season with Minnesota. The Twins played coy about it, but this is a pitcher that has thrown just 43 1/3 innings since 2020. It’s possible that the buildup from his offseason shoulder surgery would have kept him from Opening Day, but the slight hamstring injury is an easy way to explain it.

“We have to keep our eyes open to the end goal here, which isn’t just the start of the season. It’s the whole season.”

Nick Paparesta – Star Tribune

The good news, which has remained the case despite his many injuries, is that Stewart’s stuff stays intact. He was reportedly around 95-96 mph in the minor league game. The last two seasons with the MN Twins he has averaged 97 mph on the fastball.

He throws his heat around 43% of the time, and in 2023, generated a whiff rate near 20%. Stewart’s 2.28 ERA with the Twins makes him among the most dominant relievers in baseball. He has 59 strikeouts, and just 19 walks the past two seasons. Obviously Minnesota needs to get him to a place where he can be, and stay, on the mound.

An open spot remains for MN Twins

Once it was announced that Tonkin would start on the injured list it became apparent that there was room for Louie Varland in the bullpen. Now with Stewart destined for the same result, Baldelli has another spot to decide on.

Rule 5 selection Eiberson Castellano remains in camp. The Twins would love to keep the Phillies 2024 minor league pitcher of the year in the organization, but he has made it tough to trust him with his Grapefruit League performance. The 7.59 ERA across 10 2/3 innings isn’t as problematic as the 13/10 K/BB is.

If Minnesota is going to keep Castellano for mop-up duty, they can’t afford for him not to throw strikes. Scott Blewett started on Saturday and also remains in camp. He owned a 1.77 ERA across 20 1/3 innings for the MN Twins last season. Blewett was solid, if not unspectacular at Triple-A as well with a 3.79 ERA in 54 2/3 inning with the Saints. He could be the option if they don’t trust Castellano at this point.

Related: Chronic Back Injury Causing Problems for MN Twins Infielder Again

As camps wind down there should be plenty of pitchers that are released, and trigger opt outs as well. Minnesota could go that route if they aren’t convinced their internal options are the best choice. When it comes to open roster spots, this is one to watch.

This offseason wasn’t exactly the busiest one for the Twins, but they did make a plethora of moves. Harrison Bader is taking over a roster spot as an additional outfielder for Manuel Margot, who is now in Spring Training with the Milwaukee Brewers. Ty France is replacing Carlos Santana at first base, who signed a nice deal to return to aforementioned Cleveland. And, Danny Coulombe returns as the bullpen lefty, as Caleb Thielbar left for Wrigley Field to play for the Chicago Cubs.

The Twins have plenty of returning talent, so there aren’t a ton of roster spots up for competition. However, there are still a couple that should be your focus during Spring Training action.

Who is the Minnesota Twins fifth starting pitcher?

Rocco Baldelli already has three starting pitches written in ink. To no surprise, Pablo Lopez is the Opening Day starter, who held a 4.08 ERA last season. Joe Ryan and Bailey Ober are locks to join him as key members of the rotation, as they held 3.60 and 3.98 ERA’s respectively. From there, things get a bit more interesting.

Chris Paddack was a main candidate to draw trade interest this offseason, while the Twins were supposedly shedding more cap. A deal surely would have opened salary flexibility for the Minnesota Twins. However, he is still on the roster, and will work as the fourth starter if he can maintain the spot. Paddack is another year removed from his second Tommy John surgery, so the bar for him to provide a level of value is not very high.

That leaves just the fifth spot in the rotation, and right now, Simeon Woods Richardson is the frontrunner to grab it. Last season, Woods Richardson started 28 games as a rookie in the Bigs. He posted a 4.17 ERA and struck out 117 batters across 133 2/3 innings. That sort of production is just fine from a back-end starter, especially when one would expect him to continue improving as he gets more experience.

It’s worth wondering what Woods Richardson’s ceiling looks like, though. His velocity took a jump last year as he averaged 93.1 mph on his fastball, up from around 91 the year prior. That made a huge difference, as his arsenal played better and ultimately helped him get more batters out. That still is on the low-end of what top big league arms are providing, however, so how SWR’s velocity plays this year will be something to watch.

Related: 2025 Minnesota Twins Opening Day Roster Projection (1.0)

Minnesota has nice starting pitcher depth in the form of David Festa and Zebby Matthews. Both made their major league debuts in 2024, with varying results. Festa is highlighted as a breakout candidate to keep an eye on in 2025. It’s an uphill battle to think he could surpass Woods Richardson out of the gate, but he is the one to watch. Matthews had his toes dipped in the MLB water, and owned a 6.69 ERA over 37.2 innings pitched. During his minors time last year, Matthews owned a much better 2.60 ERA across 97 innings pitched.

David Festa’s my favorite undrafted fantasy SP this season. 24yo who’s 6’6” 185lbs with 3 pitches led by a fastball around 95mph

4.90 ERA last season in 14 outings but a 3.58 SIERA and xFIP along with a 19.5% K-BB. Could be this year’s Hunter Brown.pic.twitter.com/RQRqDL5rS7

— kev mahserejian (@RotoSurgeon) February 21, 2025

Across 64 1/3 innings Festa owned a modest 4.90 ERA. After two tough outings and a recall, Festa then returned for 54 1/3 stellar innings with a 3.81 ERA, 3.15 FIP, and 69 strikeouts. That’s more along the lines of what the Minnesota Twins believe they have in the former top prospect.

It’s most likely that Festa (and Matthews) begin in St. Paul, with a rotation that all could impact the big league team if and when they are called upon. That would mean Woods-Richardson is Minnesota’s 5th starting pitcher. If the Minnesota Twins do pull a surprising move in the rotation, though, a strong spring would be what makes it happen.

MN Twins could make changes to the bullpen

The Minnesota Twins are projected to have one of baseball’s best bullpens, as they did last year. The high-leverage combination of Jhoan Duran and Griffin Jax are plenty to get excited about, as they are projected to have ERA’s of 2.36 and 3.21, each. Coulombe and Cole Sands will get back-end innings as well, and there are other familiar names in the Twins bullpen.

Of the eight expected spots in relief, the only other that should be guaranteed goes to Justin Topa. That leaves Jorge Alcala and Michael Tonkin as the fringe candidates. The former was optioned multiple times last season and had an up-and-down year. The latter was designated for assignment but was brought back and got a $1 million deal for 2025.

15. Eiberson Castellano: 23, SP (A+/AA)

Rule 5 pick-up. He pitched 103 innings to a 3.99 ERA, 31.3% K%, 6.7% BB%, 1.14 WHIP and kept opponents to a .226 BAA. Mid-90's fastball and mid-80's changeup are plus. Curveball in development. RP for now, likely SP in future. pic.twitter.com/TivEp2GMbV

— LouisAnalysis (@LouisAnalysis) February 1, 2025

There are a few arms behind that main pairing that could also push for consideration. The Minnesota Twins took Eiberson Castellano in the Rule 5 Draft this year. That means he must remain on the big league roster for the entirety of the season, or be offered back to the Phillies. The worry with that? He hasn’t pitched above Double-A, but he has 291 strikeouts in 238 minor league innings. Named the Philadelphia minor league pitcher of the year last season, Castellano had a 3.99 ERA across 103 2/3 innings at High-A and Double-A. The Twins are obviously hoping that success continues at the MLB level.

Related: Time for Twins Pitching Prospect to Sink or Swim

Louis Varland will work as a reliever this season, if the starting rotation arms get through Spring Training healthy. We have seen his high-octane stuff play well out of the bullpen, and he touched 98 mph during his first Grapefruit League outing. He posted an 11/2 K/BB and 2.35 in his final five relief appearances last season, leaving plenty to be excited for.

The Minnesota Twins could also consider a second lefty if Kody Funderburk bounces back strong. He had a stellar debut in 2023 with a 0.75 ERA across 12 innings, but was knocked around last season. Don’t expect Matt Canterino to make the Opening Day roster, but his health should have him at Triple-A, and performance would make him an early option for the Twins.

Can someone shuffle Minnesota’s bench?

Almost all of the starting position roles in the lineup are accounted for. First base may have been a question mark up until a few weeks ago, but the addition of Ty France changed that. Second base is a spot the MN Twins would love to see Brooks Lee play, but he’ll need to earn it, as they nave other options if he isn’t performing up to standards.

Willi Castro is going to be on the roster, and will start plenty of games. Christian Vazquez is also going to make the roster, but he may cede a bit more playing time to Ryan Jeffers than last year. A final bench spot comes down to what sort of plan Baldelli is more comfortable with.

Brooks Lee needs to play every day, so if he’s not starting at second base with the big league club, then he should be with St. Paul getting at-bats. Austin Martin could be carried as an additional outfielder, but may be seen as sort of redundant with Harrison Bader in front of him.

Related: Brooks Lee May Not Join Twins on Opening Day

The most logical option right now could be to go with Edouard Julien. He had a great rookie season, and hit .263/.381/.459 in 2023 before turning in a putrid .199/.292/.323 slash line last season, which earned him a demotion. He does not need to play every day, but he would at least give Baldelli another second base option off the bench.

Veteran journeyman Mike Ford may have been a first base option as a non-roster invitee before Ty France showed up, but no longer. Luke Keaschall remains the most high-ceiling non-roster guy in camp, but he’ll be to Triple-A first.

There won’t be too much of a focus put on spring training numbers as a whole, but some of the fringe position players could really help themselves. By getting hot and riding that into the regular season, you never know who you might see come Opening Day.