Randy Dobnak factored into the plans for only a fleeting moment, but he reached the heights of a postseason appearance and secured a five-year extension. Dobnak was dealt to the Detroit Tigers in the Chris Paddack trade, and he had his optioned declined this offseason. Now he’s got a new home.

Seattle Mariners sign former MN Twins pitcher Randy Dobnak

Randy Dobnak was once an indy-ball gem that turned a part-time Uber gig into a big league career. He made the Minnesota Twins Opening Day roster this season, and got to experience free agency for the first time. Now he’ll try to repeat that process elsewhere.

Right-hander Randy Dobnak and the Seattle Mariners are in agreement on a minor league deal with an invitation to spring training, sources tell ESPN. Dobnak, 30, has pitched in parts of five seasons for Minnesota and has a career ERA of 4.86 over 140.2 innings.

— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) November 11, 2025

The deal with the Seattle Mariners brings him to the west coast after spending the duration of his career in the AL Central. Per a source, Dobnak will be paid $845,000 when in the majors, which is just under $100,000 more than the big league minimum. He also earned a $1 million buyout when his 2026 option was declined by Detroit.

Across 5 1/3 innings with Minnesota in 2025, Dobnak posted a 1.69 ERA. He struggled at Triple-A St. Paul, but finished with a 3.79 ERA across 38 innings with Triple-A Toledo after getting a fresh start with a new organization.

Pitching has been something the Mariners could use more of. They were middle of the pack this season from a rotation perspective, and Dobnak will get a chance to compete for a role. Dan Wilson’s club just missed out on a trip to the World Series.

If Dobnak doesn’t make the big league team, he’ll provide organizational depth at Triple-A Tacoma. Former Minnesota Twins Mitch Garver and Jorge Polanco are both free agents after having played for the Mariners last season.

Chris Paddack was an impending free agent and he was never going to be back for Minnesota. The Twins paired him with Randy Dobnak in order to dump the remaining commitments of his contract. Detroit took the bait, and now Dobnak is a free agent.

Randy Dobnak enters free agency

After an impressive rookie season, which included a postseason start at Yankees Stadium, Randy Dobnak took the ball ten times in 2020. Minnesota rewarded him with a five-year contract, and the $9.25 million deal had multiple team options as well.

Detroit Tigers beat writer Evan Petzold has reported that the team declined Dobnak’s 2026 option. That triggers a $1 million buyout, and immediately allows him to become a free agent. Had Detroit picked up the option, it would have cost them $6 million in 2026.

Dobnak signed with the Twins out of the United Shore League. He played college baseball for the now-defunct school Alderson-Broaddus. To suggest that he made it to the pros against all odds would be putting it lightly.

After just over two years at the minor league level, Dobnak was up in the big leagues. Once a former Uber driver, the Pennsylvania native posted a 1.59 ERA across his first 28 1/3 big league innings.

Randy Dobnak, Nasty Slider. 😨 pic.twitter.com/P6jdQANsCx

— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) March 25, 2021

Unfortunately Dobnak’s career took a downward turn after he ruptured pulley ligaments in the middle finger on his throwing hand. It greatly impacted how he could grip the ball, and his results fell off. Things came full-circle for Dobnak when he returned to the big leagues down the stretch in 2024. He also made the 2025 Minnesota Twins Opening Day roster.

It remains to be seen what the future holds for Dobnak. He is just 30 years old and posted a 3.79 ERA across 38 innings at Triple-A Toledo in the Tigers system. Another sizable payday is not likely, but a minor league deal with a spring training invite, or a trip overseas, could definitely be in the cards.

Among feel good stories across baseball, Dobnak’s is one of the best in recent memory.

We are likely to see multiple deals consummated by the Twins before Thursday’s Major League Baseball trade deadline. But on Monday, they got the party started about 72 hours before the deadline.

Detroit Tigers trade for Minnesota Twins’ pitchers Chris Paddack

Chris Paddack is in the final year of his three-year contract with the Minnesota Twins. It was assumed the front office may entertain moving his $7.5 million this offseason, but he returned and has been healthy. The Detroit Tigers are now add him as an additional starting option.

Full trade, per ESPN sources:

Detroit receives: RHP Chris Paddack and RHP Randy Dobnak

Minnesota receives: C/1B Enrique Jimenez

— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) July 28, 2025

Paddack resurrected his value in recent weeks, especially his most recent start vs the Dodgers, where he went 6 innings, allowing just 1 run on 4 hits, while striking out 8.

Across 21 starts this season, Paddack has posted a 4.95 ERA (4.39 FIP) for the Twins. He has struck out a career-low 6.7 batters per nine innings but is coming off the best start of his season. Paddack had a 3.33 ERA (3.95 FIP) across 26 starts with the Padres in 2019, but he’s never returned to that form.

He gave up 11 runs in two starts during July, but he had a 17 game stretch that culminated in a 3.93 ERA, from April through the July 4. In return for Paddack and Dobnak, Minnesota gets Enrique Jimenez (more on him below), and they clear the final portion of both big league salaries too.

Details behind MN Twins + Detroit Tigers trade

Of course that last bit is exciting to the Pohlad family in conversations to sell the team. When the Minnesota Twins traded Taylor Rogers and Brent Rooker to the San Diego Padres, they grabbed Emilio Pagan and Paddack, hoping for the rookie version of the starter.

Related: Houston Astros Coming for MN Twins Trade Candidate

Detroit was not the only team looking to acquire Paddack. Jon Heyman reports that the Tampa Bay Rays also were interested in his services. Again, while Paddack has been mediocre at best, there’s no reason he can’t eat innings down the stretch. Minnesota still has seven games against Detroit, so they’ll likely see their former starter.

It will be interesting to see how the Tigers use him in the postseason if he makes the roster. Paddack was scheduled to pitch for Minnesota on Tuesday against Boston. They will now need another arm to fill that opening.

Randy Dobnak included in trade

Randy Dobnak being included in the trade also helps the Twins bottom line. He was signed to a five-year, $9.25 million deal prior to the 2021 season. The Tigers are now on the hook for the final amount of his $3 million this season and $1 million buyout next year.

Dobnak made the Opening Day roster this season for Minnesota, but his career was dramatically altered due to the finger injury he suffered in 2022. He had a 1.69 ERA in 5 1/3 innings with the Twins, but a 7.12 ERA across 60 2/3 innings with Triple-A St. Paul this season.

March 2019: Randy Dobnak drives for Uber during Spring Training.

October 2019: Randy Dobnak starts Game 2 of the ALDS for the Twins at Yankee Stadium.

Life's crazy, man. pic.twitter.com/kG2G12rAWt

— Cut4 (@Cut4) October 5, 2019

His success story will go down as one of the best in recent Twins memory. Undrafted out of now-defunct Alderson-Broaddus, he went from independent baseball to pitching in a postseason game at Yankee Stadium for the Twins. He will forever be among the best people to don a Twins uniform.

Enrique Jimenez becomes newest Minnesota Twin

Paddack will join the Detroit Tigers big league roster immediately. The minor league prospect acquired for him won’t be with the Twins for some time. Enrique Jimenez is just 19 years old and played in the Complex League this year for Detroit.

Full trade: The Tigers are acquiring right-hander Chris Paddack from the Twins for catcher/first baseman Enrique Jimenez, source said. Deal is done.

— Robert Murray (@ByRobertMurray) July 28, 2025

It was his second season in the Complex League. Last year Jimenez posted a .242/.366/.376 slash line across 43 games. In 48 games this year he owned a .250/.339/.440 slash line. Jimenez splits time behind the plate and at catcher while hoping to develop into a big league option.

Enrique Jiménez launches a 2-run homer to left. It’s his 4th home run of the season. pic.twitter.com/A6yThduSJz

— Tigers ML Report (@tigersMLreport) June 5, 2025

Jimenez ranked 14th in the Tigers system according to MLB Pipeline. Realistically this is about the Twins clearing salary, and the addition of potential flier is just icing on the cake. With the Twins catching depth changing in recent weeks, maybe Jimenez can be an option years down the road.

Ober was shelled for eight runs on eight hits in just 2/23 innings against the Cardinals. He had been puking and taking an IV to replace fluids just days prior. It’s not a shock that the results were terrible. The only other pitcher that day was Randy Dobnak, who worked 5 1/3 impressive innings, allowing just one run on two hits.

Minnesota Twins hang onto Randy Dobnak

After the game, Dobnak was designated for assignment, something that has become common practice for the 30-year-old bearded long reliever/starter, thanks to the contract he signed a few years ago.

Because no team is willing to assume the $4 million remaining for his services, so the Twins essentially have unlimited demotions for the righty, without any real concern of losing him. That’s why it was no surprise when news broke Wednesday that Dobnak had cleared waivers and been reassigned to Triple-A Saint Paul.

#MNTwins Roster News: Randy Dobnak cleared waivers and is accepting the outright assignment to @StPaulSaints.

— Dustin Morse (@morsecode) April 2, 2025

The Minnesota Twins were always going to retain Randy Dobnak. That’s why, even before he cleared, the Twins had Dobnak on a flight to Columbus, where the Saints are currently playing. Last season, Randy Dobnak worked his way back to the big leagues, after dealing with hand injuries and blister issues for much of the last two seasons.

There was never any issue with Dobnak being DFA’d after the game. Minnesota paid him $9.25 million after the 2020 season because he had proven to be a capable big league starter. He then got hurt and the contract basically acts as an evergreen option for the organization.

MN Twins treatment of Randy Dobnak is questionable

Dobnak “took one for the team” on Sunday in St. Louis. After pitching two innings in relief of Ober, the game was suspended under a 58 minute rain delay. When the skies cleared, Randy Dobnak was back on the mound.

In total, he threw 79 pitches, but sending him out there for round two was a very questionable decision, when thinking about Dobnak’s arm. While the Minnesota Twins spare no expense to protect other arms in the organization, they continue to show very little concern for the health and future of their 30-year-old former Uber driver.

Randy Dobnak calmed the storm yesterday, going 5.1 innings in relief for the Twins, allowing only one run!

Dobnak has an elite feel for mixing his pitches, throwing all four between 23-28% with a tremendous changeup that averages -6" of induced vertical break! pic.twitter.com/IGG7YrwgQa

— Pitch Profiler (@pitchprofiler) March 31, 2025

Randy Dobnak’s place with the St. Paul Saints was a question going into the season. In the end, the question never needed answered, after he wound up on the MN Twins Opening Day roster. Now back at Triple-A, Dobnak joins an incredibly crowded starting rotation.

Related: Former MLB GM Sleeping on MN Twins Starting Rotation

David Festa started the first game and Zebby Matthews got the nod in the second. Andrew Morris will start game three, and Marco Raya is the starter for game four. Cory Lewis will presumably start game five and that rounds out the group. Travis Adams, another starter and one that was added to the 40-man roster this offseason, has worked in long-relief already.

Where do MN Twins place Dobnak with Saints?

The St. Paul Saints are currently 2-0, to start the season, and have yet to allow a single run, but two-thirds of the opening series in St. Paul was cancelled. I’ve been told that the plan for Travis Adams is to pitch every fourth day. He may start games, but his biggest focus is to remain stretched out. Look for him to get a call, if something opens up on the Twins’ pitching staff.

Zebby Matthews was untouchable in his first @StPaulSaints start of the season 💯

5 IP / 1 H / 0 R / 0 BB / 4 K

He averaged 97.5 MPH in the outing and topped out at 99.2 MPH ⛽️#MNTwins pic.twitter.com/MLJIZKSca1

— Twins Player Development (@TwinsPlayerDev) April 2, 2025

Dobnak debuted for the Twins out of the bullpen. He’s best utilized as a starter, and basically worked as one by throwing extensive relief innings. He may not slot into the starting group for Toby Gardenhire, but he could piggy back as Adams is seemingly doing as well.

This shouldn’t be the last Minnesota sees of Dobnak this year, but you can bet it’s the last year that Dobnak will be with the Twins organization.

Bailey Ober struggled to open the season, just as he had done last year on Opening Day against the Kansas City Royals. It was then on Randy Dobnak to save the day. Dobnak made the roster as the final member of the bullpen. He afforded Baldelli’s relief corps the opportunity to rest before the next series in Chicago starting on Monday.

Unfortunately the Twins are ruthless, and thanked Dobnak for it by sending him packing.

Randy Dobnak saves Bailey Ober and Twins for nothing

There has been an illness going around the Minnesota Twins clubhouse, and as Bailey Ober lined up to be the third starter, he spent the off day on Friday being sick. He wasn’t close to himself today, but took the mound anyways. That’s a rather curious decision for a team that needed a win after losing their first two games of the year.

Bailey Ober spent all day Friday sleeping and puking. Got an IV yesterday. Ryan Jeffers said Ober was nowhere close to full strength, hence the diminished stuff today.

Edouard Julien also was down with flu-like symptoms for several days.#MNTwins

— DanHayesMLB (@DanHayesMLB) March 30, 2025

Ober lasted just 2 2/3 innings while allowing eight runs on eight hits. He walked three and gave up a pair of home runs. His velocity was also notably down. After averaging 91.7 mph on his fastball last season, he often struggled to hit 90 mph on Sunday.

Randy Dobnak came out of the bullpen and turned in 5 1/3 innings of relief. That was sandwiched around a 58 minute rain delay, a practice the Twins would push on virtually no other pitcher. He allowed just a single run on a pair of hits and struck out one. Then, he lost his roster spot.

Source: Randy Dobnak has been DFA'd by the Minnesota Twins

— Ted (@tlschwerz) March 30, 2025

It’s a harsh reality for a player that the Minnesota Twins treat solely as an asset. Dobnak earned a $9.25 million contract extension prior to 2021 after pitching in the 2019 ALDS, and posting a 4.05 ERA across 10 starts in 2020. He then suffered a career-altering finger injury to his throwing hand and has been handled differently since.

The DFA (designated for assignment) exposes Dobnak to waivers. It’s virtually guaranteed that no team will claim him, and his $3 million salary (and $1 million buyout for 2026). This means he’ll go back to Triple-A and join the St. Paul Saints this week in Columbus.

It’s great that he earned his payday, but unfortunate that there is no real path to consistency with the organization moving forward. Dobnak made his return to the big leagues in 2024 while owning a 4.25 ERA across 133 1/3 innings at Triple-A.

New arm incoming for Minnesota Twins bullpen

With Dobnak vacating a spot in the Minnesota Twins bullpen, Rocco Baldelli will have a fresh arm in Chicago on Monday. Scott Blewett was a potential candidate for the group out of Spring Training, but it was Dobnak included solely for this situation.

Blewett has no minor league options remaining. If his contract is added to the 40-man roster, and he is optioned for Brock Stewart in a week or so, he is likely to be claimed off waivers.

Related: Reported Twins Buyer Hasn’t Backed Out Yet

The only healthy reliever on the Twins 40-man roster down on the farm is lefty Kody Funderburk. With Dobnak being DFA’d, they could add a different contract besides Blewett. Veterans Alex Speas and Anthony Misiewicz were among the final roster cuts this spring.

Rocco Baldelli set the Twins’ starting rotation over a week ago, the position players were determined shortly after, on Monday. That left one final spot up for grabs in the bullpen, mostly thanks to injuries that have disrupted the reliever plans, entering the season.

Randy Dobnak earns Twins’ final bullpen spot

Brock Stewart and Michael Tonkin are starting the year on the injured list. That opened a temporary spot int he bullpen that will initially be filled by Randy Dobnak (long relief), who had previously been cut from Minnesota Twins camp. He pitched six innings this spring and did not allow a run, posting a 7/3 K/BB.

Randy Dobnak was told he’ll handle a long relief role in the Twins bullpen to begin the season.

His slider has looked good throughout the spring.

pic.twitter.com/LAFyMyTvfq

— Bobby Nightengale (@nightengalejr) March 25, 2025

Last season was Dobnak’s first in the big leagues since 2021. That’s when he suffered a season-ending injury to his middle finger that completely derailed his effectiveness as a pitcher. Last season, Dobnak threw 133 1/3 innings at Triple-A St. Paul, posting a 4.25 ERA and 1.448 WHIP.

Randy Dobnak pitched in five games for the MN Twins last season, tallying a 5.59 ERA across 9 2/3 innings. He’ll be in a similar role this time around and look to parlay his spring success into continued momentum at the big league level. Dobnak is in the final year of a five-year, $9.25 million extension he signed with the club prior to the 2021 season.

Minnesota Twins Opening Day roster is set

With Dobnak taking the final bullpen spot, the Minnesota Twins Opening Day roster is now finalized. Rocco Baldelli has 26 players that will make the journey north. Minnesota starts the year with three games in St. Louis and three against the White Sox before kicking things off at Target Field.

Baldelli is certainly hoping that Royce Lewis and Brooks Lee can get healthy sooner rather than later. Their absence gives players like Edouard Julien and Mickey Gasper an opportunity to shine however. Tonkin and Stewart being out paved the way for Varland and Dobnak to start the year at the big league level.

There isn’t a ton of ambiguity on the big league roster. Many of the starting roles have consistent options. The MN Twins bullpen, even down a key arm, is projected to be one of the best in baseball. The position player group has plenty of solid talent that is capable of producing a 90-win season.

Related: Brooks Lee Explains Latest Back Injury and Return Timeline

On the mound Minnesota has a strong top three, and a pair of back-end starters with safe floors. The Minnesota Twins experienced some late injuries during Spring Training, but the roster is in a relatively good spot to open the season.

Baldelli will be hoping his team is ready to hit the ground running and put their late-season collapse from 2024 behind them. Minnesota is currently projected to win the AL Central division. All of that goes out the window once the games start to count though. It’s time to get it done on the field.

Rocco Baldelli must trim down the group of men on the roster, and tighten up his clubhouse. After a game against the Baltimore Orioles today (Mar 9), Minnesota began the process of whittling down their options.

Nine players optioned to minor league camp for Minnesota Twins

There are a handful of Minnesota Twins players that were never going to make the major league club. Invited to big league spring training for a myriad of reasons, their time to be optioned was always going to come. A handful of veterans and minor league prospects are now among the group sent to the back fields.

Most notable of the cuts would be Cory Lewis. He looked sharp in two innings of Grapefruit League action and picked up a pair of strikeouts. His knuckleball pitch may be a record-breaking offering in speed at the big league level. He’ll be part of a talented rotation at Triple-A St. Paul, and should appear at Target Field at some point this season.

Twins prospect Cory Lewis throws a mid-80's knuckleball. It has reportedly reached 87-mph this spring.

It has a chance to be the fastest knuckleball ever recorded in MLB history.

Here it is on display, striking out Gleyber Torres. pic.twitter.com/L7v2xxylm8

— Danny Vietti (@DannyVietti) February 26, 2025

Related: Minnesota Twins Provide a Bunch of Injury Updates

Last season, Randy Dobnak made his way back up to the big leagues, and finished with a 5.59 ERA over 9.2 innings, for the Twins. Mot recently, he pitched six scoreless innings, including a three-inning outing on Sunday. Dobnak picked up seven strikeouts in the outing. No longer on the 40-man roster, Dobnak is in the final year of a five-year extension worth $9.25 million.

Minnesota brought Erasmo Ramirez in as a late addition to compete for a bullpen spot. He was an easy choice to option after suffering a significant tear that could threaten his season as a whole.

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

Both Alex Isola and Yunior Severino are Triple-A depth pieces. The former will rotate time at catcher alongside Jair Camargo, and the recently acquired Diego Cartaya. The latter was previously on the 40-man roster but his .254/.342/.434 slash line at Triple-A across 128 games last year played himself out of the picture.

MN Twins 40-man talent headed to St. Paul

The Saints rotation should have plenty of talent in it this year, and they will all be depth pieces that the Minnesota Twins can rely on. Marco Raya and Travis Adams were added to the 40-man roster this offseason. Now, each is looking for the opportunity to make their big league debut.

Emmanuel Rodriguez hit Triple-A last season despite an injury-plagued campaign. He had thumb surgery this offseason, and was already behind schedule after suffering an ankle injury. But, he should be running this week and will get in minor league action before the season kicks off.

Matt Canterino also is among the 40-man group that was optioned. He is dealing with a shoulder injury that will sideline him for months, after making just one Spring Training appearance. It’s a tough blow for a prospect that needs to make it work this season. His injury may make it difficult for the Twins to keep him on the 40-man over others over the course of the year.

After trimming down the group by nine spots, the Minnesota Twins still have 48 players in big league camp. They have 17 days to make the final 22 roster moves.

40 man roster shuffle begins for the Minnesota Twins

Derek Falvey will need to work his magic with regards to his offseason blueprint once again. The team is for sale and while the Pohlad’s aren’t cutting payroll, they probably aren’t adding to it either. There were a handful of fringe roster players that found themselves outrighted from the 40-man on Monday.

#MNTwins outrighted the following players off the 40-man roster (all cleared waivers): Scott Blewett, Randy Dobnak, Daniel Duarte, Yunior Severino and Josh Winder.

— DanHayesMLB (@DanHayesMLB) November 4, 2024

The emotional spectrum of the players outrighted is diverse. A veteran like Scott Blewett only found himself throwing 20 innings for Minnesota due to injuries. Randy Dobnak has been through this game before and it continues to be a formality. Yunior Severino experienced the reality for the first time, and it suggests his prospect status has fallen mightily. Of the decisions made its only that pair and Josh Winder who generate any level of intrigue.

Related: Minnesota Twins Early World Series Betting Odds

Dobnak will remain in the organization unless someone is willing to trade for him. He signed a $9.25 million contract prior to 2021 and is still owed at least $4 million through 2025. There’s no reason for him to become a free agent and walk away from that money. He also made it back to the big leagues last season, and again could conceivably be a depth option.

Related: Minnesota Twins Land Two Silver Slugger Finalists

There was a time that Josh Winder looked like a future roster fixture. A seventh round pick in 2018, Winder made a solid debut in 2022. He has struggled to stay healthy since though, and has now transitioned to a reliever full time. It’s somewhat curious that he went unclaimed, but most organizations have similar talents.

Last season Yunior Severino was added to the 40-man roster to protect him from being Rule 5 Draft eligible. After a .775 OPS in St. Paul poured water on his 2023, he has fallen to become little more than a fringe top-30 prospect at this point. Severino isn’t young at 25 years old, and without real defensive ability, it’s not a huge surprise no one took a shot. It is a reminder of just how quickly things can fall apart though.

Related: 3 Prospects Minnesota Twins MUST Add to 40-Man Roster Before Rule 5 Draft Deadline

Minnesota will look to pick their spots when it comes to offseason additions. The expectations should be higher for the trade market, but getting the roster in order was a must. Free agency officially opened on Monday.

Twins exercise Jorge Alcala’s option

It was quite curious how the Twins decided to use Jorge Alcala last season. Despite having dealt with plenty of arm injuries over the years, he had no consistent plan and was often shuffled back to St. Paul. That made it plausible to believe Minnesota may instead pay his $55,000 buyout. The decided to bring him back instead.

As expected, the #MNTwins exercised Jorge Alcala's team option for $1.5 million.

Alcala struggled in the second half, but posted a 3.24 ERA and 58-to-20 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 58 innings overall last season.

He'll be a free agent after 2025.

— Aaron Gleeman (@AaronGleeman) November 4, 2024

At $1.5 million, Alcala seems like a no-brainer. Falvey has never seemed to like spending big on relievers, and Alcala brings upside at a muted cost. His 3.24 ERA was workable in 2024, and he proved to be a reliable arm in high-leverage spots at different points.

Jorge Alcalá, 100mph ⛽️ and Vicious 91mph Slider…and Sword ⚔️ pic.twitter.com/m0MFEphWNE

— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) May 30, 2024

Related: Minnesota Twins 1st Baseman Carlos Santana Wins Gold Glove

Rocco Baldelli definitely needs some better options in relief this year as a whole. Falvey won’t be able to get by with only scrap heap additions. Keeping Alcala around is a good start.

Randy Dobnak promoted by Minnesota Twins

1,061 days after he last pitched for the Minnesota Twins, Randy Dobnak has been recalled. Dobnak has pitched just under 100 innings at Triple-A St. Paul this year, and owns a 3.61 ERA. He has a 2.26 ERA across his last ten starts, and has allowed just a .645 OPS against. As one of the best pitchers for the Saints, Dobnak has been knocking on the door of a promotion for a while.

pic.twitter.com/5rYEvi39sf

— Randy Dobnak (@Dobnak_) July 30, 2024

After a pair of strong minor league seasons, the Minnesota Twins purchased the contract of Randy Dobnak in 2019. He appeared in nine games as a rookie and made five starts. The biggest moment of his life came in a postseason game in New York against the Yankees. Dobnak made ten starts during the 2020 pandemic season, and then things went downhill in 2021.

Dobnak dealt with a ruptured tendon in his finger, twice. He pitched only 25 innings in 2022, and tried to navigate 2023 while learning new ways to be effective. This spring he came in with a new changeup and a clean bill of health. After a moderate start to the year, he has been nothing short of lights out since.

Randy Dobnak with the longest outing of his career since 2021 in the @StPaulSaints win💥

7 IP / 7 H / 1 R / 0 BB / 5 K

Over his last 8 starts, he has a 1.70 ERA with a 57.1 GB%

On the season, he has a 60.1 GB%, which is the 2nd highest ground ball rate in @MiLB‼️#MNTwins pic.twitter.com/oJPqiSBLuQ

— Twins Player Development (@TwinsPlayerDev) July 26, 2024

Related: Minnesota Twins Headed Back to Comcast

There is poetic justice for Dobnak in his return. Pitching in the same city he made that postseason appearance, the expectation is that he’ll be used out of the bullpen. After the Twins 15-2 drubbing on Monday night, having insurance behind starter David Festa makes some sense. It remains to be seen how long Dobnak will be up, but his promotion puts him back on the 40-man roster. Paid $9.25 million through the 2025 season, Dobnak could carve out opportunity if he can stick once again.

But there’s good news. They have injured list reinforcements on the way and most should make immediate impacts upon return. The list starts with Byron Buxton, who Rocco Baldelli said will not travel to Chicago for the upcoming road trip vs the White Sox, but who could fly there mid-series to join the team, if he’s feeling up to it. Buck is eligible to come off the IL on Friday.

Byron Buxton isn’t expected to travel on the upcoming road trip so he can continue to rehab at home. But were he to improve enough, #MNTwins would fly him to join the team.

— DanHayesMLB (@DanHayesMLB) August 29, 2022

Pitching Reinforcements a Plenty

Next on the list of priority returnees is newly acquired starting pitcher, Tyler Mahle, who was shut down after his last start for shoulder fatigue. His fastball velocity had dropped under 90 MPH so the Twins put him on the IL, got his shoulder checked out and gave Tyler some much-needed rest. Now, he’s feeling fresh and ready to go. The hope is that Mahle will pitch vs the White Sox over the weekend.

Tyler Mahle (shoulder) threw a second, 30-pitch bullpen session today and said it went well. Velocity was back up, no pain, threw all pitches.

Assuming he feels fine tomorrow, Mahle could be in line to return from the injured list this weekend vs. the White Sox.

— Aaron Gleeman (@AaronGleeman) August 29, 2022

But Tyler Mahle isn’t the only Minnesota Twins pitcher who is ready to pitch-in on a playoff run. Josh Winder is starting a rehab stint in St. Paul and, should things go well, he’ll be up with the big club sooner, rather than later.

Randy Dobnak, too, is on his way back. He has already thrown four times out of minor league bullpens. Though his first appearance in St. Paul did not go well, surrendering 4 hits and 3 runs, in just two innings. Bailey Ober, too, has been throwing live bullpen sessions and will start a rehab stint in Fort Myers on Thursday.

Trevor Larnach Also on His Way

But there’s one more bat, who could really help the Minnesota Twins in September, should he be healthy and get into his groove at the right time. Trevor Larnach, who has been out with a core muscle injury since June, is starting a rehab stint that is expected to last one to two weeks. He could be a huge addition to an injury riddled outfield.

Trevor Larnach is tracking towards beginning a rehab assignment with Fort Myers as the DH on Thursday. It sounds like he'll probably be the next to return to health after Josh Winder.

— Do-Hyoung Park (@dohyoungpark) August 29, 2022

Maeda Giving Up on 2022 Return

There was some bad news that came along with all of these injury updates. Kenta Maeda, who the Twins hoped could be a late edition to the bullpen after undergoing Tommy John surgery a year ago, will not be ready in time to help this season. His rehab continues and is reportedly going well, but they’re officially giving up hope on his chances to play in 2022.

#MNTwins president of baseball operations Derek Falvey indicated that Kenta Maeda (elbow) is unlikely to return before the end of the season.

Maeda continues to progress well in his recovery from Tommy John surgery, but the Twins aren't going to push him with time running short.

— Aaron Gleeman (@AaronGleeman) August 30, 2022

Eric Strack | Minnesota Sports Fan