Travis Adams put himself back in the conversation at just the right time.
For a while, the Minnesota Twins right-hander looked like one of the pitchers fighting uphill for an Opening Day bullpen spot, especially with several relievers already looking locked in and the club likely to add more help before spring. But Adams finished the season strong enough to make the decision at least interesting.
Minnesota’s bullpen picture already has Jeff Hoffman, Anthony Banda, Yoendrys Gomez, Cole Sands, Andrew Morris and Tommy Nance penciled in. That leaves two openings, and with the Twins expected to acquire additional relief pitching in the offseason, the path only gets tighter for Kody Funderburk, Eric Orze and Adams.
Even so, Adams gave himself a real case.
The 26-year-old spent much of the year on the injured list and in the minors, and when he first got on the mound with the Twins in 2026, the results were rough. He carried a 5.68 ERA into September.
Then came the turn. Over the final month of the season, Adams allowed just two earned runs while striking out 12 across 14 2/3 innings.
For the season, Adams finished with a 4.58 ERA, 62 strikeouts and 25 walks over 59 innings with Minnesota. His first taste of the majors came in 2025, when he logged a 7.49 ERA over 33 2/3 innings.
There’s still plenty in his profile that should appeal to the Twins.
Adams was effective at keeping the ball off barrels in 2026, posting an 87-mph average exit velocity, which landed in the 86th percentile, along with a 33.1% hard-hit rate, also in the 87th percentile. His swing-and-miss numbers were solid too, with a 70% strikeout rate in the 70th percentile, a 32.9% chase rate in the 75th percentile and a 27.5% whiff rate in the 69th percentile.
He worked with a fairly balanced mix of pitches, leaning on four offerings about equally. Adams threw his slider and changeup each 25% of the time, followed by a 24% four-seamer and a 21% cutter. His sinker came in at 6%.
The slider was his best weapon. Opponents managed just a .152 average against it.
The changeup was less effective in terms of results, with hitters batting .274 against the pitch. Still, the expected batting average sat at .217, which points to some bad luck on that offering.
His fastball and cutter, though, were hit harder. Batters hit .364 with a .328 expected batting average against the four-seamer, and .273 with a .276 expected batting average against the cutter.
Adams also got some mileage out of his sinker, even if he used it sparingly. Hitters batted just .143 against it, but the expected batting average was a much rougher .317.
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