The Twins have a bullpen problem that’s impossible to ignore, and the cleanest fix might be a familiar kind of winter gamble: one big arm on a one-year deal.
Minnesota’s relief corps was a mess in 2026. The group finished 26th in baseball with a 4.74 ERA, ranked 20th in strikeout rate at 21.9%, and sat 29th in walk rate at 11.2%.
Things got better after the All-Star break, helped by the trade deadline additions of Tommy Nance, A.J. Minter, and Jeff Hoffman, but even then the bullpen only climbed to 18th in baseball in the second half.
There’s still a lot of work to do.
Hoffman, Andrew Morris, Yoendrys Gómez, and Nance are already set for roster spots next season, which leaves four bullpen jobs open. At least a couple of those will likely have to come through free agency. The real question is how aggressive the Twins are willing to be, especially if they want someone who can handle the ninth inning.
That’s where Raisel Iglesias comes in.
The case for Iglesias starts with what the Twins need most: a proven closer who can take pressure off Hoffman. Hoffman has been excellent, but he’s also had the occasional rough outing, and his elbow cleanup this offseason makes him a pitcher Minnesota probably shouldn’t lean on as its only veteran late-inning anchor.
If he’s used in a setup role instead, he becomes even more valuable. That kind of arrangement gives the Twins two late-inning weapons instead of one.
Iglesias brings exactly that kind of résumé. The 12-year veteran has 297 career saves split between the Los Angeles Angels and Atlanta Braves.
Over 10 seasons as a full-time closer, he’s posted a 2.72 ERA, struck out 11 batters per nine innings, and walked just two. He also just made his first All-Star team in his age-36 season.
In 2026, he put up a 2.55 ERA over 60 innings, saved 34 games to tie a career high, and still missed bats at a strong clip.
His fastball isn’t quite where it once was - it sat at 94.3 MPH after peaking at 96 MPH - but the production is still there. He’s striking out nearly 10 batters per nine innings, limiting walks, and generating plenty of swing and miss, which matters even more for a Twins bullpen that struggled so badly with control.
The age factor is part of what makes him interesting for Minnesota. At 37, Iglesias is more likely to be available on a one-year deal than a long-term contract, and that fits the way the Twins have operated.
They have not signed a reliever to a multi-year deal since 2018, when they brought in Addison Reed. Given how volatile relievers can be, that caution makes sense, especially for a team that has been careful with its spending.
The price tag would still be steep. Projections have Iglesias landing in the $16 million to $17 million range for 2027.
For a reliever, that’s a major investment, and it would be the kind of move the Twins have rarely made. But the one-year structure changes the equation.
Without the burden of a multi-year commitment, the deal becomes much easier to justify.
There’s risk in trusting a 37-year-old with the ninth inning, but Iglesias has been remarkably steady and has stayed healthy for most of his career. Only twice in 12 seasons has he failed to reach 60 innings.
If the Twins made that move, the back end of the bullpen would suddenly look a lot stronger. Iglesias, Hoffman, Gómez, and Morris would give Minnesota a much more defined late-game group, and Hoffman could slide into a role that might suit him even better. Instead of asking him to be the lone headliner, the Twins could build around two legitimate high-leverage arms.
The biggest hurdle is obvious: Minnesota has never paid a reliever anywhere close to what it would take to land Iglesias. But this is the kind of addition that would address one of the team’s biggest weaknesses without tying the club down for years.
Tom Pohlad has said he’s willing to invest where it makes sense, and this would fit that description. The bullpen was one of the Twins’ worst areas in 2026, and if they want to be taken seriously in 2027, they need real improvement there.
Iglesias would bring the stability, experience, and late-inning certainty they’ve been missing.
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