As the World Series gets underway Friday, the Minnesota Twins have a reliever worth tracking closely: JoJo Romero.
Romero already made his mark in October for the Milwaukee Brewers, throwing two scoreless innings and getting the win in their pennant-clinching victory over the Los Angeles Dodgers. That outing gave him a bigger spotlight, but Minnesota’s interest in him goes well beyond one postseason appearance.
The case for Romero starts with fit. He is set to become a free agent, and the Twins have uncertainty on the left side of their bullpen with A.J.
Minter and Taylor Rogers both on expiring contracts, according to Twins On SI’s free-agent tracker. Keeping either pitcher remains in play, but Minnesota also has to line up alternatives before those choices shrink its options.
Romero’s regular season gives him a strong résumé for that role. Between the St.
Louis Cardinals and Brewers, the 30-year-old posted a 3.36 ERA and a 1.22 WHIP over 56 1/3 innings. He struck out 54 and walked 18, numbers that point to a reliever capable of handling work before the ninth inning.
He also brings a mix that goes beyond being a one-batter specialist. Romero worked with a sinker, sweeper and changeup, and his sinker averaged 93.7 mph. That kind of arsenal gives Minnesota something useful to evaluate for longer outings against parts of opposing lineups that feature both righties and lefties.
The splits are a big part of the picture, too. Right-handed hitters hit .228/.315/.346 against him in 2026, while left-handed hitters went .253/.301/.437. In other words, being a lefty on the mound did not turn him into a simple answer for every left-handed bat.
That points to a role in the seventh or eighth inning, where matchups and recent performance can guide usage. A pitcher like that would help Minnesota’s bullpen depth, and it would still leave room for Kody Funderburk and other internal arms to compete for important spots.
Romero is scheduled to hit free agency after this season, as Brewers On SI’s contract rundown explained, which means the Twins could chase him without giving up anything in a trade. Milwaukee could try to bring him back, and other teams could jump into the mix as well, but Minnesota would still have a clean path to bid on an established reliever.
A two-year deal would make sense as a starting point for the Twins, though the price will come down to the market. His October performance should matter, but it should not outweigh the rest of his track record.
There are also reasons for Minnesota to be careful. His ERA climbed from 2.07 in 2025, and his splits do not make him an automatic fix against every tough left-handed hitter. The Twins will need to weigh his cost and projected value against Minter before deciding where to spend.
Still, Romero offers something Minnesota needs: another experienced arm for the late innings before the closer’s door. With the World Series about to begin, the Twins have a practical reason to keep an eye on him.
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There is also the money side of the equation, which makes Banda harder to file away as a simple non-tender or keep decision. He remains arbitration-eligible, and the Twins have to decide whether the potential value outweighs the cost while they juggle other roster priorities in the bullpen. For now, Banda sits in that awkward winter category teams know well: useful enough to consider, uncertain enough to complicate everything. [Read more 🡒]