With a lockout looming on Dec. 1, the Twins have a simple reason to act now: lock in a few core pieces before the next labor fight can muddy the market.
The current Collective Bargaining Agreement is set to expire at the end of the day on Dec. 1, and the expectation around the league is that a lockout will follow. Nobody is counting on that standoff being short, and there’s a real possibility it could wipe out games.
The owners want a salary cap. The players don’t.
At the moment, neither side looks ready to budge.
That uncertainty makes long-term extensions even more attractive for Minnesota. If a new system includes a salary structure, a salary floor would likely come with it, which could force the Twins to raise payroll.
Revenue sharing would probably make that possible. And if the club is going to be pushed toward spending more anyway, it makes sense to start working toward that floor by extending players now.
Even if the league ends up without a salary floor, the argument still holds. Young players may want to secure their futures before a lockout complicates earnings down the line. For the Twins, that creates a clear opening to strike with a few key names.
RHP Taj Bradley is the obvious place to start. He’s 25, under team control through the 2029 season, and has been Minnesota’s best player this year by the numbers.
Bradley has posted a 3.8 bWAR, a 3.81 ERA and 190 strikeouts over 29 starts. Those are the kind of numbers that make a front office sit up and move quickly.
A long-term extension beyond his current deal would make sense for both sides. The Twins could try to buy out a few more years, and Bradley would have to think hard about taking a lucrative offer now rather than betting on what free agency might look like after 2029.
SS Kaelen Culpepper is the other player Minnesota should have in mind. Since his early-August promotion, Culpepper has hit .286/.339/.419 with a 114 wRC+, along with three home runs and 11 RBI over 29 games entering Saturday’s game against Cleveland. There are questions about whether he can stay at shortstop long term, especially with Marek Houston expected to arrive in the majors within the next couple of seasons, but that shouldn’t stop the Twins from trying to extend him.
If Culpepper has to move to second or third base, the bat still plays. And the league has already shown that teams are willing to extend players with very little big-league experience.
The Milwaukee Brewers signed Luis Lara to a contract extension before his MLB debut. The Seattle Mariners did the same with Colt Emerson.
Minnesota should take the same approach with Culpepper.
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Twins Prospect Move Just Shifted The Roster Conversation
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Minnesota also moved on from right-handed pitcher Jesse Bergin, another reminder that the back end of a roster can change quickly when the club is looking for the right fit. Rodriguezs arrival gives the Twins another young name to watch, and with St. Paul and Frisco both offering recent snapshots of players performing in different spots, the organizations depth picture keeps shifting in ways that could matter soon. [Read more 🡒]