The Twins’ rotation was supposed to be a foundation. Instead, it has become a weekly test of how much damage one staff can absorb.
That’s why Joe Ryan matters so much right now. Minnesota is counting on him to rediscover the form he carried through the first half of the season, when he went 6-5 with a 2.85 ERA and 128 strikeouts in 110 1/3 innings. Those numbers earned him a second straight All-Star nod, and he handled his inning in the game with shutout work.
Then everything tilted.
Over his first three starts after the All-Star break, Ryan was hit hard: 16 runs allowed, a 9.39 ERA, seven home runs surrendered and only 10 strikeouts across 15 1/3 innings. Not long after that stretch, he landed on the 15-day injured list.
The pattern has been familiar for Ryan. Injuries have followed him for years, and they have often interrupted both his availability and his effectiveness.
In 2022, his first full major league season, he missed three weeks after contracting COVID-19. The following year brought more setbacks, with groin and tricep/shoulder injuries costing him time.
Last season looked like a breakthrough. After being placed on the 60-day injured list on Aug. 7, 2024 with a Grade 2 teres major strain behind his right shoulder, Ryan bounced back in 2025 and logged a career-high 31 appearances.
He threw 171 innings, posted a 3.42 ERA and struck out 194 batters. He also missed just one game because of illness and made his first All-Star team.
This year, though, the injury issues returned early. Ryan dealt with lower back tightness and inflammation in spring training, something that may have been worsened by his time in the World Baseball Classic.
He later exited an early May start with elbow pain, though he returned for his next outing. Near the end of July, he was scratched because of arm fatigue and again avoided missing a turn in the rotation.
He recently said his rehab from the latest injury took longer than he expected.
And while Ryan has been trying to get right, Minnesota’s playoff picture has been slipping away around him. The starting rotation, which was supposed to be a team strength, has been battered by injuries and uneven production.
Pablo López, David Festa and Mick Abel are all out for the season. Simeon Woods Richardson, after an early collapse, was sent to the Toronto Blue Jays.
In Other News...
Twins Face A Real Derek Shelton Debate After A Year Of Change
Derek Sheltons first season in the Twins dugout has already given the organization plenty to consider as it weighs the next step. After a year of change, Shelton has been judged not just on wins and losses, but on how he handled player development, navigated late-game decisions and fit into a club still adjusting to life after Rocco Baldelli.
Some of the signs have been encouraging, especially with several players taking clear steps forward and the pitching staff being managed in ways that looked familiar to the previous regime. Even so, the bigger question remains whether Shelton gets the chance to keep building, or whether the Twins use this uncertain stretch around the organization to make another change before his second season can even begin. [Read more 🡒]
Twins Roster Has A Warning Sign Fans Shouldn't Ignore
The Twins have spent much of this season trying to patch together a lineup that has rarely had everyone pointed in the same direction at once. FanGraphs WAR leaderboard tells part of the story: no Minnesota player has gotten to the 3-WAR level, a mark that usually separates a good regular from a true difference-maker. For a club built with playoff aspirations, that is a reminder that the roster has not produced enough high-end impact across the long haul.
Ryan Jeffers, Byron Buxton and Joe Ryan each looked capable of pushing higher before injuries or second-half drop-offs changed the picture. That is the warning sign for the front office as much as for the fans, because it suggests the Twins cannot just count on internal improvement to solve everything. If Minnesota is going to look more like a contender than a team stuck in the middle, it will need more players who can sustain that kind of value over a full season. [Read more 🡒]
Twins May Have Found A Rotation Piece Despite Dean Kremer's Uneven Start
The Twins took a calculated swing on Dean Kremer when they brought the right-hander over from Baltimore for outfield prospect Jhomnardo Reyes, and the early returns have looked like the kind of cautious trade value that can age well. Kremer has been uneven since the deal, carrying a 4.79 ERA across seven starts, but his 3.99 FIP suggests there has been a sturdier foundation underneath the surface results.
For Minnesota, that matters because the move was never only about the immediate stretch run. Reyes, Baltimores No. 24 prospect, has struggled in Single-A and does not look close to the big leagues, while Kremer is being viewed as the kind of rotation arm who could still matter for the Twins in 2027. The question now is whether the stuff and the underlying numbers keep trending in the right direction long enough for Minnesota to bank on him as more than just a stopgap. [Read more 🡒]