Justin Topa’s season has turned into a tour of the bullpen economy, and the latest stop is the Yankees.
The right-handed reliever, who opened 2026 as one of the Twins’ most trusted arms, has now landed with his fourth organization of the year after agreeing to a minor-league deal with New York on Friday. The Yankees assigned him to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, and he took the roster spot of right-hander Angel Chivilli, who recently went on the injured list with an elbow injury, according to The New York Daily News’ Gary Phillips.
That puts Topa in position to be the next arm up if the Yankees need help in the bullpen.
Topa’s year has been a sharp fall from that early-season role in Minnesota. He struggled badly with the Twins, putting up an 8.05 ERA across 19 innings before being designated for assignment. He cleared waivers, was released in late May, and then kept moving.
Toronto gave him a minor-league deal next, but he never reached the majors with the Blue Jays. They let him go in early July, and Kansas City followed the same path: a minor-league deal, some time in the system, and then another release about a month later.
The Twins got Topa from the Seattle Mariners as part of the Jorge Polanco deal in the 2023-24 offseason, a trade that also sent right-handers Anthony DeSclafani and Darren Bowen, plus outfielder Gabriel Gonzalez, to Minnesota.
That return hasn’t exactly delivered the kind of impact the Twins were hoping for. DeSclafani never pitched for Minnesota because of an elbow injury and is now out of Major League Baseball.
Bowen, now 25, is still in Double-A. Topa did give the Twins a useful 2025 season, finishing with a 3.90 ERA over 60 innings, but he appeared in just three games in 2024 and was cut loose this year.
Still, Minnesota hasn’t clearly lost the deal. Polanco managed only 1.3 bWAR and a 92 OPS+ with Seattle in 2024 before reaching free agency, while Gonzalez remains the prize of the group for the Twins.
He’s currently their No. 11 overall prospect, even though his 2026 has been uneven so far with a .724 OPS at Triple-A St. Paul.
Last season, though, he put together a strong .908 OPS in the minors.
With Walker Jenkins and Emmanuel Rodriguez also pushing toward their big-league debuts, there may not be much room for Gonzalez in Minnesota’s outfield. He has seen some time at first base this year, which could wind up being his long-term home. And he already has one big-league game on his resume for the Twins this season at Fenway Park, where he went 1-for-4 with two walks.
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