The Twins are making another late-game bet, and this one comes with real teeth.
Minnesota is set to acquire Jeff Hoffman, a 33-year-old right-hander who has been one of the more trusted bullpen arms in the trade market this month. He’s the third reliever the Twins have added via trade in July, following Tommy Nance earlier in the month and A.J.
Minter late last week. Of the three, Hoffman is the headliner.
He’s been a late-inning staple for the Phillies and Blue Jays in recent seasons, and he’s expected to slide straight into the ninth inning as Minnesota’s primary closer, with waiver pickup Yoendrys Gómez moving into a setup role.
The Twins are paying for impact. They’ll absorb $3.37MM of Hoffman’s 2026 salary, plus an amount in 2027 that has not yet been specified. In return, they’re sending out one of their better pitching prospects, 20-year-old lefty Dasan Hill, along with big-league ready arm Pierson Klein and lower-level infielder Geremi Pena.
Hoffman’s path back to this point has already included a stop in Minnesota. He was in Twins camp in spring training of 2023, turned in a strong showing, and still got cut from what was then a deeper bullpen.
He landed with the Phillies, was added to their roster a little more than a month into the season, and then took off. Across 2023-24, Hoffman logged 118 2/3 innings with a 2.28 ERA, backed by strong strikeout and ground-ball numbers.
That run turned a minor league deal into a three-year, $33MM contract in free agency.
His time in Toronto has been a little stranger. Hoffman put up a 4.37 ERA in 68 innings last season as his home run rate ballooned to a career-worst 1.99 HR/9.
Last year, an absurd 20% of his fly balls left the yard. This season, that homer-to-flyball rate has come back down to 11.1%, almost dead even with the league average of 11.7%.
The issue now is batted-ball luck. Hoffman’s BABIP has jumped from .248 last year to .389 this season, which helps explain why he’s carrying a 3.94 ERA despite a 34.9% strikeout rate, an 8.4% walk rate and a 46.1% ground-ball rate. His 16.8% swinging-strike rate is elite territory - sixth among the 300 big league pitchers with at least 40 innings, behind only Mason Miller, Dylan Lee, Jacob Misiorowski, Tanner Scott and Andrés Muñoz.
That’s the profile Minnesota is buying into: big miss bats, enough power to handle the back end, and the hope that the home runs and BABIP eventually level out.
Hill is the biggest piece going back. The 6-foot-5 left-hander was Minnesota’s Competitive Balance Round B pick in 2024, going 69th overall, and he drew back-end top-100 buzz earlier this season.
He had a 3.19 ERA last year with huge strikeout and walk rates, but both have climbed in 2026. He’s striking out a little more than 35% of hitters, but he’s also walking 17.2% of them.
Baseball America ranked Hill eighth in a strong Twins system in its midseason update last month. He’s got a changeup, sweeper and curveball that can all miss bats, and with his mid- to upper-90s fastball, the stuff points to four pitches that could all be average or better.
The problem is command, and it’s not a small one. In 45 innings this year, Hill has hit four batters and thrown six wild pitches on top of that 17.2% walk rate.
If the Jays can sharpen that command even by a half grade or a full grade, he could become one of the better left-handed pitching prospects in the game. His ceiling is that of a high-end starter, though pitchers built like Hill often struggle to repeat their mechanics and keep their command in line. Even if he winds up in the bullpen, he still has a chance to be a quality late-inning lefty.
Klein, 24, sits near the back end of Minnesota’s top 30. He’s thrown 4 1/3 innings in the majors, but most of his year has come in Triple-A, where he owns a 5.91 ERA in 64 innings.
He’s worked both as a starter and reliever, even going multiple innings out of the bullpen. His four-seam fastball sits at 94.5 mph and can touch 97, and he pairs it with a cutter, changeup and curveball in the 80-86 mph range.
He generally throws strikes, but the secondary stuff hasn’t missed enough bats. He looks like either a middle reliever or depth starter, depending on what Toronto can squeeze out of the breaking pitches.
Pena, who turns 21 next month, has split the season between two Class-A levels and put together a strong batting line without any real pop. He’s hitting .300/.373/.362, with a 9.1% walk rate and a 7% strikeout rate.
He’s playing second base now, though there are questions about whether he has a true plus defensive position. The low-strikeout profile may invite Luis Arraez comparisons because of his original organization, but Pena’s hit tool is not viewed in the same light.
He has stolen 20 bases this season, but he’s also been caught 11 times.
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