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After we all stopped paying attention to the Twins, their starters were sixth in innings, 14th in FIP, and 11th in fWAR in September. For all the players they did trade in July, they kept this group intact, and despite near-daily trade rumors, it’s still intact. The Twins have a high floor and have to be considered a contender in the AL Central because of this group.
Pablo Lopez returned from a shoulder strain in June to make three starts in September, then was shut down again with a forearm strain that isn’t expected to affect his 2026. Zebby Matthews had some blow-up outings that wrecked his ERA, but finished the year with an 88/24 K/BB and a 3.79 FIP. He should be the #3 this year. Simeon Woods-Richardson started using a splitter more after a month lost to, if you can believe it, a parasite in his digestive tract. The pitch helped him strike out 36 of the last 104 batters he faced.
