The Minnesota Twins bullpen has been a revolving door this season and few have taken more revolutions than Matt Bowman . Bowman has been on and off the roster repeatedly since initially joining the Twins for the first time in 2024 and began with the team in Spring Training before going on another tour of the majors this season.
On Wednesday, the carousel stopped back in Minnesota as Aaron Gleeman of AaronGleeman.com reported that Bowman will sign a minor league deal with the Twins and report to Triple-A St. Paul. The agreement begins Bowman's fifth tour of duty with the Twins and perhaps a chance to finally break into the major league bullpen as they head down the stretch.
Bowman's first stint with the Twins began when he signed a minor league contract before the 2024 season. While he didn't make the team out of Spring Training, he was called up in April and posted a 2.35 ERA with six strikeouts over 7.2 innings. His control was a problem with four walks, however, and he was designated for assignment before being traded to the Arizona Diamondbacks for cash considerations.
After pitching for the Diamondbacks and Seattle Mariners , Bowman returned to the Twins but never pitched in the majors before finishing 2024 with the Baltimore Orioles . He spent the entire 2025 season with Baltimore, making 20 major-league relief appearances, but he was let go after the season, posting a 6.20 ERA.
This set up Bowman's 2026, which has been a wild ride. After signing a minor league deal with the Twins over the winter, he opted out after failing to make the Opening Day roster. While he re-signed shortly after, he posted a 1.69 ERA over 21.1 innings before triggering an opt-out clause in May.
Bowman signed with the Toronto Blue Jays and posted a 10.38 ERA at Triple-A Buffalo before being released on July 5. This led to another opportunity with the Twins, but like his other stops in Minnesota, Gleeman theorized that Bowman has another opt-out clause in this contract, which could leave him destined to leave in the same way his previous stints ended.
Then again, it's not like the Twins couldn't use the help. Minnesota's bullpen owns the highest ERA in the major leagues at 5.25 this season and the injuries have piled up with Anthony Banda , Cole Sands and Marco Raya on the 15-day injured list. The Twins made an addition by acquiring Woo Suk-Go from the Detroit Tigers but more help is needed if they want to continue their push for a playoff spot.
With another opportunity in Minnesota, perhaps this is the one where he returns to the majors. Then again, the Twins haven't shown much faith in Bowman when he's succeeded in his previous stints, meaning this one could very well end like the others.
This article was originally published on www.puckettspond.com as Twins castoff comes crawling back for a fifth tour of duty .
