Heading into the 2026 season, the Twins' bullpen appears to be their biggest uncertainty. This comes after they traded away three controllable, proven relievers at the trade deadline last season, in Jhoan Duran, Griffin Jax, and Louis Varland. So far this offseason, they've added two relievers to their 40-man roster.
In November, they completed a trade with the Rays to acquire RHP Eric Orze, and on January 23rd, they reunited with LHP Taylor Rogers on a one-year deal . Both look to be solid, low-risk additions, but it's clear that the Twins need to further bolster their bullpen to make it anywhere near as good as it was for the first half of last season. And after the Edouard Julien-Rockies trade , Minnesota has a vacant 40-man roster spot that can be filled by a new bullpen arm.
2025 Stats: 52 G, 50.2 IP, 3.02 ERA, 8.70 K/9, 0.5 fWAR
Vodnik is one of several arms in an underrated Rockies bullpen headed into 2026. In 2025, the Rockies operated under a closer-by-committee. Vodnik had the most save opportunities on the team with 15, along with the second-most saves with 10. The velocity is the most intriguing part of Vodnik's profile. His fastball averaged 98.7 mph last season, which ranked in the 97th percentile. The issue last year was his walk rate, which was an abysmal 12.5%. Vodnik will be 26 at the beginning of next season. He's still in pre-arbitration and won't be a free agent until after the 2030 season. If Vodnik can work on his control and escape Coors Field, he could be one of the most dominant young relievers in the game.
2025 Stats: 42 G, 39.2 IP, 4.99 ERA, 8.17 K/9, -0.3 fWAR
A similar profile here to Vodnik, Halvorsen's fastball happens to have even more velocity, though. Last season, it averaged 100.0 mph, which would've ranked only behind Mason Miller and Jhoan Duran had Halvorsen pitched in enough innings to qualify. Halvorsen also has a problem keeping the ball in the strike zone. His 11.6 walk rate last season would've been in the 10th percentile had he logged enough innings. The Maple Grove, Minnesota, native will also be 26 at the start of next season, and he is under team control until 2031. Another young controllable arm from Colorado that could unleash his full potential with a few tweaks.
2025 Stats: 59 G, 83.1 IP, 2.48 ERA, 8.75 K/9, 1.3 fWAR
It may come as a surprise, but another Colorado Rockies reliever is on this list. Herget is a very different pitcher than the other two, though. He quietly had arguably the best season by a reliever pitching at Coors Field since Adam Ottavino in 2018. Herget logged a total of 83.1 innings last season and had a sub-2.50 ERA last year, and he's not gotten nearly enough credit for it. His unique delivery and very good curveball paved the way for Herget to become one of the best long relievers in the sport last season. Herget is due to make just $1.5 million next season and comes with two seasons of team control.
2025 Stats: 65 G, 65.0 IP, 2.05 ERA, 8.11 K/9, 0.9 fWAR
At first look, Romero doesn't profile as an elite reliever with his below-average velocity, below-average strikeout rate, and right around league-average whip. But he's found a way to become an elite setup man for St. Louis by becoming one of the best groundball pitchers in the majors over the last few seasons. Romero had a groundball rate of 57.1% last season, which put him in the 95th percentile. Romero's ability to keep the ball in the bottom of the zone has made him one of the best pitchers in the league at not allowing hard contact. He also ranked in the 91st percentile in average exit velocity. Romero is a free agent at season's end, and there have been rumors of the Cardinals shopping him this offseason. He is on the expensive side, though, as he'll make $5.8 million in 2026.
2025 Stats: None (missed all of last season)
Another former Twin the team could look to bring back this offseason. Graterol has been with the Dodgers since 2020, but he's dealt with injuries the last two seasons. He was limited to just 7.1 innings in 2024 and then missed all of last season due to right shoulder issues, for which he had surgery on before the season. The last time we saw Graterol fully healthy, he was elite. In 2023, he posted a 1.20 ERA in 67.1 innings with a 1.4 fWAR. Graterol was able to put up these numbers with just a 6.42 K/9 that season. Surely some luck was involved, but Graterol's minuscule walk rate as well as his 99th percentile ground ball rate were the main reasons he was able to have so much success while barely generating any whiffs. Graterol also will be a free agent at season's end, but he's on the cheaper side as he's only due $2.8 million in 2026. He's expected to be ready to go for spring training.
2025 Stats: 51 G, 50.0 IP, 2.16 ERA, 7.56 K/9, 0.4 fWAR
Another veteran option here for the Twins, Bender will be 31 at the beginning of the 2026 season. Had a really underrated season last year as the primary setup man in the Marlins' bullpen. Bender has some sneaky velocity on his fastball, which averaged 96.6 mph last year. He's another pitcher on this list that's more of a pitch-to-contact guy, though with a lower strikeout rate and a high ground ball rate. This approach worked very well for him last year as he had his best season since 2021. Bender would come with two years of team control, and he'll make $2.8 million next season.
This article was originally published on www.puckettspond.com as 6 relievers Twins should consider trading for after Julien trade opened roster spot .
