Twins trade for first baseman who crushes lefties, DFA Ryan Fitzgerald

Eric Wagaman had some solid peripheral numbers for the Marlins last season.

Aug 18, 2025; Miami, Florida, USA; Miami Marlins first baseman Eric Wagaman (33) circles the bases after hitting a solo home run against the St. Louis Cardinals during the fourth inning at loanDepot Park. | Sam Navarro-Imagn Images

The Twins have finally made their first roster move since signing Josh Bell almost three weeks ago. They've added another first baseman for depth and platoon purposes, acquiring Eric Wagaman from the Marlins in exchange for Double-A left-handed pitcher Kade Bragg. Infielder Ryan Fitzgerald has been designated for assignment to clear a spot on the 40-man roster.

We have made the following trade and roster move: pic.twitter.com/yWnlLaHs2I

— Minnesota Twins (@Twins) January 2, 2026

Wagaman, 28, is a former 13th-round pick by the Yankees in the 2017 draft. A 6'4", 210-pound right-handed hitter, he showed some promise in New York's system before being selected by the Angels in the minor league portion of the 2023 Rule 5 draft. Wagaman hit 17 homers in the minors in 2024 and made his MLB debut with the Angels (at Target Field, coincidentally) in September of that year. He hit .250 with a couple homers across 18 games.

Last year, Wagaman was non-tendered and wound up signing a one-year deal with the Marlins. He went on to see a lot of playing time on a mediocre Miami team. Wagaman made 514 plate appearances across 140 games in 2025, slashing .250/.296/.378 with 28 doubles, 9 home runs, and 53 RBI. His OPS was .674, which is quite poor for a primary first baseman. He was set to be designated for assignment by the Marlins.

The upside for the Twins is that Wagaman's peripheral numbers were fairly solid last year, he did well against left-handed pitching, and he slots in as a platoon/bench bat for Derek Shelton, not a regular starter. In 2025, Wagaman's expected batting average, average exit velocity, hard-hit percentage, bat speed, and squared-up percentage were all in the 67th percentile or better among MLB hitters.

Eric Wagaman's baseball savant page for 2025. | baseballsavant.mlb.com

Wagaman had an ugly .612 OPS in 330 PAs against righties last season. But in 184 PAs with the platoon advantage, he hit .283 with a .783 OPS. 20 of his 40 extra-base hits and 5 of his 9 homers came against lefties, despite seeing them in less than 36 percent of his plate appearances.

ERIC WAGAMAN!!!

7th HR of the season, @Marlins lead 1-0! pic.twitter.com/Q9Wre6yyrW

— Marlins Radio Network (@MarlinsRadio) August 17, 2025

Wagaman spent most of his time at first base last season, but he also played some third base and corner outfield. He's somewhat intriguing as a versatile bench piece with power who can enter the starting lineup against left-handed pitching. He'll be even more interesting if he can boost his walk rate a bit and get the ball in the air more often.

To pull off this trade, the Twins gave up Bragg, a 24-year-old former 17th-round pick. He had a 2.94 ERA and 82 strikeouts in 67.1 innings last year between Low-A, High-A, and Double-A.

Fitzgerald, 31, is a shortstop who has spent most of his career in the minor leagues. He debuted with the Twins last May and hit .196 with four home runs and a .758 OPS across 53 PAs.

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