Twins Should Move Dean Kremer to Bullpen When Joe Ryan Returns

Kremer’s recent struggles and concerning underlying metrics make a piggyback role with Ryan the most logical path for Minnesota down the stretch.

Minnesota Twins manager Derek Shelton and starting pitcher Dean Kremer. Credit: Jesse Johnson-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Every game for the Twins matters. Each game going down the stretch could come down to a single pitch. Every pitcher needs to be as close to perfect as possible. In his last two starts against AL Central rivals, Dean Kremer has not done that, and his rotation spot should be in jeopardy.

Under the Hood Numbers

Minnesota Twins starting pitcher Dean Kremer. Credit: Jesse Johnson-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Kremer's stuff has diminished in his recent outings, which is a really concerning development for the Twins. When they made the trade with the Orioles, they were expecting an impact player who can give quality innings to aid a playoff push. It started out well for Kremer with the Twins, but as of late, it's been bad.

According to Baseball Savant, his underlying metrics in general this season have been quite poor. His xERA this season is 4.60, which is in the 26th percentile of all pitchers in baseball. His barrel percentage against, sitting at 8.9%, is in the 24th percentile, which is also not good. The high barrel percentage indicates that opposing batters are squaring up his pitches at a high level, which in turn leads to more hard hit balls, and more success for batters.

Dean Kremer's stuff was not great for the second straight outing today.

(Via @pitchprofiler) pic.twitter.com/rVX6ahrCNR

— Matthew Nethercott (@MattNethercott_) September 3, 2026

This should be a huge concern for the Twins. They need Kremer to be at his best down the stretch, and the metrics show that his stuff is down across the board; this seeming regression could be here to stay.

Possible Solutions

The Twins need to act on a potential solution for Kremer because his spot in the rotation should be in jeopardy. The Twins need to play their best players, and right now Kremer simply is not that.

Joe Ryan should be returning to the Twins rotation early next week when the Twins are in Detroit, if his bullpen session this weekend goes as planned. At that point, with Ryan not fully built up, the Twins should consider putting Kremer in the bullpen to piggyback with Ryan.

It's certainly a risk given how Kremer has performed of late, but it also provides the Twins with an opportunity to shorten games and potentially save the bullpen. It would also possibly eliminate the first-inning struggles Kremer's had this season, where he's posting a 9.00 ERA in 13.0 innings.

It seems that he gets into a groove as the game goes on, so pitching Kremer out of the bullpen for the remainder of the season should be the way to go.

Putting Kremer in the bullpen also allows the Twins to be cautious with Ryan in his return. Ryan's season has been riddled with health issues, whether he was placed on the IL or not. Even if the Twins don't make the postseason, they must be cautious with Ryan for the rest of this season to protect his health going forward.

Putting Kremer in the bullpen would help Ryan's workload without having to burn the entire bullpen on his start days.