With Pitching Injuries Mounting, What Options Do the Twins Have?

Coming into this season, the Twins believed their starting rotation — and the depth they had behind it — was one of their great strengths and a reason for optimism about their chances. As the calendar flips to June, Minnesota's pitching depth has completely vanished, with injuries threatening to sink the season for a 27-33 team.

The Twins placed Bailey Ober on the 15-day IL on Sunday due to right elbow inflammation. With that move, they now have an entire rotation worth of pitchers on the injured list:

RHP Pablo Lopez (hurt in spring training, out for season)
RHP Mick Abel (out since April 14)
RHP Bailey Ober
RHP David Festa (60-day IL)
LHP Kendry Rojas (placed on 15-day IL on Friday)

That rotation might not be a great one if it pitched an entire MLB season, but it's not an awful one either. Lopez is an All-Star, Abel looked outstanding in the two games before he hit the IL this year, Ober has been a steady vet for several years, and both Festa and Rojas have shown promise.

The Twins are down to four healthy starters right now. Joe Ryan, their ace, starts on Monday night at Target Field against the White Sox. He'll be followed by rookie Connor Prielipp on Tuesday and Taj Bradley on Wednesday. The starter for Thursday's series opener against the Royals is TBD, with Zebby Matthews set to go in the second game of that series on Friday night.

Riding a five-game losing streak after a weekend sweep in Pittsburgh, the Twins are 10 games into a stretch of 17 consecutive days without an off day.

"We got seven more, so we've gotta figure it out," manager Derek Shelton said on Sunday. "We gotta keep going."

Asked who might take Ober's place in the rotation, Shelton chuckled and said "that's five days from now. Right now, I'm trying to get through tonight and tomorrow. We'll figure it out as a group with where we're gonna go."

What options do the Twins have? They could go with a bullpen game on Thursday, but that's not exactly ideal given how much they've had to use their bullpen recently. Travis Adams, Andrew Morris, and recently-promoted Mike Paredes are all capable of supplying some length. So is John Klein, who has been part of the yo-yo of arms between Triple-A and the Twins.

Keep in mind that Simeon Woods Richardson was designated for release or assignment on Saturday after struggling massively over the last two months.

Other than maybe Klein, there aren't any obvious starting pitchers to call up from the Saints. It should also be noted that the Twins are monitoring the workload of Prielipp, who threw a career-high 82 innings last year in the minors. With that in mind, they may want to explore the possible avenues for an external addition, whether that's a trade or waiver claim or something else.

The situation is dire, which means every available option needs to be considered. Abel, Ober, and Rojas could all possibly return at some point, but the Twins need to find a way to survive life without them and stay afloat for the time being.

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