The Minnesota Twins overall have experienced a roller-coaster of a season: from the highs of riding a 13-game winning streak back in May that would place them in contention of a playoff spot to ultimately collapsing since and shipping away just about anyone that had value.
Kody Funderburk is giving Twins fans reason to watch games during disappointing season
Despite all this, there have been some bright spots! Notably, reliever Kody Funderburk has shown quite a bit in the 37 games he's pitched in. But of course, he was seemingly in and out of Minnesota throughout the season, having been optioned and recalled about four times from April to July.
Funderburk has seemingly helped provide some massive support in an ailing bullpen, especially in the last two months of the season. While the stats on paper look fine, posting a 3.69 ERA in 39 innings pitched, there's a LOT to look over.
Let's just look at how he's been more recently. Over the course of Aug. and Sept., Funderburk has looked elite. In 25 appearances, he's compiled a 0.82 ERA along with striking out 25 batters (he has 37 k's overall this season!) and even notching a save. He's been a rather stable part of the Twins' bullpen for the last couple of months, something the team desperately needed to look forward to.
But is Kody Funderburk really as good as advertised?
For instance, his WHIP is sitting decently high, sitting at about 1.52 over the season. Even during the last two months, it posted at a 1.23. WHIP doesn't tell the entire story, of course. When delving into the advanced statistics, particularly on Baseball Savant, he hardly qualifies for any of the stats on his page. Even then, there's a sea of blue among a scattered field of red blobs, Funderburk's best one being his extension, sitting at the 95th percentile.
Funderburk's expected stats are also interesting - his BABIP is .348 while having an xFIP of 4.08 along with a 76.4% left on base rate. Combine that with his savant page, and it might leave a rather questioning taste.
His underlying stats are a mixed bag of luck, but it's fair to say that he was given a lot of opportunities in the second half after the Twins' fire sale and has seemingly blossomed when given the chance. Overall, Kody Funderburk is an intriguing piece to look forward to going into 2026, but be cautious. He could be an integral part of it next year, or it could've just been a mirage.