Most of Twins Territory was ready to give up on Mickey Gasper after last season. He raked for Triple-A St. Paul, but slashed just .158/.257/.232 (42 wRC+) over 110 plate appearances in 2025. Minnesota designated Gasper for assignment in February, and he eventually landed with the Red Sox, the team that had traded him to the Twins the previous offseason.
After all this, Mickey Gasper just got claimed off waivers by the Red Sox, the team that traded him to the Twins last winter.https://t.co/eCyp0opkDu
— Aaron Gleeman (@AaronGleeman) February 4, 2026
Can we see Sabato? Mickey Gasper clearly isn't an MLB player
— Twins Central (@TwinsCentral1) August 10, 2025
While many Twins fans were content to see Mickey Gasper's time in Minnesota end, most Red Sox fans are extremely happy with the catcher's production thus far in 2026. After he hit .296/.429/.519 (147 wRC+) across 133 Triple-A plate appearances this season, the Red Sox recalled Gasper on May 7. Gasper has continued his tear at the plate in the majors, slashing .381/.409/.476 (149 wRC+) over 22 plate appearances.
Mickey Gasper might actually be the hottest hitter on the planet since his promotion.
— G.G. (@ggeiss_mlb) May 16, 2026
He must remain in the lineup every day.
93.1 EV / .560 xBA leadoff single: pic.twitter.com/Tbn31kf9i1
Twins likely still made right move to let Gasper go despite hot streak with Red Sox
Obviously, Boston fans should keep their expectations in check regarding Gasper. There's a reason he's 30 years old and has appeared in only 63 major-league games. However, he's never had a hot streak in the big leagues like the one he's having. The fact that he received another MLB opportunity after a rough rookie season and is thriving is worth noting, regardless of his small sample size.
The Twins' brass likely knows Gasper's hot streak probably won't continue. And even if it does, Minnesota made the right move to let Gasper go. He failed to show he belongs in the majors during his time with Minnesota. He played a vital role for the team last season by assuming innings at catcher when Ryan Jeffers and Christian Vázquez were sidelined with injuries, but the team had no room for him this year.
Jeffers, who is hitting .284/.400/.509 (156 wRC+) in 140 plate appearances, was always going to be Minnesota's starting catcher this season. As for the backup role, the Twins may have considered Gasper, but opted to sign Victor Caratini to a two-year, $14 million deal and acquire Alex Jackson, who is currently playing for Triple-A St. Paul, from the Baltimore Orioles. While Caratini has had a rough season thus far, slashing .194/.287/.233 (53 wRC+), it's hard to fault the Twins for having him be the backup catcher over Gasper. Caratini has been in the majors since 2017 and was an above-average hitter per wRC+ in each of the last two seasons. There's still plenty of time for Caratini to improve, and plenty of time for Gasper to regress. Hopefully, Caratini will improve, and Gasper will continue to succeed.
Add us as a preferred source on Google