First baseman Jake Bauers contemplated retirement after the 2024 season but decided to keep playing because he needed health insurance. “The only thing that brought me back was that my wife got pregnant, and I was like, 'Well, we need health insurance,’” Bauers said. Bauers is definitely glad he decided to keep playing after a breakout season with the Brewers, which ended with a World Series championship. Now, he can accept a $23.15 million qualifying offer from Milwaukee or test the free-agent market, where he could likely land a multi-year contract.
“The only thing that brought me back was that my wife got pregnant, and I was like, 'Well, we need health insurance.’”
— FOX Sports (@FOXSports) October 15, 2026
From almost being out of baseball to performing in the NLCS. What a journey for Jake Bauers.@MLBONFOX | @KevinBurkhardt | @AROD | @DavidOrtiz | @DerekJeter pic.twitter.com/oVJsiswGXy
MLB.com's Mark Feinsand recently listed the Minnesota Twins as a fit for Bauers, the 2026 NLCS MVP. Feinsand wrote that Minnesota will be looking to add bats this offseason, particularly ones that can hit left-handed pitching. This year, Bauers slashed .266/.389/.484 overall and .267/.375/.526 against southpaws. He hit 26 home runs and drove in 86 runs during the regular season.
The Twins ranked 27th in OPS at first base (.667) in 2026. For now, it looks like Royce Lewis will be the starting first baseman in 2027. But the Twins can still add another first baseman and move Lewis to second, since Kody Clemens, the Twins' current top candidate to be the 2027 starting second baseman, can play all around the diamond.
The Twins might also consider non-tendering or trading Lewis this offseason. Lewis, the 2017 first-overall pick, posted just 1.5 fWAR and a poor 85 wRC+ in 231 games over the last two seasons.
Twins could be scared to pursue Jake Bauers due to qualifying offer, late breakout season
While Bauers seems like an obvious offseason target for the Twins, the fact that the Brewers gave him a qualifying offer could scare Minnesota away; if Bauers declines the offer and the Twins sign him, Minnesota will lose draft compensation. The Twins should still pursue Bauers if they want him, but losing a future prospect might persuade Minnesota to seek offensive upgrades elsewhere.
Spotrac predicts Bauers will sign a four-year deal for roughly $58 million. Because Bauers just turned 31 and had an above-average season for the first time in his career this year, the Twins and other teams may worry that his breakout season was a fluke. He posted 3.6 fWAR this year. Before 2026, Bauers had been worth -0.4 fWAR since making his MLB debut with the Tampa Bay Rays in 2018.
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