One of the final spots in the Twins' starting rotation has to be Mick Abel's to lose, now. Right? Entering spring training, Abel was basically on the outside looking in of being a starting pitcher to kick off the new season.
But with Pablo Lopez and David Festa getting hit with injuries, that opened a door for Abel. He's taken advantage of that opportunity. He straight up dominated in his spring training debut. And then on Sunday, in his second start, he was just as good again — which has us all thinking the same thing. Mick Abel has to be leading the race of cracking the regular season rotation ahead of guys like Zebby Matthews and Taj Bradley.
Mick Abel's 2026 spring training has Twins fans way too excited about the regular season
Abel was averaging over 96 MPH on his fastball last year, but on Saunday against the Braves, he was easily pumping over 98 MPH in his three-inning appearance. Against Atlanta, Abel compiled six strikeouts in three scoreless innings, allowing one hit.
Mick Abel's 6Ks in 3 innings. pic.twitter.com/vHMQIajRgP
— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) March 1, 2026
Abel looks comfortable out there. He looks confident. He is definitely consistent, too. In six spring innings, he has struck out 11 hitters, has issued zero walks, and has scattered three hits.
On Sunday, he set down three Braves on strikes via fastball, two on a slider, and one on a sweeper. Among his 11 punch-outs this spring, six have been on his heater while three other pitches have combined for the rest. He's deep in his bag already, displaying confidence in each pitch, all while showing gradual jumps in velocity.
Abel is putting himself in a spot that's impossible for the Twins to ignore. If he continues pitching like this, how could they justify keeping him out of the starting rotation? Even if it is only two spring starts, he has to have leapfrogged the competition. It is his spot on the staff to lose. We are bought in.