Twins second round of Spring Training roster cuts feature some notable names

We're just a few weeks away from Opening Day arriving, which means the Minnesota Twins are trying to get the finer details of their roster sorted out.

Most of the 26-man roster is set, with just a few fringe players potentially in the mix. The final spot in the bullpen appears to still be up for grabs, while it's yet to be seen whether Anthony DeSclafani will be healthy enough to start the season in the rotation.

Outside of those two questions, the Twins have answers almost everywhere else on the roster. What that also means is it's becoming clear who won't be in the picture at the end of the month, something that is slowly being confirmed with each new round of Spring Training roster cuts the team makes.

Twins announce second round of Spring Training roster cuts

Minnesota announced its second round of cuts on Monday and there are a few notable names on the move. The Twins optioned three players and reassigned another, all of whom were pitchers and each had interesting cases for potentially sneaking onto the Opening Day roster.

• Brent Headrick, P
• Simeon Woods Richardson, P
• Matt Canterino, P
• David Festa, P

It was a long shot that any of those guys started the season in the majors, but it's not going to be the last we hear from them.

Brent Headrick was the closest to being in a position to fight for a roster spot, as he could have made it as that last reliever in the bullpen. It appears that Jorge Alcalá is in the driver's seat to earn that role, but it could be that Headrick is in a next-man-up situation down at Triple-A.

Simeon Woods Richardson was a little bit of a longer shot than Headrick but he was looking more impressive than expected in Fort Myers.

“This is the best version of him I’ve ever seen,” Twins pitching coach Pete Larson said. “We would see some good (velocity) numbers in ’22 in Double A, he’d get up to 93, 94, 95. There just wasn’t a consistent aspect. I think that’s what we’re striving for and he’s looking for and bought in on. He’s still young, but he’s maturing and getting more innings under his belt. We’re getting close to seeing something really exciting.”

Considering where things were in mid-June last year, when he was 0-6 with 8.18 ERA, Woods Richardson appearing to be on the right track is something worth monitoring. He's not far enough along to truly compete for a roster spot, though.

Both Matt Canterino and David Festa were never going to be on the Opening Day roster but each are top pitching prospects to keep an eye on. Festa could develop along the lines of Bailey Ober or Louie Varland, and Canterino is coming back from injury and hungry to tap back into what made him a top prospect in the Twins' system a few years ago.

None of these cuts are terribly surprising, but if anything it's a reminder that the Twins are deeper than they might get credit for.

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