Twins' Pablo López likely to return after dominant rehab start with Triple-A St. Paul
Pablo López made his third, and likely last, start of his rehab assignment for Triple-A St. Paul on Sunday, hurling 5 2/3 shutout innings on 82 pitches with seven strikeouts and one walk. His fastball averaged 93.9 miles per hour and reached 95.6 miles per hour.
In his first start of his Triple-A rehab assignment, López allowed one run on four hits and one walk with two strikeouts in 1 2/3 innings on Aug 21. In his second rehab outing, López surrendered three earned runs on six hits (one home run) and zero walks while striking out five in four innings on 68 pitches on Tuesday.
López, who has been sidelined since early June due to a right shoulder strain, had a limited pinch count for his first two outings of his rehab assignment, so the fact that he threw 82 pitches and dominated on Sunday suggests that the ace will be back on the Twins' roster soon, especially with Mick Abel's recent demotion to Triple-A St. Paul. With rosters set to expand from 26 to 28 players on Sept. 1, Minnesota should be able to fit him on the roster easily. But since López won't be ready to make a start for at least a few days, the Twins will wait until then before adding López to the 28-man roster.
Any hope of the Twins making the postseason is all but eliminated at this point in the year, but giving López at least a couple starts in September is vital, as the Twins will want López to head into the offseason confident in his abilities. However, one has to wonder if López is auditioning for a different team next season, as the Twins could very likely decide to trade López this offseason. The Twins showed that they are committed to shedding salary and bolstering their farm system at this summer's trade deadline, and trading López would continue that trend. The Twins would be able to secure a substantial haul for López in a trade while also saving money, and with López under team control through 2027 and a 2027 lockout appearing more likely every day, trading López might make sense in the eyes of the Pohlads and Derek Falvey.