Minnesota Twins bring back veteran righty Matt Bowman
The Twins signed right-handed reliever Matt Bowman to a minor league deal on Monday, according to the team's transaction log.
Last season, Bowman made 20 appearances for the Baltimore Orioles, posting a 6.20 ERA (4.76 FIP) with 18 strikeouts and six walks over 24 2/3 innings. He also hurled 36 2/3 innings for the Orioles and Houston Astros' Triple-A teams last year, managing a 3.93 ERA with 35 strikeouts and nine walks.
Bowman, 34, made five appearances for the Twins in 2024, allowing two earned runs on two hits and four walks while collecting six strikeouts across 7 2/3 innings.
Bowman first reached the majors in 2016 with the St. Louis Cardinals. Since then, he has logged innings for the Cincinnati Reds, Arizona Diamondbacks, New York Yankees, Seattle Mariners, Twins and Orioles across seven seasons. He has a career 4.38 ERA with 194 strikeouts and 83 walks in 240 2/3 MLB innings.
Matt Bowman is the perfect bounce-back candidate for Twins
Bowman's fastball averages 91.1 miles per hour, and he had a lowly 17.4% strikeout rate with Baltimore last season. Despite that, there are reasons to believe he could have a bounce-back season with Minnesota in 2026.
Last season, Bowman had an outstanding 5.3% walk rate, 88.4 miles per hour average exit velocity and 35.2% hard-hit rate. Additionally, Bowman's 6.8 feet extension ranked in the 80th percentile.
Twins should stash Bowman in minors for now
Even though Bowman could have a bounce-back season, the Twins should stash him in Triple-A for now. Injuries are inevitable, so Minnesota can select Bowman's contract when a reliever lands on the injured list.
The Twins should plan to begin the season without Bowman in their bullpen. As of now, the Twins' 2026 bullpen will likely include Cole Sands, Justin Topa, Eric Orze, Taylor Rogers and Kody Funderburk. That leaves about three open spots. Two of those spots will likely be filled by internal options, such as David Festa, Marco Raya, Simeon Woods Richardson, etc. Another offseason addition should fill the other spot, as the Twins have made it clear they want to add another right-handed reliever to their bullpen.
Sure, the Twins already added a righty by signing Bowman to a minor league deal. However, the Twins likely view him as an insurance option who can fill in when the bullpen suffers an injury or a reliever is overworked. The Twins should add a different righty via the trade market or free agency and keep Bowman in Triple-A St. Paul to begin the season.