Twins make best move of offseason by trading for Dodgers' lefty reliever Anthony Banda
Yesterday, multiple reports confirmed that the Minnesota Twins signed righty relievers Liam Hendriks and Julian Merryweather to minor league deals. Both relievers have good chances to make Minnesota's Opening Day roster. However, their odds of doing so just decreased a bit, as The Athletic's Dan Hayes reported today that the Twins have acquired lefty reliever Anthony Banda from the Los Angeles Dodgers in exchange for international bonus space. The Twins designated righty reliever Jackson Kowar for assignment to clear a 40-man roster spot for Banda, who had been designated for assignment by Los Angeles last week.
The Dodgers' decision to designate Banda, 32, for assignment was surprising. Los Angeles acquired the lefty via a trade with the Cleveland Guardians in May 2024. He posted a 3.08 ERA with 50 strikeouts and 18 walks in 49 1/3 innings with the Dodgers in 2024, and allowed just one run with 11 strikeouts across eight innings during the 2024 postseason, helping the Dodgers win their first World Series since 2020.
Banda had another solid season with the Dodgers in 2025, pitching to a 3.18 ERA with 61 strikeouts in 65 innings. However, despite his good results, he walked 34 batters and had a 4.52 FIP. He struggled during the 2025 World Series as well, allowing six earned runs in three innings across four games.
Anthony Banda is a lock to make Twins' Opening Day roster
Still, acquiring Banda was a great move for the Twins, especially since they only had to surrender international pool space. Banda should be a lock to crack the Opening Day bullpen, which will include Justin Topa, Cole Sands, Eric Orze, Taylor Rogers and Kody Funderburk. Other bullpen options include Hendriks, Merryweather, Matt Bowman, Grant Hartwig, Dan Altavilla, Travis Adams and Kowar (if he clears waivers).
Last season, Banda had a 3.61 expected ERA (69th percentile), .206 expected opponent batting average (85th percentile), 27.2% whiff rate (65th percentile) and 38.6% hard-hit rate (64th percentile). Ideally, he walks fewer batters next season, but he was still a valuable pitcher for the Dodgers despite his poor 13% walk-rate (3rd percentile).
Banda relies on four pitches. Last season, his mid-80s slider accounted for nearly half his pitches. As for the other half, he mainly mixed in a sinker and four-seamer that averaged around 96 mph. He also occasionally threw a changeup that averaged 89.9 mph.