Reliever Matt Bowman exercised his opt-out with the Twins earlier today, according to the New York Post's Jon Heyman. The righty still pitched for Minnesota today, meaning he hasn't been released, but the Twins have to decide whether to add him to their Opening Day roster soon.
It'll be difficult for the Twins to fit Bowman, who signed a minor-league deal with Minnesota during the offseason, in their Opening Day bullpen. It's probably safe to say that relievers Anthony Banda, Taylor Rogers, Eric Orze, Justin Topa, Cole Sands, Zak Kent and Kody Funderburk will be on the team for the season opener in Baltimore on Thursday.
Most people likely assume righty Dan Altavilla has the final bullpen spot locked up. However, the Twins may decide to have Bowman on the roster instead. While Altavilla has a more electric pitch mix, with a fastball that reaches high-90s, he allowed two runs in his last outing and one run during the previous outing. Meanwhile, Bowman has absolutely dominated this spring.
Matt Bowman has proved he belongs on Twins' 26-man roster
Bowman has pitched as well as the Twins could've asked for this spring. In 7 1/3 innings in 2026 Grapefruit League action, Bowman has allowed zero earned runs, six hits and two walks with seven strikeouts across six appearances. He also looked sharp with Team Israel during the World Baseball Classic, hurling three scoreless innings with one strikeout while allowing just one hit and one walk.
Two scoreless innings today for Kody Funderburk and Matt Bowman, who is in opt-out limbo and waiting to hear from the #MNTwins.
— DanHayesMLB (@DanHayesMLB) March 22, 2026
Bowman has allowed an unearned run in 7 1/3 IP w/ the Twins and had 3 scoreless in the World Baseball Classic.
Bowman, who made five appearances with the Twins in 2024, has five pitches in his arsenal. He relies on a low-90s sinker nearly half the time, while mixing in a high-80s cutter, a low-80s sweeper, a mid-80s splitter and a low-90s four-seamer.
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.
Despite his poor ERA last season, Bowman showed signs he could bounce back in 2026. Last year, the righty had an outstanding 5.3% walk rate, 88.4 mph average exit velocity and 35.2% hard-hit rate. Additionally, Bowman's 6.8 feet extension ranked in the 80th percentile.
Even with Bowman's success this spring, there just might not be room on the Twins' Opening Day team for the 34-year-old. If the Twins decide to grant him his release, he will likely find a different club willing to give him a spot on its 26-man roster.