Unfortunately, the Twins aren't part of the 2025 postseason. Therefore, Twins fans need a new team to root for this October.
What team should Twins fans root for in the 2025 MLB playoffs?
The Wild Card round saw the Boston Red Sox, Cleveland Guardians, San Diego Padres and Cincinnati Reds get eliminated. The Division Round, which began on Saturday, consists of matchups between the Chicago Cubs and Milwaukee Brewers, the New York Yankees and Toronto Blue Jays, the Los Angeles Dodgers and Philadelphia Phillies, and the Detroit Tigers and Seattle Mariners.
First, let's bring attention to the teams Twins fans definitely don't want to root for this October. The Tigers are the first team that comes to mind, considering they are one of Minnesota's division rivals. The only reason for a Twins fan to cheer for the Tigers this postseason is for Chris Paddack, but he likely won't be pitching in any high-leverage situations during the playoffs.
The other team Twins fans definitely don't want to root for this October is the Yankees. Minnesota has an all-time win-loss record of 777-1149 against New York, and the Twins always seem to get eliminated in the playoffs at the hands of the Yankees. New York also doesn't have any former Twins on its team besides former Minnesota starting pitching prospect Luis Gil, who made the start in Game 1 of the ALDS against the Blue Jays.
Now, let's decide which of the other six teams in the playoffs is worth rooting for. The Brewers have former Twins reliever Trevor Megill on their squad as the closer, which likely isn't enough of a reason for Twins fans to root for them. The Dodgers have former Twins catching prospect Ben Rortvedt on their roster, which also likely isn't a big enough reason for Twins fans to root for them, especially when Los Angeles just won the World Series last year.
That leaves the Cubs, Blue Jays, Phillies and Mariners as clubs Twins fans could root for this October. All four of those teams have Twins connections.
The Mariners have former Twins catcher Mitch Garver and former Twins second baseman Jorge Polanco. Garver already won a ring with the Texas Rangers in 2023, but Polanco is still chasing after the ultimate goal.
The Blue Jays' hitting coach is former Twins hitting coach Dave Pokins, who was fired by Minnesota following the 2024 season. As far as former Twins players go, Toronto has former Twin and Minnesota native Louis Varland, whom the Twins traded to the Blue Jays at the trade deadline, on its ALDS roster. Ty France was also part of the Varland trade, but he is not on the ALDS roster after dealing with a left oblique inflammation injury at the end of the regular season.
While there are reasons for Twins fans to root for the Mariners and Blue Jays, cheering on the Cubs and Phillies would make more sense. The Cubs have former Twins utilityman Willi Castro and former Twins lefty reliever Caleb Thielbar on their NLDS roster. Additionally, Chicago has former Twins Carlos Santana and Taylor Rogers, but neither made the NLDS roster. The Cubs also have a Minnesota native, Michael Busch, as their first baseman.
Twins fans should root for the Phillies during the 2025 MLB playoffs
Meanwhile, the Phillies have three former Twins fan favorites on their NLDS roster in righty closer Jhoan Durán and outfielders Max Kepler and Harrison Bader. Durán is one of the best closers in Twins history, Bader quickly became a fan favorite in his short time with Minnesota, and Kepler spent 10 years with the Twins. There are reasons for Twins fans to root for almost any team this October, but the Phillies make the most sense.