Twins mailbag queries: Bullpen, vibes, honchos

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EDEN PRAIRIE, Minn. -- It has been a while since I took mailbag questions, and as the Hot Stove season gets under way, it seemed like a good time to dip my toe into the social media waters and solicit some questions.

We’ll start with a couple of connected questions:

From Wyatt on Twitter: Could you see the Twins looking at a guy like Ryan Helsley or Devin Williams and focus on some rebound potential players?
From Grant on Twitter: What internal options do the Twins have for the bullpen next year?

The bullpen is quite obviously the biggest need this winter. The thing is, there are a lot of ways to build a bullpen. First, as for rebound candidates, I wouldn’t rule it out. But I think those kinds of moves often make more sense in trade than in free agency. Because somebody might see that arm, get excited and think they can fix the pitcher, and bid aggressively. I think if you’re looking for value acquisitions in relief, last winter’s Danny Coulombe move might provide a guide -- an older player who maybe is a health risk but has been a consistent performer.

As for the internal options, in one sense, there are a ton. The Twins will come to camp with some eight or nine rotation candidates, and that’s before you start talking about prospects like Connor Prielipp, Kendry Rojas and Andrew Morris. So that’s where you should start. There’s a long history in this organization of turning starter prospects into high-quality relievers. Bullpen help is more likely to come from there than from guys who are already relieving.

From Nate on Bluesky: What’s the vibe of some of the players who are still around? I’m sure Byron Buxton is putting on a brave face, but kids like Royce Lewis and Luke Keaschall might be going, “What did I get myself into?”

I haven’t talked with guys since the season ended. (I like to leave them alone unless I need them for something, especially early in the winter.) But, obviously, I was around a lot down the stretch. And the answer is, probably better than you might think.

The initial reaction, immediately after the Trade Deadline, was unsurprisingly one of shock and disappointment. And some of the more veteran players were particularly caught off guard. But as you no doubt saw, Buxton made it clear that nothing has changed as far as his desire to stay.

There certainly are some veterans who are wondering the direction. And I will say this: If it trends more toward further restructuring, rather than building up the roster to win sooner, some of that wondering may well turn into discontent.

As for the younger players, I think it bothers them a lot less. For one thing, it means opportunity for some of them. Brooks Lee took over as the everyday shortstop. Austin Martin got regular playing time. So obviously they’d rather win than lose and would rather be on a team that’s looking to add rather than subtract. But I think in the aggregate, they’re less affected.

From Rye on Bluesky: Are we waiting to hear about the limited partners during the Winter Meetings?

I addressed this in Thursday’s article, so please do check that out. In short: We are still waiting, but at least some prospective new members of the ownership group have begun participating in conversations. Team president Derek Falvey said that to a few of us during his breakout session at the Derek Shelton news conference on Tuesday. There’s not an official date for it to be finalized yet, however.