MINNEAPOLIS -- Eddie Rosario and Matt Wisler are no longer members of the Twins after the non-tender deadline on Wednesday, leaving the organization with further holes to fill ahead of what was already shaping up to be a busy offseason following a bevy of losses to free agency.

Rosario's departure had been anticipated, but the loss of Wisler came as more of a surprise after the Twins couldn't come to an agreement with the right-handed breakout reliever's agent as the club looked to avoid going to arbitration with its eligible players. (The Twins avoided arbitration with all of their other candidates.) Considering that Sergio Romo, Trevor May and Tyler Clippard also became free agents, that leaves the bullpen as a major area of need for the Twins.

Let's unpack that and more in this week's Twins Inbox.

By letting May and Wisler go, is the front office confident with the current 'pen, or does this indicate shopping for some new guys? Also, a defensive backup for Byron Buxton would be great -- Delino DeShields Jr., possibly, or someone else?
-- Colin H., Grand Forks, N.D.

In thinking about the state of the Twins' bullpen, keep in mind that president of baseball operations Derek Falvey indicated that the club would continue conversations with both Rosario and Wisler moving forward, though they will now have competition from other clubs. It's tough for me to imagine a world in which Minnesota doesn't add one or two more arms to the 'pen by the end of the offseason.

Here's where things stand: Taylor Rogers and Tyler Duffey as established late-inning options, Cody Stashak and Jorge Alcala as young up-and-comers, Caleb Thielbar as a surprisingly productive arm and inexperienced wild cards in Edwar Colina, Dakota Chalmers, Ian Gibaut and Brandon Waddell.

Considering the Twins have a third straight American League Central title in their sights, there's definitely room to add more experience there, especially in the late innings. I'd be surprised to see a splashy deal considering the financial realities of this offseason, the unpredictability of relievers and this coaching staff's ability to extract performance from less heralded names, but Tyler Clippard types -- veterans with solid recent performance and playoff experience unlikely to seek multi-year deals -- would seem to be a sweet spot, too.

I'll address the outfield further down.

How many prospects will be on the Twins next season?
-- Jesiah W.

I'd say catcher Ryan Jeffers (No. 6 prospect), outfielder Brent Rooker (No. 12), starting pitcher Jhoan Duran (No. 5) and outfielder Alex Kirilloff (No. 2) are locks. Outfielder Trevor Larnach (No. 3) and starter Jordan Balazovic (No. 4) also appear likely to factor in. Shortstop Royce Lewis (No. 1) could also make a push. Most of them could have been a factor for the Twins in a normal 2020 season, but the pandemic and lack of a Minor League season pushed back some of their timelines by a year.

Moving further down the list, Colina (No. 16), Nick Gordon (No. 17) and Travis Blankenhorn (No. 18) are all on the cusp of the Majors, and both Chalmers (No. 24) and Ben Rortvedt (No. 27) could push their way up in a veritable logjam of prospects. If much of the 2021 season happens as planned, it could be a very interesting transition to the new core of young talent that could carry this team for the next several years.

Why didn’t the Twins try to trade Rosario?
-- Dylan

There needs to be demand on both sides in order for a trade to get done. Consider the fact that the Twins placed Rosario on outright waivers the day before he was non-tendered, giving all 29 other teams the opportunity to claim him for free, and no club made the move. Rosario has been a strong power producer over the past six seasons, but he had his on-base issues and defensive limitations, and Minnesota non-tendered him because his salary could have ballooned to the $9-10 million range for 2021 through the arbitration process.

As it turned out, no other team wanted him at that price point, either, which is why a trade would likely have been an uphill battle. Now that Rosario is a free agent, his market should pick up without the prospect of that arbitration-inflated salary looming.

Who is most likely to replace Rosario in left field at the start of next season?
-- Jacob L., River Falls, Wis.

I'd consider the most likely option to be some combination of Rooker and Jake Cave, with the possibility of a platoon and the opportunity for either to run with a more consistent gig based off early performance. Rooker's right-handed power bat looked MLB-ready in his seven-game 2020 cameo before his season ended with a right arm fracture, and Cave has been a strong left-handed fourth outfielder for three seasons.

In the long term (and even later in 2021), this looks like Kirilloff's job to lose considering his strong prospect pedigree and the Twins' willingness to start him in his Major League debut over Cave in a decisive Game 2 of the American League Wild Card Series against the Astros. There are always, of course, the playing-time considerations that often come into play for prospects as a result of the current system, which serves as a barrier for young top prospects like Kirilloff in cracking a first Opening Day roster.

There is the option for the Twins to target an outfielder in free agency as someone who could back up Buxton in case of injury, but considering the glut of corner-outfield types available and Max Kepler's center-field ability, I'd think figuring out some ideas for rotation and bullpen stability and addressing the need for utility depth in the absence of Marwin Gonzalez and Ehire Adrianza would be higher priorities.

Can we expect a signing to fill out the rotation? If so, then who is on the Twins' radar? Or do you expect the team to fill the role from within?
-- Hunter W., Minnesota

As my colleague Mark Feinsand has pointed out earlier this offseason, the Twins are expected to be players to some degree in the starting-pitcher market, and that shouldn't come as a surprise considering what happened in 2020, when the club looked to be swimming in starting depth but saw injuries to Jake Odorizzi, Rich Hill and Homer Bailey alongside underperformance from Lewis Thorpe and Devin Smeltzer. Had it not been for Randy Dobnak stepping up, they would have been in bad shape.

With Kenta Maeda, José Berríos and Michael Pineda locked into rotation spots, the Twins could use another proven starter to round out some depth and bridge the gap to Duran and Balazovic, the two high-upside prospects who could slot in as long-term rotation fits reasonably soon. The other options on the 40-man are the unproven Chalmers and Bailey Ober (added to protect him from the Rule 5 Draft). With Minnesota in win-now mode, additional reinforcements would help, even with Dobnak ready to fill in wherever needed.

Do you think Kyle Schwarber could be a good fit in the lineup as a Nelson Cruz replacement?
-- Parker, Minnesota

Schwarber is an intriguing option from a bat standpoint, but not so much from a fit standpoint. The power and on-base ability are there, but Schwarber is pretty much limited to being a well-below-average corner outfielder -- and outfield is an area of excess for the Twins. In an era where roster and defensive flexibility are more important than ever, I find it difficult to imagine Minnesota committing to essentially a DH-only bat unless it's somebody with otherworldly production and other intangibles (e.g. leadership ability) like that of Cruz. That's not to mention the fact that the Twins' stable of hitters is already very left-handed at the moment.

If the Twins beat writers picked teams to play a game of boot hockey, who would be your first pick?
-- Taylor P.

By process of elimination, Dan Hayes. I can speak to his cardio because we bike together in the mornings during the season. It's pretty wholesome. Dark horse candidate: goalie Aaron Gleeman.