Mick Abel Injured, Twins Shuffle Pitching Staff

0:00On April 20th, the Minnesota twins just placed rookie pitcher make Abel on the 15-day injured list with inflammation in his right elbow. This 24-year-old right-hander, a former first-round pick traded from Philly last year, had a solid start to the 20-26 season with. A 3.98 ERA, over 20 and a third innings, his placement is retroactive to April 17th, making him eligible to return as early as May 2nd. Earlier this spring, Abel earned a rotation spot after dominating great fruit league action, but now, the twins are shuffling things. They're moving up Simeon Woods Richardson to start tomorrow instead, while prospects Kendri Rojas and Connor Prelib are reportedly joining them. Roaster and Taxi Squad, soon. Fans and analysts are buzzing about the rotation crunch, with Joe Ryan, Taj Bradley, Bailey Ober and Woods Richardson locked in as the core 4. Zephy Matthews, who lost out to Abel for that fit spot back in March, is back in the mix despite a rough AAA start at 7.71.

1:04ERA, he's still just 25, with strong strikeout stuff. Meanwhile, Matthews has seen his own role to coaster from call-ups and injuries in 2025 to optioning this spring as the team finalized. Plans without Pablo Lopez, other arms like Andrew Morris could piggyback or start if needed, keeping Minnesota's young pitching depths tested. With an off day today, expect Skipper Derek Shelton to drop more details tomorrow before facing the Met's Abel's quick bounce back could steady this. Staff before things heat up in the AL Central, that wraps MLB news today, brought to you with AI.