One year removed from their fire sale at the 2025 Trade Deadline, the Minnesota Twins have been aggressive buyers in 2026.
The team previously added left-handed reliever A.J. Minter from the New York Mets and right-handed starting pitcher Dean Kremer from the Baltimore Orioles, but they did not stop with the pitching acquisitions.
Just minutes before the 6 P.M. EST Deadline, the Toronto Blue Jays traded former closer and right-handed reliever Jeff Hoffman to the Twins.
The former All-Star with the Philadelphia Phillies had a rough couple of years in Toronto. Most notably giving up a game-tying home run to Miguel Rojas in the ninth inning of Game Seven of the 2025 World Series.
This season, Hoffman's brutal start led him to lose his closer role, but he has been lights on since.
On the year, he has a 3.94 ERA with 75 strikeouts, 18 walks and five saves in 48 innings.
However, the 33-year-old bounced back to post a 2.51 ERA in his last 30 appearances to bring up his value and confidence.
Hoffman will be a great addition to the Twins' bullpen is he is able to keep up these numbers. He uses a slider and fastball combination to devastate hitters, leading to elite Chase Percentage, Whiff Percentage and Strikeout Percentage numbers per Baseball Savant.
In return, the Blue Jays are receiving left-handed pitcher Dasan Hill, right-handed pitcher John Klein and infielder Dameury Pena.
