It looks like the Twins may end up standing in the Guardians way in 2026 after all 

Last season was a disaster for the Minnesota Twins. Not only did they put a subpar showing on the diamond  (70-92 record), but they also spent the year in a weird gray area while the Pohlad family explored a sale of the team. 

While they didn’t end up selling, the Twins had a full-scale fire sale at the trade deadline that was headlined by them trading away Carlos Correa. 

And earlier this offseason it looked like that fire sale may continue into the offseason thanks to some reporting from MLB insiders about how the Twins were exploring trading veterans like Byron Buxton, Joe Ryan, Pablo López, among others. 

But it seems like that’s no longer the case. 

On Friday, The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal put out a story (subscription required) where he wrote that the Twins are not only planning on holding onto their three veterans but are also planning on competing in 2026. 

Although that doesn’t change the fact the Twins are carrying a reported $425 million in debt, it does make it seem like they’re not going to be the divisional afterthought that it looks like we thought they were going to be (even if their managerial hiring was a bit uninspiring). 

It looks like the Guardians are going to need to worry about the Twins in 2026 

That doesn’t mean the sky is falling in Cleveland, however. Yes, the Twins won the division in 2023, but they’ve only won 152 games since — and that’s with a roster led by those three veterans. 

They also still have some work they need to do if they want to compete since they have glaring holes in their bullpen and infield. Buxton is one of the most exciting players in baseball and would command a huge return in the trade market, but last season also marked just the second time in his career that he’s played in 120+ games. 

As of now, the Guardians have a better roster than the Twins. But that doesn’t mean Cleveland’s front office should sit on its hands.

While the Guardians won their second straight American League Central title in 2025, they needed to go on a crazy run at the end of the season to do it and ended up getting bounced from the postseason by the Tigers. 

Even though there’s a chance the Tigers could trade Tarik Skubal this offseason, Detroit still has a roster that’s reached the postseason in back-to-back seasons. They could always end up adding during next week’s Winter Meetings, too. 

The Guardians have been the class of the division for two straight seasons thanks to herculean efforts from José Ramírez and the pitching staff, but things will need to change soon if they want to make a long run through October.