Twins option starter Zebby Matthews to Triple-A

The Twins suddenly have a vacancy in their starting rotation with Joe Ryan (glute) expected to land on the injured list, so Matthews will have another opportunity to show what he can do at the game’s highest level. The 26-year-old hurler holds a 5.22 ERA, 1.31 WHIP and a 69/26 K/BB ratio over 81 innings in 14 starts with the Twins this season.

Kremer was solid in his Twins debut. He drastically pushed up the usage of his four-seam fastball and kept it elevated consistently. That usage especially spiked against left-handed batters where he threw it 54% of the time against them here compared to 27% while he was with the Orioles. That came while he almost completely trashed his curveball and sinker against them. We like that decision for the sinker and also spiked a few curveballs early and floated one in late, so this could have been more about feel than a conscious adjustment. Still, he was effective and is scheduled for a two-start week against the Orioles and Phillies coming up with both starts at home.

The Twins definitely needed rotation depth, but Kremer has struggled to a 6.50 ERA in his seven starts this year, and while he’s under control for 2027, he seems like a non-tender candidate right now. Maybe he’ll bounce back — he was typically an average starter or a little better each season from 2022 through 2025 — but he’s never been all that exciting with his middling velocity and strikeout numbers. The Orioles could replace him with Trey Gibson or Cade Povich for now, and they should get Chris Bassitt back sometime in August. Zebby Matthews might be bumped from the Twins’ rotation in order to open up a spot.

Matthews succeeded at getting ahead in the count against a subpar offense and picked up four strikeouts with his fastball, three with his slider and two with his cutter. It’s his first ever 10-strikeout game after a pair of nine-K outings as a rookie last year. His previous high this year had been seven. Matthews might have another generous start coming up against the Royals, depending on how exactly the Twins choose to insert Dean Kremer into the mix. It’s possible Matthews will lose his spot and return to Triple-A for a spell.

No word yet on what’s going back to the Orioles in the deal. Kremer finished his Orioles’ tenure on a low note, giving up eight runs over four innings in a miserable effort against the Tigers on Tuesday. That being said, he should help to bring stability to the middle of the Twins’ rotation as they push for a spot in the postseason. Stay tuned.

Kremer gave up a pair of homers, bringing his total surrendered to 12 in 36 innings this season. He’s allowed 21 runs in 25 innings in his five starts since coming off the injured list, and he’s 1-4 with a 6.50 ERA in seven starts overall. If the Orioles can bring in a starter before the deadline, it’s very obvious that it’s Kremer who is going to be bumped from the rotation.

Matthews got off to an incredible start in this game by facing the minimum 12 batters over the first four innings. Then, he labored through both the fifth and sixth and was fortunate to escape both of those jams with just one run scored in each. He did not miss many bats and struggled to locate most of his pitches, but did see a nearly two mile per hour velocity bump across the board. Still, he’s not a trustworthy option with a 5.21 ERA, 59 strikeouts, and 24 walks through 76 innings this season. He’s scheduled to face the Mariners in Seattle next time out.

Four of the runs came right away in the first. The Orioles never made up that deficit, but at least Kremer was able to settle down and get through six with the team playing two games today. Kremer finished up with five strikeouts and one walk. He allowed eight hits, five of which came in the first. He is 1-2 with a 5.57 ERA in four starts since returning from a quad strain, and he figures to next pitch Monday or Tuesday in Detroit.

Yikes. Two of the runs were unearned, but all of this was deserved. Matthews gave up nine hits and three walks, and while he did fan four hitters, he was in consistent trouble and obviously didn’t escape it very often. The right-hander’s ERA ballooned to 5.40 with this outing, and unfortunately, it’s a reminder that the talented 26-year-old still has some work to do before he can be counted on as a consistent fantasy option. He’s set to face the A’s next weekend with a chance to rebound.

Kremer was inefficient in this short start and struggled to find the zone with any pitch besides his sinker. Something interesting though, he practically threw all five of his pitches the exact same amount: 18 sinkers, 17 splitters, 17 four-seam fastballs, 16 cutters, and 15 curveballs. It made sense to bounce around so evenly too because again, he couldn’t really command any of them. He’ll look to have a better start next time out against the Red Sox in Boston.