Twins aren’t in a hurry to rush newest acquisitions back to the major leagues

CLEVELAND – The Twins acquired four players with major league experience during their trade deadline sell-off frenzy, but only one of those players, outfielder Alan Roden, immediately joined the big-league club.

The Twins opted to send starting pitchers Mick Abel and Taj Bradley, along with center fielder James Outman, to Class AAA St. Paul to begin their Twins careers. Abel and Bradley were already pitching in AAA for their previous organizations before their trades, while Outman was a reserve with the Los Angeles Dodgers.

In a lost season, why not let them receive big-league experience now?

“The last thing you want to do is have guys come to the big leagues in a new environment, new staff, new everything, and oh, by the way, ‘I’m working on something,’ ” Twins President Derek Falvey said. “If you can get some of that work done in AAA to invest in the long-term future for that guy’s career, it’s usually a little bit better.”

Bradley, 24, was acquired from Tampa Bay in exchange for reliever Griffin Jax. Bradley was demoted by the Rays on July 24, in his third big-league season, and tasked with regaining the feel for his splitter after his strikeout rate dramatically dropped.

In 21 major league starts this year, Bradley was 6-6 with a 4.61 ERA, 95 strikeouts and 44 walks in 111 innings.

He made only one minor league start before Thursday’s trade, and the Twins want him to continue working on his splitter.

Abel, who will turn 24 later this month, made six starts for the Philadelphia Phillies before he returned to the minor leagues in early July. He made his Saints debut with five scoreless innings in Sunday’s 4-1 loss at Toledo, giving up one hit and walking two while striking out seven.

“We feel like he’s a guy there’s some things developmentally he’s still working on,” Falvey said. “He shows incredible upside and talent. But sometimes you need to get your legs under you in a new organization before you take that next step.”

Outman, 28, finished third in the National League Rookie of the Year voting in 2023. He has failed to establish himself in the majors since then, batting .137 with six homers and 15 RBI over the past two years. In two games with the Saints, he is 0-for-8 with five strikeouts.

Outman will be out of minor league options next year, so the Twins want to maximize his developmental time as he tinkers with his swing.

“When you think back to a couple of years ago when he very much was on Rookie of the Year pace in the National League, he got a little out of sorts where he was then to now with his swing,” Falvey said.

Ohl was traveling with the Saints on Monday for their series at Toledo. Their flight Monday morning to Detroit had been delayed, and the team bus wasn’t at the Detroit airport, so players were told to take an Uber to their hotel in Toledo, Ohio, about an hour south.

In a car with teammates Cody Laweryson and Jarret Whorff, the Uber driver drove them to the wrong hotel, one located in downtown Detroit. They decided to enjoy their off day there instead. They visited a Nike store downtown, where they saw NBA star Draymond Green. They ate lunch, then walked past Comerica Park, where they watched the Arizona Diamondbacks take batting practice through a gate outside the stadium.

“We decide, all right, it’s time to Uber back down to Toledo. We have to get ready,” Ohl said. “We finally get down to Toledo. I’m there in my hotel room for about 30 minutes, and my phone rings. They’re like, ‘Hey, you’re going to ”The Show.” You have to get back in an Uber and drive to Detroit because you’re staying there,” before a 7 a.m. flight the next morning.

The next day, Ohl made his major league debut, pitching three innings in a start against the Boston Red Sox.

• Just-traded Randy Dobnak pitched for Toledo on Sunday, giving up one run in four innings while striking out seven. Luke Keaschall doubled to start the game and scored on Payton Eeles’ single, but the Saints managed one hit the rest of the game. Dobnak was already in Toledo with the Saints on Monday when he got word that he was traded.