The 2024 season ended in heartbreaking fashion for Twins fans. Despite Minnesota looking all but locked into a playoff spot at the start of September, a brutal 9-18 record combined with a shocking 17-8 surge for the Tigers was enough to leave Twins players on their couches back home come October. While a fourth-place finish in the AL Central was tough to swallow, the teams core of talent was largely set to remain in place for 2025, providing some reason for optimism that a team that was held back from the playoffs by one terrible and injury-filled month could turn things around and contend again. Unfortunately, that hasnt come to pa s. The Twins made were largely inactive for the majority of the offseason, with only minor additions to the roster like the signings of , , and . In a division where rival clubs made notable additions or reunions (e.g. , , , ) it was fair to wonder if Minnesota had done enough to keep up. So far, it seems they did not. The Twins are 7-15. Thats the third-lowest win percentage in all of baseball ahead of only the lowly White Sox and Rockies. A rotation thats thrown the third-fewest innings in the majors this year with a subpar 4.30 ERA is one factor, but the biggest culprit is a lineup thats hit just .211/.282/.338 with a wRC+ of 82. Thats 18 points worse than league average and leaves Minnesota with the fifth-worst offense in the league. and have been bright spots, but the latter is now on the injured list. Meanwhile, players like , , and have failed to perform. Shortstop has followed last years outstanding .310/.388/.517 performance with a .194/.256/.319 slash line in 78 plate appearances. has yet to play a game, owing to a hamstring strain. Dire as things may look, the Twins arent even 15% of the way through their season; perhaps its too soon to make any Karl-Anthony Towns Jersey grand pronouncements about a club with what looks to be a solid core on paper. After all, the aforementioned Tigers of last season suffered an 8-18 stretch from June 5 to July 4 that featured an even lower winning percentage than Minnesotas current record, and they went on to fight their way back into contention even after trading away four veterans including the previously mentioned Flaherty at the deadline. Thats not the full story, of course. While the 162-game schedule is a marathon, a major checkpoint is approaching much more quickly: trade season. The trade deadline is 100 days from today. The Twins would have to play at a 91-win pace from now on to even make it back to .500 in time for the All-Star break. Its anyones gue s if the club would consider parting ways with major pieces under team control like or , but even shipping out rental pieces like France, Coulombe, and would surely stifle the clubs attempts to contend. The most important x-factor for the Twins, as is the case most years, will be player health. Lopez is expected back from the injured list later this week to help out the rotation, while the lineup figures to receive reinforcements when Wallner and Lewis are activated next month. If those key players make it back healthy and effective within the next few weeks, that could spark a turnaround. By the same token, a setback for any of those players or a long-term injury for another key player could wind up being a nail in the coffin for a team that has given itself very little margin for error with such a dismal start. What do MLBTR readers think the future holds for the Twins? Will the club be able to get healthy and bring playoff baseball back to Minnesota, or are the Twins staring down a second consecutive disappointing finish? Have your say in the poll below: How will the Twins fair the rest of the year? The Twins will continue to lose and finish the season well below .500. 46.78% (1,401votes) The Twins will bounce back to post a decent record, but it won't be enough to get back to October. 40.00% (1,198votes) The Twins will fight their way back into playoff contention. 13.22% (396votes) Total Votes: 2,995 Malik Sealy Jersey