Uncertainty over Joe Ryan’s health adds importance to Twins series vs. Guardians

The Minnesota Twins have a big series this weekend as they try to get back atop the division and solidify their spot in the playoff race.

Starting with a doubleheader on Friday — due to a rain-out on April 7 — the Twins and Cleveland Guardians will play four games over three days.

The Twins enter the series 3.5 games back, meaning they could sit in first place in the American League Central by a half-game by the end of Sunday. Even shaving the margin to 1.5 games back would be big, although they could also remain 3.5 back or end up 5.5 or 7.5 games back.

Yes, there will still be 45 games left in the season after the series this weekend, including four more against Cleveland, so the outcome, either way, won’t determine the season standings.

And while all series against division foes are big, especially later in the season, this one has more importance for the Twins because of the uncertainty with starting pitcher Joe Ryan’s health.

The 28-year-old abruptly left his start on Wednesday in the third inning, which manager Rocco Baldelli later confirmed was due to “right triceps tightness.” The team hasn’t yet provided any further updates on Ryan, and Baldelli said they plan to give him a couple of days to see how he feels and if an injured list stint is necessary.

While Baldelli also indicated the issue doesn’t seem to be a huge deal at the moment, as he expressed confidence Ryan will pitch again this season, even if he needs a break, that still isn’t very optimistic for the Twins.

Because of the team’s shortage of experienced starting depth and Chris Paddack’s continued absence due to a forearm strain, any period of time without Ryan will result in a major impact on the club.

Already relying on two rookies — Simeon Woods Richardson and David Festa — to give the team a chance two out of every five games now, the Twins would be forced to turn to Louie Varland, who struggled mightily early in the season, or another rookie like Zebby Matthews, if Ryan misses time.

Additionally, the team’s initial outlook for Ryan should also be met with skepticism given how other injury timelines have progressed. For example, Carlos Correa wasn’t expected to miss much time at all when he was diagnosed with plantar fasciitis just before the All-Star break. Friday will mark four weeks since the last game he played. Similar situations have played out with the injuries to Royce Lewis, Justin Topa and other players this season who’ve missed more time than the team initially projected.

Of course, that’s not to say their initial projection for Ryan is long, but it’s also reasonable to assume Minnesota will have to make do without him for a decent chunk of the remaining season, of which there’s only 7.5 weeks left.

Meanwhile, Cleveland is starting to get some injured players back, with pitchers Matthew Boyd and Sam Hentges both on rehab assignments and Alex Cobb and Tanner Bibee both expected to pitch this weekend.

That all makes this series more important for the Twins than it seems to be or would’ve been had Ryan been healthy and/or the Twins added another starter ahead of the trade deadline.

Bailey Ober and Varland are expected to start Friday’s games, although the Twins haven’t yet officially announced that, with Woods Richardson and Festa slated to start the latter two. That’s already three guys who weren’t expected to play big roles for the 2024 Twins before spring training set to toe the rubber in the biggest series of the season to date.

Thanks to the uncertainty around Ryan’s health and a lack of other quality, veteran options, that may be the Twins’ outlook for the foreseeable future, which makes this weekend all the more important.