Twins lose another bullpen arm right before the deadline

The Twins got some bad news out of the training room this week. MLB Trade Rumors was first to report that right-hander Cole Sands is headed for elbow surgery, closing the book on a season that never really got going for him.

MLB Trade Rumors

@mlbtraderumors

Twins' Cole Sands To Undergo Elbow Surgery t.co/RmrkqO09bA

The surgery itself is an arthroscopic cleanup, doctors going in to remove loose bodies and bone spurs, plus a PRP injection to help things heal. It's not a Tommy John situation, which is the one piece of good news here. But it still ends Sands' 2026 season outright, and the Twins say he's not expected back until he's ready for Spring Training in 2027.

This has been a lost year for Sands from basically the jump. He missed months with a right forearm strain before attempting a comeback against Oakland, where he got hammered for 5 earned runs while recording just 1 out. He went right back on the IL with an elbow strain, and that appearance turned out to be his last of the season. Across 13 appearances total, he finished with an 8.25 ERA, 1 save and 11 strikeouts — a brutal line for a guy the Twins have leaned on in relief the past few years.

Timing is what makes this sting. Minnesota is barreling toward the August 3 trade deadline still trying to figure out its bullpen, and now they're doing it down another arm. GM Jeremy Zoll didn't dodge the obvious connection, telling reporters the front office is going to "focus on finding to continue to improve the bullpen and that'll be a clear focus."

None of this changes Minnesota's broader deadline math so much as it adds urgency to it. The Twins were already shopping for relief help before Sands went down; now the need is even more glaring with a proven-if-inconsistent piece off the board for the rest of the year. Expect the front office to be aggressive over the next few days, and expect Sands' name to keep coming up as the explanation why.