MLB Trade Rumors: 3 Top Landing Spots for Twins Starter Joe Ryan

Joe Ryan's name has been endlessly listed on trade boards around the major leagues this offseason, but he's still set to head up the Minnesota Twins rotation heading into the 2026 season. For now.

But there are some teams who are still looking for a top-notch starter, who will not give up the chase on Ryan. He's been a No.1-caliber starter for a couple of seasons now and was an All-Star in 2025, going 13-10 for a Twins team that finished 22 games under .500. He also posted a 3.42 ERA and a 1.05 WHIP.

Let's take a look at three teams that are still considered the top landing spots for Joe Ryan:

New York Yankees

Gerrit Cole, the ace of the Yankees staff, is still on the road to recovery from Tommy John surgery. He will throw his first 2026 spring training inning on Wednesday, but his return to the rotation is not expected until late May/early June. Additionally, Carlos Rodon is out until late April/early May, recovering from October 2025 left elbow surgery to remove loose bodies and a bone spur.

With all of that uncertainty, the Yankees would love to land another top-end of the rotation arm, and they've got some young prospect talent they could send to Minnesota to make it happen.

San Diego Padres

The Padres learned this week that Joe Musgrove will “most likely” begin the regular season on the injured list. He is being slow-played in his return from Tommy John surgery, and his effectiveness and return date are in question. Their starting staff, even aside from Musgrove, has plenty of other question marks as well. Dylan Cease is long gone to Toronto, Yu Darvish is out for the year, and free agent signees German Marquez and Walker Buehler had ERAs of 6.70 and 4.93, respectively, last season. Joe Ryan would be a sight for sore eyes for this group.

Los Angeles Dodgers

The Dodgers are on this list because... well, why wouldn't they be? Despite pitching riches that include Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Shohei Ohtani, Tyler Glasnow, rookie Emmet Sheehan, Roki Sasaki, and the ever-injured Blake Snell, the Dodgers will always be looking to deepen the depth in their stash of starters.