The Twins and catcher David Bañuelos have agreed to a minor league deal, reports Darren Wolfson of KSTP. The Gaeta Sports Management client will be in big league camp as a non-roster invitee.
Bañuelos, 29, has a very limited big league track record. He appeared in one game for the Orioles in 2024 and another in 2025. In those two games, he stepped to the plate three times with one fly out, one hit-by-pitch and one strikeout. Baltimore outrighted him off their roster in July and he became a free agent at season’s end.
He hasn’t been able to rack up a lot of minor league action in recent years either, as the Orioles frequently kept him on their taxi squad to cover for potential injuries. He stepped to the plate just 176 times in the minors over the past two years, putting up a .171/.284/.270 line in that sporadic playing time on the farm.
Prior to that, he had been in Minnesota’s system for many years. Acquired from the Mariners in 2017, he worked his way up the minor league ladder with the Twins. From 2021 to 2023, he split his time between Double-A and Triple-A with a .224/.297/.413 line, striking out in 34.2% of his plate appearances.
Bañuelos has long been considered a glove-first catcher. He’ll give the Twins some extra depth with at least three guys ahead of him on the depth chart. The Twins currently project to have Ryan Jeffers and Victor Caratini sharing the catching time. Caratini might also see some time as the first baseman or designated hitter. That could prompt the Twins to carry Alex Jackson on the bench as a third catcher. If Jackson is bumped off the active roster, he is out of options and would need to be removed from the 40-man entirely.
For now, Bañuelos give the club a strong defensive option for the #4 spot on the depth chart and some coverage for if Jackson gets lost via waivers or someone gets injured. It’s also possible the Twins come up short in their attempts to contend this summer and pivot to selling at the deadline. Jeffers is an impending free agent and would be a clear-cut trade candidate. Caratini is signed through 2027 but could be in rumors as well.
Photo courtesy of James A. Pittman, Imagn Images
