Topa (knee) will start a rehab assignment with Single-A Fort Myers on Tuesday, Brandon Warne of Access Twins reports.
Topa hasn't played in 2024 due to a tear in the patellar tendon of his left knee, but he'll see his first in-game action since being returned from a rehab assignment in early May. The reliever will likely need several rehab appearances before being activated, and it's likely he won't be back in action until August.
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Twins' Justin Topa: Throws bullpen session
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Topa (knee) threw a 20-pitch bullpen session Wednesday and is expected to throw again Saturday, Bobby Nightengale of the Minneapolis Star Tribune reports.
Topa has been out all season with a small tear in the patellar tendon of his left knee and had a platelet-rich plasma injection in mid-May. He still will likely need to throw several more bullpen sessions before he can go out on a rehab assignment.
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Twins' Justin Topa: Throwing bullpen sessions
Rotowire
Topa (knee) will throw two bullpen sessions this week, Bobby Nightengale of the Minneapolis Star Tribune reports.
Topa has been out all season with a small tear in the patellar tendon of his left knee, but he seems to be inching closer to a return. The reliever will need to face hitters and make a handful of rehab appearances before a clear return date can come into focus.
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Twins' Justin Topa: Set to throw bullpen session
Rotowire
Topa (left patellar tear) is scheduled to throw a bullpen session next week, the Minneapolis Star Tribune reports.
The right-hander was diagnosed with a small tear in the patellar tendon of his left knee in mid-May. It's his first sign of progress since the injury and he likely has several more weeks of throwing before he can begin a rehab assignment. He could return in late July if all goes well.
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Twins' Justin Topa: Shifts to 60-day IL
Rotowire
The Twins transferred Topa from the 15-day injured list to the 60-day IL on Tuesday with left patellar tendinitis.
The right-hander was diagnosed with a small tear in the patellar tendon of his left knee in mid-May and isn't expected to resume throwing for another month, so a move to the 60-day IL isn't much of a surprise. Topa was a key bullpen piece for Seattle last season with a 2.61 ERA and 24 holds in 75 appearances, but he's been sidelined by knee issues since late in spring training and won't be debuting for Minnesota until midseason, at least.
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Twins' Justin Topa: Dealing with small tear in knee
Rotowire
Topa underwent an MRI on Tuesday that revealed a 25 percent tear in his left patellar tendon, Do-Hyoung Park of MLB.com reports. He'll be immobilized for the next week and isn't expected to resume throwing for another six weeks.
After getting a second opinion on the knee injury, Topa will forgo surgery, but he's still need considerable rest and rehab before being ready to make his season debut. He's currently using crutches and will spent the next week recovering from a platelet-rich plasma injection before he kicks off his ramp-up program. Topa appeared to be on the cusp of rejoining the Twins, but felt discomfort in his knee following the fourth appearance of his rehab assignment May 5 with Triple-A St. Paul and now appears unlikely to be ready for activation until sometime in July.
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Twins' Justin Topa: Undergoes MRI on knee
Rotowire
Topa underwent an MRI on his left knee after feeling soreness following his last rehab appearance with Triple-A St. Paul on Sunday, Bobby Nightengale of the Minneapolis Star Tribune reports.
Topa was able to throw a bullpen session Wednesday, so his setback would appear to be a minor one. However, the reliever is still awaiting results of the MRI before the next steps are determined. Topa had been poised to be activated from the 15-day injured list soon before hitting a snag in his recovery.
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Twins' Justin Topa: Set for another rehab outing
Rotowire
Topa (knee) reached 94 mph during a rehab assignment Friday at Triple-A St. Paul and will make another appearance May 5, MLB.com reports. He's given up two runs in three innings with five strikeouts and no walks in three rehab outings.
Topa began the season on the shelf with left patellar tendinitis and it's taken him longer than initially expected to return. He had lower-than-usual velocity in his first two outings, so he may finally be ready to be activated from the injured list in a few days.
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Twins' Justin Topa: Starting rehab assignment
Rotowire
Topa (knee) will begin a rehab assignment with Triple-A St. Paul on Thursday, Dan Hayes of The Athletic reports.
Topa opened the season on the shelf with left patellar tendinitis but has been cleared to test himself in a game setting. The reliever presumably will need multiple rehab appearances before returning from the 15-day injured list and slotting back into the Minnesota bullpen.
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Twins' Justin Topa: Closing in on rehab assignment
Rotowire
Topa (knee) threw a 20-pitch live batting practice session Tuesday, Bobby Nightengale of the Minneapolis Star Tribune reports.
Everything seemed to go as hoped, which means Topa should be able to begin a rehab assignment any day now. He's been out since late March with left patellar tendinitis and figures to require a handful of rehab appearances before being activated.
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Twins' Justin Topa: Slated to throw live BP
Rotowire
Topa (knee) will throw live batting practice Tuesday, Aaron Gleeman of The Athletic reports.
If Topa is able to get through BP without any issues, it's possible the Twins send him out on a rehab assignment. He's been on the injured list since the beginning of the season due to left patellar tendinitis, so he would likely require multiple appearances in the minors, but it appears the 33-year-old righty isn't too far away from rejoining the Twins' bullpen.
Topa (left patellar tendinitis) plans to throw a bullpen session Saturday, the Minneapolis Star Tribune reports.
Topa was placed on the 15-day injured list at the end of spring training with left patellar tendinitis. He started playing catch last Saturday and it sounds like he could return at some point in April.
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Twins' Justin Topa: Begins playing catch
Rotowire
Topa played catch from 75 feet Saturday and has been pain-free in his left knee, MLB.com reports.
Topa was placed on the 15-day injured list at the end of spring training with left patellar tendinitis. He'll start throwing more over the next week and then will get a timetable to begin a rehab stint in the minors.
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Twins' Justin Topa: Lands on IL
Rotowire
Minnesota placed Topa on the 15-day injured list Thursday with left patellar tendinitis.
With closer Jhoan Duran also opening the season on the IL with an oblique strain that will likely keep him sidelined for most of April, Topa might have been in position to cover some high-leverage innings out of the bullpen early in the season, but his own knee issue will foil those plans. Topa and Duran are joined on the shelf by four other relievers, leaving Griffin Jax and Brock Stewart as the most likely options to factor into the mix for saves in the first few weeks of the season.
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Twins' Justin Topa: Bound for IL
Rotowire
Topa will begin the season on the injured list after being diagnosed with knee tendinitis Sunday, Do-Hyoung Park of MLB.com reports.
The right-hander believes he can pitch through the injury, but the Twins will instead play it safe to start the season. Topa, who was acquired from Seattle as part of the return package for Jorge Polanco, recorded three saves and 24 holds with a 2.61 ERA, 1.14 WHIP and 61:18 K:BB across 69 innings last season with the Mariners.
Topa, Anthony DeSclafani, Gabriel Gonzalez and Darren Bowen were traded from the Mariners to the Twins on Monday in exchange for Jorge Polanco, Kiley McDaniel of ESPN.com reports.
Topa appeared in a career-high 75 games during the 2023 season with the Mariners and didn't disappoint. He posted a 2.61 ERA and 1.14 WHIP with a 61:18 K:BB across 69.0 innings and should be a top candidate to see high-leverage opportunities with Minnesota heading into the 2024 campaign alongside Griffin Jax.
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Mariners' Justin Topa: Settles with Seattle
Rotowire
The Mariners and Topa avoided arbitration by agreeing to a $1.25 million contract Thursday, Daniel Kramer of MLB.com reports.
Topa was in his first year of arbitration eligibility. The 32-year-old had a breakout season with the Mariners in 2023, posting a 2.61 ERA and 61:18 K:BB over 69 innings. He will handle high-leverage situations for Seattle again in 2024.
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Mariners' Justin Topa: Notches third save
Rotowire
Topa walked one and struck out one in a scoreless ninth inning Wednesday to record his third save of the season in a 6-3 win over the A's.
Andres Munoz handled the eighth inning in this one, leaving the ninth to Topa, and the 32-year-old came through with his first save since July 22. Topa's numbers have taken a bit of a step back in September, but he still has a solid 3.48 ERA, 0.97 WHIP and 7:3 K:BB through 10.1 innings on the month while adding a win and a hold to Wednesday's save over 10 appearances.
