Jhoan Duran's Stats, Metrics, Game Logs, Projections & Rankings

Minnesota Twins pitchers Jhoan Duran (oblique) and Justin Topa (knee) are both pain-free and have been throwing, but neither of them have resumed throwing off a mound yet. Duran threw from 105 feet on Saturday, while Topa threw from 75 feet. Meanwhile, reliever Caleb Thielbar (hamstring) threw a 20-pitch live batting practice session on Saturday and seems bound for a minor-league rehab assignment with Triple-A St. Paul soon. Duran, the Twins' closer, is on the 15-day injured list due to a moderate right-oblique strain he suffered in spring training. Fantasy managers should expect the 26-year-old to miss most, if not all, of April, but he should remain stashed in an IL spot in all leagues. Until Duran can make his 2024 debut, Griffin Jax and Brock Stewart could both be candidates for save chances.

Minnesota Twins reliever Jhoan Duran (oblique) will begin the season on the injured list due to a moderate oblique strain, according to president of baseball operations Derek Falvey. The fireballer has endured a rough spring as he sports an 11.57 ERA with four strikeouts and 10 hits allowed across five appearances and 4 2/3 innings of work. He also sports a 2.36 WHIP, although he has not allowed a home run. However, the 26-year-old has been nothing short of stellar in his young big-league career, working to a tidy 2.15 ERA alongside a dynamite 25.3% K-BB% across 116 appearances through his first two seasons. He has averaged a whopping 101.3 mph on his four-seam fastball in that time and is one of the top closers in fantasy baseball despite what could be a minimum stay on the injured list to begin the season.

Minnesota Twins Opening Day starter Pablo Lopez and closer Jhoan Duran were beat up in the team's 12-3 Grapefruit League loss to the Baltimore Orioles on Wednesday. In total, Twins pitchers allowed 17 hits. Lopez, who struck out two and gave up three hits in his two innings of work, surrendered a two-run homer to infielder Ramon Urias. Fantasy managers should take spring results with a grain of salt. Duran, a 26-year-old Dominican reliever, saved a career-high 27 games for the Twins in 2023 and has been excellent in his two seasons in Minnesota, sporting a 2.15 ERA, 1.05 WHIP, 35 saves, 41 walks and 173 K's in 130 relief innings. He's also one of the league's hardest throwers, as he led baseball with 473 pitches thrown at or above 100 mph. Not only does Duran strike out a lot of hitters, but he also keeps the ball on the ground. He is RotoBaller's fourth-ranked fantasy closer.