Retired Astros World Series hero already back in baseball with familiar team

That was fast.
Kansas City Royals v Houston Astros
Kansas City Royals v Houston Astros | Kevin M. Cox/GettyImages

It didn't take long for for Houston Astros standout reliever Ryan Pressly to find his way back to baseball after announcing his retirement over the weekend. Pressly will be joining the Twins and will be involved in the player development side of the organization. The expectation is that he will work with pitchers at all levels of the organization.

For all the success that Pressly had in Houston, fans may have forgotten that his playing career started with the Twins. Pressly spent the first six seasons of his career with the Twins, posting an ERA of 3.75 in 281 appearances out of Minnesota's bullpen. Near the trade deadline in 2018, the Twins traded Pressly to the Astros in exchange for Jorge Alcala and Gilberto Celestino.

Pressly's playing career nearly ended with the Twins as well. After being released by the Chicago Cubs at the trade deadline last July, the Twins were among the teams expressing interest in the veteran reliever. Considering the Twins decimated their major league roster at the deadline, it's not a real surprise that Pressly opted against remaining at home for the rest of the season.

Ryan Pressly returns to baseball immediately after retirement, joining the Twins' front office

The 2025 season made it clear that something needed to change for the Twins. Once believed to be the definition of success in the AL Central, Minnesota quickly became one of the worst teams in baseball last season.

As soon as the offseason started, the Twins wasted no time in making Rocco Baldelli the scapegoat for their failures. Derek Shelton was hired to replace Baldelli as the Twins' manager, and the team has made an effort to bring in former players to their organization. Player development is currently one of the areas that failed the Twins in recent years, so Pressly will have a hand in changing that perception.

During his time in Houston, Pressly was viewed as one of the key veterans of the pitching staff. It's one of the reasons why the Cubs went out of their way to add him last offseason. The hope is that Pressly is better in his role in the Twins' front office than he was as the Cubs' closer last year.

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