They are the catchers who are invited to spring training in service to oversized pitching staffs. When these men are not in a bullpen providing the necessary partner for a pitcher’s throwing session, they will be needed at the plate for full-scale infield or outfield drills. The Twins have a current 40-player big-league roster where the pitchers outnumber the rest of the positions 22-18.

One of those pitchers, Josh Winder, is currently shut down, and there are eight more nonrostered pitchers who need a catcher to do anything significant. There are three catchers on the 40-player: Ryan Jeffers, Christian Vázquez and Jair Camargo, a very husky 24-year-old promoted after hitting 21 home runs (and striking out 119 times) in St. Paul last season. The invitees this February are as follows: Brian O’Keefe, Chris Williams, Alex Isola, and Pat Winkel.

Brian O’Keefe, 30, was a seventh-rounder to the Cardinals in the 2014 draft, out of St. Joseph’s University in Philly. Chris Williams, 27, was the eighth-rounder for the Twins out of Clemson in 2018. Alex Isola, 25, was a 29th-rounder from TCU in 2019. Pat Winkel, 24, was a ninth-rounder from UConn in 2021.