Noah Spirek | @NoahSpirek | January 29, 2026
On Wednesday, the Rockies swung two trades, this time sending RHP Jace Kaminska and cash considerations to the Minnesota Twins in exchange for infielder 2B Edouard Julien and RHP Pierson Ohl. This deal followed the Rockies first trade of the day, sending RHP Angel Chivilli to the New York Yankees for 1B prospect T.J. Rumfield.
The trade of Chivilli opened up one 40-man roster spot while the Rockies opened a second spot shortly after by DFA’ing former top prospect Yanquiel Fernandez. Fernandez remains on waivers but appears likely to be traded to or claimed by another team.
🏔️ICYMI: Chivilli for Rumfield Breakdown🏔️
Julien, 26, split time between Triple-A and the Majors in 2025. He brings a left-handed bat to the lineup and offers flexibility on the right side of the infield, as over his 182 MLB starts, he’s played 159 games at second base and 23 at first base. Julien has a career 99 OPS+ and thrived in his 2023 rookie season as a whole but especially in the Postseason, where he slashed .294/.455/.588 on his way to finishing 7th in AL Rookie of the Year voting.
Julien struggled to a .220/.309/.324 slash line with a 76 OPS+ last season, however he profiles as a disciplined hitter, ranking at or near the top of the league in chase percentage and walk rate in recent years. Expect Julien to play both spots for the Rockies as the club hopes he can recover some of his stellar rookie form.
On the other side, Ohl brings elite command to the Rockies roster, where he’ll look to control the zone with his four-pitch mix. The 26-year-old relies on his fastball and changeup as his primary weapons, but he will mix in a cutter against right-handed hitters and a curveball appears about 7% of the time. Ohl pounds the strike zone, and with a fastball that sits right around 92 MPH, it will be imperative that he continues to limit the walks to experience success at Coors Field.
In 2025, the Grand Canyon University product made appearances in Double-A and Triple-A–as well as a pair of Single-A rehab appearances–totaling 24 games (six starts) with a 2.40 ERA in 71.1 innings. At the Major League level, Ohl made 14 appearances (three starts) and pitched to a 5.10 ERA in 30 innings with the Twins. He finished the season strong, not allowing an earned run over his final eight innings of work.
Ohl figures to be a piece of the Rockies pitching staff one way or another, but his minor league experience, command, and arsenal suggest he’ll get a crack at the rotation with a reliable fallback option of appearing out of the bullpen.
In exchange for Julien and Ohl, the Rockies sent Kaminska, 24, to Minnesota. The Kansas native spent all of 2025 rehabbing from Tommy John surgery on his right elbow, but heads to the Twins with plenty of potential. In 2024 with Single-A Fresno, Kaminska struck out 104 hitters in 87.1 innings on his way to possessing a 2.78 ERA.
Story by Noah Spirek.
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