Twins Designate Alex Jackson for Assignment

[Cody Christie]

The Minnesota Twins had an unusual roster decision to make following Thursday’s Field of Dreams Game, and the solution was a familiar one. The club designated third catcher Alex Jackson for assignment, bringing its 40-man roster down to 39 players.

The timing of the move was dictated by the unique circumstances surrounding Thursday’s matchup with the Philadelphia Phillies. Both teams were allowed to carry a 27th player for the game, essentially giving them the same roster flexibility they would have during a doubleheader. Minnesota used that extra spot to activate Byron Buxton from the 10-day injured list.

That temporary roster advantage disappears Friday. The Twins needed to get back to a standard 26-man roster, and Jackson was the player caught in the numbers game. Because he is out of minor-league options, Minnesota could not simply send him back to Triple-A St. Paul without first exposing him to waivers.

In many ways, this move has been coming for quite some time. Jackson was called up in May after Ryan Jeffers suffered a hamate fracture. He provided depth behind Victor Caratini while Jeffers recovered, giving Minnesota three catchers on the roster for a stretch of the season. Once Jeffers returned around the All-Star break, however, Jackson's role became increasingly difficult to justify.

The Twins have a strong catching tandem with Jeffers and Caratini, and this is a team attempting to maximize every available roster spot during a playoff push. Jackson had not started a game since July 30 and had only one plate appearance in August before Thursday. There simply wasn't much opportunity available.

Jackson's surface-level numbers this season were actually respectable. He hit .303 with one home run across 69 plate appearances, but the underlying numbers tell a much different story. He struck out 23 times while drawing just one walk, highlighting the same plate-discipline concerns that have followed him throughout his professional career.

The former sixth overall pick has now appeared in parts of seven MLB seasons, but he has never been able to establish himself offensively. Across 189 career games, Jackson owns a .174/.252/.305 slash line and has struck out in nearly 40% of his plate appearances. That makes it difficult for a contender to carry him as a third catcher when there are only so many opportunities to get him into the lineup.

The next step will be placing Jackson on waivers, which should happen within the next couple of days. There is a chance he goes unclaimed and returns to Triple-A St. Paul. However, catching depth wears thin at this late point in the season and another team could need a veteran backup option. 

It would be great for Jackson to stick in the organization as depth, but the big-league roster was suffering with him collecting dust on the bench.

 

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[Richie the Rally Goat]

Hopefully Jackson passes through waivers and is retained, but this move was quite overdue 

[PuckettPond]

He was the 6th overall pick why DFA him? He could have been our 1st catcher HOFer.

[Coach]

Hope this means that Jeffers has "inkled" an intention to stay with the Twins.  Are they keeping their cards close to their vest?

[S Bart]

Totally disagree.. batting 303...and was hardly used. He has more ability than Caratina. Frustrating....

[S Bart]

7 minutes ago, Coach said:

Hope this means that Jeffers has "inkled" an intention to stay with the Twins.  Are they keeping their cards close to their vest?

Not sure they are holding many cards. .

[Althebum82]

Somebody’s gotta be in the market for a competitive defensive catcher who bats over.300.  Sure hard to imagine him staying with this organization for another tour of duty.

[PuckettPond]

Hoping Twins were opening a spot for Joshua Baez.

[twinstalker]

28 minutes ago, S Bart said:

Totally disagree.. batting 303...and was hardly used. He has more ability than Caratina. Frustrating....

LOL x 1000