The Twins Found Jack Anderson The Hard Way

The Twins got their read on reliever Jack Anderson the hard way. On April 14 he worked three innings against them, struck out four, and gave up a run over 11 batters. On July 11, five days after Boston cut him loose, they claimed him. Twelve days after that, he had his first career save. They're hoping that upward trend continues. 

The Twins bullpen has been better than average in July, with solid performances from Kody Funderburk (0.2 fWAR), Taylor Rogers (0.2), Yoendrys Gómez (0.2), Travis Adams (0.2), Andrew Morris (0.2), and Tommy Nance (0.1). These six relievers have done solid work suppressing runs, tying New York (AL) and Baltimore for the seventh-best relief unit this month. However, these six relievers aren’t the sole contributors to the unit’s successful month.

Newcomer Jack Anderson has also contributed toward the club’s favorable ranking this month, netting 0.2 fWAR over 4 1/3 innings pitched. Bouncing between Detroit’s, Boston’s, and Minnesota’s Triple-A affiliates since 2024, Anderson received his first major league opportunity with the Red Sox in mid-April, posting a 3.38 ERA and 3.99 FIP over eight innings pitched, including the aforementioned three-inning relief appearance against the Twins. 

Designated for assignment by Boston on July 6, the right-handed reliever joined the organization he excelled against. The 26-year-old joined Minnesota’s bullpen two weeks later, earning his first career save in only his second appearance with the club. Five days later, Twins decision-makers optioned him to Triple-A St. Paul before promoting him two days later when Cole Sands was placed on the 15-day IL with a right elbow strain.

Despite jumping between Triple-A and the parent club, Anderson has excelled with the Twins, netting a 0.00 ERA, 1.04 FIP, and 37.5% strikeout rate over 16 batters faced. The right-hander has heavily relied on his offspeed and breaking pitches since joining Minnesota, throwing his splitter and slider a combined 50% of the time, while throwing his sweeper 23.2%. The reason for this is that his splitter, slider, and sweeper are all firmly plus pitches, generating high whiff and chase rates. He hasn’t abandoned his four-seamer by any means, throwing it at a 26.8% rate. Still, with it sitting at 92.1 MPH while sporting a below-average movement profile, he has been wise to use his fastball far less than most right-handed relievers.

Functionally, Anderson has been what Twins decision-makers hoped Eric Orze would be: a soft-tossing righty who dominates hitters of either handedness with his splitter, while attacking righties with his slider and sweeper. Again, Anderson could be back in Triple-A by the end of the week or if/when Minnesota acquires a reliever. (Or relievers? Plz, Jeremy Zoll?).

Yet, given his dominant performance since joining Minnesota and the still unstable nature of Minnesota’s bullpen after Gómez, Morris, and Nance, Anderson could continue to earn high-leverage appearances, joining Gómez as a diamond-in-the-rough reliever acquired on the margins.

View our top trade candidates list, up to nearly 70 names and updated regularly!