What Do The Twins See In Tyler Kinley?

When the deadline arrived for teams to protect players from the Rule 5 draft, Minnesota conspicuously added only three, leaving a number of vulnerable prospects exposed. Among them were several hard-throwing relievers in their mid-20s, including Nick Burdi and Luke Bard, both of whom ended up being selected last week.

The Twins, desperate for quality relievers and evidently playing the internal numbers game by signing a one-year plug, in the person of Fernando Rodney, might have let two essentially MLB-ready arms with real upside get away... for nothing.

The Twins did need some space on the 40-man, so they could add Rodney (and hopefully Yu Darvish!), but one spot was clearly designated for a Rule 5 addition of their own. That ended up being Tyler Kinley, a 26-year-old right-hander plucked from the Marlins organization.

What is it about Kinley that made him appealing enough for the Twins to lose Bard and especially Burdi, who could've been stashed back on the 60-day DL at the start of the season while rehabbing from Tommy John?

On the surface, there's no obvious answer. Kinley was a 16th-round pick for Miami back in 2013, and has since put up a 3.83 ERA and 1.29 WHIP in 162 pro outings (all but three out of the bullpen). He has averaged slightly more than a strikeout per inning but his control has been mediocre, and terrible above Single-A. In 27 appearances with Class-AA Jacksonville in 2017, he posted a 5.19 ERA and 1.73 WHIP.

Kinley wasn't among John Sickels's preseason top 20 Marlins prospects. He wasn't even an honorable mention. In fact, Kinley has never made any kind of prospect list I could find. The consensus seems to be that he's a big (6'4", 204) righty with a live fastball and quality slider, plus a history of control problems.

That profile doesn't exactly differentiate him from a litany of minor-league relievers – much less a pair of high-performing high draft picks whose development the club had invested in significantly. Bard was the 42nd player taken in 2012 and signed for $1.2 million. Burdi was the 46th player taken in 2014 and also received a $1.2 million bonus. Both have mostly looked the part when healthy.

Kinley, meanwhile, was drafted 472nd overall in 2013, and has been very inconsistent on the mound since then. The only thing that really stands out on the stat sheet is his performance this year in the Dominican Winter League, where he has allowed five hits in 18 2/3 innings with a whopping 31 strikeouts. However, he has also issued 11 walks.

It bears noting that Justin Haley was also coming off a sterling performance in the DWL when the Twins took him a year ago, somewhat out of the blue. That selection didn't really pay any dividends, and it now seems clear that Minnesota could have found a better way to use its No. 1 pick in the 2016 Rule 5 draft, or just given the roster spot to someone else.

I'm calling on you all to help me figure this out. What do the Twins see in Tyler Kinley?