Matt Braun

In signing a minor-league deal with the Marlins last week, Devin Smeltzer left the only franchise he donned a major-league uniform for, the Minnesota Twins. Image courtesy of Thomas Shea, USA TODAY Sports Devin Smeltzer operated in the most thankless of MLB roles: a Triple-A swingman. Always relied upon when the inevitable pitcher injury bug struck but never promised a spot with the big club. He was meant to be discarded, called up to soak innings, before heading back to St. Paul with a major-league paycheck in his pocket as a reward for his troubles. MLB playing time is better than slumming it in the minors, but the mental drain involved in bouncing between teams takes a toll. It almost never happened. A tumor discovered as a child threatened Smeltzer’s life—not just his playing career. Stricken with a terrible sickness, Smeltzer found solace in baseball, making trips to Citizens Bank Park to watch an elite Phillies team on the rise. Among stars like Ryan Howard, Cole Hamels, and Jimmy Rollins, Smeltzer picked out Chase Utley—Philadelphia’s all-around offensive threat, capable of reaching base while slugging at a rate typically unheard of for second baseman—as his favorite player. They met, and an unlikely relationship blossomed. Now healthy and pitching well, a 20-year-old Smeltzer found himself drafted by the Dodgers—the team that now employed Utley. They met again in Spring Training in 2018. A mid-season trade brought Smeltzer to the Twins that year. With a better chance to crack a weaker Twins rotation than the stacked Dodgers, Smeltzer debuted in 2019 with an unforgettable start. The stats could speak for themselves: Smeltzer challenged a playoff-bound Brewers team, one led by reigning MVP Christian Yelich, and dominated. Six innings, seven strikeouts, and no earned runs constituted one of the finest debuts a pitcher can have, but the numbers barely matter; the spectacle of watching Smeltzer—someone who once struggled with cancer at an age intended for carelessness—pitch at the major league level was enough to move every person in the ballpark. Jack Morris could barely speak. Smeltzer tossed 49 innings for the 2019 Twins but spent the next two seasons on the outskirts, consistently passed over as Minnesota looked elsewhere for pitching help. A bevy of injuries created an opportunity for Smeltzer in 2022. With plentiful openings in the rotation, Smeltzer collected 12 starts, accruing 70 1/3 frames for a team in desperate need of them. He was a godsend. But the life of a pitcher on the fringes isn’t a kind one. Fresh out of minor-league options, the Twins saw no need to keep Smeltzer around, jettisoning him to open waters for another team to swipe up. The Marlins did just that. It could be easy to paint Smeltzer’s career in broad strokes. His fastball wasn’t perfect—he could use a few more ticks—and his breaking ball wasn’t ideal—he had trouble getting lefties out—but doing so would be a disservice. Smeltzer was dutiful, consistent. When Minnesota needed innings, he was there, able to gobble frames while the team shifted around paperwork, searching for long-term solutions to their problems. Objectified for his availability, not his performance, Smeltzer served his role well. Not all players are legends; not all Twins are classic. Between the Joe Mauers and Kirby Pucketts—and even the Matt Guerriers—stands an army Devin Smeltzers, players whose contributions may be easy to miss, but are necessary nonetheless. Miami’s plans for him are unclear; the team enjoys a ransom of pitching riches—with one fewer arm, as of late—making chances for Smeltzer to crack their rotation difficult. But he’s faced obstacles before. Biding time is a small ask for someone with Smeltzer's fortitude. View full article

It's prospect season again. Pitchers and catchers will soon report, so our effort at Twinsdaily to cover the minor leagues will fire up once again, and that includes our prospect rankings. The system looks surprisingly strong. Despite a flurry of trades over the last 18 months or so, the Twins still have a top nucleus of elite talent, and the franchise enjoys solid upper-level pitching depth. They're a little low on gamechangers at the elite positions—centerfield and shortstop—but so is basically every system, and Minnesota could easily cover that deficiency with a healthy season from Emmanuel Rodriguez and continued development from their two DSL stars. Remember: tier matters more than ranking. Royce Lewis 6’2” / 200 (Prev: 1) Age: 23 Position: SS Highest level reached: MLB Nothing has changed my view of Royce Lewis since I last updated my list. He’s a potentially franchise-altering talent with a frustrating lack of baseball in his recent resume. Lewis’ short playing time in 2022 was a revelation, as he checked significant boxes—his ability to play shortstop and his hitting prowess—before the brutal knee injury cut off his time playing baseball. A much quieter batting stance appears to have unlocked his hitting potential. I’m looking forward to seeing what he can do when he is healthy again. Brooks Lee 6’2” / 205 (Prev: 2) Age: 21 Position: SS/3B Highest level reached: AA If you think Brooks Lee deserves to be in the one spot, I can’t argue with you; Lee is an incredibly safe bet to hit well, no matter where his defensive home is. Despite being drafted just seven months ago, Lee reached AA, playing in a handful of games for Wichita before calling it a season; he smoked A+ ball with a 140 wRC+. His immense hitting pedigree, combined with his lineage as a coach’s son indeed points towards an ideal makeup package that should serve him well as he transitions to big leaguer. He’ll probably impact the 2023 Twins and will undoubtedly affect the team in 2024. ------------------------- Emmanuel Rodriguez 5’10” / 210 (Prev: 4) Age: 19 Position: OF Highest level reached: A Potentially the most dynamic prospect in Minnesota’s system, Emmanuel Rodriguez’s nuclear 2022 fell violently when he tore his ACL in June. Still, Rodriguez walked an absurd 28.6% of the time while slugging .551 in a league that favors pitchers. Granted, it was just a 199 plate appearance sample. Still, I’m excited to see Rodriguez return to action healthy, and he could quickly become the Twins’ best prospect sometime next season. Noah Miller 6’1” / 190 (Prev: 3) Age: 20 Position: SS Highest level reached: A I am too high on Noah Miller; I will remain too high on Noah Miller until his hitting falls entirely off a cliff. Prospects who are locks to play shortstop do not grow on trees—at least none that I know—and Miller’s bat is just good enough to keep him a valuable contributor at the position. If it clicks offensively—and his strike zone awareness is already elite—we’re looking at a potential successor to Carlos Correa in a few years; he’ll need to gain more power, though. Marco Raya 6’1” / 170 (Prev: 8) Age: 20 Position: RHP Highest level reached: A “[Marco] Raya’s slider is Charon, come to ferry batters back to the dugout,” wrote Jeffery Paternostro for Baseball Prospectus in November—a perfect sentence. Raya carries the same risk all pitchers do—injury potential, a future in the bullpen—compounded by his smaller frame. But if he can stay healthy, Raya could vault into the top of the Twins rotation, dominating hitters with a compelling four-pitch mix and a bulldog mentality. Raya struck out 28.9% of batters over 65 innings with Fort Myers in 2022. Jose Salas 6’2” / 191 (Prev: n/a) Age: 19 Position: SS Highest level reached: A+ A new name! A critical, underrated addition to the Pablo López trade, Jose Salas adds another intriguing infield wrinkle to a system bursting with “people who can play shortstop,” not necessarily “shortstops.” A super young 19 in A+, Salas hit like an overwhelmed prospect, but some AFL seasoning plus an off-season of recovery could cleanse him anew. Salas hit .267/.355/.421 in A ball before his promotion in 2022. Edouard Julien 6’2” / 195 (Prev: 7) Age: 23 Position: 2B Highest level reached: AA If this were a list of favorite prospects, Edouard Julien would be top three, potentially sitting at the top spot. What’s not to love? The lefty smoked AA Wichita with a .300/.441/.490 line and then hit—and I’m not kidding here—.400/.563/.686 in the Arizona Fall League before ending his terror on pitchers for the season. He lacks a defensive home, but a team would move Heaven and Earth to find a spot for that bat somewhere. Minnesota added him to the 40-man roster this past season; we will probably see Julien in the majors soon. Connor Prielipp 6’2” / 210 (Prev: 5) Age: 22 Position: LHP Highest level reached: n/a Who is John Galt Connor Prielipp? The baseball world has seen startlingly little from Prielipp, as injuries limited his time with Alabama to seven starts. Still, he owns a mid-90s fastball and a power slider when healthy; 2023 will illuminate his prospect status. Simeon Woods Richardson 6’3” / 210 (Prev: 6) Age: 22 Position: RHP Highest level reached: MLB Maybe one of the more crucial cogs in Minnesota’s 2023 pitching machine, Simeon Woods Richardson appears well-set to impact the major league roster soon. Armed with unique fastball traits, Woods Richardson held his own in a harsh Texas League environment in 2022, then torched AAA at the end of the year for fun. He earned enough respect to make his first Twins start—a five-inning outing notable in that he’ll never have to debut again; the nerves are behind him. Still somehow just 22, Woods Richardson struck out 27% of batters in the minors last season. ------------------------- Louie Varland 6’1” / 205 (Prev: 10) Age: 25 Position: RHP Highest level reached: MLB Louie Varland should rank higher on this list, but something in his profile doesn’t fully click for me. His fastball is excellent—a real jumper he can use in any count because of his low angle. But none of his other pitches stood out as difference makers, turning Varland into a one-pitch pitcher. His slider and changeup command was non-existent, and batters brutalized his cutter. That’s a negative paragraph for the supposed 10th-best prospect on the team, but that’s what I’ve seen from Varland, and until it changes, I remain bearish on his starting capabilities. Austin Martin 6’0” / 185 (Prev: 13) Age: 23 Position: SS/OF Highest level reached: AA Austin Martin’s wild 2022 bounced him more than any other player around this list. After slugging a dreadful .315 in a hitter’s league, Martin crushed in the Arizona Fall League, showcasing his older, successful mechanics in a dramatic redemption arc. He’s not a shortstop—that much is obvious now, but if his bat is back, then the Twins could have a quality 3-win utility player capable of playing a variety of positions. 2023 will be a crucial test. Matt Wallner 6’5” / 220 (Prev: 9) Age: 25 Position: OF Highest level reached: MLB It’s hard to hold 18 major league games against a guy, but Matt Wallner’s Adventures in the Outfield stunk enough to deeply sour me on any notions of him replacing Max Kepler soon. The Twins appear to agree. With approximately 30,000 outfielders ahead of him, it would take a series of great tragedies before Wallner earns significant MLB playing time soon. Still, he shaved points off his strikeout rate in 2022—the biggest knock against him—and he could ride his outstanding power stroke to an elongated playing career. Yasser Mercedes 6’2” / 175 (Prev: 11) Age: 18 Position: OF Highest level reached: DSL Yasser Mercedes did things as a 17-year-old that teenagers aren’t supposed to do. Yes, it was in the noisy environment that is the DSL, but 30 steals with a .555 slugging percentage is impressive, no matter the level. Mercedes will likely play in rookie ball in 2023, and I imagine his prospect package will become much more apparent in 2024 when he’ll still be just 19. David Festa 6’6” / 185 (Prev: 20) Age: 22 Position: RHP Highest level reached: A+ One of the most “pop-uppiest” prospect in the Twins system in 2022, David Festa commands a tremendous fastball/slider combo that torched hitters in the low minors. Although his numbers dropped following a promotion to A+ ball, Festa punctuated his season with a 10-strikeout performance over six shutout innings in a playoff game against the Cubs. We will see how Festa pitches in a tougher environment in 2023. Misael Urbina 6’0” / 190 (Prev: 12) Age: 20 Position: OF Highest level reached: A Misael Urbina is an excellent example of why prospect evaluations are a snapshot in time, not the law in written form: he couldn’t hit for any power in 2021 but re-played A ball again in 2022 and showcased a much-improved power stroke. Soon to be 21, Urbina should unleash even more strength this year, potentially shooting him further up the list. ------------------------- Brent Headrick 6’6” / 235 (Prev: 14) Age: 25 Position: LHP Highest level reached: AA A surprise 40-man addition, Brent Headrick’s numbers are perhaps more impressive than his raw tools. His breaker is a bit of a looping pitch, which MLB hitters–especially righties—could lay off of, but his fastball lands perfectly at the top of the zone, and his command is good enough that the breaker shape may not matter. He will probably impact the Twins in 2023—though it’s unclear in what capacity—and he could become a regular, reliable lefty swingman. Jordan Balazovic 6’5” / 215 (Prev: 15) Age: 24 Position: RHP Highest level reached: AAA How do you rank Jordan Balazovic? Long considered the promised arm, delivered by our wonderful friends Up North, Balazovic faced a nightmare 2022 season, one so hideous that I don’t even want to post any stats from it. The Twins claimed he was healthy, but such a shocking drop-off in performance is almost unbelievable; hopefully 2023 will be a kinder year for Balazovic. Ronny Henriquez 5’10” / 155 (Prev: 17) Age: 22 Position: RHP Highest level reached: MLB One of the more exciting arms in Minnesota’s system, Ronny Henriquez spent a few months getting bullied by AAA hitters before turning around and delivering an adequate July through end-of-season performance. Armed with a fastball, slider, and changeup, Henriquez will pepper well-commanded off-speed pitches around the zone, hopefully enticing the hitter to bite before the end of the at-bat. His issue? A fastball that ends up either 1. In the heart of the strike zone 2. In the gap (if he’s lucky) 3. In the hands of a fan sitting in right-center field. Whether Henriquez can improve his heater will determine his success at the major league level. Noah Cardenas 6’1” / 195 (Prev: 18) Age: 23 Position: C Highest level reached: A I am still trying to understand why Noah Cardenas is not more well-regarded as a prospect. Catchers who hit for a 146 wRC+ aren’t common, and while he was older than your average A-ball hitter, I feel confident that Cardenas should continue to hit as he elevates through the system. Although catcher development is often strange, so he may run into weird pitfalls and unusual traps that keep him from improving linearly. Jose Rodriguez 6’2” / 196 (Prev: Unranked) Age: 17 Position: OF Highest level reached: DSL Like Yasser Mercedes, Jose Rodriguez is a 17-year-old whose only time in professional baseball is in the DSL—a sign that all hype should involve grains of salt and the such. Still, as a player even younger than most DSL hitters, Rodriguez pounded 13 homers and slugged over .600. He’s about as far away from the majors as possible. Still, you should keep his name in mind over the next few years as a potential big-league powerhouse. Cody Laweryson 6’4” / 205 (Prev: 23) Age: 24 Position: RHP Highest level reached: AA A personal favorite, Cody Laweryson prefers to trick hitters with his pitching motion: a lanky, swan-like delivery that combines the sudden violence of Carter Capps with the grace of Joe Ryan. Lawyerson crushed AA, striking out over 30% of hitters while holding an ERA just over 1.00. The Twins left him unprotected in the rule 5 draft, and no other team claimed him, giving Laweryson another year to prove that his play isn’t a fluke. Cole Sands 6’3” / 215 (Prev: 16) Age: 25 Position: RHP Highest level reached: MLB Cole Sands owns one of the nastiest pitches in Minnesota’s system: a whirling breaking ball, here to alter planes and send batters home wondering if they even saw the pitch. The issue? The offering moves so much that Sands has difficulty commanding the pitch. He mixes in an effective splitter—which actually outperformed his breaker by xwOBA during his time in the majors—but his fastball drags down his profile. Sands might be a kitchen sink reliever if he doesn’t improve his heater. Blayne Enlow 6’3” / 170 (Prev: 14) Age: 23 Position: RHP Highest level reached: AA Blayne Enlow pitched in an entire season for the first time since 2019, and his results were mixed. He struck out 24.8% of hitters—which is good—but walked 11.6% of them—which is not good. The Twins DFA’d him earlier in the offseason, but after no team claimed him, Enlow will have another year in the system to prove he was worth his high draft pick. Tanner Schobel 5’10” / 170 (Prev: 27) Age: 21 Position: 2B Highest level reached: A The Twins sent Tanner Schobel on the fast track, pushing their 2022 2nd-round pick to A Ball, where he held his own. Although lacking in power, Schobel could carve out a career as a contact/OBP/defense threat capable of putting together a 3 WAR season if everything works out; many teams could use a player like that. ------------------------- Alejandro Hidalgo 6’1” / 160 (Prev: n/a) Age: 19 Position: RHP Highest level reached: A A newcomer, Alexander Hidalgo joined the Twins in the Gio Urshela trade. The Angels handled him with kid gloves, as he didn’t touch 40 innings despite making 10 starts. The owner of a plus changeup, Hidalgo’s pitch mix is otherwise unimpressive, but he could grow into an off-speed specialist if he finds more consistency with his curveball; his fastball lacks crucial characteristics. Matt Canterino 6’2” / 222 (Prev: Unranked) Age: 25 Position: RHP Highest level reached: AA I highly doubt that Matt Canterino will even become an effective starter for the Twins. His minor league innings total is barren, and the righty looks to be standing in a long line of Rice products driven into the ground by an indifferent coaching staff. Still—and this is the only thing keeping him on the list—his electric stuff could allow him to live as a 1-2 inning reliever. Alex Isola 6’1” / 215 (Prev: 24) Age: 24 Position: C/1B Highest level reached: AA A 29th-round pick, Alex Isola has hit well at every step in his minor league journey. He owns a well-rounded hitting package, trading off a touch of power for excellent plate control (13.0% walk rate vs. 18.2% K rate at AA), and could find himself playing some first base for the Twins if a few injuries take out key players. Cesar Lares 6’0” / 155 (Prev: 28) Age: 19 Position: LHP Highest level reached: DSL Another DSL prospect, Cesar Lares crushed his competition in 2022, holding an impressive 2.23 FIP over 46 innings. Again, he’s literally a teenager; we don’t know much about how he’ll perform against older, tougher competition, but he appears to be on the right track. Keep his name in mind. Aaron Sabato 6’2” / 230 (Prev: 29) Age: 23 Position: 1B Highest level reached: AA For two years now, Aaron Sabato has done just enough to keep his name in these prospect conversations, but time is running out for the former 1st-round pick. After hitting well at A+ ball, AA smacked into Sabato like a truck; whether he can recover in 2023 will potentially define his time as a Twins prospect. Yunior Severino 6’1” / 189 (Prev: 25) Age: 23 Position: 2B/3B Highest level reached: AA A post-hype prospect received after the Braves got caught with their hands in the cookie jar, Yunior Severino broke out with big numbers at A+ ball before falling back to earth at AA. We will see if he can rebound at a higher level. Honorable mentions: Brayan Medina, RHP: Brayan Medina came over in the Chris Paddack trade and struggled to throw strikes in his time at Rookie Ball. He can touch the mid-90s and works well off a curveball. Danny De Andrade, 3B/SS: Danny De Andrade is an all-around player, lacking in one elite category but doing everything mostly well. He has yet to break out of rookie ball and could burst with his first (probable) playing time in full-season ball. Kala’i Rosario, OF: Kala’i Rosario strikes out far too much, but he has good power for a 20-year-old and could improve with extra seasoning. Michael Helman, 2B/OF: Michael Helman hasn’t exploded with an overwhelming season yet, but he’s snuck his way into AAA, and his overall package could serve him well if the Twins need to call him up. Alerick Soularie, 2B/OF: Alerick Soularie still hasn’t tapped into his power potential, which makes his high strikeout rate hard to stomach. Still, he could figure it out any day now and shoot back up this list.

Well, someone had to do it. Image courtesy of Rick Osentoski-USA TODAY Sports The Twins ate their veggies on Monday, trading away minor league relievers Evan Sisk and Steven Cruz for Royals outfielder Michael A. Taylor. Minnesota’s flirtation with the veteran first hit radars when news slithered in that Kansas City—perhaps under the influence of some real good stuff—asked for Josh Winder in return for their outfielder. The Twins glared around the room with the same look you give when grandma says something out of pocket during family dinner and promptly hung up the phone. Kansas City dropped their ask, instead greenlighting LHP Evan Sisk and RHP Steven Cruz as an acceptable return. Although so tantalizingly close to donning a Twins cap, Sisk remained in the minors for all of 2022. Half of the return for J.A. Happ in 2021—yes, a team gave up real, breathing players for him—Sisk held preposterously low earned run totals at Double-A and Triple-A, but poor command kept him east of the river. He will probably pitch for the Royals in 2023. Cruz is a similar story. The aesthetically ideal big, hard-throwing reliever struck out 28% of batters with Wichita last season but walked 13.6% of them as well; command has always been his bugaboo. No team selected Cruz in the Rule 5 draft, and now the Royals will decide how to fix his aim. Taylor will immediately slot in as Minnesota’s fourth outfielder. A more sure bet than Nick Gordon, or Joey Gallo in center, Taylor owns a strong arm, quick feet, and artful routes; he’s the ultimate defensive package. The Twins will likely start Taylor in center consistently, allowing Byron Buxton to DH on days he feels any sort of malady while Taylor glides around the outfield, allowing Minnesota not to miss a beat defensively. His bat isn’t great—Taylor owns a career .241/.296/.381 slash line—but his league-relative numbers perked up a touch in 2022, perhaps implying he has more in the tank. The big question is this: how in the world do the Twins set up their outfield? With Max Kepler, Buxton, Gallo, Trevor Larnach, Alex Kirilloff, Gordon, Gilberto Celestino, and now Taylor, the team has eight legitimate outfielders for three spots; creativity must be in the cards. Celestino is probably the biggest loser in the deal. With a similar playstyle as the new guy, it's easy to read the trade as a vote of no confidence in him; Minnesota probably grew frustrated with his consistent mental errors, always costing the team an extra base with poor decision-making. The deal likely knocks Celestino down to Triple-A, allowing him to grow as a ballplayer in a less stressful atmosphere. He has yet to celebrate his 24th birthday. This is unlikely to be the final trade for Minnesota. With more outfielders than available spots, dominos will probably fall over the next month. While Kepler appears to be the most apparent trade target—as he has been for about three years now—the Twins could surprise us, instead packaging some of their younger bats in a deal. But who knows? Derek Falvey loves keeping us on our toes. View full article

With the acquisition of Pablo López, the Minnesota Twins confirmed their favorite style of starting pitcher to acquire: a troubled, perhaps underperforming arm capable of becoming something more with a few tweaks. Image courtesy of Michael McLoone-USA TODAY Sports Broadly speaking, that outline covers Chris Paddack, Tyler Mahle, and now López; one could argue that Kenta Maeda fits the mold as well. The idea probably stems from two sources: first, the Twins acknowledging themselves as an undesirable home for arms. Big-name starters have eschewed Minnesota for years. Despite recent infamous twirls with Yu Darvish and Zack Wheeler, Michael Pineda remains the richest starter to brace the cold under Derek Falvey’s watch. Realizing that players have no say in trades, Falvey and Co. decided to force the issue, utilizing the lack of consent involved in deals to pool together talented arms. The second part is the more interesting one—and its assumptions will likely decide how successful the Twins are with their strategy. Pitching in the modern baseball landscape is—and this is the technical term for it—absolutely bonkers. Arms become studs overnight—hello, Evan Phillips—as hefty advancements in technology make adjustments a science, no longer an art only understood by a few masters of the craft; a good pitching coach must communicate what the computer knows. Good teams aren't alone in claiming these resources; every team in MLB has them. But the most consistent franchises identify players most capable of breaking out, freeing them from the clutches of an ignorant team while reaping the rewards of a flourishing arm. The pickpocketed squad has no clue what happened. The Pirates lose 100 games. Looking beyond the horrifying societal implications of technological modernity, the scientific pitching movement hasn’t created an abundance of frustratingly talented pitchers—those will always exist—but it has made it tantalizingly irresistible to acquire them. “I can fix him,” thinks a team watching a guy with an ideal fastball get crushed for a 4.70 ERA. Phil Maton has pitched for three teams over six seasons. Phil Maton’s career rWAR is negative. Phil Maton will continue to have a bullpen spot on one of the smartest teams in baseball. Perhaps hearing the same information from a new source proves to be the catalyst. Or, as sports fans have known for decades, a guy just needs a change of scenery. If it doesn't work, the team may look silly, but that's the price of doing business. Minnesota took this concept and ran with it in 2021. They acquired Paddack, one of the more notorious problems in baseball, pulled some strings on his pitching package, and came out with a renewed starter… until he got injured. Players still have ligaments, after all. They then acquired Mahle, watched him be exactly as maddening as he was in Cincinnati for 16 1/3 innings, and failed to help him realize his potential… because he, too, got injured. This pitching business sounds hazardous. Whether López’s tale differs is up to him and whatever sacrifices the baseball gods choose to accept. While Minnesota hasn’t yet experienced success with the plan, other teams have reaped great riches. Perhaps most famously, Houston understood that Gerrit Cole should not be throwing sinkers, thank you very much, and they enjoyed two years of some of the most dominating starting pitching baseball has seen in recent years. Toronto somehow didn’t give up on Robbie Ray, transforming him into a Cy Young winner after a year where he walked nearly 18% of all hitters. Kevin Gausman evolved from pitching in relief for Cincinnati in 2019 into a legitimate Cy Young candidate. Minnesota hasn’t yet seen a transformation like the previous arms, but it injuries are the culprit, not poor targeting. Rather than tinker with potential, why not shoot for the best of the best? For starters, the most impactful arms in the game command a royal ransom in return, something that few teams are ok with meeting these days. You can criticize Minnesota for not going after Zac Gallen, but remember that no team yet has met Arizona's asking price for him; the Twins aren't an anomaly. Also, there just aren't many available aces these days. Sandy Alcántara is going to remain a Marlin for a few years, Milwaukee shut down trade noise, and Oakland is currently a picked-over walrus carcass. Is Cole Irvin your fallback plan? This isn’t to say that all their pitchers will figure it out eventually because, well, if everyone is super, then no one is. The game is in upside: what can you do in the future with your raw stuff? A player’s past hardly defines them; their measurables reign supreme and the Twins have gathered a hearty assortment of players with fascinating under-the-hood numbers. We shall see if the plan works. View full article

A fifth-round selection by the Twins in 2013, Aaron Slegers tossed 94 big-league innings, 29 of them with the Minnesota Twins. Image courtesy of Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports Aaron Slegers took to Twitter the other day to announce that, due to a shoulder issue, he is ending his career as a pitcher. For 10 professional seasons, the walk-on Indiana University product hopped between four franchises, accruing 931 1/3 innings spread across the minors and majors; he pitched in three postseason games for the 2020 Rays. A Long Beach-born pitcher, Slegers dominated his junior season with the Hoosiers, earning Big Ten Conference Pitcher of the Year honors in a year he allowed a 2.03 ERA over 106 frames for a team that made it all the way to the College World Series. With future big-league players Sam Travis, Kyle Schwarber, Kyle Hart, Scott Effross, and Slegers himself, the team claimed surprising depth for a program not known for baseball. Chuck Knoblauch’s nephew served as the backup at first base. In the series, Indiana beat Louisville before losing to Mississippi State and Oregon State in two one-run losses. Slegers took the hard-luck loss against Oregon State, allowing a lone run in a complete game overshadowed by Matt Boyd’s 11 strikeouts. The disappointment stung, but Slegers moved on. The Twins called his name in the fifth round, perhaps hoping that the immense downward plane—calm yourself, Bert Blyleven—created from his 6’10” stature in conjunction with his sinker would translate to a groundball machine in the pros. Never a strikeout artist, Slegers worked diligently through the minors, absorbing innings by limiting hard contact and throwing strikes—the perfect pitcher for the Terry Ryan Twins. Though his numbers never popped off the page, Slegers consistently earned promotions and always remained younger than his competition level; his fabulous 2.87 ERA at High-A Fort Myers in 2015 served as his signature season. The great 2016 leadership migration didn’t change Slegers’ spot in the organization, and the righty debuted in 2017, making three spot starts for a team on its way to a surprise Wild Card game. Minnesota kept Slegers around for 2018 but shipped him to Pittsburgh following the season. He never appeared for the Pirates, instead joining the Rays before the start of the 2019 season. Tampa Bay proved to be a kind home for Slegers. The Rays—always looking for outcasts to turn into stars—squeezed 29 effective innings out of Slegers between 2019 and 2020; they even found him five postseason frames in the grueling 2020 bracket, albeit all in decided games. Slegers joined the Angels in 2021, pitching in 29 games to end his MLB career. The Rays re-signed him in 2022 on a minor-league deal, but Slegers appeared in just two games—the final outings of his professional career. Though it could be easy to paint Slegers' career as a disappointment, the path to baseball stardom is fraught with the hopes and potential of talented individuals; all cannot achieve greatness. Thousands of players tossed fewer MLB frames than Slegers; most never reached the grand stage. With a pocket full of major league money, Slegers is now free to pursue whatever venture he please, and he'll do so with less pain emanating from his right arm. For much more Aaron Slegers content from Twins Daily, click here. View full article

You are correct on one of those guys being the next target!

Just as greats live on forever, the underappreciated athlete falls out of conversations. Often lost in time, only remembered through the etchings of historical leaderboards, these players still breathe eternally, only re-entering our shared knowledge when one re-discovers their accomplishments. This is one of those stories. Image courtesy of graphics by Thiéres Rabelo Don Mincher was a unique man. “Minch” entered the world on June 24th, 1938, in Huntsville, Alabama—a place soon to experience rapid growth during World War 2 thanks to the Army-established Redstone Arsenal. Throughout an extensive 13-year MLB career, Mincher blasted precisely 200 regular-season home runs, collected a World Series ring in 1972 with the Oakland A’s, and became “the only player to see the end of both Senators’ runs in Washington” (Branch, 2010). A Twin for six seasons, he provided thump in a lineup brimming with star power. After eschewing the University of Alabama's offer to play football, the 6’3” 205-pound Mincher signed with the Chicago White Sox for $4,000 in 1956, beginning his professional baseball career (Aaron, 2019). Mincher marinated in the minors, developing a power stroke—he blasted 23 homers in 1958 and 22 in 1959—as the White Sox excelled in the American League. The class of the league in 1959, Chicago decided that neither Mincher nor a young Norm Cash would be suitable first basemen for their club, and they dealt Mincher along with catcher Earl Battey and $150,000 to the Senators for first baseman Roy Sievers. Sievers was an excellent addition to a veteran White Sox squad, making an All-Star team in 1961, but Chicago probably regrets that trade. Mincher finally debuted in the majors after the deal, donning a Senators uniform in 1960, but inconsistent play limited his time with Washington; 1961 was much the same. 1962 and 1963 were kinder, as Mincher took advantage of pinch-hitting and spot starts to slash .251/.372/.509 over 400 combined plate appearances, but with Harmon Killebrew destroying baseballs at an unbelievable rate, playing time was tough to find. 1964 and 1965 put Mincher on the map. In ‘64, Mincher clocked more than 20 homers for the first time in his career; he would do so five more times. Mincher didn't accrue 400 plate appearances in a year until his age 27 season in 1965 (image courtesy of the National Baseball Hall of Fame) But 1965 proved to be the most memorable season for Minnesota, for Mincher, and for the circumstances that brought the slugging team to a World Series. Always a winning ballclub, the Twins struggled to break out of the dense American League in their early days, consistently falling behind Mickey Mantle’s Yankees and other assorted breakout clubs that denied Minnesota a chance at postseason glory. These were the days when one team per league went straight to the championship series; good wasn’t good enough. Fortune changed in 1965, although not immediately. Mincher didn’t start until May 19th—a typical development for him—but his time at first base picked up soon, as Killebrew started to play at third base to get Mincher’s bat in the lineup (Henninger, 7). Playing time roared into overdrive after Killebrew suffered an elbow injury in early August; Mincher was prepared to handle it. He “picked up the slack,” netting an OPS of .815 in August while reaching base at a .375 clip in September and October and finishing third on the team with 22 homers (Halsted, 44). Mincher’s hitting aided a smooth Twins effort to win the American League. The 1965 Twins easily swiped the pennant, winning 102 games and besting the second-place White Sox by seven victories. With 1965 MVP Zoilo Versalles manning short, future MVP and Hall of Famer Harmon Killebrew in the infield, Hall of Famer Tony Oliva in the outfield, and a rotation that included Hall of Famer Jim Kaat and future Cy Young winner Jim Perry—to say nothing of Mudcat Grant and his 14 complete games in 1965, Camilo Pascual and his legendary curveball, or Earl Battey’s five All-Star game selections, or the criminally underrated Bob Allsion—the 1965 Twins were bursting with elite talent. The Dodgers were a different tale. Forced to go to the wire for their pennant, Los Angeles boasted a below-average offense carried by the mystical force of Sandy Koufax’s left arm and Don Drysdale’s opposing appendage. While Minnesota scored an astounding 4.78 runs per game to lead the AL, the Dodgers could only muster 3.75, the sixth-worst in MLB. Their pitching carried the day, as Koufax, Drysdale, and Claude Osteen fronted an intimidating rotation while future Twin Ron Perranoski shut down games in relief. The Dodgers won the series by riding Koufax in a heroic Game 7 effort, but Mincher etched his place in baseball lore, smacking a hefty homer off Drysdale in the 2nd inning of the series’ opening game. He collected singles in Game 2 and Game 3. Don Drysdale finished 5th in MVP voting in 1965, but Mincher still tagged him for a homer in Game 1 of the World Series (image courtesy of Alabama.com) Mincher’s 1966 play, like the rest of the Twins, was disappointing. Still, he re-entered baseball history by being one of five Twins to homer in an inning during the 7th inning of a game against the Kansas City Athletics on June 9, 1966, still an MLB record (B/R Bullpen). Rich Rollins, Oliva, Killebrew, and Versalles were his home-run compatriots. The Twins traded Mincher following the season to the Angels for starter Dean Chance who made the American League All-Star team for Minnesota in 1967. Mincher became something of a journeyman after his time in Minnesota. He, too, made the All-Star team in 1967, but a down season in 1968—punctuated by a frightening blow to the cheek by a Sam McDowell fastball—allowed the Angels to leave him unprotected in the expansion draft; the Seattle Pilots selected Mincher with the first overall pick (Markusen). Mincher’s 1969 season was excellent—far better than anything the porous Pilots could produce—and he was named an All-Star for the second time in his career; he is the only player to ever serve as an All-Star for the Pilots as they packed up shop and headed to Milwaukee following an atrocious season. Jim Bouton in Ball Four—the historic, controversial account of the Pilots in 1969—called Mincher a “good fellow,” despite Bouton’s comedic prejudices over southern accents (Bouton, 56, 114). Though the Pilots folded and trekked east to Milwaukee, Mincher remained on the West Coast, joining the Oakland A’s after a trade before the 1970 season. Mincher remained productive, slugging .460 over 140 games with a team featuring Mudcat Grant and young budding stars in Reggie Jackson, Rollie Fingers, and Vida Blue. Oakland traded Mincher to the zombie Senators in May of 1971, where he teamed up with an aging Frank Howard and received coaching from Ted Williams; it was Washington’s final season with an MLB franchise before the Nationals opened up shop in 2005. 1972 was a slog. The Rangers, wandering spirits under Williams, dealt Mincher back to Oakland in July. Almost solely used as a pinch-hitter, his magic was gone, and Mincher struggled mightily down the stretch. Still, he reared back for one last moment of greatness, smacking the game-tying single in the 9th inning of Game 4 of the series; Oakland won the game and beat Cincinnati in a legendary 4-3 series victory. Fresh off winning a championship, Mincher felt the weight of brutal exhaustion. His inconsistent playing time frustrated him, and—in combination with a shoulder injury that turned combing his hair into a painful endeavor—Mincher ended his time as a player (Aaron, 2019). Mincher retired after the 1972 season. Despite owning a World Series ring and etching his name onto two All-Star rosters, a sense of misunderstanding hangs over his career. A more enlightened method of analyzing hitting reveals him as an overlooked bat, an OBP and slugging specialist whose advanced stats compare well to Rhys Hoskins—a consistent, unquestioned everyday starter. Yet, Mincher only topped 500 plate appearances in a season three times and was always relegated to a role that did not fully utilize his skills. Having the greatest Twin in history locked down at first base during the heart of his prime didn’t help, either. Minnesota’s hitting leaderboards reveal Mincher’s brilliance. Despite playing in an era of suppressed offense, he ranks with the 5th-highest slugging percentage in team history, the 11th-highest wRC+, and the 9th-best walk rate. He slugged more than Kent Hrbek, walked at a higher rate than Joe Mauer, and provided more adjusted offensive firepower than Kirby Puckett (Fangraphs). Mincher would never boast about these numbers; he preferred to talk more about his teammates than himself. Baseball was not done needing Mincher. The Huntsville Stars, a minor league team in the Southern League, coaxed him away from his post-playing career sporting goods venture. He became their general manager in 1985 (Aaron, 2019). In 2000, he took over as the interim president of the Southern League, soon losing the “interim” moniker as he presided in the role until his retirement in 2011 (Aaron, 2019). Mincher entered the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame in 2008 (B/R Bullpen). In 2010, he earned the title “King of Baseball.” (McCarter, 2010) Mincher passed away on March 4th, 2012, in Huntsville, Alabama. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Twinsdaily's formatting doesn't allow for footnotes, my preferred style of citation, so I used the Author/Date system in the text with my bibliography here. Sources are listed alphabetically, not necessarily by use. Sources: Aaron, Marc Z. "sabr.org/bioproj/person/Don-Mincher," SABR, 2019. https://www.baseball-reference.com/bullpen/Don_Mincher Bouton, Jim "Ball Four," Turner Publishing Company, 1970. Branch, John “A Twin, a Ranger and, Most of All, a Senator,” New York Times, October 6, 2010. https://www.fangraphs.com Halsted, Alex "100 Things Twins Fans Should Know and Do Before They Die," Triumph Books, 2011. Henninger, Thom "The Pride of Minnesota: The Twins in the Turbulent 1960s," Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 2021. Markusen. Bruce "#CARDCORNER: 1968 TOPPS DON MINCHER," baseballhall.org. McCarter, Mark "Huntsville's Don Mincher named 'King of Baseball,'" alabama.com, December, 9, 2010. View full article

It would be interesting, but man, Adell hasn't hit overly well since his time at AA... in 2019. Yeah, you could level the same critique on a young Torii Hunter---and baseball truisms say that toolsy outfielders take awhile to develop---but he he just might not be it.

The argument may not be so far-fetched. Image courtesy of Kamil Krzaczynski-USA TODAY Sports Recent trade talks with the Marlins have spurned eye-opening news: the Twins are actively discussing trading Luis Arraez. The reports are not entirely shocking. Teams value young, controllable pieces, and when you enjoy a plethora of pitching riches—something few teams can claim—you can demand the world in return; a ragtag combo of Nick Gordon and Josh Winder will not get the job done. That’s the price of doing business. The Marlins are maximizing the return on their valuable pieces. But wait, it is shocking! Arraez is an All-Star just entering arbitration! What are we even talking about here? There’s an aesthetic brilliance to Arraez’s hitting, one that baseball sorely lacks these days. He’s not a Chris Johnson BABIP fluke: Arraez possesses the unique ability to sniff out hits, spraying line drives across the field with artistic flair and shocking consistency; his hit chart is as democratic as they come. When paired with an impressive skill to resist swinging at bad pitches, his complete batting package is superhuman, only lacking in power because the good Lord wouldn’t want to create a player that unfair. Throw in his age—he’s just 25 years old—and years of team control remaining, and it would appear crazy for a team to trade such a cornerstone. There’s more to baseball than hitting. Only one player can claim the DH spot on any given day, making the other eight players a dual threat, someone who must field as well as bat. Arraez isn’t particularly adroit at second or third—the two positions Minnesota tried him out at the most—and playing him in the outfield is some real cursed stuff, but the Twins did find him a home at first in 2022. Advanced defensive stats applauded Arraez, and he finished 2022 with the highest UZR/150 amongst first basemen with at least 500 innings. A victory for short kings everywhere. The standard for hitting at first base, though, is much higher than other positions. While Arraez is only behind Andrés Giménez, Jeff McNeil, and José Altuve, respectively, for wRC+ as a second baseman, seven first basemen are ahead of him in line; its defensive barrier of entry is lower. It’s a tradeoff, as most roster decisions in baseball are, but it’s one the Twins could understandably dislike, especially as the team sits on a bevy of infielders with varying degrees of the same problem. Think of it this way: what’s a peak Arraez season? His massive second half cool-down proves there’s still something left in his proverbial tank; perhaps a more consistent performance nets him a wRC+ in the high 130s, maybe touching 140. It would be an impressive season, but one that just hovers around the top 5 or so for first basemen, netting him around 4.0 fWAR. That’s a good player, but is it an unmovable one? Is it unreasonable to imagine a scenario where a healthy Alex Kirilloff bridges the gap, playing close enough to those totals that any value they get from Pablo López is gravy? It’s not a terrible inefficiency—there are worse things to have than an excellent defensive 1st baseman who also doubles as a top-ten hitter at the position—so if the Twins choose to keep Arraez planted, they aren’t hemorrhaging wins. But teams avoid atypical archetypes at 1st for a reason—there's only one Keith Hernandez, after all—and once you start dissecting the roster, cutting deep into the margins to look for upgrades, Arraez appears expendable, and the Twins could be well-suited to stomach losing him. View full article

Some of these guys will play on the 2023 Twins, so you may as well read about them. Image courtesy of Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports As we have seen the past two seasons, the Minnesota Twins have needed more than just their 26-man roster to get through the season. In fact, they have not only used their 40-man roster, but another 20+ players each year. That is the reason why we care so much about offseason minor-league signings, many of them will get an opportunity with the Twins at some time during the season. Here’s a list of the 25 players invited to join the 40-man roster players in Ft. Myers for spring training: Brooks Lee and Austin Martin are the two headline names. Lee, the Twins’ 1st round pick last year, looks to rub elbows with major leaguers for the first time in his career. Martin, now playing in his second spring training, can prove that his AFL performance was not a fluke. Both players will fight for who can pick Carlos Correa’s brain the most. Beyond them are some exciting arms: Cody Laweryson—a gliding righty who struck out over 30% of batters at Double-A; Evan Sisk—a cross-bodied lefty reliever who owned a 1.57 ERA last season between Double-A and Triple-A; and Blayne Enlow, who cleared waivers on Friday and will be looking for a chance to re-establish himself as an impact arm. As the post notes, 13 players—Willi Castro (Tigers), Mark Contreras (Twins), Danny Coulombe (A's, Dodgers, Twins), José De Léon (Dodgers, Rays, Reds), Randy Dobnak (Twins), Grayson Greiner (Tigers, Diamondbacks), Ryan LaMarre (Red Sox, White Sox, Reds, Yankees, A's, Twins), Patrick Murphy (Blue Jays, Nationals), Chance Sisco (Orioles, Mets), Elliot Soto (Angels, Twins), Brock Stewart (Dodgers, Blue Jays), Tyler White (Astros and Dodgers), and Tony Wolters (Rockies, Cubs, Dodgers)—can claim previous major-league experience. There’s a good chance a few of these players will impact the Twins in 2023. If you’re looking for an Author’s Choice list of players to keep an eye on, it goes as follows: Laweryson, Stewart, and Sisco. Laweryson, while lacking in prominent tools, punches people out with a tricky plane—an upward one, sorry Bert—and intimidating swan-like limbs. Stewart owns over 100 forgettable innings with the Dodgers, but his fastball was sitting in the mid-90s last season, making him one of the first choices when a reliever inevitably bites it. Cisco is a former top prospect whose sheen hasn’t sparkled in years. He earned surprisingly few major league opportunities, and a fresh start could produce better results for the catcher. Certainly more players will be invited in the coming weeks, but who would you say are the leading candidates for Sire of Ft. Myers based on this list? Comment below. View full article

Chris Paddack has agreed to a contract extension with the Minnesota Twins that will keep him pitching for the Twins through the 2025 season. The three-year contract will delay Paddack becoming a free agent by one-year. Image courtesy of © Jay Biggerstaff-USA TODAY Sports After coming to terms with the Twins earlier today on a one-year $2.4M deal to avoid arbitration, Chris Paddack agreed to a contract extension that will allow the team to keep him pitching for the Twins for 2+ more years when he returns from Tommy John surgery later this season, Twins Daily has learned. Financial details of the contract have not been disclosed, but it is expected to be worth $10-15M in total value. Remember Chris Paddack? Of everything that went wrong with the 2022 Twins, Paddack’s early-season promise and immediate surgery happened so quickly that an adept gaslighter could convince one that he never existed in the first place. Paddack’s career arc is well-documented. The 27-year-old former starting pitching phenom traveled to San Diego from Miami in a trade for—you're going to love this—Fernando Rodney. From there, he shot up prospect lists and became a popular pick to become a major league regular. His 2019 rookie season proved promising, as the youngster made the opening day roster by surprise and accrued 140 ⅔ quality innings. The future seemed bright. The future is also mean. Paddack’s fastball/changeup combo went from electric to the little shock that emanates from one of those fake gum gimmick toys. Paddack's numbers dropped with no useful third pitch in sight; however, his home runs continued to stay high, and both 2020 and 2021 were a wash. Feeling the itch to trade someone, A.J. Preller moved Paddack, Emilio Pagán, and Brayan Medina for Taylor Rogers and Brent Rooker, announcing that it would be someone else’s problem to fix the former future ace. Minnesota may have done that. Paddack carried a hilarious 1.72 FIP through five games—not giving up a homer will do that—and even appeared to have worked in an adequate slider to pair with his fastball and changeup. Then the elbow started barking. the Paddack now enjoys company in the double Tommy John club. No one wants to be a part of such a gathering. Three members of the Twins' projected starting rotation will be free agents at the end of the year. The Twins are gambling that, in an age where high schoolers undergo the operation, a second Tommy John surgery simply means a pair of scars, and Paddack can return to being a promising pitcher on a staff in need of younger blood. John Bonnes contributed to this story. View full article

Can't be mad at all. It's much better for baseball to have Cutch back as a pirate.

Something, something, the announcement we're all waiting for, something something Image courtesy of Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports A.J. Alexy is every reliever; every reliever is A.J. Alexy. The 6’4” righty—once part of Texas' return for Yu Darvish, and a 40+ FV prospect, according to Fangraphs—has “long had premium arm strength and a plus-flashing breaking ball,” according to Eric Longenhagen. But command has proved to be a mighty bugaboo, and Alexy’s ghastly walk rate has limited his major league success. Alexy will throw four pitches—a traditional fastball, slider, curveball, and changeup mix—with his slide piece as the dominant offering. Although he didn’t throw many MLB innings last season, the slider coaxed an impressive .237 xwOBA from batters, a number far better than his fastball; that pitch allowed a .508 xwOBA. The heater clocks in at 94.2 MPH, a little above the major league average. A new mechanical change—a shortened, spiral-like arm action reminiscent of Lucas Giolito—didn’t bear fruit in 2022, but the Twins see something they like in him; Alexy will join their yearly cast of upside relievers looking for a chance to prove something. In return, the Twins hand over Cristian Jimenez, an 18-year-old arm who put up solid numbers in the DSL in 2022. They also DFA’d Oliver Ortega, a recent waiver claim from the Angels, who they may not have even fitted for a jersey. It’s a classic short-term play by the Twins. Alexy—recently DFA’d by the Nationals—possesses the potential to aid the team now. The team can toss him out in low-leverage situations, slowly building up his confidence before potentially promoting him to pitch in later innings. Or, he won’t find the strike zone, and the Twins will DFA him before June. Or, they could DFA him later this week if a roster spot is needed. The line between Jhon Romero and Evan Phillips is thin. Alexy allowed two hits over his his first 11 MLB frames in 2021. View full article

I'd love to support Torii more, but it's clear that advanced stats don't buy that he's one of the greatest defensive center fielders of all-time; he's like outfield Derek Jeter, unfortunately.

It doesn't have a lot to do with Michael Wacha. Image courtesy of Gerry Angus-USA TODAY Sports A recent report in The Athletic, which reads more like an off-hand comment than a groundbreaking revelation, purports that the Twins have expressed interest in RHP Michael Wacha. Now, “expressed interest” is a favorite baseball term that can loosely define every style of relationship a team can have with a player. Thad Levine vaguely dreaming about Wacha could lead to the team “expressing interest.” The Phillies have “expressed interest” in Mike Trout for a decade. The term means nothing. The connection makes sense, though. The Twins have yet to sign a major-league pitcher; Wacha is an arm capable of accruing outs between reasonable levels of runs scoring. With a bunch of theoretical payroll space and Carlos Correa probably still signing with the Mets, the Twins should spend their money on something. It’s a perfect pairing. But we’ve been down this path before. J.A. Happ, Matt Shoemaker, Dylan Bundy, and Chris Archer are four other arms who once possessed some nebulous upside, enough to convince a professional franchise to pay them money for their pitching labor. What happened after those players signed is well-known; we don’t have to tread that path again. Wacha is his own man, though; it would be unfair—and illogical—to believe he would match those past pitcher’s sins just because he loosely fits their outline. The Red Sox, Mets, and Rays, teams run by baseball people far brighter than us casuals, looked at Wacha, glanced at his numbers, and believed in him enough to guarantee millions of dollars to the former Cardinal standout. These weren’t teams chasing a false promise; they fairly gambled that, with a few alterations, Wacha could provide enough production to bring their franchise value. The bet didn’t work for the Mets or Rays, but it worked enough for the Red Sox that one could generously declare their deal a success. So, Wacha could do the same for Minnesota; that possibility remains tangible. The issue is a baseball-specific sunk cost fallacy mixed with classic roster manipulation. Those past deals—beyond turning sour as each pitcher failed to play well—failed because the Twins continued to send those arms out to die. Bundy inhaled 140 real major-league innings. He’ll now slither into baseball obscurity on a minor-league deal with *insert team here.* Or he’ll become an ace. Baseball is funny like that. The Twins told Bundy to go get 'em so often because, well, they were paying him $4 million, and people like seeing a return on their investment, but also because of flexibility. Or, rather, a lack of it. In a naturally conservative institution like baseball, hitting the eject button on a player is a nearly unalterable act. Without those tasty minor-league options, a franchise has to sneak a player by other teams, hoping that no one notices that a capable arm is now free for anyone to acquire. When that fails because the Diamondbacks need someone to throw slop for them, the team takes a vicious hit to their depth. So Bundy stays because he’s somewhat usable. In that sense, Bundy is useful; every team unwillingly hands out innings to players they’d prefer to avoid starting—hopefully, Adam Wilk is enjoying life. It’s the nature of pitching. But Bundy also blocks others. Louie Varland remains in the minors because Bundy isn’t terrible; he certainly earned a few victories for the Twins, but is he so much better than Varland that the Twins should eschew the youngster in favor of the veteran? This was the essential issue of the 2022 Twins; no one was truly horrifyingly bad, but instead existed in a mediocre haven, making it difficult for the team ever to cut bait. At least Shoemaker made it clear he was cooked. Wacha is probably not better than Varland; that’s the article. If you sign a pitcher with a good chance at being below-average—and without disrespect, Wacha fits that mold—you create fake depth; at least Varland can go to St. Paul if he starts pitching poorly. With Wacha, you just have to grin and bear it, only cutting bait once he reaches unforgivable status. Or, in Twins shorthand, if he “Shoemakers” it. View full article