Seth Stohs

It's hard to believe that we are just days away from 2024. It's always fun to look back at which stories at Twins Daily that were clicked on the most. It's often surprising to see what type of article fits that bill. Enjoy the list and feel free to discuss each topic. Image courtesy of Rob Thompson, St. Paul Saints 2023 began with the saga of Carlos Correa. Expectations were reduced, but there was an excitement. The front office stayed busy in free agency and in the trade market. And then the season began, and while there were ups and downs, the Twins led the division much of the year and returned to the top spot. More important, they won a playoff game and a playoff series which, maybe you had heard it had been awhile. But looking back at 2023 through which articles you clicked into most frequently is always fun. #25 The Case to Bring Back Miguel Sano by Jeremy Nygaard Jan 16 The first entry in our Top 25 came from the first month of the calendar. Miguel Sano missed most of the 2022 season with injuries, so it was a no-brainer to turn down his option and let him become a free agent. While it may not have been a very popular idea among most Twins fans, there certainly was a case to bring him back at a reduced, incentive-laden contract. While Sano ultimately may not have met the extremely high expectations that came with his controversial amateur career. It would have been nearly impossible to do so. However, Sano did have some great years with the Twins and some not-so-good years. He struck out a lot, but he hit a lot of home runs and was certainly intimidating in the batter’s box through most of his career. Ultimately, Sano didn’t sign with anyone in 2023, he is playing in the Dominican Winter League right now and appears to be in very good shape. Don’t be surprised if someone gives him another opportunity in 2024, and then don’t be surprised if he takes full advantage of it. I hope he does. #24 Twins Announce Promotional Schedule and Ticket Deals for 2023 Season by Melissa Berman Jan 18 When the Twins locked up Carlos Correa to a six-year, $200 million contract, there was a ton of excitement around the Twins. The Twins released their promotional schedule and some really exciting ticket sales opportunities. Hopefully the Twins will announce some similar ticket offers in the coming weeks. #23 Joey Gallo’s Last Stand by Cody Christie Aug 7 Eyes rolled when the Twins signed Joey Gallo to a one-year, $11 million contract last December. That signing came shortly after the Twins and their fans thought that Correa had signed elsewhere. While he had a bad 2022 season, he was an All Star in 2021. He had won Gold Gloves. There were certainly plenty of reasons to think that he could return to some semblance of that 2021 and earlier player. In fact, in April, he had three doubles, a triple, and seven home runs in just 65 plate appearances. However, after the calendar changed to May, Gallo really struggled. He hit around .160, took some walks and hit some homers when he actually made contact. Gallo was solid defensively in the outfield and at first base. Despite the struggles, there were never reports of him being disruptive or anything but a supportive teammate. His final appearance with the Twins came on September 5th. #22 The Natural: Brooks Lee is Special, and the Twins Know It. by Nick Nelson Mar 2 The excitement around 2022 first-round draft pick Brooks Lee was palpable in spring training. Some called him the top college hitter in that draft, he was impressive in his professional debut late in 2022, even hitting .423 for the Double-A Wichita Wind Surge in six games (2 regular season, 4 playoff games). Early in spring, he got a lot of playing time in big-league games and made a strong impression on manager Rocco Baldelli. He also earned some compliments from Carlos Correa. “Man, that kind is a stud! I really, really, really like this kid. I’m very high on him. Don’t be surprised if we see him up this year. He’s very, very good, man. Everybody I talk to about him, it’s high praise. I don’t get impressed very easily. That was definitely a great pick by the Twins.” Lee didn’t get to the big leagues in 2023, but he ended the season at Triple-A. He was also named the winner of the Twins Minor League Player of the Year award. #21 The Twins Forgotten Center Fielder by Cody Pirkl Jan 29 When Gilberto Celestino was first called up to the Minnesota Twins in April of 2021, all involved knew that he wasn’t ready. He had only a handful of games above A-ball. He struggled that year. He made some strides in 2022. Last offseason, the Twins added Michael A. Taylor to be the Buxton insurance in center field. That proved to be a wise move. The hope was Celestino could finally just get a few months of everyday playing time in St. Paul and let him develop his immense talent. Unfortunately, he broke his thumb early in spring training and missed a lot of time. The Twins DFAd Celestino very late in the 2023 season. He went unclaimed, but days later, he was able to become a free agent. He has since signed a minor-league deal with the Pittsburgh Pirates. We will be back tomorrow with the next group of five. Feel free to discuss this group and any updates to this group from the time the articles were written. View full article

ah jeepers... should have known @Cory Engelhardt would beat me to it...

I don't know. I like to think that with 26 years of experience at my job I should be making more than someone in their 2nd year of doing the same job. I get that in theory the best system for the players would be everyone get one year contracts and be a free agent every year... but I don't want guys jumping around that much. I want the young players to stick around 5-6 years, or more. So there needs to be a system. and players should be rewarded for longevity. They've earned that right in a free market to earn what someone is willing to pay them. This is just a nice incentive for those pre-arb guys who don't have the ability to negotiate what winning an MVP award might be worth.

Six Minnesota Twins players received a nice bonus from the league on Monday, thanks to the new Collective Bargaining Agreement signed in 2022. Image courtesy of David Richard-USA TODAY Sports Under the current Collective Bargaining Agreement, the two sides (players and owners) agreed to provide bonus money for pre-arbitration eligible players who perform well based on a joint Wins Above Replacement (WAR) calculation. The idea is that these players barely make the league minimum for their first three MLB seasons. Then, through the arbitration process, they can start earning some money. This system eases the frustration and inequity of that framework for young players. The league sets aside $50 million. Specific amounts are earned for receiving Rookie of the Year, MVP, or Cy Young votes, or finishing first- or second-team All-MLB. For those award allocations, a player can only receive one bonus each year, whichever is higher. For instance, Diamondbacks outfielder Corbin Carroll was named Rookie of the Year and was first-team All-MLB. The award for winning Rookie of the Year is $750,000. For finishing first-team All-MLB, he gets $1 million. He would only receive the $1 million award. The remainder of the award pool is spread out between the top pre-arbitration players in baseball, based on the blended WAR metric negotiated by the two sides. Carroll’s total bonus was $1,812,337. That ranked second to Mariners outfielder Julio Rodriguez, who received $1,865,349. Ten players earned a bonus over $1 million. This year, a total of 101 players earned a bonus through this program. Twenty-five players earned at least $500,000. None of the Twins players reached that level, but several 2023 Minnesota Twins earned a significant (if retroactive) raise. Only two teams (the Orioles and Tigers) had more players receive a bonus. Both of those clubs had seven recipients. Here's the Twins list: Bailey Ober ($432,752) Edouard Julien ($397,629) Joe Ryan ($341,931) Royce Lewis ($341,190) Ryan Jeffers ($300,304) Jhoan Duran ($271,789) It may surprise some that Ober leads that pack, but the righthander was remarkably consistent throughout the 2023 seasons, despite some interesting circumstances. He made 26 starts, and was 8-6 with a 3.43 ERA. He nearly matched his innings pitched total from 2021 and 2022 combined (148 1/3) with 144 1/3 innings pitched in 2023. Because of his injury history (which included some leg injuries in 2023), the Twins carefully managed his workload at times. He began the season with a couple of starts with the Saints. In late August, he was sent down to Triple A again just to keep his innings count down, after only throwing 56 innings in 2022. But Ober's consistency throughout the year was ballast for the ship of the rotation. The league minimum was $720,000 in 2023 (it will be $740,000 in 2024). Here are the ‘regular’ salaries of those players in 2023: Bailey Ober ($730,000) Edouard Julien ($720,000) - pro-rated to 135 service days (~$540,000) Joe Ryan ($730,250) Royce Lewis ($727,100) Ryan Jeffers ($741,650) Jhoan Duran ($720,000) Short story long, this allotment is a nice little bonus for these players heading into the holiday season. For some, it's more than 50-percent raise. Again, this is based on a formula called the Joint WAR. It uses the more popular WAR, Baseball Reference, and FanGraphs, though the exact formula is not publicly available. Bailey Ober: bWAR (3.0), fWAR (2.4) Edouard Julien: bWAR (2.6), fWAR (2.8) Joe Ryan: bWAR (1.2), fWAR (2.2) Royce Lewis: bWAR (2.4), fWAR (2.4) Ryan Jeffers: bWAR (3.3), fWAR (2.7) Jhoan Durán: bWAR (1.9), fWAR (1.0) In total, the pool for this player bonus is $50 million, funded equally by all 30 teams. The players are paid by their respective teams, and then the Commissioner’s Office reimburses the clubs. For the Twins, this system yielded almost $2.1 million in extra money in the pockets of their best young players, after they paid in just under $1.7 million for their share of the pool. Congratulations to all six players! View full article

“I enjoyed crushing the baseball. That was probably the thing I loved to do most." Here's how an All-American slugger turned into a big-league pitcher. Image courtesy of Ed Bailey, Wichita Wind Surge Kody Funderburk was a four-year letterman at Queen Creek High School in Arizona. Yet, he received just one offer to play baseball in college, and that went away after a rough junior season. Central Arizona Community College, in Coolidge, Arizona, was one option. However, Funderburk stayed close to home and went to Mesa Community College. As a freshman, he went 8-4 in 15 games (13 starts) on the mound. At the plate, he hit .324 with four home runs. As a sophomore, he only made eight appearances (three starts) and pitched 12 2/3 innings. However, he hit .400/.504/.651, with eight homers and 55 RBI. He was named First Team All-Conference, All-Region, and All-American. Because of the success, he opted to go to Dallas Baptist University. He had played well during their sophomore showcase the year before. “It was really hard to pass up. They're known for their offensive production. I was getting recruited as a first baseman, so it was right up my alley. The field was beautiful. It was right in the middle of Dallas. Downtown was 20 minutes away. The campus was gorgeous, but at the same time, midweeks, we were playing Big 12 schools all the time. Even on weekends, we played teams like Clemson and Texas Tech. Also, I got to stay in a warm-weather state.” He certainly didn’t slow down at the plate. In 63 games, he hit .304/.429/.584, with 19 doubles, 13 home runs, and 58 RBI. He also continued to pitch. He pitched in 15 games (14 starts) and went 1-3 with a 6.84 ERA and a 1.72 WHIP. In 50 innings, he had 53 strikeouts, but he also walked 31 batters. That slugging success and mound struggle led, unexpectedly, to this moment: “With the 454th overall pick in the June 2018 MLB Draft, the Minnesota Twins use their 15th round pick to select Funderburk, Kody, left-handed pitcher.” So, Kody, why did the Twins draft you as a pitcher and not as a hitter? “During the draft process, some teams wanted me to hit. Some wanted me to pitch. Some said they may be willing to do both and eventually play into one. The Twins scout I talked to was Trevor Brown. I feel like I only talked to him twice: when I met him, and then the night before the draft, he called me. There was really no inclination of what the Twins wanted [me to do]. It was just on Day 3 when I heard my name called, and they said, 'Left-handed pitcher,' I knew I was a pitcher. I knew it was a possibility, but I thought with how my year went pitching-wise and how my year went hitting-wise and my past production as a hitter. I thought for sure I’d be drafted as a first baseman. I guess it’s a testament to the Twins' pitching development, taking a guy with horrible numbers like that and turning him into a big-leaguer. “All my friends and family are like, “How the heck are you a pitcher?” "I didn’t pitch that well. Honestly, I feel like I was training so much on the hitting side of things. Whenever scheduling conflicted, I always erred on the side of hitting. So I never really felt like I got to practice (pitching), really, until I got into pro ball. But with Covid, I got a whole year of developing pitching-wise. I really feel like it was pure rest. I didn’t get to practice much.” Asked what he saw when he scouted Dallas Baptist in 2018, Brown said, “Yes, Kody was a good college hitter and wasn’t as polished back then on the mound. But our group thought there was still a lot of untapped ceiling on the mound. It wasn’t a real comfortable at-bat for guys, and I just thought Kody needed innings and could be just scratching the surface of what he could be as a pitcher.” As you would expect, Brown transferred the credit to two other places. “So much of what he is today is due to Kody and our player development. Kody’s worked as hard as anyone to get in the position he’s in and deserves so much of the credit.” Peter Larson joined the Twins organization after four seasons at Fordham University. In 2019, he was the minor-league rehab pitching coach. In 2020, he was supposed to be the pitching coach in Cedar Rapids (Low A), but then the season was canceled. In 2021, he was the Low-A Fort Myers pitching coach. In 2022, he was a pitching coach for Double-A Wichita and moved to Triple-A for the 2023 season. In other words, he has spent a lot of time working with Funderburk over the past two years. Larson and Funderburk are on the same page about what has helped the lefty succeed. Larson spoke of the work done during the lost Covid season. “Kody really took off after the Covid shutdown. Changed his workouts and body, and really came in ready to go for 2022.” Funderburk acknowledged, “I lost 30 to 40 pounds, which cleaned up my mechanics and helped me move a lot better. I threw pretty much a year of bullpens, and that really helped. It was kind of gritty. I was out at public parks by myself, throwing into a Jugs net. I feel like, along with all those other things, it taught me a work ethic and a discipline that I learned by myself.” “He really turned a corner middle-to-late in the 2022 season and hasn’t looked back," Larson added. "I think Kody knows himself at a really high level currently. He understands his strengths and weaknesses and knows when and where to use his pitches.” Funderburk mentioned it in the interview, but Larson also spoke to some pitch suggestions they worked on together. “His pitch mix changed throughout 2022. We suggested adding a sinker to have something hard running arm-side. We also wanted to add bigger movement to his slider. This gave him a new look and when executed, tough on both hitters but specifically left-handed hitters. In 2023, he continued to fine-tune that same mix with the main goal of attacking the strike zone more consistently.” Scouts, minor-league coaches, and player-development personnel don’t get the credit they so often deserve. For them, the “glory” comes when a player with whom they’ve worked develops and gets a chance in the big leagues. Larson noted, “It’s a blast to see anyone achieve their goals of making it to the big leagues. But seeing a guy like Kody put in the work and push through was really special. There might have been points in his career where he thought the big leagues seemed so far away, but his buy-in on training and trusting the process helped make his dream come true. For one final thought, let’s get back to Kody Funderburk, Hitter. Hey Kody, in your heart of hearts, do you believe that you could hit? “In the big leagues? I don’t know—maybe even a Low-A game. But even in Low A, you have guys [who] throw 100 with wipe-out stuff. As much as I want to say, ‘Yes, I can still hit,’ the stuff in the big leagues and young guys in the minor leagues, it’s pretty ridiculous what guys can learn. It’s no wonder it's so hard to hit, and I’m thankful I’m on the other end of it and making guys feel that way.” Indeed, it is fair to ask what the Twins saw in Funderburk on the mound when he was so dominant at the plate. You can do that. And then you and I need to step back and say, Hey, the Twins were right. Trevor Brown saw uncomfortable at-bats and maybe a guy who just needed innings. Peter Larson, Cibney Bello, and several other pitching coaches and coordinators deserve credit for working with Funderburk and making him a big-leaguer. The ultimate credit belongs to Kody Funderburk himself. He may have had questions, but he went to work and made it happen. And he saw the fruits of all that work become worthwhile when he made his big-league debut in 2023. And, with that work ethic, the goal will now be to stick in the big leagues and get a lot of batters out for years to come. One final thing... check out this YouTube video... "Fundy" figured it out first! View full article

I don't think the price of doing business changed all that much. I mean, I wasn't expecting $700 million either, but Ohtani's always been the exception. Yomamoto was always going to get around $250 million. He's got the Yankees and Mets fighting over him. Soto was always going to get Trout-like money to $500 million. Other contracts have been in line with where they have been, for the most part. Pagan, after his 2023 season, got what other relievers of that ilk get. Gray got what we expected. So did Lynn, Gibson, and others. Oh, and I say all that cuz I don't go to any/many games. I don't plan on it either. As long as I can find most of their games on TV, it won't bother me... But I understand that is a frustration for those that do go to a lot of games.

Seems like the finances of baseball are pretty good... Cuz the Dodgers wouldn't pay him that kind of money (and Betts, and Freeman and others) if they weren't going to make it. Ohtani's been on a team with a $400 million player (Trout) and a $300 million player (Rendon), and they kept adding players each year and never got to the playoffs. Love watching teams spend crazily for two reasons, 1.) cuz the players deserve it, and 2.) it guarantees the team nothing.

Sounds like it's official. MLB Trade Rumors has it... Haven't had one of the big-name reporters verify yet... Where does this rank among free agent surprises in MLB history.

It's not ideal, but it's not like it doesn't happen. It's probably much more likely with catchers... and there are usually three catchers on rookie league rosters and each catches maybe twice a week, so I wouldn't worry about it too much. However, he was available in the minor-league Rule 5 draft, so the odds of him being a big leaguer aren't real high. But it's always good to have catchers, and there are always exceptions. I mean, Brian Buscher was a minor-league Rule 5 pick! :)

Pretty sure he was mentioned in there quite a lot! ;-) Here are some of those mentions... These are the articles that he was tagged in, but obviously we could only tag five players per article, so he was probably mentioned in like 4-5 times this many articles. A google search for "Twins Daily" "Yoyner Fajardo" brings back a ton of articles.

He began his 2023 season with the Wichita Wind Surge, but Kody Funderburk’s campaign ended on the first Minnesota Twins team roster to win a playoff game in nearly 20 years. We asked the southpaw to reflect on that journey, with a particular focus on his time in the majors. Image courtesy of Matt Blewett-USA TODAY Sports By August 28th in many Minnesota summers, sports fans are excited about the Vikings and Gophers football seasons. Students are excited about the upcoming school year, starting right after Labor Day. However, in 2023, the Twins were well on their way to running away with the American League Central title. The pitching staff was one of the best in baseball. After a rough first half, the Twins’ offense was one of the best in the league in the second half. Things just felt different. Across the river in St Paul, players were enjoying their typical Monday off day. When minor-league baseball re-aligned before the 2021 season, teams began playing six-game series. Mondays are either travel days, or a regular day off. The Saints had completed a six-game split in Omaha and were back home on Sunday night. On Tuesday, they were beginning a new set against Columbus. Kody Funderburk had been pitching very well for the Saints all season. In 37 games, he was 4-1, with five saves and a 2.60 ERA. In 52 Triple-A innings, he had just 15 walks and an impressive 75 strikeouts. However, no one knew if he would be called up to the Twins. He acknowledges that he was never a big pitching prospect. He was a 15th-round pick back in 2018. He had solid numbers working his way through the system, primarily as a starting pitcher. In Low A, he posted a 4.68 ERA in 50 innings. In High A, he posted a 2.96 ERA over 48 2/3 innings. He spent a lot of time at Double A, where he went a combined 14-5 with a 2.55 ERA in 137 2/3 innings. He made 17 starts at that level, but midway through the 2022 season, he was moved full-time to the bullpen. Despite those excellent numbers, including strikeouts, he wasn’t added to the 40-man roster and went unselected in the Rule 5 draft the past two years. Funderburk began the 2023 season with five games and nine innings in Wichita. He had a 1.00 ERA, and quickly moved up to the Saints. He pitched great, but did the Twins think he could help them down the stretch? “In my head, I was just trying to keep the same mentality," said Funderburk of his thinking at the time. "The only way I’m going to guarantee (more) opportunities is to continue doing well.” So, after sleeping in a bit on the off day, Funderburk and his wife had made plans to go to The Great Minnesota Get Together (aka, the State Fair). They began to get ready in the early afternoon. “Around 3:00, I looked at my phone and had five missed calls from Toby (Gardenhire)," Funderburk recalled. "I thought, ‘This is probably the call I want it to be,’ because I really only talk to Toby around the field and in the clubhouse.” Funderburk called his manager to see what was going on. It was The Call. “(Gardenhire) said, ‘Congratulations, you’re going to the big leagues. We think it’s for the Tuesday game. Let me get back to you.” At this point, Funderburk, his wife, a couple of teammates, and their wives were excited for the 26-year-old lefty. Just a few minutes later, the phone rang. It was Gardenhire again. “He said, 'Actually, it’s for the game tonight, and you need to get over there as fast as you can.'” Twins games during the week begin 30 minutes earlier than their 7:10 PM start times on weekends. “My wife and I scrambled and got ready really quick.," Funderburk said. "Got things together. Got over to the field.” Upon entering the home clubhouse at Target Field, Funderburk walked into manager Rocco Baldelli’s office. His message to the lefty? “Be ready to pitch." Kenta Maeda made the start. After a scoreless first inning, he gave up four runs in the second. Fortunately, the Twins put up a six-spot in the bottom of that inning. The big hit was a Royce Lewis grand slam. Maeda gave up single runs in the top of the third and the fourth. However, Matt Wallner hit a solo home run in the bottom of the third. A three-run Jorge Polanco blast in the fourth provided insurance. So, as the fifth inning began, the Twins had a 10-6 lead, but Maeda’s day was done. Funderburk found himself jogging in from the bullpen, set to make his big-league debut. “With it being so quick (from getting the call to getting to the stadium and then into the game), it just kind of ripped the Band-Aid off. I really only had a couple of hours. “I was just thinking I just have to trust my stuff. It has worked in Triple A. Hopefully, it works now.” It certainly worked that night. Funderburk showed his stuff, and his work during PFPs (Pitchers' Fielding Practice). The first batter he faced was veteran lefty Kole Calhoun. He grounded out to the mound. Next up was Ramon Laureano. Funderburk got him on a called third strike. Andres Gimenez was next, and grounded back to the mound for the third out—a one-two-three inning in his major-league debut. Next, Funderburk needed to be ready to keep pitching. He was asked to work the sixth inning as well. He struck out both Will Brennan and Gabriel Arias to start the inning. Bo Naylor then popped out to shortstop Carlos Correa for the third out of the inning. Two perfect frames. Who could ask for anything more? Rocco Baldelli and Pete Maki didn’t. They turned the game over to Josh Winder, who faced nine batters and got nine outs. Funderburk was the winning pitcher in his major-league debut. Winder recorded his first career save. Following the game, Bally Sports North’s Audra Martin interviewed Funderburk and Royce Lewis. When she asked Lewis to describe Funderburk’s debut, he implored the crowd, “Give it up for Fundy!” And the crowd did just that. “That was pretty special. You guys have talked to Royce a bunch. He is a special, special guy—an incredible, incredible talent on the field. The grand slam stretch was absolutely unbelievable. (He has) some of the best talent I have ever seen, but also, to go with it, he is a plus-plus person," Funderburk said. Be ready to pitch. The next night, the Twins went into extra innings, and in the 10th inning, with two runners on base, Funderburk was called on to face Calhoun again. This time, Calhoun won the battle, hitting a three-run home run. “That maybe was my big-league moment, my 'Welcome to the big leagues, Rookie!' But you’ve got to learn through it. It gives me confidence that Rocco trusted me in those spots and thought I could handle it enough. And what happened happened." Funderburk was charged with one run on the homer. The other two runs were inherited runners. Then came September. Counting October 1st, he pitched nine more games and 9 2/3 innings. He gave up zero runs, and did not allow another inherited runner to score, either. He gave up five hits and five walks--too many free passes, but he also had 16 strikeouts. If you like Win Probability Added (WPA), Funderburk had games of 0.110, 0.214, and 0.325, showing that he was put into challenging situations late in games and came through. “I knew my role coming in there at the end of the year was to help that last month, whatever way that meant," Funderburk said. "If it meant pitching in the fifth inning of a blowout game or in the eighth inning like I did in Texas of a real close game. Whatever role it was, I knew down the stretch I was going to take whatever opportunity.” He learned much from Dallas Keuchel in St. Paul and in his time with the Twins. After the Calhoun homer, Emilio Pagan approached him, put his arm around him, and said, “'Hey man, I hope you give up a bunch more, because you’ll be pitching for a long time up here.'” “T-Bar (Caleb Thielbar) is just a great model for how I should be," Funderburk said of the primary southpaw in the Twins pen. "He’s a lock-down, left-handed, high-leverage guy for the late innings. Just to watch him go about his work.” “The guy I mostly hung out with and really talked to was Louie Varland. Great teammates. I really like Louie as a person and as a player," Funderburk went on. "He’s like Royce. Great player. Great person. We talked about a lot of things.” This was Funderburk’s sixth season in the organization. He’s been a part of a lot of good teams and seen how the organization develops players and people. He also fully understands the narrative behind the 0-for-18 playoff streak, and he noted that being a part of the pennant chase and the playoff run was meaningful. The players knew it, and they felt they had something special. Getting the first win against Toronto (and then winning that series) was special. He wasn’t on the roster for the Astros series, but noted that just being around the atmosphere was something he’ll never forget. It was only a month, but Funderburk experienced a lot in his short time in the big leagues. It's all stuff he can draw from in the future. In Part 2 of this story (and video), we'll discuss Kody Funderburk's pitching journey that led him from an unlikely prospect to the big leagues. View full article

Left-hander Kody Funderburk made his big-league debut for the Minnesota Twins and became a key part of the team's bullpen in September of 2023. It's always fun to see a prospect work his way through the organization and get an opportunity and then contribute down the stretch, but Funderburk's story is interesting. A Day 3 draft pick as a pitcher after putting up monster offensive numbers in his college years. The Twins scouting department saw something and that belief paid off. Funderburk helped in 2023, and he could help the Twins out of the bullpen for years to come. Recently, we chatted with the southpaw about his baseball story from his youth days in Little League to the big leagues. View full video

Left-hander Kody Funderburk made his big-league debut for the Minnesota Twins and became a key part of the team's bullpen in September of 2023. It's always fun to see a prospect work his way through the organization and get an opportunity and then contribute down the stretch, but Funderburk's story is interesting. A Day 3 draft pick as a pitcher after putting up monster offensive numbers in his college years. The Twins scouting department saw something and that belief paid off. Funderburk helped in 2023, and he could help the Twins out of the bullpen for years to come. Recently, we chatted with the southpaw about his baseball story from his youth days in Little League to the big leagues. View full video

Each year on the final day of the Baseball Winter Meetings, the Rule 5 draft is held. The Twins entered the draft with 36 players on their 40-man roster. In theory, they could have selected four players. Instead, they selected none. In the minor-league portion, they added four players without losing anyone. Image courtesy of Nathan Ray Seebeck-USA TODAY Sports The last time the Minnesota Twins made a Rule 5 pick was in 2017. That year, they drafted right-handed reliever Tyler Kinley. Kinley made the roster but was returned to the Marlins early in the season. That trend continued on Wednesday when the Twins passed on the opportunity to add players to their 40-man roster for $100,000. There had been some thought that the Twins might be looking at potential relief pitchers with their pick, but they ultimately opted not to. Fortunately for the team, they also didn't lose any players. Only 10 players were selected in the MLB phase. There were certainly concerns that the team could lose outfielder DaShawn Keirsey, Jr., infielder Anthony Prato, catcher and first baseman Chris Williams, or even right-hander Miguel Gonzalez. They had protected catcher Jair Camargo, infielder Yunior Severino, Utilityman Austin Martin, and outfielder Emmanuel Rodriguez. In the minor-league phase of the Rule 5 draft, however, the Twins were fairly busy. They added four players and lost none. The club selected left-handed pitcher Rafael Marcano from the Phillies. The 23-year-old pitched for High-A Jersey Shore in 2023. Twenty of his 23 appearances came as a starter. He went 5-6 with a 3.95 ERA and a 1.36 WHIP. In 93 1/3 innings, he had 97 strikeouts and 42 walks. In the second round, the Twins selected catcher Rafael Escalante from the Pirates Complex League roster. Escalante is a 22-year-old who has also played first and third base in his career. In the FCL in 2023, he hit .256/.409/.367, with four doubles and two homers. He had 23 walks to go with 15 strikeouts. Infielder Angel Del Rosario was their third-round pick in the minor-league portion. The 20-year-old played 57 games in Low A and eight games in High A in the Blue Jays organization. Combined, he hit .267/.342/.403, with nine doubles, two triples, and five home runs. He also had 25 stolen bases. In 236 plate appearances, he had 70 strikeouts and 19 walks. The Twins also selected right-handed pitcher Sheldon Reed from the Cubs organization. At High-A South Bend, he went 6-3 with a 3.38 ERA and a 1.22 WHIP. In 53 1/3 innings over 40 relief appearances, he had 63 strikeouts and 26 walks. A year ago, the Twins drafted four players in the minor-league Rule 5 draft... Can you remember them? RHP Seth Nordlin and OF Armani Smith were released around midseason. Yohander Martinez missed some time with injury, but he's still in the organization. In the "pleasant surprise" department, Yoyner Fajardo played in 123 games and hit .305/.375/.446 (.820) with 23 doubles, eight triples, nine homers, and 50 stolen bases. Now that the Rule 5 draft is complete, we can expect to hear about a bunch of minor-league signings across all of baseball. Teams want to delay those signings so that they don't have to worry about losing those players in the Rule 5 draft. View full article

The Twins have the 21st pick. Then they'll have another pick around 32-35ish (for Gray)...

Andrew Bechtold signed with the Toronto Blue Jays... Sounds like he's going to be a pitcher full-time at this point.

And Tom Kelly hasn't forgiven Allan Anderson since he asked not to pitch on the final day of the season, knowing Teddy Higuera of the Brewers was percentage points behind him.

2B Kamron Willman was released. He joined the organization in the middle of the season out of one of the independent leagues, played for Ft. Myers. And while we heard the work was being done, the Twins have officially signed LHP Jovani Moran and RHP Ronny Henriquez to minor-league deals.