Ryan: Berrios will NOT be called up in September

[Seth Stohs]

Terry Ryan told the Twins beat writers before the game tonight that JO Berrios will make his final Rochester start and then head home.

 

I can report that he is scheduled to head home to Puerto Rico on Tuesday to be with family for awhile.

 

They also said he will not be permitted to pitch in the Puerto Rico Winter League...

 

Disappointing, but makes sense.

[scottz]

Disappointing, but makes sense.

I agree with 50% of this.

[Hosken Bombo Disco]

Did any beat writers ask him for a reason?

[twinsnorth49]

 

Did any beat writers ask him for a reason?

Doesn't need one, he's TR.

 

 

[Twins7]

Good year for Berrios, impressive stuff. I'll be excited to see how he progresses next year!

[Hrbowski]

I would have done the same thing. Can't start due to innings, and there is no reason for him to throw 7 innings of bullpen in games that are either far ahead or far behind.

[TheLeviathan]

Yeah, this doesn't make sense.

[Brock Beauchamp]

If they're making this decision because they're worried about JO's arm, I'm okay with it.

 

If they're making this decision because they're worried about the 40 man roster, pppbbbbbtttttt.

[Craig Arko]

Glad to know a decision was finally made.

[Otto von Ballpark]

I would have done the same thing. Can't start due to innings, and there is no reason for him to throw 7 innings of bullpen in games that are either far ahead or far behind.

Of course, they could have called him up 2 starts ago and gotten 20 innings out of him, probably the same number of innings that Trevor May will see during the same time span (meaning, they could be important and useful).

[Otto von Ballpark]

If they're making this decision because they're worried about JO's arm, I'm okay with it.

 

If they're making this decision because they're worried about the 40 man roster, pppbbbbbtttttt.

It's one thing to be worried about his arm, it's another to just not even bother working within the parameters of his innings limit to improve the team.

 

Remember, this is the same TR that didn't bother signing many international prospects or picking up even cheap Pavano level guys mid season in his first tenure, because I think he is just perfectly content going to war with the army he assembled in the draft and offseason, with little regard for trying to improve his army mid-battle.

 

I think that is coming out here: Berrios wasn't in the plans for 2015, so TR just doesn't consider deviating from the plan to work him in, regardless of its feasibility or potential benefits.

[70charger]

Could be disappointed. Could be convinced otherwise.

 

See you in May, JO.

[DaveW]

Could have managed his innings much better. Ryan proving once again he is mediocre at best and incompetent at worst as a GM. It's time for him to go. period.

[DaveW]

The worst part is he says he never considered bringing him to the majors because he is 21. How out of touch can you freaking be? Newsflash to Terry Ryan, a guy only a few months older than Berrios has a 1.000+ OPS.

[kab21]

 

I would have done the same thing. Can't start due to innings, and there is no reason for him to throw 7 innings of bullpen in games that are either far ahead or far behind.

Why would he only be used as mop up?  He would be an excellent 7th inning weapon in Sept and potentially the playoffs.

 

This is covertly (really not so covertly) about service time.  I understand the importance of gaining an extra year of team control but he makes this team better similar to what the Royals did with Finnegan and the Cards have done with Carlos Martinez before.

[jimmer]

I wish I could say this surprises me, but it's exactly what I'd expect from TR.

[DaveW]

I love that Ryan is so concerned about service time, considering he hasn't developed a pitcher worth worrying about when they hit free agency during his entire time here. (Every talented one was traded)

[drjim]

Why would he only be used as mop up? He would be an excellent 7th inning weapon in Sept and potentially the playoffs.

 

This is covertly (really not so covertly) about service time. I understand the importance of gaining an extra year of team control but he makes this team better similar to what the Royals did with Finnegan and the Cards have done with Carlos Martinez before.

I would have used him more as a multiple inning stack to back up mediocre/short starts. Twins are pretty covered in the last three innings.

 

Could have managed innings just fine and gave him some reps to prepare for next year.

 

Building on the failure to call him earlier just a big disappointment and missed opportunity all around.

[DocBauer]

I had come to the conclusion...finally...that I wanted him up and that I thought he should be up. If he could help this year, GREAT. But I just wanted him to get the experience, the ML exposure, to help get him ready for next season.

 

I'm not all that bent he won't be up, still young, great season, lots of innings, etc. if this is their decision, fine. But I think we are owed an explanation. If some or all disagree with the reasoning, then so be it. But offer up the reasoning behind it.

[drjim]

I love that Ryan is so concerned about service time, considering he hasn't developed a pitcher worth worrying about when they hit free agency during his entire time here. (Every talented one was traded)

Part of manipulating service time is increasing trade value in the future so in a roundabout way you kind of affirmed the move.

 

That said I don't think this is primarily about service time. But it certainly isn't about doing everything within reason to win and make the playoffs either.

[DaveW]

The twins have been in the playoff hunt all season, this isn't something that suddenly happened in the last two weeks, how Ryan and co couldn't fathom and think about how he could make them better if they did make the playoffs or were still in it in sept is just ridiculous plain and simple. In any other sports market Ryan would be getting roasted for this conservative/cheap crap.

[DaveW]

The fun thing is that everyone will remember Gibson, Milone, Duffey and Pelfrey as the most unlikely rotation to ever win a World Series.

[Otto von Ballpark]

 

This is covertly (really not so covertly) about service time.  I understand the importance of gaining an extra year of team control but he makes this team better similar to what the Royals did with Finnegan and the Cards have done with Carlos Martinez before.

I am actually not sure this is about service time.  TR has never seemed particularly concerned with service time, even when he could have been (Mauer, Liriano, Kubel).  I wouldn't be surprised if Berrios was given an honest chance to make the team out of spring training next year (especially depending on how the offseason shakes out in regards to the pitching staff).

 

It just seems an extension of TR's uncreative nature, and not deviating from plans.  Berrios just wasn't in the plan this year, and a generally mediocre staff wasn't nearly enough to make TR consider budging from his plans.

[jimmer]

So maybe we see Berrios in June, July next year. Something to look forward to.

[twinssouth]

The twins have been in the playoff hunt all season, this isn't something that suddenly happened in the last two weeks, how Ryan and co couldn't fathom and think about how he could make them better if they did make the playoffs or were still in it in sept is just ridiculous plain and simple. In any other sports market Ryan would be getting roasted for this conservative/cheap crap.

 

Ryan goes down to see Berrios, comes back, says Berrios has things he needs to work on. Today, he says Berrios is fine, had a nice season, did a great job. He's so full of BS. What is it Ryan, Berrios has things he needs to work on or is he ready. So, if they do make the wild card, wins it then starts play off baseball, he's going to war with Hughes (that is if his back is ok) Millone, Pelfrey, Gibson. That's not going to get you far. I can't see Duffey starting.

[twinssouth]

So maybe we see Berrios in June, July next year. Something to look forward to.

 

Knowing Ryan, September call up when rosters expanded

[Otto von Ballpark]

So wait a minute -- yesterday I read this story from Berardino headlined "Twins haven’t ruled out a promotion for Jose Berrios":

http://blogs.twincities.com/twins/2015/09/01/twinsights-twins-havent-ruled-out-a-promotion-for-jose-berrios/

 

Twins manager Paul Molitor said Tuesday the organization hasn’t ruled out a possible September promotion for top pitching prospect Jose Berrios.
 

Despite the 21-year-old right-hander being passed over for one of five promotions doled out after Monday night’s game at Triple-A Rochester, Berrios could still join the Twins’ postseason push, possibly as a reliever.

“I don’t think we have finalized everything we’re going to do here,” Molitor said. “Going forward, his name is definitely still being talked about.”

Twins general manager Terry Ryan, who watched Berrios’ past two starts in person, suggested the September plan for Berrios remains fluid.

“That will be up for discussion,” Ryan said. “He pitched well. Other guys did as well. We haven’t made that decision yet.”

 

Then THE VERY NEXT DAY, they announce that he's out.  What exactly did they discuss in those 24 hours?  What finalizing was needed to seal this deal?

 

And the worst part is, they didn't even shut him down immediately (which might indicate, we think he's fatiguing and want to protect him) -- they said, he'll get one more meaningless start at Rochester first, THEN we'll protect him.

[jimmer]

 

So wait a minute -- yesterday I read this story from Berardino headlined "Twins haven’t ruled out a promotion for Jose Berrios":

http://blogs.twincities.com/twins/2015/09/01/twinsights-twins-havent-ruled-out-a-promotion-for-jose-berrios/

 

Then THE VERY NEXT DAY, they announce that he's out.  What exactly did they discuss in those 24 hours?  What finalizing was needed to seal this deal?

 

And the worst part is, they didn't even shut him down immediately (which might indicate, we think he's fatiguing and want to protect him) -- they said, he'll get one more meaningless start at Rochester first, THEN we'll protect him.

This is like when Ryan said the reason he traded Luis Castillo at the deadline was because he was going to be a FA at the end of the year and they weren't going to re-sign him,  So he figured they should get something for him (forget, for a moment, he was doing well and we were in a playoff race).

 

A couple days later he said that he would have traded Castillo even if he was under contract for the following season. 

 

I don't believe anything that man says.

[nicksaviking]

So Ryan just happened to watch Rochester on Berrios' night to pitch to scout Fryer, Santana, Vargas, Tonkin and Achter? Five guys he is already very familiar with as all have been up to the majors multiple times? Not sure I buy that.

[Otto von Ballpark]

We promoted Berrios to AAA on July 3rd.  On that day, we held a wild card spot and were calling up Sano (and were getting Ervin Santana back and deploying May as a bullpen reinforcement).

 

A month later, August 3rd, we were STILL in a wild card spot, Sano looked great at the plate, May looked great in the pen, and Berrios looked pretty comfortable at AAA.

 

August clearly should have been the month to, if not call him up, then rest Berrios a bit, or even prep him for a bullpen role.  Instead they treated it like it was any other pitcher, and any other month, just letting him take his regular turns at Rochester until his inevitable innings limit.

 

Zero creativity, zero situational awareness.