This is the final segment to the four-part series detailing the 2018 Minnesota Twins: the bullpen.
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In recent years, the Twins’ bullpen has been carrying the load for the most part. But many have seen a shift in importance over the decade, as relievers have played vital roles in delivering victories. Some teams in Major League Baseball have such quality bullpens that their starters only need to go about 6 innings. To put things into perspective: Boston Red Sox starting pitcher Chris Sale led all MLB starting pitchers last season with 214 1/3 innings pitched. In 2005, 27 starters threw for at least 215 1/3 innings.
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Bottom line, relievers are a huge part of the game these days.
This will highlight the guys in the bullpen for the Twins in 2018. They began the season with eight relievers and four starters, and that may change as the season grows older. They added some experience after losing some last year, and have paired that with good, young arms.
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Closer: Fernando Rodney, RHP
The 41-year-old starts his 16th professional season in Minnesota. Rodney was acquired this offseason on a free agent deal for one-year, $4.5 million with a 2019 team option. The signing is obviously to fill the closer spot until one of the younger arms steps up for the long haul. In 2017 with the Arizona Diamondbacks, Rodney pitched in 61 games and racked up 39 saves, the most he’s totaled since he led the American League in saves with 48 in 2014, when he was a member of the Seattle Mariners. Rodney should remind Twins fans he is eerily reminiscent to former Twins closer Eddie Guardado. Rodney has totaled more career saves than Guardado (302, 187 respectively) but with both, you never truly know what you’re going to get when they enter the game. Rodney has already shown that this season with the Twins in their first 10 games. On Opening Day, as a matter of fact. Rodney came into the game with runners on against the Baltimore Orioles and worked himself out of the jam. In the bottom of the 10th, he gave up a walk-off home run to Adam Jones end the ballgame. He has two saves recorded this season, but nothing has come easy. It will be interesting to see how the Fernando Rodney experiment lasts this season, and if the Twins will move on to another arm or not.
Addison Reed, RHP
Reed was a quality pick up for the club and coming at a low price. The right-hander signed a two-year, $16.75 million deal this offseason. The 29-year-old brings a career 3.35 ERA, and perhaps one of the better options out of the bullpen this season. According to FanGraphs, Reed finished atop the league in percentage of pitches swung-and-missed in the strike zone last season. That stat alone shows Reed does not nit-pick the zone and goes right after hitters. This will be his fourth Major League team in 2018, as he has had stints with the Chicago White Sox, Diamondbacks and New York Mets. When he came up with the White Sox in 2011, it was presumed he would be their closer of the future. In three seasons with the White Sox, he notched 69 saves, but he then moved onto the Diamondbacks via free agency. Now viewed as a vital set-up guy rather than closer, it still would not be surprising to see the Twins slide him into the closer role if they need him to.
Trevor Hildenberger, RHP
Entering his second year at the big-league level, Hildenberger is seen as one of the pieces of the future for the Twins. In his rookie season last year, he pitched 42 innings out of the bullpen, striking out 44 and posting a 3.21 ERA. Though only around for 37 games, the Twins are hoping the 27-year-old can continue his progression. Hildenberger fits the classic mold of Twins pitchers: avoid walks and induce weak contact from the opponent. A plus-side is the fact he can generate a ton of swings-and-misses. His sidearm-pitching throws off hitters, and he has two effective pitches in his sinker and changeup. “Hildy” will not overpower hitters by any means, as his speeds vary anywhere from the mid-80’s to the low-90’s. The Twins are hoping Hildenberger can continue his uptick in 2018 and create a solid presence to lean on in the bullpen.
Ryan Pressly, RHP
The story of this righthander is an interesting one. 2018 marks Pressly’s sixth season with the Twins, and his time here has been the definition of a roller coaster ride. The 29-year-old has a career 3.74 ERA, but his career numbers can’t really define who he is. Last season was one to forget, as he posted an ugly 4.70 ERA in 61 1/3 innings pitched. He also gave up a career-high 10 home runs. His WHIP (walks plus hits divided by innings pitched) was at a decent 1.15, the lowest of his career. Pressly has electric stuff, as his fastball can top out in the high-90’s. His slider and curveball have tremendous movement as well. The only problem Pressly has at times is controlling his pitches and remaining consistent. 2018 will prove to be a big year for his career, as he is set to become a free agent at season’s end. Depending on his performance this year, this could be the last season Pressly dons a Twins uniform.
Zach Duke, LHP
The Twins will be the journeyman’s eighth team in the Majors, and his 14th season overall. Duke was another free agent acquisition in the in the offseason, bringing in his southpaw expertise and experience on a one-year, $2.5 million deal with the Twins. The 34-year-old is one of three active pitchers in MLB with 150 career starts and 150 career relief appearances. The other two are Oliver Perez and Joe Blanton (Fox Sports). Duke came up as a starting pitcher but later was molded into a reliever. Some would suggest Duke is only going to be used as a lefty-specialist, but it’s easy to argue Duke can hold his own against right-handed hitters as well. In 2017 with the St. Louis Cardinals, Duke only saw 27 games of action. Through 18 1/3 innings, he posted a 3.93 ERA. It’s different with pitchers in the National League, as pitchers are lifted for hitters. The goal is to get Duke more work like in 2016 when he pitched with the Chicago White Sox for half the season. He appeared in 53 games for them and posted a minuscule 2.63 ERA.
Taylor Rogers, LHP
Rogers made his debut with the Twins in 2016, and his showing on the mound has not faltered since. Including 2018 stats, Rogers has appeared in 130 games and posted a 3.50 ERA, pitching 121 innings and striking out 114. Rogers was seen when he first came up as someone who could possibly headline the bullpen. Through 61 1/3 innings pitched his rookie season, he posted a 3.96 ERA and struck out 64. The following season, he pitched in 55 2/3 innings and had a lower ERA of 3.07. The interesting part of his 2017 season was it was literally a tale of two halves. The first half of the Twins’ season, the bullpen, in general, was struggling. In a realistic world, the Twins would like to use Rogers against lefties only, but early last season he had to face righties often. He held his own incredibly, as right before June he posted a 1.35 ERA against right-handed hitters, and a .227 batting-average-against (BAA). The second half of the season was a much different story, as he experienced a major regression against righties, with his ERA and BAA ballooning up to 5.79 and .355, respectively. Now that the bullpen has been stocked up with more reliable arms and more to come in the minors, Rogers could see his role return to facing lefties.
Gabriel Moya, LHP
The youngest player on the Twins’ roster by 227 days (Jose Berrios), Moya makes the club out of Spring Training, largely in part because starter Phil Hughes started the season on the disabled list. Moya pitched a small sample size in 2017 at the big-league level, consisting of 6 1/3 innings. He gave up two home runs. However, his Double-A Chattanooga and Double-A Jackson numbers last season were impressive. The southpaw posted a combined 0.77 ERA and 87:12 strikeout-to-walk ratio across 58 1/3 innings. Moya still does not have Triple-A experience and the Twins like his stuff enough to have it up in the Majors. Moya, the third left-hander to join the bullpen, will likely see low-leverage work with Duke and Rogers getting the majority work.
Tyler Kinley, RHP
In Spring Training, one of the final roster decisions consisted of either keeping Kinley or Moya for the final bullpen spot. With Phil Hughes landing on the disabled list, both found themselves on the Opening Day roster. Kinley, a Rule 5 draft pick, must remain on the big-league team for the entire year or be returned to the Miami Marlins, and therefore cannot be sent down. The 27-year-old has excellent velocity with his fastball, as he can top out in the upper 90s, giving the Twins the type of power arm they have long been in short supply of. He had a 3.96 ERA with 51 strikeouts in 50 innings over 36 games at Double-A in 2016, then was promoted to Triple-A and struggled in eight appearances. He began last season at Double-A again, had a 5.19 ERA in 27 games and was demoted to Class A. With that being said, the Twins have had success in the Rule 5 draft previously when they selected a guy named Johan Santana from the Houston Astros in 1999. He went on to win two American League Cy Young Awards, but nothing came easy as he struggled as a reliever early in his career with the Twins. Kinley’s issue is similar to Santana’s: control. Commanding those fastballs that clock in between 95 and 99 miles-per-hour can be a challenge. Same goes for his slider that comes in around 90. He did have 212 strikeouts in 204 1/3 career minor league innings, an impressive ratio. The sky is the limit for Kinley, and it remains to be seen what exactly his ceiling looks like.
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