The Twins have claimed outfielder Michael Reed off waivers from the Braves, per MLB.com’s Rhett Bollinger (via Twitter). He was one of several 40-man casualties of the Atlanta organization.
Reed, 26 in November, was a fifth-round pick by the Brewers in 2011 and at times rated as one of the better farmhands in the Milwaukee system. His bat seemed to stall upon reaching Triple-A as a 23-year-old in 2016, though, and he took another step back at Double-A in 2017 — prompting his exit from the organization.
Reed latched on with the Braves on a minor league deal last winter though and absolutely erupted in Double-A and Triple-A, raking at a combined .342/.453/.520 pace with 11 homers, 26 doubles and 10 steals in 401 plate appearances (with better performance in Triple-A than in Double-A). He appeared in seven games over a pair of big league stints with the Braves but never got much of a look at the MLB level in Atlanta.
Reed’s minor league output, though, was fueled by ludicrously high BABIP marks (.426 in Double-A, .477 in Triple-A), so it’s no wonder that the Braves organization wasn’t fully enamored of his gaudy numbers. Still, he showed a keen eye at the plate (15.3 percent walk rate), didn’t post alarming strikeout totals (24.3 percent) and is capable of lining up in all three outfield spots. The right-handed-hitting Reed is out of minor league options, so he’ll have to stick on the 40-man roster all winter and break camp with the team or else be exposed to waivers once again. That, it should be noted, is far from a certain outcome.
Sucks to lose him, but not a big deal. I think he’ll be a solid bench piece for the twins
Wow he had a monster season this year. This could be a nice diamond in the rough claim.
Nice snag by the Twins. The muddy outfield situation gets a little muddier but depth is always nice to have.
He will probably be at AAA until injury presents a need. Rosario, Buxton, Kepler, and Cave would be my choice for the 4 outfielders. Robbie Grossman is expendable, he is an on base machine but so much of a defensive liability that it relegates him mostly to DH. There are better options for DH in FA.
He has no options so he’ll need to clear waivers… which he won’t do.
Without an injury in spring training I think they will have to risk sending him thru waivers. They already have five outfielders. Who would Reed replace?
How many teams just passed on him today? I don’t see it as a given that he is claimed again.
I don’t see any risk there. He’s likely a AAAA talent level guy. Lots of guys get some MLB experience, get shuttled back to the minors because they don’t play well enough and take their game up a notch.
Reed benefited from a ridiculous .426 BABIP in AA, and a ludicrous .477 in AAA last year. He’s always been a pretty high BABIP guy (think .333-.350), but his stat line last year is just utterly unsustainable. I’m also skeptical his eye is as good as the BB% suggest. I think he’s just a AAAA talent who’s learned to be passive at the plate, wait for the mistake pitch and drive it into the gap. The problem is that mistake pitch is a lot less frequent at the MLB level so being passive at the MLB level = K%, not BB%.
I’m not saying this is how things play out and I don’t know much about Reed’s defensive ability but he could easily replace Grossman, I don’t think the new manager will be as big of a fan of Grossman and while Reed is out of options he’s not arb eligible like Grossman so if the Twins FO or new manage think Grossman and Reed are close they will probably go with Reed for the savings.
Reed has the potential to be a good player even if he isn’t likely to be the everyday starter on a contending team. Good luck to him.
Good to have a right-handed batting option. We’ll see if he sticks.
I wouldn’t expect the Twins to be keeping Johnny Field.
Twins might be considering trading someone like Zack Granite, maybe even Kepler, and also possibly dropping Grossman.
Maybe they’ll try Kepler at first? He played some at 1B in the minors.
Much of Kepler’s value is in right and even center, and he is still developing as a hitter. 7-9 will be Rosario Buxton Kepler. I would think Cave as fourth outfielder, and they might do Grossman but I hope for Granite as fifth. Reed certainly may win one of those two spots out of Spring or later on. Austin will get most of first base if Mauer retires.
Rosario was the Twins’ best hitter and was carrying a .900 OPS most of the season. He’s not going to be at the bottom of the order.
Granite’s likely seen his last AB at the MLB level. I wouldn’t be surprised if Granite gets outrighted to clear 40 man space and isn’t invited to ST. At best, Zack is a short term injury replacement, but he’s probably just straight up MiLB roster filler.
Martras, the 7-9 was for positions, not batting order. That might help clear things up a bit for ya.
Well… Johnny Field is now out of the Mix. Cubs picked him up.