TODAY: The Twins officially announced the move.
YESTERDAY: The Twins will select the contract of right-hander Randy Dobnak from Triple-A Rochester on Thursday, Darren Wolfson of SKOR North 1500 first reported (Twitter link). Minnesota already optioned righty Kohl Stewart to Rochester following today’s game. The Twins already have a 40-man roster spot open following last month’s bullpen purge that saw the team DFA Adalberto Mejia, Mike Morin, Matt Magill and Blake Parker in less than two weeks’ time.
Dobnak, 24, hasn’t exactly taken a conventional path to the Majors. Undrafted out of Division-II Alderson-Broaddus College in West Virginia, Dobnak’s first professional outing came with the Utica Unicorns of the independent United Shore League in June 2017. He signed with the Twins less than two months later and began his career in affiliated ball with the Twins’ Rookie-level affiliate in the Appalachian League. Dobnak posted strong numbers there against younger, teenaged competition and enjoyed a solid, if unspectacular 2018 campaign in Class-A Cedar Rapids.
In 2019, Dobnak opened the season in the Class-A Advanced Florida State League but was promoted to Double-A before the calendar flipped to May. By early June, he’d been promoted for his first taste of Triple-A ball. Dobnak hasn’t posted an ERA higher than 2018’s 3.14 mark in the Midwest League at any stop in the minors; in fact, his next-highest ERA at any level is 2.57. Through 125 innings across three minor league levels in 2019, Dobnak has pitched to a minuscule 2.02 ERA with 7.3 K/9, 1.7 BB/9, 0.43 HR/9 and a 59 percent ground-ball rate.
That meteoric rise was enough to land a player who once looked like little more than organizational filler in the No. 30 spot on Baseball America’s midseason update to the Twins’ top prospects, and all he’s done since the publication of that list is toss another 26 1/3 innings, allowing four runs on 12 hits and five walks with 21 strikeouts. While Dobnak still shouldn’t be mistaken for any kind of elite pitching prospect, his ascent from undrafted indie ball player to Major Leaguer in just north of two calendar years is nevertheless remarkable. The Twins currently have Michael Pineda on the injured list, so it’s possible that Dobnak will get a start. If not, he’ll add some length to a Twins bullpen that has been a frequent source of headaches for fans and the organization alike in recent months.
now that’s an independent league ive never heard of.
Based in Michigan, most kids undrafted in the Midwest play there. It’s finally starting to get scouted by MLB teams the past few years.
good news. always cool to see guys (namedly guys from div 2 schools) get their shot when they deserve it.
He just signed for me in St Lucie earlier in the year. He’s kind of a jokester from what I saw,glad to see him called up
Utica Unicorns? Sounds like a beer league softball team name
What a rise in just 2 years for an undrafted player. It’s even more impressive if you look back at the 2017 draft and see how few 1st round picks have made the jump to the majors already.
almost as big of a shot in the dark as 2016 was. not a lot of amazing drafts recently, but then again the cream rises to the top in time.
Randy Dobnak will be an outstanding pitcher. He may struggle up front because he’s being rushed abit
Yes the front office is hoping and praying for a lot of luck since their totally underwhelming moves before the trade deadline. With an offensive team that screams championship, they have opted for a pitching staff that says.. we’ll be happy to win a post season series.. Old school says you play to win.. new school apparently is looking for the participation trophy… and selling tickets..
The offense doesn’t scream championship. It is just a bunch of guys who happen to be over-performing.
Championship season are made of many things: Luck and Timing are 2 of the most important things. Luck and timing will help those with less talents overcome those with more talents: the 1987 Twins is The perfect example of this.
This season will not be the same as next season. It only comes once. This opportunity expires at the end of the Teams season. Next year there is zero guarantee things will go this way. That means you have to play this season as it is. and That is with the Twins having one of the best offenses in the MLB, definitely championship caliber no matter how much luck and timing are involved in that process. Too Bad about that Pitching and the Dynamic Duo not recognizing the Necessity to go all in for the win..
Twins offense can hang with any other team. Not much over performing going on really. Guys like Rosario, Kepler, Polanco and even Sano and Buxton to an extent have performed closer to their talent level. That seems to happen when guys like that are surrounded by good veteran players and a good coaching staff. Their offense has pretty well come together as envisioned over the last few years. Future is bright in MN. Offensively anyway….. pitching maybe another story lol
Correct: But the missing ingredient is the timing of that production: all them having good seasons at the same time.. that doesn’t happen often and isn’t likely to be repeated next season to the same extent. We watch them feed off each other in games.. there is Chemistry and none of them would deny it, yet next year will bring changes.. and in that chemistry I doubt that Astudillo will be injured and cheer-leading fun from the bench during the games next season, There are several roster decisions Castro, Schoop, Astudillo, Adrianza, ( roughly 1/4 of the position players) .. and of course the lack of pitching.. if they don’t take the option of perez.. they need 4 starters next year.. The team and its chemistry will change. the season isn’t an automatic.. Noting is in baseball.. we need look no father than the Red Sox this year as compared to last..
So excited to see Randy have his chance. If you like rooting for the underdog, here you go! A fierce competitor ready to show what he has got. I saw him pitch many innings at the low A level in Cedar Rapids. Hopefully his success translates to the next level! We will be cheering for him from Kernels country!!
Shout out from West Virginia. It’s rare to see players that pass through here make the bigs, although it has been on the rise the last few years.
All this guy has done is pitch great in the minors. Good luck to him. He’s earned the promotion.
How about a little credit to the scouts who find the Randy Dobnak-s and Mike Brousseau-s of the world. And to the development people who honed the talent. And to the Minor League Directors who looked past the pedigree.
Lots of people involved in a success story like this one. And yes, it’s a success story no matter what they do.
well said!
PERSPECTIVE
Bombo Faedo, the ghost of the Twins’ distant past, says that if we could have known we’d be 70-44 with a 2-game lead over the Indians going into a 4-game home series with them, we would never have stopped dancing and laughing on the first day of this season.
Crazy that there are still guys named Randy debuting in this league.