Twins Acquire John Andreoli From Phillies

The Twins acquired outfielder John Andreoli from the Phillies earlier this week, as reflected on his transactions log at MLB.com. The right-handed hitter has reported to Minnesota’s top affiliate in St. Paul, where he made his organizational debut yesterday. Andreoli had been playing on a minor league contract with the Phillies, and he won’t occupy a spot on Minnesota’s 40-man roster.

A 2011 draftee by the Cubs, Andreoli has spent more than a decade in the minor leagues. He didn’t reach the majors with his original club, but he got to the bigs in 2018 after signing with the Mariners as a minor league free agent. The UCONN product split that year between the M’s and Orioles, appearing in 26 MLB games. After kicking around Triple-A for the next couple seasons, Andreoli made a brief return to the majors with the Padres last year. He suited up in seven games before being outrighted off the 40-man roster, then signed a minors deal with the Phils in Spring Training.

Assigned to their top affiliate in Lehigh Valley, Andreoli showed an extremely ball-in-play averse style of play over his 36 games. He walked in an exceptional 21.3% of his 136 plate appearances, but his passive plate approach also contributed to a sky-high 36% strikeout percentage. Well fewer than half his his trips to the dish culminated in an actual batted ball, and he posted an unconventional .154/.336/.260 slash line.

Andreoli has a more straightforward career track record at the minors highest level. He’s appeared in parts of seven seasons at Triple-A, hitting .253/.371/.406 with a 15.1% walk rate and a 26.5% strikeout percentage. He’s capable of playing all three outfield spots and adds an experienced depth option to the upper levels of the system. He’s also a familiar face for the front office, having played in 43 Triple-A contests as a member of the Minnesota franchise back in 2019.