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Twins Sign Daniel Descalso To Minor League Deal

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The Twins have signed veteran infielder Daniel Descalso to a minor league contract, their Triple-A affiliate in St. Paul announced.

This is the first we’ve heard about Descalso since the Cubs declined their $3.5MM option for 2021 in favor of a $1MM buyout after last season. It was an easy decision for the Cubs, who signed Descalso to a two-year, $5MM guarantee entering 2019. That deal couldn’t have worked out much worse for Chicago, as Descalso struggled to a .173/.271/.250 line with two home runs in 194 plate appearances in 2019 and then missed all of last season as a result of a left ankle injury.

The 34-year-old Descalso has typically been a below-average hitter during his career, as evidenced by the .235/.320/.362 line he has posted in a combined 2,893 plate appearances with the Cubs, Cardinals, Rockies and Diamondbacks. But he has played all over the infield throughout his career, and he did slash a career-best .238/.353/.436 with 13 home runs in 423 PA with the D-backs in 2018, so perhaps he’ll prove to be a useful addition for the Twins.

Minor MLB Transactions: 5/12/21

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The latest minor moves from around baseball:

  • The Twins signed infielder Sherman Johnson to a minor-league contract and assigned him to Double-A Wichita, per an announcement from the Kane County Cougars of the independent American Association. Johnson had signed with the indy ball team in March but will now return to the affiliated ranks. The 30-year-old got to the majors with the 2018 Angels, going hitless over eleven plate appearances. Johnson has played most of his pro career in the Los Angeles system, although he’s also spent time in the Reds’ and Pirates’ organizations over the past couple years. He has a .232/.348/.359 line in parts of four seasons at Double-A and a very similar .241/.347/.364 mark at Triple-A.

Twins Notes: Greene, Ynoa, Solak

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Shane Greene’s long free agent wait ended yesterday when he re-signed with the Braves on a one-year deal worth a prorated $1.5MM.  “It seemed early on that a return to the Braves was his preference,” SKOR North’s Darren Wolfson writes (Twitter link), as Wolfson notes that the Twins were willing to offer Greene more money.  This focus on Atlanta could explain why it took until May for Greene to land a contract, as David O’Brien of The Athletic estimated back in mid-March that the Braves were only willing to spend in the neighborhood of $1MM on Greene — given the prorated nature of Greene’s contract, he’ll end up earning around $1.1 or $1.2MM.

  • Another Braves/Twins link is explored by The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal, regarding how Atlanta acquired breakout star Huascar Ynoa from Minnesota back in 2017.  The Braves wanted to move Jaime Garcia at the trade deadline, and initially discussed a trade with the Yankees that would have sent Garcia to the Bronx for then-Yankees prospect Nick Solak.  Once those talks fell through, Atlanta pivoted and sent Garcia to Minnesota, and the Braves “did not do as much diligence on Ynoa as they normally would on a prospect” since their top priority was just to dump the rest of Garcia’s salary.  In fact, Ynoa wasn’t even Atlanta’s first ask from the Twins’ farm system, as Nick Burdi was initially part of the proposed trade.  From being a rather anonymous rookie ball pitcher and an apparent “plan C” type of pickup for the Braves, Ynoa has become an unexpected stalwart of the Atlanta rotation in 2021.  The righty has a 2.23 ERA/3.19 SIERA and an above-average 28.4% strikeout rate and 5.8% walk rate over 40 1/3 innings, plus Ynoa has augmented that pitching production with two home runs and a 1.267 OPS over 15 plate appearances.

Latest Roster Moves From Twins, Orioles

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The Twins announced a trio of roster moves today. Right-hander Cody Stashak has been optioned to Triple-A, while Derek Law takes his place in the bullpen. Law had to be added to the 40-man roster, so infielder Travis Blankenhorn was designated for assignment.

After proving himself a solid option out of the bullpen for the Twins with 40 innings of 3.15 ERA baseball from 2019-20, Stashak has stumbled badly to start the season. Stashak is still missing bats at a good clip, striking out a robust 36.5 percent of hitters, but his walk rate has skyrocketed to 13.5 percent as well. Fielding Independent Pitching suggest decent work with a 4.20 FIP, but in terms of real world production, Stashak has allowed 10 earned runs in 10 2/3 innings.

If this is the end of Blankenhorn’s Twins’ tenure, it will be a somewhat ignominious one. The 24-year-old appeared in one game this season, pinch-running in extra-innings and scoring a run. He’d go on to make an error in the bottom of the inning on a play that would have ended the game. The A’s beat the Twins a batter later when Luis Arraez followed up Blankenhorn’s blunder with a throwing error of his own. Blankenhorn was a third round draft pick of the Twins in the 2015 draft, and he obviously has more to offer a Major League club than he’s had the opportunity to show this season.

If someone puts in a claim for Blankenhorn, it’ll be the second player lost on waivers by the Twins this week. The Orioles claimed left-hander Brandon Waddell off waivers from the Twins today, per Steve Melewski of MASNsports.com (via Twitter). He has been assigned to Triple-A. Waddell was designated for assignment by the Twins yesterday to make room on the 40-man roster for Trevor Larnach.

In order to make the claim, the Orioles designated Jay Flaa for assignment, notes Roch Kubatko of MASNsports. Flaa logged 1 1/3 scoreless on April 27th for the Orioles in his only big league action of his career.

Twins Place Byron Buxton On Injured List, Recall Trevor Larnach

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The Twins are placing Byron Buxton on the injured list with a hip strain, per Phil Miller of the Star Tribune (via Twitter). Trevor Larnach will be added to the roster with an opportunity to make his Major League debut. Larnach was not on the 40-man roster, so to make room, the Twins designated Brandon Waddell for assignment.

This is a potentially devastating bit of news for the Twins, who are off to an 11-19 start despite tremendous production from Buxton. Buxton has long been an injury concern, but losing him now is particularly difficult. It’s a Grade 2 strain that will keep Buxton out for “weeks,” notes Miller. Buxton has been among the most explosive players in the game, slashing .370/.408/.772 with nine home runs in 98 plate appearances. He has put up 2.7 bWAR, 2.4 fWAR, and a 228 wRC+ in less than a month of playing time.

Jake Cave is in the lineup for Buxton in tonight’s game, but the Twins are likely to employ a dynamic outfield crew for the next couple of weeks. Larnach and Kyle Garlick will have their opportunities in the corners, but neither project as centerfield capable. Max Kepler may be called upon to captain the outfield in Buxton’s stead. Kepler has 134 games of centerfield experience throughout his career, though he appears there only twice in 2020.

Alex Kirilloff, meanwhile, received a cortisone injection in his wrist, but only time will tell when he is able to return, per Betsy Helfand of the Pioneer Press (via Twitter). Luis Arraez is more likely to help in the near term, as he appears close to returning after suffering a concussion, tweets Miller. Arraez could see time in the corner. Regardless, Cave and Kepler figure to be the Twins’ centerfielders until Buxton returns.

Twins Place Alex Kirilloff On Injured List, Activate Miguel Sano

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The Twins announced that they’ve placed outfielder/first baseman Alex Kirilloff on the 10-day injured list due to a right wrist sprain and reinstated Miguel Sano from the injured list in his place. Kirilloff’s IL placement is retroactive to May 4. Minnesota also optioned lefty Brandon Waddell to Triple-A St. Paul and recalled fellow southpaw Lewis Thorpe, who’ll start tonight’s game.

It’s an ill-timed setback for the Twins and for the 23-year-old Kirilloff, a former first-round pick and consensus Top 50 overall prospect in MLB who’d been their hottest hitter of late. Kirilloff was called up for an audition two weeks ago, and while he got out to a miserable 0-for-15 start, he’d finally begun to see his huge hard-contact rates bear fruit.

Kirilloff homered four times in the Twins’ series victory over the Royals this past weekend and came back with a pair of doubles Monday against the Rangers. Over his past seven games, Kirilloff had put together a blistering .321/.333/.857 batting line with seven extra-base hits and 11 runs knocked in.

The team has yet to provide a timetable for when the promising slugger might return to the club. Manager Rocco Baldelli rather vaguely told reporters yesterday that that the injury “doesn’t appear to be the most minor of things,” adding that Kirilloff would see a specialist (link via Meagan Ryan of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune). It’s particularly concerning given that Kirilloff endured multiple IL stints in 2019 due to problems in that same right wrist.

Sano has been out for a bit more than two weeks due to a hamstring strain. He opened the season in a dreadful slump, going just 5-for-45 to begin the 2021 campaign. Sano has walked at what would (obviously) be a career-best 22.4 percent clip and has actually cut back on his prolific strikeout rate through his first 58 plate appearances, but some of those punchouts have simply been swapped out for pop-ups; he’s already up to six infield flies this year.

Twins Place Luis Arraez On 7-Day Concussion IL

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The Twins will place infielder/outfielder Luis Arraez on the seven-day concussion injured list, manager Rocco Baldelli told Betsy Helfand of the St. Paul Pioneer Press and other reporters. They’re recalling infielder Nick Gordon to take the open roster spot.

Arraez suffered the injury Monday during the Twins’ win over the Rangers on an awkward slide into home plate (video here via Do-Hyoung Park of MLB.com). That occurred in the third inning, but Arraez didn’t exit until after the sixth. The Twins replaced Arraez in left field with Jake Cave.

Although unheralded compared to some of the Twins’ other hitters, Arraez has done nothing but produce for the club since he debuted in 2019. Dating back to then, Arraez has batted .324/.392/.420 in 590 plate appearances, overcoming a lack of power (five career home runs, .095 ISO) by making contact at a superb 91.9 percent clip. It has been more of the same this season for the 24-year-old, who has hit .291/.398/.372 with 14 walks and 11 strikeouts over 103 PA.

Along with continuing to provide above-average work at the plate in 2021, Arraez has already totaled at least eight appearances at three defensive spots (left, second and third). The Twins have Cave and Kyle Garlick as left field options off their bench, Jorge Polanco at second, Josh Donaldson at third and Willians Astudillo as a reserve infielder.

Minor MLB Transactions: 5/3/21

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The latest minor moves from around baseball…

  • Infielder Greg Garcia opted out of his minor league contract with the Phillies, who subsequently released him, Jon Heyman of MLB Network tweets. Garcia spent roughly two weeks with the Phillies, though he never made it to their roster after signing April 22. The former Cardinal and Padre will return to the open market as the owner of a .245/.354/.339 line in 1,303 plate appearances.

Earlier transactions:

  • JT Riddle and Tzu-Wei Lin both cleared waivers after being designated for assignment by the Twins earlier this week, according to SKOR North’s Darren Wolfson (Twitter links).  The infielders will be assigned to the Twins’ Triple-A affiliate in St. Paul for the start of the minor league season.  Riddle and Lin signed minors deals with Minnesota in December, and each had their contracts selected in April as the Twins looked to fill some roster holes created by injuries and a COVID-19 outbreak.  Riddle appeared in four games before landing on the COVID injured list himself, while Lin appeared in just one game as a defensive sub.

Twins Announce Series Of Roster Moves

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The Twins announced a series of roster moves Friday, most notably reinstating outfielders Max Kepler and Kyle Garlick from the Covid-19 list. To make room on the active roster, outfielder/first baseman Brent Rooker and catcher Ryan Jeffers were optioned to Triple-A St. Paul. Meanwhile, infielders JT Riddle and Tzu-Wei Lin have been designated for assignment, while catching prospect Ben Rortvedt has been recalled from Triple-A for his big league debut.

Kepler, 28, hasn’t played in a game since April 16 but will now return to his role as Minnesota’s everyday right fielder. He’s not out to a great start, slashing .234/.315/.362 through his first couple weeks of play, but that’s a sample of just 54 plate appearances. From 2019-20, he turned in a much stronger .246/.332/.499 batting line and clouted 45 homers in 792 plate appearances while playing strong defense in right field.

Garlick, meanwhile, was out to a solid .280/.321/.400 start through 28 trips to the plate and was getting some run as a right-handed bat against lefties. He’ll continue on in that role, giving the Twins a right-handed bat to take some reps in left field. That spot has been occupied by top prospect Alex Kirilloff as of late, but Kirilloff can also play some first base in the absence of Miguel Sano. Luis Arraez could get some time in left field as well, now that the Twins’ middle infield is back to full strength.

Optioning Jeffers began to look increasingly necessary given the 23-year-old’s early struggles. The 2018 second-rounder has emerged as one of the game’s top catching prospects in recent seasons, ranking as a consensus top 100 talent heading into the 2021 season. Jeffers’ big debut effort last year helped to fuel that ranking, as he stepped up for a then-injured Mitch Garver and gave the Twins 64 plate appearances with a hearty .273/.355/.436 batting line and three home runs.

The 2021 season has been a disaster for the promising young backstop, however, as he’s mustered only a .147/.216/.176 slash through 37 plate appearances. Jeffers is still surely viewed as a key part of the organization’s future, but with the minor league season now slated to begin next week, sending Jeffers down for some regular at-bats — as opposed to splitting time with Garver — makes sense to get him on track. It’s also worth noting that he’s only played 24 games of Double-A ball and has never taken a single plate appearance in Triple-A, so he could simply need some more time to polish off his development.

With Jeffers going down, the Twins will now lean on the versatile Willians Astudillo and the young Rortvedt as backup options to Garver. The 23-year-old Rortvedt was Minnesota’s second-round pick back in 2016 and is a career .240/.315/.347 hitter in the minors who is regarded as a strong defensive backstop. He ranks 24th among Minnesota farmhands, per FanGraphs, and 26th on Baseball America’s rankings. BA calls him an “excellent receiver and blocker” with “standout defensive skills” but a limited offensive ceiling.

Turning to the pair of DFAs, neither comes as much of a surprise. Riddle was only selected to the big league roster when Andrelton Simmons initially tested positive for Covid-19, and he wound up being placed on the Covid list himself not long after. Once Riddle hit the Covid list, the Twins turned to Lin and brought him to the MLB roster. With Simmons now back in the fold alongside Jorge Polanco and utility man Luis Arraez, there’s little room for either Lin or Riddle.

Riddle went 2-for-6 with a run scored in four games with the Twins and is a career .223/.261/.355 hitter in 793  MLB plate appearances. Lin appeared in just one game and didn’t take a plate appearance. He was a .223/.298/.316 hitter in parts of four seasons with the Red Sox from 2017-20.

COVID Notes: 4/27/21

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Tuesday’s coronavirus-related updates from around the majors:

  • Twins outfielders Max Kepler and Kyle Garlick have cleared Major League Baseball’s COVID-19 protocols and could return by the end of the week, manager Rocco Baldelli announced (via Betsy Helfand of the St. Paul Pioneer Press). Both Kepler and Garlick tested positive for COVID, leading the Twins to place them on the injured list last Tuesday. Neither player has appeared in a game since April 16. Before going on the shelf, Kepler began a disappointing .234/.315/.362 with no home runs in 54 plate appearances. Garlick has also gone without a homer, but he has still hit a passable .280/.321/.400 over 28 PA.
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