Headlines

Go To Pro Hockey Rumors
Go To Hoops Rumors

Twins Rumors

Twins Select Diego Castillo, Michael Helman; Activate Brooks Lee

By | at

The Twins announced a flurry of roster moves this afternoon as they selected the contracts of right-hander Diego Castillo and utility hitter Michael Helman to the big league roster. The club also placed outfielder Manuel Margot on the 10-day IL and activated infielder Brooks Lee from the 10-day IL. To make room for Castillo and Helman on the 40-man roster, left-hander Caleb Boushley was designated for assignment while right-hander Chris Paddack was transferred to the 60-day IL.

Castillo returns to the Twins for his second stint in the majors this year. The 30-year-old righty signed with Minnesota on a minor league deal over the offseason and was selected to the roster at the end of May. He ultimately made just five appearances for the club before being designated for assignment despite a solid 2.57 ERA thanks to worrying peripherals, highlighted by a 10% strikeout rate and an eye-popping 23.3% walk rate. Castillo elected free agency but returned to the Twins on a fresh minor league deal shortly thereafter, and since then has been pitching for the club’s Triple-A affiliate in St. Paul.

Even so, the results have not been good. While his numbers at Triple-A have been skewed by a disastrous performance where he surrendered five runs while recording just one out last month, he’s still posted a 4.00 ERA with nearly as many walks (6) as strikeouts (7) in nine innings of work since then. While Castillo was among the more reliable late-inning arms in the game from 2018 to 2022 with a 3.12 ERA and 3.69 FIP over that time, it seems extremely unlikely that he’ll be able to recapture that form down the stretch with Minnesota. That being said, his presence on the roster should allow the club to keep its key relief arms like Jhoan Duran and Griffin Jax fresher down the stretch by soaking up lower-leverage innings.

As for Helman, the Twins’ eleventh-round pick in the 2018 draft has steadily worked his way through the minor leagues through his career before starting the season at Triple-A this year and delivering strong results. The 28-year-old has slashed .283/.367/.508 with 13 homers, 15 doubles, and ten steals in just 63 games this year at the level, and he’s done that while splitting time between shortstop, center field, second base, third base, and left field. The versatile defender figures to offer the Twins an interesting combination of power and speed off the bench for the stretch run, and his ability to play all over the field will surely come in handy as the club navigates injuries and rest for its regular players.

Also returning to the majors is Lee, the club’s 23-year-old top prospect who struggled to a somewhat lackluster .253/.309/.333 slash line in 110 trips to the plate at the big league level before going on the IL in early August. Now that he’s back in the majors, Lee figures to feature prominently in the club’s infield mix, though with Royce Lewis locking down third base and Willi Castro performing admirably in place of Carlos Correa at shortstop, it’s not clear whether or not Lee will be able to get regular reps as the Twins look to preserve their 3.5-game lead over the Red Sox for the final AL Wild Card spot.

As for the players moving off the roster to accommodate these additions, Margot’s placement on the IL is hardly a surprise after he suffered an apparent groin strain during last night’s game. After the game, manager Rocco Baldelli told reporters (including Do-Hyoung Park of MLB.com) that the outfielder was “not moving well” due to the issue and would need to undergo an MRI. The results of that MRI are not yet clear, but they evidently warranted a trip to the IL for the 29-year-old outfielder, who has slashed just .250/.302/.350 in 116 games with the club this year.

Meanwhile, Paddack’s placement on the 60-day IL isn’t necessarily a surprise given the fact that he’s already been on the shelf since mid-July due to a forearm strain. A regular season return has long seemed unlikely for the right-hander, but it’s still possible he could return to action at some point in the postseason depending on how far the Twins make it this season. As for Boushley, the lefty has appeared in just two games for the Twins this year after signing a minor league deal with the club over the offseason, pitching to a 4.50 ERA in four innings of work.

Twins Designate Trevor Richards For Assignment

By and | at

The Twins announced their waiver claim of right-hander Michael Tonkin, which was previously reported. To open a 40-man spot, righty Trevor Richards has been designated for assignment. To take the active spot of Richards, the club has selected the contract of righty Caleb Boushley. To open a 40-man spot for Boushley, righty Joe Ryan has been transferred to the 60-day injured list.

Richards was the Twins’ lone deadline pickup a month ago, coming over from Toronto in exchange for minor league infielder Jay Harry. The right-hander had scoreless outings in seven of his ten appearances with Minnesota but also had three shakier outings, leading to a 4.15 ERA in 13 innings overall.

That may not seem particularly poor at first glance, but Richards walked a massive 18.6% of his opponents during his time with the Twins and even more incredibly uncorked seven wild pitches during those 13 frames. He also hit two batters. Overall, the lack of command he showed proved too alarming for the team to continue on with the right-hander.

Richards has had some big league success in the past, both as a starter (261 2/3 innings of 4.22 ERA ball in 2018-19) and a reliever (3.50 ERA, 31.1 K% in 64 1/3 innings in 2021). However, even though he’s shown a consistent ability to miss bats and regularly flummoxed lefties with a plus changeup, he’s struggled with command and been far too hittable against fellow righties.

Richards came to the Twins as a rental who’d been struggling with his former team, so the cost of acquisition to acquire him was quite low. Still, the Twins surely hoped for better results, particularly given their lack of other deadline additions. Instead, he’ll give way to Tonkin, who’s back for a second 2024 stint with the team that originally drafted him in the 30th round back in 2008. Richards will now hit waivers and presumably clear, as a team would need to be willing to pay the remaining $358K on his $2.15MM salary in order to place a claim.

As for the 30-year-old Boushley, this’ll be his second stint with the Twins this year as well. He pitched two innings and allowed two runs a few months back, but has spent the rest of the season in Triple-A, where he has a 4.97 ERA in 116 innings. That earned run average is skewed in part by a calamitous nine-run shellacking at the hands of the Braves’ Triple-A affiliate back on July 3, but Boushley has been struggling in general as of late. Even setting aside that nine-run bonanza, he’s been tagged for a 6.55 ERA in his past seven starts with the Saints.

Twins Claim Michael Tonkin

By | at

The Yankees announced that right-hander Michael Tonkin has been claimed off waivers by the Twins. The Yanks had designated him for assignment in recent days. The Twins will need to make a corresponding move to open a 40-man roster spot, as well as an active roster spot once Tonkin reports to the club. Dan Hayes of The Athletic relayed news of the claim on X prior to the official transaction.

Tonkin, 34, was originally a Twins draftee (30th round, 2008) who reached the majors with Minnesota in 2013 but quickly descended into journeyman status. After spending the 2008-17 seasons in the Twins’ system — and pitching in the majors each year from 2013-17 — Tonkin spent the 2018 season with Japan’s Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters. He returned stateside in 2019 and has spent time with the Brewers, D-backs, Braves, Mets and Yankees organizations in addition to stints in the Atlantic League and in the Mexican League.

After a five-year absence, Tonkin returned to the majors with the Braves last year and pitched 80 solid innings out of their bullpen. This season, he’s bounced between the Mets, Yankees and Twins via waivers. This’ll be his second stint of the current season in Minnesota. He’ll hope for better results than he had in his first, when he pitched two innings and yielded two runs.

Tonkin seems to have found something during his run with the Yankees, however. After being claimed off waivers out of the Twins organization, he spent three months with the Yankees and pitched to a sharp 3.38 ERA with a 24.6% strikeout rate and 9.1% walk rate in 56 innings (39 total appearances). The Yankees used him primarily in low-leverage, multi-inning spots — and Tonkin took to the role quite nicely. He’d hit a rough patch over the past five weeks though, yielding 15 earned runs in his past 19 1/3 innings.

The Twins have shuffled up their bullpen mix more than they’d hoped this season, in part due to injuries. Minnesota just recently designated veteran lefty Steven Okert for assignment and passed him through waivers. Tonkin will give them a fresh arm to replace Okert. He’ll join a talented but top-heavy Twins bullpen that’s headlined by one of the game’s best one-two punches: Jhoan Duran and Griffin Jax.

Twins Notes: Gray, Correa, Kirilloff, Lee

By | at

  • Sonny Gray told the Minneapolis Star Tribune’s Bobby Nightengale that the Twins didn’t make much of a push to re-sign him when the veteran righty entered free agency last winter.  “They were very transparent from the get-go, saying, ’Listen, we do not have the resources to give you a contract, as much as we would like to.’  So, I kind of knew that,” Gray said.  “Even though we did come back a couple of times and try to work on some things, I kind of knew early on that it wasn’t [happening].”  The Twins’ lack of certainty over their broadcasting contract led to a payroll reduction last winter and continued budget limitations this year, so it didn’t seem too likely that Minnesota would be able to outbid the several other clubs who had interest in Gray’s services.  Gray ended up signing a three-year, $75MM deal with the Cardinals, and he has continued to pitch well in St. Louis, if not at the level of his AL Cy Young runner-up performance with the Twins in 2023.  Gray will face his old teammates today when he gets the start for the Cards in today’s game in Minneapolis.
  • In other Twins news, Alex Kirilloff started a Triple-A rehab assignment yesterday and Brooks Lee will start a similar assignment today, manager Rocco Baldelli told the Minneapolis Star Tribune’s Bobby Nightengale and other reporters.  However, Baldelli still didn’t have any new news on Carlos Correa, saying the shortstop is just “continually making steady improvement” as he recovers from plantar fasciitis in his right heel.  Correa hasn’t played since July 12, and he received a PRP injection early in his recovery process.

Twins Designate Steven Okert, Select Scott Blewett

By | at

The Twins announced that left-hander Steven Okert was designated for assignment.  The move was made to create space on the 26-man and 40-man rosters for right-hander Scott Blewett, whose contract has been selected from Triple-A St. Paul.

Acquired from the Marlins for Nick Gordon back in February, Okert’s first (and potentially only) season in Minnesota has been inconsistent.  He had a 3.20 ERA in his first 25 1/3 innings and 29 appearances, but has since stumbled to a 9.90 ERA over his last 10 frames and 15 games.  The lowlight was a four-run implosion over one-third of an inning pitched in the Twins’ 7-5 loss to the Padres last Tuesday, though Okert did bounce back with two scoreless innings two subsequent appearances.

Okert’s 20.6% strikeout rate is the second-worst of his seven-year MLB career, and his longtime issues with control have continued in the form of a 10% walk rate.  While his hard-hit ball rate is one of the league’s best, his barrel rate is below average, resulting in six home runs allowed.  Okert has long been a fly-ball pitcher, and thus problems have arisen whenever he has been unable to keep the ball in the park.

As The Athletic’s Aaron Gleeman recently observed, Okert has been hit hard in high-leverage and even medium-leverage situations this season, leaving the Twins in a tough spot whenever they’ve had to call on Okert in any beyond mop-up duty.  Okert had pretty even career splits heading into 2024, but right-handed batters have torched him for a .984 OPS over 95 plate appearances this season (while lefty swingers have only a .564 OPS in 65 PA).

While the three-batter minimum has ended the days of the true lefty specialist, Okert’s splits could be enough for a reliever-needy team to consider a waiver claim, if this team thinks it can either fix his issues against right-handed batters or simply do a better job of shielding him facing righty swingers.  Okert is in his first season of arbitration eligibility is playing on a $1,062,500 salary, so picking up the last five weeks’ worth of that salary represents a pretty minimal hit to a new clubs’s payroll.

Because Okert has previously been outrighted in his career, he has the right to reject an outright assignment from the Twins if he clears waivers, and then opt into free agency.  Okert is out of minor league options so the Twins had to DFA Okert before attempting to move him to Triple-A, and it could be that the two sides have an agreement in place about Okert accepting an assignment (if he clears waivers) and biding his time in St. Paul until a fresh arm is again needed in the big league bullpen.

Blewett faced a somewhat similar scenario when Minnesota designated him for assignment last week, as Blewett rejected an outright after clearing waivers, but then quickly re-signed with the Twins after first testing free agency.  The right-hander first signed a minor league contract with the Twins back in January, and his time on the big league roster consists of a single game — a scoreless inning on August 12 in the Twins’ 8-3 win over the Royals.  At Triple-A this season, Blewett has a 3.79 ERA, 22.7% strikeout rate, and 7.1% walk rate, with a .340 BABIP inflating his bottom-line numbers to some extent.

Prior to his lone game with the Twins, Blewett’s MLB resume consisted of eight innings over five appearances with Kansas City during the 2020-21 seasons.  During the 2022-23 seasons, Blewett pitched in the minors with the White Sox and Braves, plus he spent time abroad pitching in the Chinese Professional Baseball League.  It could be that this latest call-up will result in just another “cup of coffee” type of cameo for Blewett, but he’ll get some opportunity to show what he can do for a contending Twins club.

Latest On Byron Buxton, Chris Paddack

By | at

  • Twins athletic trainer Nick Paparesta updated reporters (including The Athletic’s Dan Hayes) about several injured Minnesota players on Saturday, including Byron Buxton and Chris Paddack.  Buxton received a cortisone shot in his inflamed right hip and recently worked out in a pool, so Paparesta feels “we’re kind of heading in the right direction.”  This comes as a relief given Buxton’s long history of injury problems, including a more serious hip issue in 2022 that Paparesta feels may have created scar tissue related to Buxton’s current discomfort.  As for Paddack, he is set to undergo an MRI on August 27, which will be his second scan since a left forearm strain sent him to the 15-day injured list on July 17.  More will be known on Paddack’s timeline if the next MRI comes back clean, and he has already started playing games of catch in preparation to return to Minnesota’s staff before the season is over.

Twins Sign Scott Blewett To New Minor League Contract

By | at

TODAY: Blewett rejected the outright assignment to become a free agent, but then quickly re-signed with the Twins on a fresh minors deal, according to the righty’s MLB.com profile page.

Aug. 16: Blewett cleared waivers and has been assigned outright to Triple-A St. Paul, per the Twins’ transaction log at MLB.com.

Aug. 13: The Twins announced that they have selected the contract of right-hander and top pitching prospect Zebby Matthews, a move that was reported yesterday. In a corresponding move, the club has designated right-hander Scott Blewett for assignment.

Blewett, 28, signed a minor league deal with the Twins over the winter and was selected to the big league roster last week. He made one appearance for the Twins and pitched a perfect inning of relief with one strikeout. He’s spent the rest of the current season in Triple-A St. Paul, where he’s totaled 51 2/3 innings of 3.66 ERA ball with a 23.2% strikeout rate, 7.6% walk rate and a 40.6% ground-ball rate for the Saints.

A second-round pick by the Royals back in 2014, Blewett pitched a combined eight innings in the majors with Kansas City in 2020-21. He’s since bounced around pro ball, also spending time in the White Sox and Braves systems in addition to a nice stint with the Uni-President Lions in Taiwan’s Chinese Professional Baseball League last year.

Now that he’s been designated for assignment, he’ll hit outright waivers in the coming days and be made available to all 29 other clubs. Waiver priority is determined by reverse order of the MLB-wide standings and is not league-specific. If Blewett goes unclaimed, he’d have the right to reject an outright assignment in favor of free agency, by virtue of the fact that he’s been outrighted previously in his career (most recently by the 2021 Royals).

Twins Place Byron Buxton On Injured List

By | at

5:55pm: The Twins have now made it official, placing Buxton on the IL with right hip inflammation, retroactive to August 13. Julien was recalled as the corresponding move. They also optioned right-hander Louie Varland and recalled righty Ronny Henriquez.

4:20pm: Twins outfielder Byron Buxton has been dealing with a hip injury in recent days. Per Dan Hayes of The Athletic on X, there’s no structural damage but the club is going to place him on the 10-day injured list anyway. Hayes adds that infielder Edouard Julien is on his way to join the team, presumably as the corresponding move.

Buxton hasn’t played for Minnesota since Monday. He departed that game with right hip discomfort. He was sent for an MRI but it came back clean, per Aaron Gleeman of The Athletic on X. However, he has been kept out of the lineup due to ongoing discomfort and the club has been considering an IL stint just to avoid playing a man short, which will seemingly come to pass today.

It’s a fairly logical decision to make. The club is in a tight playoff race, currently holding the second Wild Card spot in the American League but with the Royals, Red Sox and Mariners all fairly close behind. Since Buxton has already missed a few days, his IL placement can be backdated, meaning he could theoretically be back by next weekend if he heals up between now and then. Rather than play shorthanded for a few days, the club can get reinforcements while giving Buxton a breather.

Buxton’s health has been an ongoing issue throughout his career, so it makes sense to play things on the cautious side. Although this is his tenth major league season, he has only once played more than 92 games in any individual campaign due to various maladies. Last year, the club limited him to designated hitter duties exclusively, but he still only got into 85 contests.

The knee issues that plagued him last year seem to be less of an issue this season. He did miss a couple of weeks in May with right knee inflammation but has otherwise been in the lineup. He has appeared in 90 games so far this year, taking his customary center field position in 82 of those. He’s also been incredibly impactful, as he’s hit 16 home runs and is slashing .275/.334/.528 for a 140 wRC+. He’s also swiped six bags and has received strong grades for his glovework, leading FanGraphs to credit him with 3.2 wins above replacement on the year.

Losing that production for a while will obviously be less than ideal for the Twins in the short term, but it will be worth it in the long term if Buxton can heal up and be back in form for the playoff race and the postseason itself.

Until then, the club will likely be using Manuel Margot and Austin Martin to cover center, with Max Kepler, Trevor Larnach and Matt Wallner also in the outfield/designated hitter mix. Martin has also been playing some second base this year, so Julien will give them an extra option there while Martin spends more time on the grass. Kyle Farmer is also on hand as a glove-first option at the keystone, compared to Julien’s more bat-first profile. With Carlos Correa and Brooks Lee also on the IL, Willi Castro is covering shortstop every day as Royce Lewis and José Miranda share third base and DH duties.

Mike Cubbage Passes Away

By | at

Former major league infielder and coach Mike Cubbage has passed away after a battle with cancer, according to a report from Bradley Locker of the New York Post. He was 74.

Cubbage played parts of eight seasons between 1974-81. A left-handed hitter, he was drafted by the Washington Senators in the second round in 1971. The Senators had also taken Cubbage in the sixth round of the ’68 draft, but the Charlottesville native had honored his college commitment to the University of Virginia. A few months after selecting him for a second time, the Senators moved to Texas and became the Rangers.

After playing parts of four seasons in the minors, Cubbage made his debut with Texas early in the ’74 season. He nevertheless spent most of that year in Triple-A. Cubbage appeared in 58 MLB contests the following season. Texas included him in a four-player package to land future Hall of Famer Bert Blyleven from the Twins midway through the ’76 campaign. Cubbage played regularly for Minnesota over the next four-plus seasons. He topped 100 games on three occasions while working as the Twins’ primary third baseman. He hit .266/.336/.378 in just under 2000 plate appearances with Minnesota.

Cubbage signed with the Mets as a free agent going into the 1981 season. He finished his career with 67 games for New York. While he didn’t make a huge impact on the organization as a player, he quickly embarked on a lengthy run as a minor league manager in the New York system. Cubbage reached the MLB coaching staff in 1990, working as a hitting coach under Davey Johnson. He served as the MLB team’s interim manager for a week in 1991 and continued coaching throughout the decade. Cubbage was on the Red Sox’s staff in the early 2000s and subsequently worked in various scouting roles. He was a member of the Nationals’ pro scouting department during the team’s 2019 World Series season.

In just over 700 MLB games, Cubbage was a .258/.330/.369 hitter. He connected on 34 homers and drove in 251 runs. His playing days served as a springboard into a true “baseball lifer” career that spanned nearly four more decades. MLBTR sends our condolences to his family, loved ones, friends and the various people he impacted over his lengthy career.

Matt Bowman Opts Out Of Twins Deal

By | at

The Twins released right-hander Matt Bowman, per an announcement from the St. Paul Saints, their Triple-A affiliate (hat tip: Bobby Nightengale of the Minneapolis Star Tribune, on X). The 33-year-old Bowman had been pitching well with the Saints and exercised an opt-out clause over the weekend (as first reported by the New York Post’s Jon Heyman). Minnesota had until today to add him to the 40-man roster but have instead opted to let Bowman become a free agent.

Bowman was in his second stint with the Twins organization this season alone. He inked a minor league pact with Minnesota back in January, was selected to the big league roster in mid-April, and wound up pitching 7 2/3 solid innings out of the ’pen. Bowman yielded only two runs in that first stretch, though his command was quite shaky. In addition to a pair of hits, he issued four walks and plunked a pair hitters while fanning six others. The Twins designated him for assignment and traded him to the D-backs for cash — the first in a lengthy series of transactions for Bowman in 2024.

Bowman spent about three weeks with the D-backs before being designated for assignment once again, this time clearing waivers and electing free agency. He inked a minor league deal with the Mariners and was selected back to the majors in mid-June, only to clear waivers and again elect free agency after just one appearance. Bowman quickly re-signed with Seattle on a new minor league deal, opted out before he got back to the big leagues, and then re-signed a new minor league deal back in Minnesota. He’s now a free agent once again.

It’s a fairly dizzying sequence that’s emblematic of the paths many journeyman of this ilk walk over the course of a given season. Bowman has pitched for six different teams in parts of six MLB seasons. He’s tossed 15 innings this season (5.40 ERA) and has a career 4.22 earned run average in 200 1/3 frames. The Princeton product was originally drafted by the Mets with their 13th-round pick back in 2012, and he’s fanned a below-average 18.8% of his big league opponents against a more solid 8.3% walk rate and a terrific 55.6% ground-ball rate.

This season, Bowman has been outstanding when pitching at the Triple-A level. He’s tallied 30 2/3 innings between Tacoma and St. Paul, logging a sparkling 2.05 ERA with a 28.9% strikeout rate and a 6.6% walk rate. Between that performance and his respectable track record in the majors, Bowman should get a look from another club seeking some bullpen help in the season’s final six-plus weeks.

Show all

MLB Trade Rumors is not affiliated with Major League Baseball, MLB or MLB.com

hide arrows scroll to top