Mitch Garver Undergoes Groin Surgery
Twins catcher Mitch Garver exited last night’s game after taking a foul tip from the bat of Trey Mancini to the groin, and while the initial diagnosis was only a contusion, additional tests provided a more concerning outlook. Garver announced on his Instagram story that he underwent surgery after undergoing ultrasound imaging at the emergency room. Thankfully, Garver adds that he is “recovering well,” but the mere fact that surgery was required likely points to an absence of some note.
The Twins have yet to make a formal announcement on the injury or provide a timeline for the 30-year-old Garver’s return, but the injury comes at a poor time given the catcher’s red-hot bat of late. While Garver got out to a very slow start in 2021, he’d righted the ship with a huge .286/.430/.651 showing over his past 24 games (19 starts). In 79 plate appearances during that stretch, he’d connected on six home runs and five doubles with nearly as many walks (16) as strikeouts (20).
With Garver presumably sidelined for a bit, the Twins have some options behind the plate. They were already carrying three catchers, with Ben Rortvedt and utilityman Willians Astudillo both on the roster. Minnesota could run with that tandem, but the Twins also have one of baseball’s top catching prospects, Ryan Jeffers, with their Triple-A club in St. Paul.
Jeffers, 23, came up in 2020 after a Garver injury and debuted with a .273/.355/.436 slash in 62 plate appearances. He started poorly in 2021 and was optioned to St. Paul for everyday at-bats once the Triple-A season began. He’s hitting for a low average with the Saints (perhaps due in part to an ugly .235 BABIP), but Jeffers is drawing walks and hitting for power as well. Overall, he’s at .217/.340/.446 with five homers and four doubles in 103 plate appearances since being sent down. He’s regarded as a potential everyday option behind the dish, while Rortvedt is more of a glove-first backup and Astudillo is a more of utility option and part-time catcher.
It remains to be seen just what route the team will take, but the injury is a notable blow to a Twins team that really can’t afford further injury woes. His recent hot streak was a small sample, but Garver looked to be trending back toward the offensive levels he put forth in 2019 when he batted .273/.365/.630 with 31 homers in just 359 plate appearances. Subtracting that bat from an already flailing Twins roster does nothing to improve a bleak outlook for the 22-31 surprising AL Central cellar dwellers.
Twins Reinstate Alex Kirilloff From 10-Day IL
The Twins have activated outfielder Alex Kirilloff from the 10-day injured list and also called up right-hander Randy Dobnak from Triple-A, the team announced. Dobnak will start tonight’s game against the Indians. Right-hander Bailey Ober and catcher Ben Rortvedt were optioned to Triple-A in corresponding moves.
Kiriloff’s IL placement came with a retroactive date of May 4, so the young outfielder will end up missing 17 days of action — not a bad outcome, considering the somewhat ominous initial reaction to his right wrist sprain. Kirilloff was going to see a specialist concerning his wrist, which emerged as an injury concern during the 2019 season and limited him to 94 minor league games with the Twins’ Double-A affiliate.
However, Kirilloff will now get back onto the field and resume what was beginning to look like an intriguing rookie season. A consensus pick as one of the sport’s best prospect, Kirilloff made his debut during the Twins’ postseason run last season and then made his regular-season debut this April, going hitless in his first 14 plate appearances but then batting .321/.333/.857 with four home runs in his next 30 trips to the plate.
Kirilloff has worked almost entirely as a left fielder or first baseman during his brief big league tenure, but he should get some time in right field as the Twins continue to juggle their outfield while Byron Buxton is still injured. With Buxton out, regular right fielder Max Kepler has seen the bulk of work in center field, with Kyle Garlick, Trevor Larnach, Rob Refsnyder, and utilityman Luis Arraez rotating in and out of the outfield picture.
Twins Announce Series Of Roster Moves
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.
Twins Select Three Players To 40-Man Roster
The Twins are adding three players- right-handers Jordan Balazovic and Bailey Ober and catcher Ben Rortvedt– to the 40-man roster, per a team announcement.
Balazovic, 22, is one of the more well-regarded pitching prospects in the sport, generally finding himself on the back half of top 100 lists. He was a slam dunk to be protected on the heels of a great 2019 season in High-A. Ober draws plaudits for his plus command; the former twelfth-rounder has excellent numbers up through Double-A. Rortvedt is a former second-round pick out of a Wisconsin high school who has seemingly turned a corner the past couple seasons in the minors.