Max Kepler

Trade Candidate: Max Kepler

By Mark Polishuk | January 15, 2022 at 10:13pm CDT

Despite a thoroughly disappointing 73-89 season in 2021, Twins owner Jim Pohlad made things clear back in July — the Twins were planning to reload for 2022, not rebuild. It wasn’t at all a far-fetched expectation, given how Minnesota won the AL Central in both 2019 and 2020, and still had several members of the big-hitting “Bomba Squad” core in place.

In regards to Max Kepler, however, the question heading into next season is whether or not the Twins truly consider him part of that core. If the answer is no, Kepler stands out as an intriguing trade chip.

An international signing out of Germany in 2009, the Berlin-born Kepler began his pro career at age 17 and slowly made his way up the Twins’ organizational ladder, earning top-60 prospect attention heading into the 2016 season. That was Kepler’s first year as a big league regular, and he quickly installed himself as Minnesota’s everyday right fielder. Through three seasons of slightly below-average offense but 56 home runs and solid fielding, the Twins felt comfortable enough to lock Kepler up on a five-year, $35MM extension that also carries a $10MM club option for 2024 (with a $1MM buyout).

That extension started to look like a great move when Kepler delivered 36 homers and a .252/.336/.519 slash line over 596 plate appearances in 2019, earning himself some down-ballot MVP attention for his role in the Twins’ division-winning campaign. Since that apparent breakout year, however, Kepler’s production has largely fallen back to his 2016-18 form, with some troubling secondary numbers that don’t hint that a turn-around.

Just looking at Kepler’s 2021 Statcast profile, you might wonder…what troubling numbers? After all, with all those above-average metrics and a .347 xwOBA that was well beyond his .309 wOBA, a case could be made that Kepler was one of last season’s more unlucky players. However, as The Athletic’s Aaron Gleeman noted last August, Kepler hits a lot of pop-ups, a lot of grounders, and is an extreme pull hitter. As a result, the last two seasons have seen opposing defenses play shifts against Kepler well over 90% of the time, thus keeping his bat largely in check and essentially neutralizing whatever gains he made in 2019.

Since the start of the 2020 season, Kepler has hit .216/.310/.420 with 28 homers over 686 PA, which translates to just about league-average offensive production (99 wRC+, 101 OPS+). He did miss a little over a month of last season due to a hamstring strain and a case of COVID-19, so it is possible that he could rebound in 2022 with better health and more time to make adjustments against the shift.

As he enters his age-29 season, Kepler might also just be who he is at the plate, with only one true standout season out of his six full years in the majors. This doesn’t mean he isn’t a useful player, of course, considering that Kepler offers solid speed and baserunning, some power, and a strong glove. Since the start of the 2016 season, Kepler has +36 Defensive Runs Saved, a +7.2 UZR/150, and +39 Outs Above Average as a right fielder.

Even subtracting his 4.5 fWAR season from 2019 from the mix, Kepler has still been worth 8.2 fWAR over his other five seasons. That’s not bad return on a relatively modest price tag, and even though Kepler will get more expensive in the latter years of his extension, he is owed only $16.25MM — $6.75MM in 2022 and $8.5MM in 2023, plus the potential $1MM buyout of the club option for 2024. With Buxton a constant injury risk, Kepler at least offers some stability within a Minnesota outfield that will feature two promising but unproven young players in top prospects Alex Kirilloff and Trevor Larnach in 2022.

Those are the solid arguments for keeping Kepler, and since the Twins do plan to contend next year, trading a cost-controlled veteran member of the lineup would seem like a bit of a surprise move on paper. On the other hand, dealing Kepler for the right return could be the kind of creative pivot the Twins need to fix some of their other roster holes.

Many of the needs that existed for the Twins at the start of the offseason are still on the to-do list, as apart from extending Buxton and signing Dylan Bundy, it was a pretty quiet winter in the Twin Cities even before the lockout shut everything down. With Minnesota looking to keep Jorge Polanco at second base, shortstop is still a need, and the Twins will need a lot more than just Bundy to help support a very inexperienced rotation.

Kepler wouldn’t be the first player to overhaul his swing and offensive approach later in his career, so if he can figure out a way to elevate the ball more often and beat the shift, he’ll suddenly be much more of a threat at the plate. Given how regulating or even banning defensive shifts has been mentioned as a potential rule change by the league, the Twins might want to hang onto Kepler just in case there is some new edict announced to generate more action in the field of play.

As noted earlier, however, it is possible we’ve already seen Kepler’s offensive peak. Moving him now might be an ideal way for the Twins to still capitalize on his value before any real decline begins. If another team thinks they can fix Kepler, Minnesota might be willing to let them take him off their hands at the right price.

If being a cost-controlled veteran with a very good glove and at least an okay bat are reasons the Twins may want to keep Kepler, those same reasons would also make him attractive to other teams looking for outfield help. The Yankees were one team known to be checking in on Kepler prior to the trade deadline, and other teams like the Padres, Guardians, White Sox, Phillies (would Bryce Harper embrace a move to left field?), Reds, Athletics, Red Sox, or Braves all make varying degrees of sense as a trade partner.

Minnesota might not been keen on moving Kepler within the AL Central, and teams like the Reds or A’s are more hypothetical fits since both teams have been mostly focused on cutting payroll this offseason. As noted, though, Kepler isn’t very pricey, and neither the Reds or A’s have given up hope for contending in 2022 even while trying to trim the budget. Since both Cincinnati and Oakland have the available pitching that the Twins would covet, some kind of a multi-player package might work — Kepler to the other team, a starting pitcher and perhaps another contract coming to Minnesota, and then some prospects on either side to even things out.

Taking on salary to accommodate a trade usually isn’t the Twins’ style, though it isn’t yet clear how much money the club might have available this winter. The Twins’ interest in Robbie Ray did hint that they were at least willing to explore some bigger spending, and even hypothetically taking on some money (Shogo Akiyama? Stephen Piscotty?) from the Reds or A’s wouldn’t necessarily represent a huge outlay.

As good of a fit as someone like Kris Bryant might be in Minnesota’s outfield, that kind of big splash could still count as a surprise, so a Kepler replacement is more likely to be an outfielder on a one-year deal at a cheaper overall price than Kepler’s two remaining years. Someone like Tommy Pham or Andrew McCutchen could theoretically match or better Kepler’s 2021 production, and such a right-handed bat would also make for a smoother fit in the Twins outfield, as Kepler, Kirilloff, and Larnach are all left-handed hitters. In terms of in-house righty bats, Brent Rooker is available for platoon duty, and top prospect Austin Martin is on track to make his MLB debut at some point in 2022 if he performs well at Triple-A.

If 2021 was kind of a Murphy’s Law year for the Twins, the team might opt to mostly stand pat with their roster and see how things play out early next season, just in case the situation naturally improves as players stay healthy or bounce back. That said, such a strategy counts as a risk in an improving AL Central, so some boldness might be required to fix the problems the Twins know exist right now. Even if trading Kepler might create another question in an outfield already lacking certainty, if Minnesota doesn’t see him as a building block beyond the end of his contract, a trade might be a wiser way for the Twins to bring more answers to their roster as a whole.

Twins’ Owner: Team “Absolutely Not” Going Into Rebuild

By Steve Adams | July 27, 2021 at 12:25am CDT

Anyone who’s even loosely followed the 2021 MLB season knows it’s been a disaster year for the Twins. The American League Central’s last-place club, Minnesota has already traded Nelson Cruz, will likely trade Michael Pineda in the coming days and will surely have interest in several other key pieces. That said, given the team’s payroll space, cost-controlled group of young hitters, solid farm system and other factors, it’s long seemed likely they’ll aim to reload and be competitive again in 2022. Owner Jim Pohlad effectively confirmed that this week in an interview with Dan Hayes of The Athletic.

Asked by Hayes whether this nightmarish season could “change your direction to rebuilding,” Pohlad replied emphatically: “Absolutely not. We want to be in the win window all the time. We expected that to be the case this year.”

Obviously, that didn’t happen for the Twins, who have weathered absences for Byron Buxton, Mitch Garver, Luis Arraez, Max Kepler, Kenta Maeda, Pineda and others. More problematic has been that nearly all of Minnesota’s offseason free-agent expenditures (the since-traded Cruz being a notable exception) have failed to live up to expectations.

The subsequent 43-58 record has positioned the Twins as a clear deadline seller, but Pohlad’s comments today reinforce what was already widely expected: this isn’t likely to be an “everything must go” fire sale. The team is receiving interest in players controlled beyond 2021, most notably top starter Jose Berrios, but the asking price on him has reportedly been high and focused on near-MLB assets. Given Pohlad’s comments and the fact that the Twins zeroed in on Triple-A pitchers in last week’s Cruz trade — both Joe Ryan and Drew Strotman could be options in Minnesota this year — that focus on big-league-ready talent is to be expected.

All of this is particularly worth considering as the clock ticks toward Friday’s 4pm ET trade deadline. For instance, MLB.com’s Jon Morosi tweeted this morning that the Twins have had some early talks on Kepler. That was already known after multiple reports linked Kepler to the Yankees last week, but the broader question of Kepler’s general “availability” (or lack thereof) should be considered in conjunction with ownership’s comments. Were the Twins looking to completely start over, players like Kepler, Berrios, Taylor Rogers (prior to his finger injury) and others would be strong trade candidates. As it stands, they’re more long shots with weighty asking prices.

It’s also possible that some of the impending free agents who do seem like locks to move could be flipped and then again pursued in free agency. Pineda, who pitched well tonight in what could be his final start with the Twins, told reporters after the game that Minnesota has come to feel like home and he hopes to remain (Twitter link via MLB.com’s Do-Hyoung Park). A trade still seems overwhelmingly likely, but Hayes tweets that Pineda would have interest in returning for 2022 and beyond even if (or when) he is ultimately traded this week.

Latest On Yankees’ Trade Targets

By TC Zencka | July 23, 2021 at 7:21pm CDT

The Yankees are far from matching the kind of production they’ve set as their historical standard, but manager Aaron Boone’s much-maligned unit isn’t exactly dead in the water: they’re five games over .500 and still a very reasonable 4.5 games out of the second wild card spot. Most teams in their spot would be looking for additions to make a playoff push. The Yankees, of course, have no plans of fading into the background, and they’re surely set to make a splash or two here in the final week before the trade deadline.

Trevor Story and Starling Marte continue to be two of the most talked-about names on the market, and both Story and Marte have been connected to the Yanks in recent weeks. They’ve also checked in on Max Kepler, though the Twins’ asking price is said to be “exorbitant,” per Brendan Kuty of NJ.com.

Consider Story or Marte the more likely targets, then, though they’ll face plenty of competition for either player. Both players are, however, likely to move before the deadline. The hangup will be on finding the right match of prospects to send to Colorado and Miami, respectively.

Speculatively speaking, Story would appear the more impactful addition, given how much his glove could improve the Yankees’ defense – and how much he would affect the other pieces of the roster. Sliding Gleyber Torres to second and DJ LeMahieu to first would put all the pieces in the right places, though Luke Voit would be in a position to either move to the bench or push Giancarlo Stanton to the outfield, where the Yankees are hesitant to play him. Still, there aren’t as many teams as it might seem with a hole at shortstop, and some of those teams with obvious needs to upgrade (i.e. the A’s) have been bearish on pursuing one.

Further, ESPN’s David Schoenfield suggests they might be on the lookout for bullpen help. That might be a little offputting to hear at first, as their bullpen ranks third by fWAR this season, but there’s a lot of volume built into that metric. They rank eighth overall with a 3.67 bullpen ERA. The concern, more specifically, is their recent performance. The Yanks’ pen ranks 21st with a 5.19 ERA in July. That’s not necessarily enough to cause full-on panic, but there’s always room for another arm in the bullpen.

Latest On Yankees’ Search For Outfield Help

By Steve Adams | July 20, 2021 at 11:58am CDT

The Yankees’ recent pair of wins against the division-leading Red Sox helped to keep their postseason hopes alive, and the New York Post’s Joel Sherman writes that they’re looking for adding outfield help as the trade deadline approaches. Specifically, the Yankees would like to acquire someone who can handle center field.

Center field is an obvious, glaring need in the Bronx. Yankees center fielders are hitting just .183/.290/.309 on the season, and the resulting 70 wRC+ ranks 29th among the 30 MLB clubs. Aaron Hicks is out for the season after undergoing surgery to repair a torn tendon sheath in his wrist, and the subsequent cast of replacements hasn’t picked up the slack.

New York was already reported to have shown interest in Marlins center fielder Starling Marte, who is likely to be traded now that Miami’s hopes of getting him to sign an extension have been dashed. (Given the reported three years and roughly $30MM term, that should come as no surprise.) Sherman again connects the Yankees to Joey Gallo, who has some center field experience, and he adds that they’ve “wondered” about Minnesota’s Max Kepler — another strong defensive right fielder who has some experience playing center.

Marte would represent a pure rental for the Yankees — albeit an excellent one. He’s slashed at a .288/.389/.457 clip so far in 2021 while clubbing seven home runs and swiping 19 bases along the way. He’s owed about $5MM of this year’s $12.5MM salary between now and season’s end, although by the deadline, that sum would dip to about $4.37MM.

From a luxury tax standpoint, Marte is in the final year of a contract that wound up paying him $51MM over an eight-year term — an annual rate of $6.375MM. Prorating that luxury hit for the remainder of the season would mean about $2.22MM at the deadline or about $2.57MM as of today. Sherman notes that the Yankees have “about” $3MM in luxury breathing room — Roster Resource’s Jason Martinez has them around $3.5MM shy of the threshold — so Marte could technically fit into the budget without taking the Yankees over the line.

Both Gallo and Kepler are imperfect fits. Gallo is the far likelier of the two to be traded and, at $6.2MM in 2021, is a near-match with Marte in terms of luxury calculations. He’d give the Yankees a much-needed left-handed bat (unlike Marte), but he’s a better defender in right field and will likely have one of the higher asking prices among viable trade chips in the coming weeks. Gallo would add another three-true-outcome type of hitter to a Yankees lineup that leads MLB in walk rate and ranks ninth in homers and strikeout rate. Gallo is controlled via arbitration through the 2022 season.

Kepler, 28, is in the third season of a five-year, $35MM contract. He’s owed about $2.62MM through season’s end and is still owed $6.75MM in 2022 and $8.5MM in 2023. There’s a $10MM option with a $1MM buyout for the 2024 season.

Kepler missed a month with a hamstring injury earlier in the year and is batting just .207/.296/.427 in 243 plate appearances on the year. Kepler looked to be emerging from that slump with a hot few weeks after returning from the injured list in June, but he’s fallen back into an 0-for-15 skid at the plate. At his best, Kepler is an impact defender with a strong walk rate and plenty of power, as evidenced by his .252/.336/.519, 36-homer season back in 2019. The Twins probably don’t love the idea of selling low on him, and the Yankees may not want to roll the dice on a rebound for a currently struggling player anyhow.

If anything, the mention of Kepler is interesting for the fact that it illustrates the wide net being cast by the Yankees in their search. Out-of-the-box candidates figure to emerge — particularly if the team plans to remain below the luxury threshold. Owner Hal Steinbrenner recently voiced a willingness to cross that barrier, but the Yankees’ offseason moves were all made with the idea of avoiding the tax.

Central Notes: Twins, Singer, Moustakas, Alzolay

By Anthony Franco | June 17, 2021 at 2:10pm CDT

The Twins have been dealt a series of injuries this season, and another pair of notable players departed last night’s game against the Mariners early. Third baseman Josh Donaldson left for precautionary reasons in the second inning with tightness in his right calf. Shortstop Andrelton Simmons came out shortly thereafter with left ankle tightness (relayed by Phil Miller of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune). There’s no indication either player is dealing with anything serious, but each of Donaldson and Simmons landed on the injured list because of issues with those respective areas last season.

Donaldson missed nearly a month with a right calf strain, while Simmons missed a similar amount of time with a sprained left ankle. Given that history, it wouldn’t be surprising to see the Twins play things cautiously with their left side infielders. In better news, outfielder Max Kepler, who has been on a rehab assignment at Triple-A St. Paul, could join the big league club by this weekend, manager Rocco Baldelli told reporters (including Betsy Helfand of the St. Paul Pioneer-Press).

Elsewhere in the Central divisions:

Royals right-hander Brady Singer was removed from yesterday’s start after three innings as a precautionary measure after he experienced right posterior shoulder tightness, the team announced. It’s not clear if he’s in jeopardy of missing his next start. The 24-year-old has only managed a 4.76 ERA in 68 innings this season, but Singer’s generally average strikeout and walk numbers (23.3% and 8.2%, respectively) and strong 50.5% groundball rate suggest he’s been a bit unlucky to allow so many runs.
Reds manager David Bell told reporters (including Bobby Nightengale of the Cincinnati Enquirer) that infielder Mike Moustakas has had his minor league rehab assignment halted after experiencing some soreness. It doesn’t seem there’s much cause for concern, but Moustakas’ return looks likely to be delayed a few extra days. The Reds have been without the 32-year-old for just under a month due to a right heel contusion. Before the injury, Moustakas got off to a pretty good start, hitting .241/.337/.437 with four homers over 104 plate appearances.
The Cubs have been without starter Adbert Alzolay for the past week-plus due to a blister issue. The 26-year-old tells Gordon Wittenmyer of NBC Sports Chicago he expects to return at some point during the Cubs upcoming homestand, which runs from June 18-22. Chicago turned to Robert Stock in Alzolay’s place yesterday, but he allowed five runs and issued six walks in just four innings against the Mets. Alzolay has a solid 4.06 ERA/3.63 SIERA in eleven starts this season.

Twins Notes: Maeda, Pineda, Buxton, Arraez, Kepler

By Anthony Franco | June 13, 2021 at 4:52pm CDT

The Twins have been plagued by injuries in recent weeks, but they’re on the verge of getting several key players back. Right-hander Kenta Maeda will be activated from the injured list to start tomorrow night’s game against the Mariners, manager Rocco Baldelli told reporters (including Dan Hayes of the Athletic). He hasn’t pitched since May 22, when he went on the IL due to a groin strain.

It’s been a difficult season for Maeda, last year’s AL Cy Young award runner-up. The 33-year-old has managed just a 5.27 ERA over his first nine starts. Maeda’s strikeout rate has fallen from an elite 32.3% in 2020 to a below-average 20.5% this season. He’s also seen rather significant drops in his swinging strike and groundball rates, with opposing hitters making much harder contact off him.

Those struggles aside, the Twins will assuredly be happy to get their Opening Day starter back on the mound. Minnesota’s assortment of back-end starters (Matt Shoemaker, J.A. Happ, Randy Dobnak, Bailey Ober) have struggled to varying degrees, perhaps the biggest reason for the team’s horrible 26-39 start. Making matters worse, righty Michael Pineda is day-to-day after leaving this afternoon’s start with right forearm tightness (notes Betsy Helfand of the St. Paul Pioneer-Press). Baldelli suggested Pineda could require an IL stint of his own (via Do-Hyoung Park of MLB.com).

While the rotation has been a massive disappointment, the Twins also haven’t been helped by a series of injuries to some of their top position players. Byron Buxton was off to an MVP-level start, but he went down with a right hip strain on May 7. Buxton has been on the IL for the past five weeks, but Baldelli said the star center fielder will accompany the team to Seattle (via Park). The same is true of utilityman Luis Arráez, who’s been out since May 26 with a right shoulder strain.

Buxton and Arráez have been on rehab assignments at Triple-A St. Paul, but they’re evidently nearing a return to the majors. They should be followed in relatively short order by Max Kepler. The 28-year-old outfielder began a rehab assignment of his own today, serving as the designated hitter in St. Paul. Kepler put up a .212/.303/.424 line in 152 plate appearances this season before straining his left hamstring.

Twins Notes: Kepler, Maeda, Arraez

By Mark Polishuk | May 30, 2021 at 12:05pm CDT

MAY 30: Kepler has indeed been placed on the 10-day IL, with catcher Ben Rortvedt recalled from Triple-A to replace him on the active roster. Baldelli told reporters (including Do-Hyoung Park of MLB.com) that Rob Refsnyder is set to get everyday run in center field with Buxton and Kepler on the shelf.

Baldelli also addressed Maeda’s setback this afternoon (via Betsy Helfand of the St. Paul Pioneer-Press). While the right-hander was initially placed on the IL due to a groin strain, he’s fully recovered from that injury. His current issue is unrelated “general arm soreness.” The timetable for his return is still uncertain, although Baldelli says Maeda could resume playing catch next week.

MAY 29: The Twins’ 6-5 victory over the Royals today may have come at a price, as Max Kepler left the game due to a left hamstring strain. Kepler came up limping while trying to beat out a grounder in the second inning, and was immediately replaced in the field for the top of the third.

Manager Rocco Baldelli told reporters (including The Athletic’s Dan Hayes) that Kepler would undergo an MRI and could potentially be heading to the injured list. At the very least, “I don’t think he’s going to be out there in the next few days,” Baldelli said.

This is the second time in under two weeks that a hamstring problem has forced Kepler out of a game, as he made an early exit back on May 16. Since that injury, Kepler has sat out four games and also been limited to DH duty in three others in an attempt to play through the issue. Now, however, Kepler looks to be joining Byron Buxton, Jake Cave, and utilityman Luis Arraez on the 10-day IL as Minnesota will be further short-handed in the outfield.

As per the wRC+ metric, Kepler has delivered exactly average (100) offensive production this season, hitting .212/.303/.424 over 152 plate appearances. Beyond the lingering hamstring injury, Kepler also missed 10 days recovering from a case of COVID-19.

Baldelli also has less-than-positive updates about two other injured Twins in Arraez and Kenta Maeda. Arraez hit the injured list (in retroactive placement fashion) on May 24 due to a right shoulder strain, and that strain now looks like a subluxation that will keep Arraez out of action for multiple weeks.

A groin strain sent Maeda to the IL on May 23, and Baldelli said that Maeda suffered a setback during a bullpen session on Friday. The right-hander was initially expected to miss between 10-14 days, but now it isn’t known when Maeda might be back in the Minnesota rotation. Maeda has a 5.27 ERA/4.07 SIERA through nine starts and 42 2/3 innings for the Twins this season.

Central Notes: Maeda, Kepler, Astudillo, O’Neill, Engel, Duffy

By Mark Polishuk | May 16, 2021 at 11:14pm CDT

The Twins suffered a 7-6 walkoff loss to the Athletics today, and the defeat was perhaps a particularly costly one for the Minnesota team. Both Max Kepler (hamstring) and Willians Astudillo (bruised hand) had to make early exits due to injury, while manager Rocco Baldelli told Betsy Helfand of the St. Paul Pioneer Press and other reporters that Kenta Maeda was trying to fight through some minor groin tightness that developed during the game.

Astudillo was hit by a pitch in the second inning and remained in the game before being replaced at catcher prior to the top of the fourth. Kepler’s injury occurred during the eighth inning, when he doubled and then advanced to third on a wild pitch before scoring on an Andrelton Simmons home run. Both players are being evaluated, while Maeda’s problem seems to be somewhat minor and perhaps the least-serious of the three injuries.

Twins Place Byron Buxton On Injured List, Recall Trevor Larnach

By TC Zencka | May 7, 2021 at 10:35pm CDT

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 Announce Series Of Roster Moves

By Steve Adams | April 30, 2021 at 2:20pm CDT

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.

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