Twins outright Blackburn, Nishioka

[Parker Hageman]

Twins announce that they will outright Nick Blackburn and Tsuyoshi Nishioka off the 40-man roster.

 

Since being recalled from Rochester, Blackburn had made six starts only to compile a 0-4 record with an pear-shaped 6.11 ERA while opponents hit .351/.367/.576. The Twins, who had beat the drums that there would be no more "scholarships" for their players, reacted swiftly to Blackburn's struggles and recent quotes which seems to irk the front office.

 

Clearly the Twins were not sold on Blackburn's ability to bounce back. As assistant GM Rob Antony told reporters on Saturday in Seattle:

 

"We're going to try to figure out what the right thing is to try and get this guy back on track," said Rob Antony, Twins assistant general manager, on Saturday. "He had some concerning statements. 'I'm not sure what to do' -- when big-leaguers have thoughts like that, then you know their confidence is struggling."

 

Nishioka, meanwhile, had been hitting .252/.311/.313 in the International League and was completely overmatched in his short stint with the Twins this year.

 

The move leaves the team with 38 players on their 40-man roster.

[Dilligaf69]

Thanks to Parker on Twitter!

[Dilligaf69]

Ok not that it matters much at this point but who replaces them... or will the Twins just wait until the offseason?? can they wait or do they have to make a move/moves??

[Seth Stohs]

Ok not that it matters much at this point but who replaces them... or will the Twins just wait until the offseason?? can they wait or do they have to make a move/moves??

 

I'd guess Vasquez at some point... Maybe Slama. But they wouldn't announce those moves until they have to. It's actually a good thing to have less than 40.

[YourHouseIsMyHouse]

So this looks pretty good regarding Blackburn's future, right? In that there is no future obviously.

[grubah]

My prayers have been answered! No more watching Blackburn continue to stink it up this season. These moves just brightened my day!!

[TwinsMusings]

Vasquez makes sense at this point in the season. The Twins need someone for Blackburn's slot in the rotation and it gives them a chance to get a look at Vasquez early. Hendriks might be another alternative, but he will most likely not get called up until September and even then only if he keeps pitching well at AAA.

[Dilligaf69]

Vasquez makes sense at this point in the season. The Twins need someone for Blackburn's slot in the rotation and it gives them a chance to get a look at Vasquez early. Hendriks might be another alternative, but he will most likely not get called up until September and even then only if he keeps pitching well at AAA.

 

 

Yeah those two seem to be the options, more likely Vasquez and save Hendriks for Sept....Blackies still due $5.5 mil for 2013...must be nice!

[Mike Sixel]

Both good moves. Hopefully the FO has learned from the Blackburn situation in terms of future contracts.

[Seth Stohs]

Vasquez is scheduled to pitch tonight for Rochester, so we'll need to see if he makes the start. Since Blackburn is scheduled to start Wednesday, Hendriks makes more sense right now as he started on Friday night and could take that spot.

[Seth Stohs]

I've been pushing to DFA Blackburn for over a year, and finally, it's happened. I thought I'd be happier.

[Winston Smith]

When will Pavano and or Walters come back? They need an open spot for them. Not sure what the point would be to bring Pavamo back, time to wish him luck and say goodbye.

[PseudoSABR]

Great news. It's nice to see the Twins willing to bite the bullet on their mistakes.

[IdahoPilgrim]

When will Pavano and or Walters come back? They need an open spot for them. Not sure what the point would be to bring Pavamo back, time to wish him luck and say goodbye.

 

Walters has to be close - he threw 59 pitches in his last rehab start on Sunday.

[John Bonnes]

I'll admit, I didn't see this coming. I thought Blackburn might be moved to the 'pen, or maybe even optioned, but DFAed? Wow.

[IdahoPilgrim]

So what happens with them next? The lead entry in the thread says they are being outrighted. I guess my only question is why are we even keeping them in the organization instead of releasing them? Is it just salary reasons - we're paying them so maybe the Triple-A club can use them? Are they being held in reserve in case the sky falls and they are needed in the future?

[Highabove]

Does Jeff Gray continue to hold on to his Scholarship??

[BeefMaster]

So what happens with them next? The lead entry in the thread says they are being outrighted. I guess my only question is why are we even keeping them in the organization instead of releasing them? Is it just salary reasons - we're paying them so maybe the Triple-A club can use them? Are they being held in reserve in case the sky falls and they are needed in the future?

 

I'd guess either of those reasons is behind it. Generally, if a player doesn't have enough seniority to decline a minor league assignment (which neither Nishi or Blackburn do), teams will go ahead and use them as AAA roster filler. You may as well get SOME value out of that sunk cost, and if nothing else they can buy when the team goes out to dinner. The Twins are generally good about granting a guy his release if he could get a shot with another team, but I'm reasonably certain neither of these guys are getting major league offers anytime soon.

[IdahoPilgrim]

So what happens with them next? The lead entry in the thread says they are being outrighted. I guess my only question is why are we even keeping them in the organization instead of releasing them? Is it just salary reasons - we're paying them so maybe the Triple-A club can use them? Are they being held in reserve in case the sky falls and they are needed in the future?

 

I'd guess either of those reasons is behind it. Generally, if a player doesn't have enough seniority to decline a minor league assignment (which neither Nishi or Blackburn do), teams will go ahead and use them as AAA roster filler. You may as well get SOME value out of that sunk cost, and if nothing else they can buy when the team goes out to dinner. The Twins are generally good about granting a guy his release if he could get a shot with another team, but I'm reasonably certain neither of these guys are getting major league offers anytime soon.

 

The fact they have been outrighted means they must have cleared waivers, so you're probably right.

[glunn]

I hope that they bring up Vasquez that we can see what he can do.

[Curt]

Maybe everyone but me knows this but... looking up "outrighting"... A player can be outrighted, without his permission, only once. A player with five years major league experience cannot be outrighted, regardless whether he as been previously outrighted, without his permission. According to Baseball-Reference, Blackburn debuted 9/3/2007 which would be just under the wire. He did get demoted for a while in 2010 which would subtract from that too, I think. If he had five years experience, he would have to be released (if he did not give his permission).

[IdahoPilgrim]

Maybe everyone but me knows this but... looking up "outrighting"... A player can be outrighted, without his permission, only once. A player with five years major league experience cannot be outrighted, regardless whether he as been previously outrighted, without his permission. According to Baseball-Reference, Blackburn debuted 9/3/2007 which would be just under the wire. He did get demoted for a while in 2010 which would subtract from that too, I think. If he had five years experience, he would have to be released (if he did not give his permission).

 

Correct in all. Any player with five years service can refuse a minor league assignment, option or outright (except for rehab assignments).

[Thrylos]

So what happens with them next? The lead entry in the thread says they are being outrighted. I guess my only question is why are we even keeping them in the organization instead of releasing them? Is it just salary reasons - we're paying them so maybe the Triple-A club can use them? Are they being held in reserve in case the sky falls and they are needed in the future?

 

They put them through irrevocable waivers (not August trade waivers - things get confusing this time of the year) and nobody claimed him. I am pretty sure that they will do something with them before 2013. They are actively looking for a Japanese team to pick up Nishioka's contract (and that would be a win-win situation I think). Otherwise, Rochester will have a $8.5 M investment in 2013. I suspect that Blackburn might get an invite in Spring training...

[Rosterman]

No one wants them. If a team claimed Blackburn, they would be on the hook for his remaining salary and all his salary next year. The call will be if he and the Twins stay buddies next year. I think he either walks away from his salary or stays under Twins control next year, too. The Twins need to see if they can sell Toshi to Japan.

[Rosterman]

Will Pavano be back? Two starts before 9/1 to see if he can help a contender? At this point, might as well just given him his release. Worry about finding a spot for Walters. And what about Gray. Hasn't he worn out his welcome?

[Curt]

Otherwise, Rochester will have a $8.5 M investment in 2013.

 

The Twins will pay that. $8.5 M would cover Rochester's payroll for twenty years.

[BrentMpls]

Sad to see this happen to Blackburn, but if he's making statements like that, this is probably for the best.

 

I remember in 2010 a couple weeks before he was sent down to Rochester I was within earshot of him when he was signing a ball for a kid and the parent said "look, there is a real major league baseball player!" to his son before Blackburn took the ball to sign it, and when he heard that, Blackburn said "Kind of".

[TheLeviathan]

The real question is who does Jeff Gray have leverage on if these two went before him.

[Brock Beauchamp]

So what happens with them next? The lead entry in the thread says they are being outrighted. I guess my only question is why are we even keeping them in the organization instead of releasing them? Is it just salary reasons - we're paying them so maybe the Triple-A club can use them? Are they being held in reserve in case the sky falls and they are needed in the future?

 

You're paying the guy. Why not keep him around in case he rebounds? Now that he's off the 40 man roster, it doesn't matter one lick whether he's playing for you, playing for the Padres, or sitting at home. He's not blocking anyone in the system. At that point, you may as well keep the guy around "just in case".

[Thrylos]

One little detail because the rules are kind of complicated. They did not get Designated For Assignment, they got outrighted. There are four types of waivers in baseball, all explained really well here (this is a must read and bookmark btw) :

 

Trade Waivers, Waivers for the purpose of granting a player his unconditional release (DFA), Outright Waivers and Option Waivers.

 

The first kind is revocable and happen only in August, the other 3 are irrevocable. The difference between DFA and ouright waivers is that if a veteran (Blackburn is that and Nishioka is not) refuses, in both cases he becomes a free agent, but in a DFA situation the team in on the hook for his contract while in Outright Waivers, if he refuses assignment he loses what is owed to him.

 

Thought to clarify that because it is way to complicated.