Article: Twins Sign Closer Rodney To One-Year Deal

[mikelink45]

Okay, I am fine with this, but I hope it is not the signature move of the winter meetings.  I hope this is one of those nice assets after signing the guys who we really need.

[Brandon]

This is another Terry Ryan move. I will keep waiting for the new front office to show that they can make the move that puts us over the top or a big aquisition (which is what Terry Ryan was so bad at) and they have all offseason to show they can, i am not impatient at this point. Being that this is a safe value driven move. No real upside or much downside outside of potential control issues. If we sign Darvish and trade for Archer count me as a believer in the front office. Until then i am glad they are atleast as good as Terry Ryan was at the Terry Ryan things.

[bobs]

This is clearly a signing where Falvine is hedging their bets on the young bullpen arms.  It's not a big-money or long-term commitment.  If the young arms don't start to pan out, they can make a trade in June/July and/or look to the FA market in 12 months.  The eyes of the FO are clearly and squarely on 2019.

[twins_89]

Yankees add Stanton, Angels add Ohtani/Kinsler, and Twins add Rodney. So far this off-season Minnesota has fallen way behind our closest competition in the standings.

[Richie the Rally Goat]

Blech. I don't know why people care about it being cheap. For another 2MM a year they could have had a good RP. Why do people care it was cheap?

 

They had a bad bullpen last year, and they are pretty much doubling down on last year's strategy. Cheap old veteran and rule V pick....

it depends, if this is the only reliever signed I’ll be upset. If they get another reliever I’m ok, if not a bit underwhelmed

[Vanimal46]

Can't wait for the year when the Twins make win now moves... This signing is gross.

[Mike Sixel]

 

it depends, if this is the only reliever signed I’ll be upset. If they get another reliever I’m ok, if not a bit underwhelmed

 

I agree, if he's hte 2nd best RP they acquire, it will be meh, rather than annoying.

[ppearson50]

I would be happy with a Fernando Rodney, Addison Reed, Yu Darvish offseason. The offense was pretty darn good and Nick Gordon is knocking on the door as another hitter for the bench. 

 

[Mike Sixel]

 

Can't wait for the year when the Twins make win now moves... This signing is gross.

 

"next year"

[drjim]

 

Can't wait for the year when the Twins make win now moves... This signing is gross.

 

I wouldn't count on this coming from relievers.

[KirbyDome89]

As simply a bullpen addition the move is fine.

 

Given how analytically driven this FO strives to be, I was hoping nontraditional bullpen use might be one of the first noticeable on field indicators. The emphasis placed on his career saves, his "closing experience," and the apparent desire for a "closer of the future," suggest more rigid bullpen roles.  

[jorgenswest]

There isn't a more un reliable career path than that of a reliever. It is folly to use 2017 stats to project 2018-2020. Go back two years and look at the relievers that received multi-year contracts. 

 

John Axford
Steve Cishek
Jason Motte
Tyler Clippard
Antonio Bastardo
Mark Lowe
Tony Barnette
Chad Qualls
Jonathan Broxton
Oliver Perez
Shawn Kelley
Tony Sipp
Ryan Madson
Joakim Soria
Darren O'Day

 

If Rodney doesn't pitch well, it is easy to cut ties. It is much harder to cut ties when multiple years are committed.

[nicksaviking]

I wouldn't count on this coming from relievers.

I'm all for getting some big bad bullpen pieces, but once this team finally dumped Haley and Breslow and started relying on Hildnberger, Busenitz and Rogers, the pen was pretty solid. Heck yeah, lets improve it, but this team's Achilles heel is clearly the rotation.

[Mike Sixel]

To be clear, signing a guy coming off tommy john, that won't pitch this year maybe=good. Signing any RP to a two year deal = bad.

 

Is that the argument people are making? Pineda is a great signing, but signing any of the RPs this year for two years is bad?

[nicksaviking]

To be clear, signing a guy coming off tommy john, that won't pitch this year maybe=good. Signing any RP to a two year deal = bad.

 

Is that the argument people are making? Pineda is a great signing, but signing any of the RPs this year for two years is bad?

I haven't heard anyone make that arguement. One was a move for next year, one was a move for this year. No one is compelled to like both or dislike both.

 

Personally I'm in the camp of liking the Pineda deal and being underwhelmed by the Rodney deal.

[drjim]

 

There isn't a more un reliable career path than that of a reliever. It is folly to use 2017 stats to project 2018-2020. Go back two years and look at the relievers that received multi-year contracts. 

 

John Axford
Steve Cishek
Jason Motte
Tyler Clippard
Antonio Bastardo
Mark Lowe
Tony Barnette
Chad Qualls
Jonathan Broxton
Oliver Perez
Shawn Kelley
Tony Sipp
Ryan Madson
Joakim Soria
Darren O'Day

 

If Rodney doesn't pitch well, it is easy to cut ties. It is much harder to cut ties when multiple years are committed.

 

I do remember how upset not signing any of these guys made all of us.

 

Good data that you either have to go big on an elite reliever, take a risk on a guy coming off an injury, or fill in multiple pieces like Rodney and hope some stick.

 

I still think that by August Fernando Romero will be the best reliever on the team, with the possibility of Pineda coming back too.

[Richie the Rally Goat]

There isn't a more un reliable career path than that of a reliever. It is folly to use 2017 stats to project 2018-2020. Go back two years and look at the relievers that received multi-year contracts.

 

John Axford

Steve Cishek

Jason Motte

Tyler Clippard

Antonio Bastardo

Mark Lowe

Tony Barnette

Chad Qualls

Jonathan Broxton

Oliver Perez

Shawn Kelley

Tony Sipp

Ryan Madson

Joakim Soria

Darren O'Day

 

If Rodney doesn't pitch well, it is easy to cut ties. It is much harder to cut ties when multiple years are committed.

is it easy to cut ties when your bullpen is in shambles?

 

If the Yankees or Indians made this move, Rodney is just another guy. As things sit with the Twins right now, Rodney isn’t just another guy. Next man up is a much bigger hole relatively speaking.

[gunnarthor]

 

To be clear, signing a guy coming off tommy john, that won't pitch this year maybe=good. Signing any RP to a two year deal = bad.

 

Is that the argument people are making? Pineda is a great signing, but signing any of the RPs this year for two years is bad?

Might depend on what we expect out of them. I see Rodney as a fairly reliable, safe 60-70 innings guy out of the pen. Maybe as a closer. Not elite but no worse than Everyday Eddie. Pineda is a lottery ticket who might throw a few innings this year and might be able to give the Twins 20 or more starts as a #3 type next year.

 

I'd have been fine giving Kintzler or Neshek the two year deals they got but it might very well be that the FO is pinching pennies to sign Darvish or Cobb. I figured they had about 20m to spend, others think it was closer to 30. We've spent about 8.

[Sam Morley]

 

Blech. I don't know why people care about it being cheap. For another 2MM a year they could have had a good RP. Why do people care it was cheap?

 

They had a bad bullpen last year, and they are pretty much doubling down on last year's strategy. Cheap old veteran and rule V pick....

Yeah, and in my opinion, what is costly about this is not the money anyway, it's the roster spot. To say that there is no downside to this signing because it was inexpensive is wrong. If you say, "there isn't downside to this deal, because if he fails, he wasn't expensive," I think you fail to see that in addition to the huge downside of the failure itself, the occupation of the roster spot (as opposed to either a better established reliever or a young reliever with potential) is also a downside. 

 

If Rodney is the Twins closer, we will all be tearing our hair out every single time he takes the mound. He will blow saves. Might he get us through the season? Sure, but I don't think he is the guy to lead the Twins bullpen through the playoffs. There are closers available in free agency who could. Are there relievers on our current roster ready to break through into that role? Maybe, but this signing is going to delay finding out.

[Mike Sixel]

 

I do remember how upset not signing any of these guys made all of us.

 

Good data that you either have to go big on an elite reliever, take a risk on a guy coming off an injury, or fill in multiple pieces like Rodney and hope some stick.

 

I still think that by August Fernando Romero will be the best reliever on the team, with the possibility of Pineda coming back too.

 

I also remember many saying signing old, not good, players, and relying on the guys they had wouldn't fix the bullpen, and it didn't. People love to point out how not signing FAs is great, but rarely look at how well relying only on internal options works, or doesn't.

[TheMatt]

I'd rather have 6 years of Burdi than 1 of Rodney

 

[Thrylos]

 

To be clear, signing a guy coming off tommy john, that won't pitch this year maybe=good.

 

Referring to Otani and the Angels? 

[ppearson50]

I guess we can be proud of this. 

@MikeBerardino

With Rodney agreement, #mntwins maintain their remarkable feat of never signing an outside free agent reliever to a multi-year guarantee. EVER.

 

 

[nicksaviking]

I also remember many saying signing old, not good, players, and relying on the guys they had wouldn't fix the bullpen, and it didn't. People love to point out how not signing FAs is great, but rarely look at how well relying only on internal options works, or doesn't.

Aren't signing old guys and relying on the guys they have two different approaches?

 

I agree, signing old guys isn't a great idea, but last year once the dumped the old guys, the young guys they already had pitched pretty well.

[KirbyDome89]

I understand the volatility of relief pitching. It's one of the reasons I'm hoping the Twins eventually start using their bullpen as a feeder for young arms looking to join the starting rotation. 

 

That said, I've seen this signing called low risk, and I agree that it is. If Rodney implodes at 41 years old the $6M owed isn't going to sink the Twins. If we're shrugging off losing $6M this season why does a reliever going belly up in year 2 of a $15M deal become an issue? 

 

If the point is having no confidence in a reliever returning value to start a multi year deal then perhaps the issue is signing relief help at all and not so much the number of years committed. 

[jorgenswest]

It becomes an issue when they go belly up year 1.

[SwainZag]

 

I understand the volatility of relief pitching. It's one of the reasons I'm hoping the Twins eventually start using their bullpen as a feeder for young arms looking to join the starting rotation. 

 

That said, I've seen this signing called low risk, and I agree that it is. If Rodney implodes at 41 years old the $6M owed isn't going to sink the Twins. If we're shrugging off losing $6M this season why does a reliever going belly up in year 2 of a $15M deal become an issue? 

 

If the point is having no confidence in a reliever returning value to start a multi year deal then perhaps the issue is signing relief help at all and not so much the number of years committed. 

 

Plus the deal is only for $4.5M. If Rodney ends up getting the $6, he hit incentives, which means he was probably at least semi-valuable this year. 

[MidwestTwinsFan15]

Great value signing for a veteran bullpen arm with loads of experience and success. He isn't the prettiest at getting the job done, but gets saves regardless. Not much downside here. Contracts for relief pitching are sky rocketing. This provides the organization plenty of financial flexibility to get the front-line starter they covet. I'm also expecting a trade here soon.

[KirbyDome89]

 

Plus the deal is only for $4.5M. If Rodney ends up getting the $6, he hit incentives, which means he was probably at least semi-valuable this year. 

"very attainable," incentives suggests to me they're likely more usage/durability based. Unless he melts down to start the season Rodney will likely be able to hold on long enough in this bullpen to reach the necessary checkpoints. 

[Mike Sixel]

 

Aren't signing old guys and relying on the guys they have two different approaches?

I agree, signing old guys isn't a great idea, but last year once the dumped the old guys, the young guys they already had pitched pretty well.

 

No, they signed old players last year, to flyers, and also relied on teh guys they had, plus they added a bad rule V pick. This is deja vu.