Your Twins' Relief Pitcher Prospects

[Cody Christie]

Minnesota’s current front office regime has tended to rely on internal options to bolster the bullpen. Will any of these prospects join the big-league squad as relievers in 2023?

Image courtesy of Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

In recent years, the front office has shied away from investing in bullpen options. Joe Smith was the team’s lone free agent signing last winter, and he wasn’t on the club by the season’s end. Minnesota also traded away Taylor Rogers on the eve of Opening Day for Emilio Pagan and Chris Paddack. Jhoan Duran became the team’s top reliever after being a former top prospect. Can any of these players follow in Duran’s footsteps in 2023?

Triple-A: Ronny Henriquez (ETA: 2022), Austin Schulfer (ETA: 2023), Evan Sisk (ETA: 2023)  
Henriquez made his big-league debut in 2022 as a reliever, but the club may still utilize him as a starter in 2023. He split time between both roles at Triple-A last season, and all his big-league innings came as a reliever. As a 22-year-old, there is still time for development, and the Twins hope he can continue to stick as a starter. 

Schulfer dominated Double-A last season before running into some trouble at Triple-A. He only allowed one earned run in 15 appearances before his promotion. In a six-game span at Triple-A, he allowed nine earned runs and a .982 OPS in 6 2/3 innings to inflate his overall numbers. The 26-year-old struck out nearly ten batters per nine innings for the season and had a 1.04 WHIP. 

Sisk was one of the most successful left-handed pitchers in the Twins organization last season. The 25-year-old made 50 appearances between Double- and Triple-A with a 1.57 ERA and a 1.02 WHIP. He posted a 10.9 K/9 and held lefties to a .286 OPS in over 106 at-bats. Surprisingly, he didn’t get an opportunity during the 2022 season, but he should fit into the team’s plans during 2023. 

Double-A: Denny Bentley (ETA: 2023),  Steven Cruz (ETA: 2024), Osiris German (ETA: 2024), Francis Peguero (ETA: 2024)
Bentley spent time at High- and Double-A last season while posting a 3.56 ERA and a 1.37 WHIP. He struck out nearly 12 batters per nine innings, so the Twins sent him to the AFL to build off his solid season. Unfortunately, the AFL is a very hitter-friendly environment, and Bentley has struggled with command. The 24-year-old has walked 14 batters in 11 1/3 innings, but it is a small sample size. 

Cruz (23yo) and German (24yo) were a year and a half younger than the competition at Double-A this season, and both were given the opportunity to pitch in late-inning situations. In his final 34 appearances (50 innings), Cruz had a 3.35 ERA and 51 strikeouts while holding batters to a .680 OPS. German posted a 3.02 ERA with 9.9 K/9 in 43 appearances. Both players should get more time at Double-A before moving up the ladder. 

Minnesota acquired Peguero from the Reds as part of the Sonny Gray trade. Injuries limited him to 17 appearances at Double-A in 2022, so the team sent him to the AFL. In 11 innings, he has posted a 2.45 ERA with a 1.64 WHIP and 7.4 K/9. 

High-A: Hunter McMahon (ETA: 2024)
Minnesota acquired McMahon back in 2020 from the Nationals for Ryne Harper. As a 24-year-old, he broke out and pitched at three different levels last season. He pitched 70 innings (39 appearances), between Low- and High-A, with a 1.67 ERA with batters hitting .171/.219/.296 (.515) against him. He struggled in a brief taste of Double-A by allowing multiple earned runs in three of his four appearances. To be even more successful, McMahon needs to see his strikeout totals continue to improve. 

Obviously, there are plenty of relievers throughout the Twins system that aren’t mentioned above. Other starting pitching prospects might shift to bullpen roles if they can’t improve as starters. Some of the best relievers in franchise history (Joe Nathan, Glen Perkins, Taylor Rogers ) were failed starters that shifted to the bullpen and found their eventual ticket to the big leagues. Duran was used primarily as a starter throughout his professional career before dominating as a reliever last season. 

Overall, it can be tough to project an organization’s depth at reliever, especially as the role of the pitcher continues to evolve. How many of these relievers will get an opportunity in 2023? Leave a COMMENT and start the discussion. 

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[mikelink45]

You have three slated for 2023.  How confident are you that they will stick?  Henriquez is on the club now unless someone beats him out in ST.  Schulfer did not handle the AAA promotion well so maybe he needs another year to 2024.  Bentley does not look that good.  If he is going to make the Twins a hitter friendly AFL would have been a good proving grounds. I see only Sisk and Henriquez in the 2023 BP at some point. 

[beckmt]

I see Henriquez making the club, Someone has to pitch multiple innings when the starter departs early.  You will probably need 2 of these.  

I can see Sisk at some point in time, he has little left to prove in AAA.

 

Rest are later.

[PDX Twin]

I'd be looking at starters rather than minor-league relievers.

I don't know all the details, but most of the key recent internal relief stars that I remember were starters in the minors and even in the majors to begin with: Rogers, Duffey, May, Nathan (with Giants), Duran, Perkins, etc. The minor-league relief aces were either never given a chance or didn't do especially well: Burdi, Chargois, and few others that I remember TD posters begging to see in Minneapolis.

[TwinsDr2021]

Could the guys in double A be any older? Hopefully they throw 95+

[Brandon]

Sisk looks like a LOOGY based on the video.  A lefty submariner who probably doesn’t throw too hard.  Righty’s will tee-off him in the majors.  Since I have no expectations for any of these relievers except for maybe Henriquez since he got innings as a starter.  Anything else is a bonus.  Even a reliever brought up that throws 5-10 effective innings.  

[ashbury]

40 minutes ago, Brandon said:

Sisk looks like a LOOGY based on the video.  A lefty submariner who probably doesn’t throw too hard.  Righty’s will tee-off him in the majors. 

I've been rooting for him since watching him last year in the Fall League, but sadly concur.  His 2022 lefty-righty splits are off the charts absurd, with an impossible .286 OPS-against versus the lefties, and while a .677 OPS-against when facing right handed hitters isn't monstrously bad, add another .100 for when facing major leaguers and he'll be at best a mild liability.  At least, that's my rule-of-thumb forecast.

Add to that a rather bad walk-rate, and I can see why the FO was averse to calling him up despite a revolving door of other pitchers.

[Rosterman]

Probably looking at Sands and maybe WInder becoming relievers who could start in a double-header pinch, if they can make the major league roster. The joy is both could also be long men.

Canterino might be better suited as a bullpen arm. Be inbteresting to see where he ends up in 2023. (Enlow has to be in the mix somewhere).

Cody Laweryson also looks to be a dominant bullpe arm, sooner than most everyone mentioned above if he gets to start at AAA in 2023. Kody Funderburk is also an interesting minor league arm.

AAA is far different from AA, as is the majors. But the stats of Jovani Moran are so different from AAA and the majors. And then you look at someone as the late aging Twin prospect Yennier Cano (who is over in Baltimore now) who dominated the minors for two seasons but totally bombed in the majors.

All of the player we have mentioned so far will probably egt a chance in the majors, albeit some limited (Schulfer could be the next Ryan Mason, perhaps...or Jordan Gore).

[HerbieFan]

I really would not want to be a LH hitter and face Evan Sisk....

[DJL44]

Blayne Enlow is likely to end up in the bullpen. Heck, Louie Varland might contribute more as a reliever than as a starter before his big league career is over.

[dxpavelka]

10 hours ago, PDX Twin said:

I'd be looking at starters rather than minor-league relievers.

I don't know all the details, but most of the key recent internal relief stars that I remember were starters in the minors and even in the majors to begin with: Rogers, Duffey, May, Nathan (with Giants), Duran, Perkins, etc. The minor-league relief aces were either never given a chance or didn't do especially well: Burdi, Chargois, and few others that I remember TD posters begging to see in Minneapolis.

Don't forget Tyler Jay who was a reliever in college.

[mike8791]

Sorry, if the Twins are going to build a competitive pen, no one on this list should be counted on, at least in 2023.  And if you think the Twins pen is solid as of now, look again.  Aside from Duran(who has one great season), there is not another reliever on the roster who we can count on for the last 3 innings of a close ballgame.  As many have noted, Lopez may or may not be a flash in the pan, and yet he is arguably next in line to Duran.  Jax is way overrated, as evidenced by his low ranking in the all important IRS ranking.  Thielbar pitched well but is by no means a shut-down reliever.  The rest are all mediocre long shots.

Having whiffed badly last season in the FA reliever market, the FO must step up and sign at least two of the top of the 2023 FA reliever class, e.g.,  Suarez/Robertson/Jansen/ Kimbrel if the Twins are going to take a big step up in competitiveness.   Argue who is best going forward, but this is a major hole that must be filled externally.

[Trov]

Relief pitcher, and prospect rarely go together.  Unless there is a worry about injury, very few minor league relief guys make it to majors.  They need to be super dominate, or left handed.  That is why Sisk is the only one as a relief guy I would say is a prospect.  As stated Ronny Henriquez was a stater, and most likely will try to get slated back into that roll, but if he fails to as a starter he could be a decent pen guy, but most of the best pen guys, started in the minors and failed as a starter in majors, or were moved because of worry of injury or lack of pitch mix at majors.  

[Russ]

Interesting that all who were in consideration for relief pitcher of the year who are eligible for the Rule V Draft were not added to the 40 man roster.

[Cornholio]

Of those drafted as relievers, I believe Jesse Crain had the most success. Chargois and John Curtiss are still pitching.