The Twins acquired right-hander Tyler Mahle from the Cincinnati Reds for three prospects including Spencer Steer at the trade deadline. He made three starts for the Twins, went on the IL, came back, pitched two more innings and is back on the IL.
About a week after the trade deadline, right-hander Louie Varland was promoted to Triple-A St. Paul. And just one month (and four Triple-A starts) later, Varland is taking over Mahle’s spot in the big-league rotation.
While we had heard the news 3-4 hours earlier, Patrick Reusse was the first to announce the news.
Amateur Days
Louie Varland was born and raised in St. Paul. No need to mention that Hall of Famers Dave Winfield, Paul Molitor and Jack Morris grew up in St. Paul, as did soon-to-be Hall of Famer Joe Mauer.
He went to high school at North St. Paul where he was also a star on the wrestling mat. As his high school days were winding down, he was considering several schools. His older brother Gus Varland was pitching in his freshman season at Concordia University in St. Paul, but Louie kind of wanted to get away from his brother’s spotlight.
Ultimately, Louie joined Gus and the two pitched very well under the tutelage of legendary coach Mark “Lunch” McKenzie. As a freshman in 2017, he pitched in eight games. That summer, he played for Utica in the Perfect Game College League. As a sophomore, he went 5-1 with a 1.41 ERA over nine games (6 starts) and 44 2/3 innings. That summer, he played for Willmar in the Northwoods League.
That was a great summer for the Varland family as Gus was drafted in the 14th round by the Oakland A’s.
In 2019, Louie’s junior season, he went 4-5 with a 3.58 ERA over nine starts. In 55 1/3 innings, he walked 14 and struck out 68 batters.
In June, his hometown team, the Twins, selected him in the 15th round of the draft. He signed and pitched in three games at Elizabethton before being shut down with some shoulder discomfort. The pitcher development staff really worked with him in the offseason and throughout the lost Covid season of 2020 on some mechanical things designed not only to keep his arm in a better position but also to increase velocity. It worked. As he was preparing for spring training in February of 2021, he hit 100.2 mph. Wade Varland, Gus and Louie’s father, told @Parker Hageman, “It was like I won gold in the Olympics”
That 2021 Season
Even with the 100 mph milestone reached off a practice mound was exciting, no one was sure what to expect from Louie Varland as the 2021 season approached.
We discussed it on a Twins Spotlight show in early January of 2021.
He began the season with the Ft. Myers Mighty Mussels. He pitched in 10 games (8 starts) and went 4-2 with a 2.09 ERA. In 47 1/3 innings, he walked just 16 and struck out 76 batters (14.5 K/9). He was promoted to Cedar Rapids and performed equally well. In 10 starts, he went 6-2 with a 2.10 ERA. In 55 2/3 innings, he walked 14 batters and struck out 66. In 103 total innings, that is 142 strikeouts (12.4 K/9).
Following the season, he was named the Twins Minor League Pitcher of the Year, as well as the Twins Daily Starting Pitcher of the Year.
Following the season, I had the opportunity to put both Varland brothers under the prospect spotlight.
The 2022 Season
While his prospect status was certainly significantly higher, there were still question marks regarding his game. It’s a well-known thought that a lot of times, college pitcher draft picks meet their biggest struggles when they get to the Double-A level. In addition, while he did a great in the lower levels in 2021, he was primarily known as a two-pitch pitcher (fastball, slider). His change-up needed to continue to progress, but he also said that the Twins wanted him to add more horizontal movement to his slider as well.
I’m not a pitching guru, so I won’t speak to whether or not his slider has more break, or how consistent the Twins pitching coaches would say that his changeup has become. But we can look at the numbers.
At Double-A Wichita this year, he went 7-4 with a 3.34 ERA in 20 games (19 starts). In 105 innings, he walked 39 and struck out 119 (10.2 K/9).
In his time with the Wind Surge, there were several matchups between Tulsa and Wichita. The two made history in starting opposite each other in what was a lot of fun for their family and friends.
In his four starts at Triple-A St. Paul, he is 1-1 with a 1.69 ERA. In 21 1/3 innings, he has 27 strikeouts and just three walks. Varland tossed five no-hit innings in his Saints debut and then left to a standing ovation at CHS Field.
The Twins could have gone safe and returned Aaron Sanchez to the starting rotation. He had pitched fine in limited time with the Twins. They could have selected Ronny Henriquez or Simeon Woods Richards, or Louie Varland.
On Monday, Twins manager Rocco Baldelli said regarding having a starter make his debut on Wednesday, “That wouldn't bother me one bit to pitch [a rookie]. We’re going to pitch whoever we think the best pitcher is for that spot on that day. And I mean, hypothetically, I would never hesitate to put a young pitcher on the mound and just let him go do his job.”
That day will be Wednesday at Yankees Stadium for Louie Varland. He is set to make his MLB debut against Aaron Judge and the Yankees.
Louie Varland is the Twins #12 prospect currently at Twins Daily.
Check out the dozens of articles and videos that Varland has been tagged in on Twins Daily over his time with the Twins. He has been fantastic for Twins Daily, doing several Q&As, interviews and more, so there is a ton of great content. And because of that, we congratulate him and his family and wish him the best going forward.
And Gus Varland is currently at Triple-A Oklahoma City, hoping he soon gets the same call.
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