Jordan Balazovic Ends Season on a High Note

Will the Twins really carry Balazovic on the 40 man roster all winter? My guess is yes, just because the plan requires a few minor league pitchers to graduate to the Twins each year. It's a gamble that now seems more likely to fail in Balazovic's case.

I never thought of Balazovic as a top of the rotation SP prospect. He'll eventually work himself up the ladder to compete for 5th starter next year along with a crowded group of Ober, Winder, Varland, Sands & SWR (IDK where Dobnak & Smeltzer will fall). I'm not really optimistic if he'd be anything more than middle rotation for us.

Really liked what I saw while watching a lot of MiLB games a year ago.  Saw most/all of his starts when he had that 25 or 30 inning stretch of shutout ball.  Also saw a few games after that when he wasn't as good.  Seems like a hard kid to figure out.  He can be lights out for a game or two or month, then really stink it up for awhile.

Gotta believe the Twins remain high on him, especially seeing he had several solid outings in September.  What does the future hold?  Only Balazovic knows.

The Twins will have to keep Balazovic on the 40-man, otherwise they will outright lose him. Can they afford to keep him on the 40-man is the bigger question.

I think that a AFL stint this year could've cleared up some doubt and started '23 season with more clarity. His stock is super low so we can't trade him & I'd hate to lose him to the Rule 5 draft. There'll be some tough decisions again this winter.

31 minutes ago, Doctor Gast said:

His stock is super low so we can't trade him & I'd hate to lose him to the Rule 5 draft.

It's worse than that. He's on the 40 man and would have to be DFA'd. Therefore, another team can nab him for free. No requirement to keep him on the MLB roster like there is with the Rule 5 draftees.

2 minutes ago, FlyingFinn said:

It's worse than that. He's on the 40 man and would have to be DFA'd. Therefore, another team can nab him for free. No requirement to keep him on the MLB roster like there is with the Rule 5 draftees.

You're so right!

I just really, really, really want a pitcher with the nickname "Jordy Blaze" to have a successful career here. It takes too much hope to be a Twins fan these days, but I've still got some left in the tank for both Martin and Balazovic.

No question he's a keeper. Too talented for anyone to give up on after a bad year. He's got a great frame, velocity and some solid secondaries. His 2021 was solid, but a mixed bag. He was dominate at times, pretty average at times, but had a decent year overall. A few bumps in the road, especially if he's working on things or trying something different, aren't unexpected.

I was thinking his early setback in 2022 was a knee. The bad back makes more sense. He started late, may have been stiff, hard to know, and I've been of the belief that his mechanics were just really screwed up. If he was actually still injured, he would have been put on the IL. I've said before and say again, I think his biggest problem was between the ears. Mechanics are out of whack, you fight to get them right, all the while you're frustrated because nothing seems to work right.

But no question 2023 will be big for his future. He's talented enough and young enough a little time at St Paul won't be a bad thing. But we do need to see the Jordy Blaze of old and maybe some ML time, even at the end of the year, to see that he's still got the future envisioned for him.

JB has some decent movement and a good arm. He totally lacks command and control and often looked unstable in his approach to pitching. He is quite raw, which seems surprising after several years of minor league ball. The Twins are likely to keep him on the 40 person roster because they may be afraid of a black eye if another organization polishes JB up and has him gain success in MLB.

You've got to hold onto him. He had some very strong stretches. I'd cut a young, reasonably talented pitcher a break for not performing with a bad back. Surely there's a spot on the 40 considering how many bullpen arms should be jettisoned. 

Wait…so in his best stretch he still gave up a 247/.330/.469 (.799) batting line and that’s encouraging? He gives up far too many walks at this point. Kid has talent but I’m always highly skeptical of control-issue guys because it rarely improves significantly going from AAA to MLB. 

Saw him pitch in Cedar Rapids and he looked downright nasty at times.  Saw him in St. Paul in July of this year and he was atrocious.  That being said, he seemed to figure some things out at the end of the season.  I'd lean toward keeping him on the 40 man because of his upside.

Never give up on a prospect until you try them in the bull pen. Focus on max effort and top 2 pitches. 

I sure am glad I don't have to make a decision on him. The man threw only 5 innings twice this year, both happened in September. In 21 starts he never hit the 80 pitch mark. His stats for this year are dismal. https://www.baseball-reference.com/register/player.fcgi?id=balazo000jor. Still very young but being young doesn't make you a pitcher. I would try to move him before his so called potential disappears totally.

6 hours ago, awmonahan said:

You've got to hold onto him. He had some very strong stretches. I'd cut a young, reasonably talented pitcher a break for not performing with a bad back. Surely there's a spot on the 40 considering how many bullpen arms should be jettisoned. 

You pretty much can live without Stashak, Coulombe, Pagan, Megill - all on the 40-man. And Fulmer will leave. I would think all but Pagan could come back on a minor league contract if you truly wish to keep them. 

You have to keep him on the 40 man just to see what’s on the other side but he’s way more of a suspect than prospect at this point.