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Needing catching help after Ryan Jeffers found himself on the injured list due to a fractured thumb, the Minnesota Twins had a new addition to their shopping list. Trading within the division, they got a partner for Gary Sanchez in the form of veteran Sandy Leon. It’s often thought that teams don’t match up with foes from within the division, especially considering how closely the Cleveland Guardians are in contention with the Minnesota Twins. Sandy Leon has been at Triple-A for the majority of this season, however, playing just eight games at the Major League level. An 11-year veteran, Leon is a light hitting backstop owning just a .595 career OPS. He hasn’t batted above the Mendoza Line since 2017 with the Boston Red Sox, but he’s been a capable defender behind the dish. Given the inexperience brought with Caleb Hamilton, and Sanchez’s inability to control the position defensively, this is a move that acts as an insurance policy until the return of Jeffers. In acquiring Leon, Minnesota decided to part with minor league reliever Ian Hamilton. Signed in 2021 after spending time with the Chicago White Sox, Hamilton is a hard thrower that’s struggled with command and worked to build his way back following a serious car accident in 2019. Hamilton has posted a very strong 1.88 ERA at Triple-A this year, but it’s turned into just 2 2/3 innings of opportunity at the highest level. Given Hamilton’s 11.3 K/9 and 2.5 BB/9, it seemed he could be someone that Minnesota may opt to select at some point down the stretch. Knowing the Twins bullpen needs help, Hamilton has shown flashes that probably could’ve been explored. Still, trading for another need in-depth behind the plate, this is the type of low-risk move that gets it done. There’s still just about an hour until the 2022 Major League Baseball trade deadline passes, and it remains to be seen if Minnesota is done for the day. Adding three pieces across three separate trades, the front office has put in some substantial work to supplement a group leading the American League Central division. View full article

Minnesota traveled to Toronto on Thursday night. Several players were unable to enter Canada because of their vaccination status. So, what players can’t make the trip, and who is expected to join the team? This season, Minnesota only makes one trip to Toronto unless the Twins and Blue Jays meet in the playoffs. Thankfully, Major League Baseball adjusts its roster rules for situations like those facing the Twins this weekend. Players not on the 40-man roster can be added for the Toronto series to take the place of non-vaccinated players. Minnesota placed Max Kepler, Caleb Thielbar, Emilio Pagán, and Trevor Megill on the restricted list ahead of this series against the Blue Jays. They did not travel to Toronto with the team. Kepler has touted the Twins clubhouse atmosphere this year as being one of the reasons for his offensive reemergence. There was also an easy way for everyone to be together on this trip if he decided to meet Canada's vaccination requirement. Pagán also released a statement in regards to not being with the team. Here is a comment from Caleb Thielbar: Here are the players expected to take their place. Chi Chi Gonzalez, SP Chi Chi Gonzalez is expected to start Friday’s game in Toronto. Minnesota signed him this winter to add organizational depth, and he has pitched at St. Paul this entire season. In eight games (five starts), he has posted a 3.44 ERA with a 1.26 WHIP and a 35-to-14 strikeout to walk ratio. Gonzalez came to the Twins from the Rockies organization, where he pitched over 100 big-league innings last season with a 6.46 ERA and a 1.53 WHIP. Luckily, Toronto’s lineup is full of right-handed hitters as righties have an OPS that is 114 points lower against Gonzalez this season. Ian Hamilton, RP Minnesota claimed Ian Hamilton off of waivers in February of 2021, and he pitched all of last season in St. Paul. During the 2021 season, he posted a 4.12 ERA with a 1.44 WHIP, but his 13.1 K/9 was undoubtedly a bright spot. So far in 2022, Hamilton has been terrific as he has only allowed one earned run in 10 appearances, and he has struck out 17 batters in 12 2/3 innings. Multiple pitchers were part of the unvaccinated group that was ineligible to travel to Toronto, so Hamilton gets an opportunity to prove he belongs back at the big-league level. Mark Contreras, OF Mark Contreras was on the team's taxi squad for this road trip, so he can be an easy addition to the roster. He made his big-league debut with the Twins earlier this season, but he was limited to two games and three plate appearances. Minnesota drafted Contreras in the 9th round of the 2017 MLB Draft from the University of California, Riverside. He spent his first four minor league seasons moving steadily through the Twins system with a .717 OPS and 141 extra-base hits in 411 games. At 27-years old, he has been older than the average age of the competition at each level in the minors. His first taste of the big leagues was very brief, so it is an excellent opportunity for him to step in and get a more extended look. Jharel Cotton, RP The Twins claimed Jharel Cotton off of waivers from the Texas Rangers this winter. He made four big-league appearances in April and allowed one earned run in 6 2/3 innings with a 7-to-6 strikeout to walk ratio. Minnesota designated him for assignment, and he cleared waivers before accepting his outright assignment to Triple-A. For the Saints, he has made ten appearances and allowed four earned runs on ten hits. His walk rate (3.9 BB/9) and strikeout rate (13.9 K/9) have improved in the minors. Cotton hasn't appeared in a game since May 31, so his arm should be fresh enough to make multiple appearances this weekend if he is needed. View full article

The Twins have an increasing number of intriguing options to help their major-league bullpen in 2022. Here are three names you need to know for next season. Understandably, much of the early off-season Twins conjecture has surrounded trades and free-agent additions the Twins can make to boost their beleaguered pitching staff. The promotion of Jovani Moran and his dynamic changeup is indicative of another direction the organization will have to succeed at if they are to compete in 2022, promoting from within. Twins fans have bemoaned the organization's poor returns on developing its own pitching for as long as I can remember. 2022 will be the year that narrative begins to change. It’s well known that the Twins have a stable (sorry PETA) of young arms in AA and above, with Josh Winder, Jhoan Duran, Cole Sands, Chris Vallimont, Jordan Balazovic approaching major league consideration. What about bullpen options? Here are three names Twins fans should be familiar with who will likely feature in the major league bullpen during the 2022 season. Ian Hamilton Ian Hamilton is perhaps the best known of the trio to Twins fans. A former White Sox top prospect, Hamilton has made a remarkable recovery from a minor car accident and being struck in the face by a batted ball in 2019. Hamilton struck out 33.5% of hitters he faced in 2021 (13.1 K/9) and has enough velocity to be a high-leverage arm. Control was Hamilton’s issue in 2021, with a 15.2% BB%. Hamilton spoke of the challenges of regaining confidence in his mechanics after his injuries. If he can return to the type of command he showed in the 2018 season 5.1% BB%, he could be a huge boon to the Twins bullpen in 2022. Ryan Mason Conversely, Ryan Mason is the name on this list least well known by Twins fans. It’s time to pay attention. Mason was drafted in the 13th round of the 2016 draft out of UC-Berkley. The 6’6 California native was promoted to the Saints at the end of July, after impressing at AA Wichita. Mason combined for 54 innings across two minor-league levels with the Twins and got better when he was promoted to St. Paul. He struck out 29.4% of the batters he faced at AAA (12.1 K/9) and managed a 3.47 FIP. Similarly to Hamilton, it’s control that will be a decisive factor for Mason. At AAA in 2021, he walked 11.8% of hitters (4.8 BB/9). Also like Hamilton, he has a history of good control prior to a pandemic-lost 2020 season (1.6 BB/9 in 92 2/3 innings between 2018-2019). Mason is another MLB-caliber arm to watch out for in 2022. Yennier Cano Cano is an unusual bullpen prospect. The 27-year-old out of Cuba throws in the mid-to-upper 90s and offers a fastball, slider, splitter combination which he executed to great effect in St. Paul in 2021. Cano’s ascent through the Twins MiLB ranks is impressive. He has moved from Rookie ball to AAA in just two seasons, with a season off in-between due to the pandemic. Cano struck out 25.7% of hitters he faced in 51 AAA innings (10.2 K/9). Cano struggled with his control at AAA with a 12.8% BB%, compared to just 6.2% at AA. Similar to Hamilton and Mason, Cano has shown the stuff and performance to be a high-leverage arm, if he can arrive at a greater level of consistency. These three internal options for the Twins bullpen have striking similarities. Excellent arms, excellent stuff, and a need to develop more consistent control. Whether that need arose through injury, or simply missed development time, it’s critical the Twins begin to show the type of success developing their own relievers as many have predicted for their starters in forthcoming seasons. While there is work to be done for all three, make no mistake. Help for the major-league arm barn is on the way from St. Paul. View full article

No Minnesota Twins game today but I wanted to look back at Joe Ryan's 14 swinging strikes from his Major League debut. Also featured today are Jose Miranda, Ian Hamilton, Cole Sands, Yunior Severino and Michael Helman. View full video

It’s easy to feel hopeless about the Twins pitching staff and bullpen in particular after such an abysmal 2021. There may be help on the way, however. A trio of arms in St. Paul just might be worth holding out hope for 2022. Some possible solutions to the rotation were found with the return from the Nelson Cruz trade on Thursday. Still, the front office has their work cut out for them to improve the pitching staff as a whole. More trades are surely on the way and a fair share of the available payroll will likely be spent on arms. There are three relievers at AAA however who we may see by season’s end that could put a massive patch in the sinking ship that is this pitching staff. Ian Hamilton Nick summarized just about every reason to have hope for Hamilton in one tweet. Hamilton was drafted in the 11th round in 2016 and quickly proved to be an exciting up and coming bullpen arm in the White Sox system. Unfortunately Hamilton’s career was thrown off course by two freak accidents. He struggled thereafter and eventually bounce around waiver claims before the Twins claimed him (and then successfully DFAd him) this spring. Hamilton has spent the entire season in St. Paul which is by no means an indicator of his effectiveness. Instead, it almost seems like the Twins are developing the 26-year-old as if he was a prospect as he weathers his first full season of professional baseball since 2018. This plan appears to have paid dividends, as Hamilton has posted a 34% K rate with a 0.58 HR/9 so far and has sorted out his early season walk issues. He should get a chance by season’s end to showcase his high 90s fastball at Target Field in an attempt to earn a place for 2022. Yennier Cano Signed in 2019 as an international free agent out of Cuba, Cano is a bit different than most prospects in the Twins top 30 as he’s 27 years old. Cano has moved a bit more slowly through the system than expected when he was signed, but he appears to be on the precipice of the Major Leagues after debuting at AA ball this year and getting called up to St. Paul a few weeks ago. Cano got hit around a bit in his AAA debut allowing three Earned Runs in 1 2/3 innings. He’s settled down since then, dropping his ERA to 4.50 with a 3.05 FIP. He’s struck out 28.4% of the hitters he’s faced. He has a pitch mix that profiles extremely well with a mid 90s fastball to go with a great slider and a splitter to equalize left-handed hitters. It’s honestly a bit surprising that Cano hasn’t received The Call already, but it’s easy to foresee him in Minneapolis very soon. Jovani Moran Moran was Cano’s partner in crime when it came to terrorizing opposing lineups out of the AA bullpen to start the year. Moran has long had the reputation of having nasty stuff but has struggled with control thus far in his career. After having 14% walk rates at both levels in 2019, it was encouraging even to see those numbers drop to 10% at AA to start the season. Moran is a left-handed pitcher with a low-to-mid 90s fastball, but his changeup is likely one of the best the Twins system has seen since Johan Santana as Lucas points out (tweet above). The pitch allows him not only to avoid big lefty/righty splits, but is also his go-to weapon for swings and misses. He seems to have the right idea, as he’s struck out 46% of AA hitters and 44.4% of AAA hitters thus far. His late arrival to AAA makes him a bit more questionable to debut with the Twins this season, but it’s certainly a possibility depending on how the trade deadline shakes out. Skepticism is warranted after this season, but it’s been a long time since the Twins in particular have developed arms with such high octane, can’t miss stuff. While far from a sure thing, we should get a look at at least a few of them this year. At the very least it’s a bit of excitement in what will be an inconsequential finish to 2021. At best, we just might get a glimpse into a more effective stable of arms for 2022. — Latest Twins coverage from our writers — Recent Twins discussion in our forums — Follow Twins Daily via Twitter, Facebook or email — Follow Cody Pirkl on Twitter here View full article

A selloff is coming for the 2021 Minnesota Twins, and that's in large part because they've been a bad baseball team. To capitalize on being interesting down the stretch, there's some names that belong on the bump. Rocco Baldelli came into this season expecting to compete for a third straight division title. Between injuries and ineffectiveness, that reality isn’t going to play out. The second half now should be about evaluation for Minnesota. As 40-man and 26-man roster spots open up, it will be imperative for the Twins to look at fresh faces and see what they have. On the pitching side, here are some names to consider: Before individual deep dives, I think the trio of Josh Winder, Jordan Balazovic, and Cole Sands all fit here. Winder needs to debut, having already made his way to Triple-A. I can understand not starting the clock on Balazovic and Sands missed time due to injury. Of the names in this article, though, these are all the premier prospect types. There's also the recent call ups and guys with little time that need extended run. Throw Bailey Ober, Griffin Jax, and now Charlie Barnes into this category. Randy Dobnak and Lewis Thorpe (when healthy) would join them as well. Beau Burrows A former first-round pick and solid prospect for the Tigers, Burrows is now a reclamation project for the Twins. He was blown up in his Major League debut, and he was awful at Triple-A Toledo. Still just 24, Burrows is the exact type of prospect a team like the Twins should be taking a flier on. Strikeouts haven’t ever followed him in large quantities, but a new development infrastructure could bear fruit. He’ll need to accumulate a more substantial sample size at Triple-A St. Paul before getting a call but putting him out there with a tweaked repertoire may make for an interesting acquisition. Yennier Cano Signed by Minnesota back in 2019, Cano is now 27 and not a prospect. He was slow-played but has finally made his way to Triple-A St. Paul. The stuff has been legit at each professional level, and he’s currently rocking a 2.37 ERA across 30 1/3 innings between Double and Triple-A this season. With a 12.5 K/9 and just a 3.3 BB/9, that’s shaping up like an arm both Wes Johnson and Rocco Baldelli could utilize in relief. There’s not much reason to continue holding him back at this point, and Cano could resemble a late-blooming pen arm. Ian Hamilton Having been through injury, a car accident, and many hurdles halting his big league career, Hamilton is one of the few waiver claims from this winter that hasn’t shown up in Minnesota. He owns a 1.08 ERA across 25 innings for the Saints, but it comes with a gaudy 18 walks. The strikeouts are there (35), and he’s allowed just three homers which have helped limit the damage. With a high-velocity fastball, this is an arm the Twins need to take a look at before allowing him a new landing spot in 2022. Hector Lujan A 35th round pick back in 2016, Lujan has earned every single opportunity he’s been provided in pro ball. Now at Double-A Wichita, the 26-year-old owns a 2.49 ERA in 25 1/3 innings. His strikeout numbers are modest by today’s standards, but he’s been tremendous at limiting free passes (1.8 career BB/9). He pitched at Double-A back in 2019 and should already be getting run for the Saints. Maybe there isn’t a ton of upside here, but there’s also a seemingly safe floor that could factor in as a nice middle relief piece. Ryan Mason Picked in the 13th round of the 2016 draft, Mason has consistently climbed the ladder for the Twins. He’s at Double-A now and has compiled a 2.67 ERA in 30 1/3 innings. It’s been time for a promotion to Triple-A, and the 4.2 BB/9 in 2021 is uncharacteristic for a guy with a 1.9 BB/9 career mark. He gets his strikeouts, and Mason has never had an ERA north of 2.77 as a reliever. He’ll be 27 in 2022 and is already well above the average age of his current level. You’re probably not getting a high leverage guy here, but there’s no reason Mason can’t be seen as a middle innings gap guy. Jovani Moran Drafted out of school in Puerto Rico back in 2015, Moran is now 24 and playing at Double-A Wichita. It’s his second turn through the level, and he’s been dominant with a 1.91 ERA across 37 2/3 innings. He’s striking out over 15 batters per nine, and the career 4.1 BB/9 is workable in relief. Moran should get a bump to Triple-A in short order, and with some final tweaks, it could be a nice success story through a longer progression for the Twins. Chris Vallimont Minnesota acquired Vallimont alongside Sergio Romo back in 2019. He was a former 5th round draft pick and is now 24 at Double-A. The strikeout stuff has always been good, and while the walks are higher than you’d like for a starter, he’s done well to avoid damage. Vallimont owns a 3.96 ERA for Wichita this year, and despite throwing less than 40 innings, a promotion to Triple-A could make sense soon. Maybe he debuts in the bullpen for Minnesota, but I think this is an arm you’d like to see get some big-league run. MORE FROM TWINS DAILY — Latest Twins coverage from our writers — Recent Twins discussion in our forums — Follow Twins Daily via Twitter, Facebook or email View full article

The Minnesota Twins continued their early-February flurry of activity on Friday, when they claimed right-handed pitcher Ian Hamilton off waivers from the Phillies. Learn a little more about the newly acquired arm below.An 11th-round pick of the Chicago White Sox in 2016, Hamilton changed teams via waiver claim twice last year, first being picked up by the Mariners in September and then by Philadelphia in December. The Phillies waived him last week to make room on their 40-man roster for free agent catcher J.T. Realmuto. At 6-foot-1 and 200 lbs, the 25-year-old Hamilton has worked exclusively as a reliever since joining the pro ranks. He has posted a 4.50 ERA and 9-to-7 K/BB ratio over 12 major-league innings, but his numbers in the minors are much better 3.24 ERA, 1.14 WHIP, 9.7 K/9, 2.6 BB/9, with only 10 home runs allowed in 172 innings. He's got a big fastball that reaches the high 90s, and (you guessed it) a good slider, which averaged 89 MPH last season. The Twins' 40-man roster is full (pending the yet-to-be-finalized signings of Nelson Cruz and Alex Colomé), so a corresponding move will need to be made. Check back soon for more details on that and on the Twins' new relief pitcher. In the meantime, let's here your thoughts on yet another addition this week for your Minnesota Twins. MORE FROM TWINS DAILY — Latest Twins coverage from our writers — Recent Twins discussion in our forums — Follow Twins Daily via Twitter, Facebook or email Click here to view the article