Alex Meyer Moved to Bullpen

[Seth Stohs]

The Red Wings announced this afternoon that Alex Meyer was being removed from the starting rotation.

 

Yesterday, Tyler Duffey was promoted from Chattanooga to the Red Wings which left the team with six starters. 

 

Today, the team announced that 1B/DH Brock Peterson had been released and that Meyer was being moved to the bullpen.

 

At this time, there is no comment on timeline, whether it is short-term or long-term or permanent. That is likely up to Meyer himself.

 

As we've talked about here for the last month, it was time for the team to make a change with Meyer. It will be interesting to see how he responds.

[puckstopper1]

Disappointing, but not a surprise.  Hopefully a stint in the pen will straighten Alex out.

[Old Twins Cap]

Not going to add up if Meyer becomes a bullpen piece, trading Denard Span, who has already posted some great seasons with the Nationals, and continues to tear it up.

 

Unless Meyer becomes the next Dellin Betances. 

 

No guarantees in baseball when it comes to prospects.

[COtwin]

I like this move.  Not for the long term mind you, but it will give hime more chances to work on what is wrong.  Waiting 5 days to go against live opponents can't be as affect as getting in and seeing what works or what doesn't multiple times a week.  Or I could be way wrong.  Just like to see a change for the guy.

[Brandon]

Does Lee move up to AA in a corresponding move as well?

[jokin]

 

  On 5/22/2015 at 8:32 PM, COtwin said:

I like this move.  Not for the long term mind you, but it will give hime more chances to work on what is wrong.  Waiting 5 days to go against live opponents can't be as affect as getting in and seeing what works or what doesn't multiple times a week.  Or I could be way wrong.  Just like to see a change for the guy.

 

Concur, except they should have had him in the major league pen after ST 2014.

[jokin]

 

  On 5/22/2015 at 8:36 PM, Brandon said:

Does Lee move up to AA in a corresponding move as well?

 

Hurlbut has that spot.

[drivlikejehu]

 

  On 5/22/2015 at 8:30 PM, Old Twins Cap said:

Not going to add up if Meyer becomes a bullpen piece, trading Denard Span, who has already posted some great seasons with the Nationals, and continues to tear it up.

 

Unless Meyer becomes the next Dellin Betances. 

 

No guarantees in baseball when it comes to prospects.

 

I was in the tiny minority around here who wasn't crazy about the return for Span. He's a valuable player and the Twins got back one pitcher who can't throw strikes. 

[MileHighTwinsFan]

Not 

 

  On 5/22/2015 at 8:30 PM, Old Twins Cap said:

Not going to add up if Meyer becomes a bullpen piece, trading Denard Span, who has already posted some great seasons with the Nationals, and continues to tear it up.

 

Unless Meyer becomes the next Dellin Betances. 

 

No guarantees in baseball when it comes to prospects.

 

Not too get too far ahead of ourselves - but Wade Davis was traded to KC as a starter, but was moved to the pen.  That seemed to work out OK.  

[Hrbowski]

 

  On 5/22/2015 at 8:30 PM, Old Twins Cap said:

Not going to add up if Meyer becomes a bullpen piece, trading Denard Span, who has already posted some great seasons with the Nationals, and continues to tear it up.

 

Unless Meyer becomes the next Dellin Betances. 

 

No guarantees in baseball when it comes to prospects.

Span would not have stuck around on the team, and the next best offer we got was J.R. Graham, and we now have both, so it isn't like we did awful in the trade, plus we have a lot of outfield depth in the minors.

[Willihammer]

Can't think about making good on the trade IMO. Just do best by Meyer who has made it clearer with every start for the past year that he can't hold a rotation spot. Oh and the big league club could use bullpen help, so there's that.

[Hrbowski]

I was just thinking that they should move him to the bullpen for a brief sting, get him going, call him up to the big league club to get that off his back, and then send him back down to the Red Wings rotation. I think that might get him going.

[HitInAPinch]

 

  On 5/22/2015 at 8:30 PM, Old Twins Cap said:

Not going to add up if Meyer becomes a bullpen piece, trading Denard Span, who has already posted some great seasons with the Nationals, and continues to tear it up.

 

Unless Meyer becomes the next Dellin Betances. 

 

No guarantees in baseball when it comes to prospects.

 

I've watched Betances on TV a few times.  Meyer will never be a Dellin Betances.

[Hrbowski]

 

  On 5/22/2015 at 8:43 PM, HitInAPinch said:

I've watched Betances on TV a few times.  Meyer will never be a Dellin Betances.

You can not say that. How much have you seen Meyer? You can't say that just from seeing someone a few times, when you evaluate pitchers you have to see 20-25 innings before you can pass any judgment like that.

[blindeke]

It's worth a shot.

[Boom Boom]

No matter how good of a reliever Meyer becomes, and even if this is the right move, the Span trade is now a fail.

 

It's one thing to get your major league start out if the bullpen. To be moved to relief in the minors sounds permanent.

[jokin]

 

  On 5/22/2015 at 8:42 PM, Willihammer said:

Can't think about making good on the trade IMO. Just do best by Meyer who has made it clearer with every start for the past year that he can't hold a rotation spot. Oh and the big league club could use bullpen help, so there's that.

 

Actually, he was pretty dominant for most of last season in Rochester, and he was on a very strict pitch count.

[diehardtwinsfan]

My hope is that this is temporary. That said, Seth, have the Twins said whether or not this a temp move or a perm move?

[drock2190]

If he can get back to form, he could be an elite setup man, even later this year for the Twins. 

 

Twins bullpen blows outside of Perkins so they need a strikout guy bad. 

 

Don't say Blaine Boyer is the answer because he doesn't strike anyone out and is living on borrrowed time right now.

 

If he could be like Wade Davis that is pretty valuable.

[Seth Stohs]

 

  On 5/22/2015 at 8:30 PM, Old Twins Cap said:

Not going to add up if Meyer becomes a bullpen piece, trading Denard Span, who has already posted some great seasons with the Nationals, and continues to tear it up.

 

Unless Meyer becomes the next Dellin Betances. 

 

No guarantees in baseball when it comes to prospects.

 

That's the risk you take when you trade a proven veteran, even if he was coming off of 2 tough years and the concussion, for a pitcher in Low A, even if he is a top 50 prospect. I'd have no problem with doing that type of trade again.

[Seth Stohs]

 

  On 5/22/2015 at 8:36 PM, Brandon said:

Does Lee move up to AA in a corresponding move as well?

 

No, Hurlbut moved up to AA. Those transactions were all made yesterday. In the minor league forum, there is a thread with the minor league transactions. 

 

That said, I have to think Lee will be promoted soon.

[Seth Stohs]

 

  On 5/22/2015 at 9:06 PM, diehardtwinsfan said:

My hope is that this is temporary. That said, Seth, have the Twins said whether or not this a temp move or a perm move?

 

They have not, and they should not. First things first, get him back to pitching like he did much of last year. Then go from there.

[Bark's Lounge]

Reflecting back to the time when this trade occurred, my memory is that most posters were in favor of Meyer/Span trade.

 

At the time of the trade the word was out there that it was somewhat risky. The Twins needed a future pitcher with ace like stuff and the ability to miss bats - Meyer was never ever a guarantee.

 

So, at this juncture in time, the gamble did not pay off for the Twins. It's a bummer... but what do you do?

 

I was in favor of the trade at the time and still am because time travel, to the best of my knowledge, is not a luxury the human race has at this point in time.

[brvama]

Actually I rather like this move as COtwin states. He needed a change of scenery so to speak and hopefully this will work. I still have given up on his ability to start, he's just in a giant funk right now.

 

Also I have to chuckle at those that are so eager to evaluate the Span trade as a failure. I'll give you it doesn't look good today but.... It's like failing the first of many tests in a class but the instructor tells you that you fail the course. The only way to truly evaluate a trade is toward the end of their careers. Even Meyers stays in the pen but becomes another Trevor Hoffman, would that be a failure?

 

I'd rather focus on the here and now than to worry about yesterday, of which I have zero control anymore.

[drjim]

 

  On 5/22/2015 at 9:12 PM, Seth Stohs said:

That's the risk you take when you trade a proven veteran, even if he was coming off of 2 tough years and the concussion, for a pitcher in Low A, even if he is a top 50 prospect. I'd have no problem with doing that type of trade again.

 

Absolutely. Solid process with less than optimal results.

 

And it's not like Meyer is done, he still could contribute substantially going forward, just not to the level that was dreamed on at the time of the trade.

[Johnsonalexpaul]

It's absurd that the Twins can't develop pitching prospects. I just find it completely stupid to send him to the bullpen. We don't need bullpen guys in the future. We need high end starting pitching, I have no idea how that's not clear to the Twins management at this point. We've had the worst starting pitching in the league 2 years in a row and look where that got us. I think he needs a change of scenery like maybe a call-up, he's 25 and not getting any younger. I don't know why they wait when we have had awful pitching.

[jokin]

 

  On 5/22/2015 at 10:20 PM, Johnsonalexpaul said:

It's absurd that the Twins can't develop pitching prospects. I just find it completely stupid to send him to the bullpen. We don't need bullpen guys in the future. We need high end starting pitching, I have no idea how that's not clear to the Twins management at this point. We've had the worst starting pitching in the league 2 years in a row and look where that got us. I think he needs a change of scenery like maybe a call-up, he's 25 and not getting any younger. I don't know why they wait when we have had awful pitching.

 

The big part of this indictment is that the Twins in recent years have always been willing to pursue very tall pitchers, but to this point, have had very little to show for it.  

 

On the RP vs. SP debate, I would argue that Meyer is a special case, and probably would have benefited by reversing the procedure and starting him in the pen in 2014- with the hopes and expectations of transitioning him to an eventual starting role, as they have done successfully in St Louis

[USAFChief]

An overdue move.

 

Hopefully in a month or so the Twins can get some benefit from a big arm.

[Thrylos]

Short-sighted move.  You just cannot move your best starting prospect (and the only one with top of the rotation potential) to the pen because of a mechanical flaw (or two) that has him off the strike zone slightly more than last season.  You get him coaching.  And if a coach does not work, you get through coaches, until you find one who will make it work.  Removing Marty Mason would had been a better step...

 

And the kicker is that Meyer is not pitching that much different than last season.  His FIP is 3.76 vs 3.66 last season, K% is down 22% from 27.1% and BB% is slightly up 12.9% from 11.3%.  His BABIP (.419) is what kills him, and if the Twins had any sense, they would realize that the scrubs du jour like Brock Peterson, Argenis Diaz and Jose Martinez who are playing the IF are hurting the team.

 

Really disappointed by that move.  Major housecleaning in the Front Office is needed.

[jokin]

 

  On 5/22/2015 at 10:40 PM, Thrylos said:

Short-sighted move.  You just cannot move your best starting prospect (and the only one with top of the rotation potential) to the pen because of a mechanical flaw (or two) that has him off the strike zone slightly more than last season.  You get him coaching.  And if a coach does not work, you get through coaches, until you find one who will make it work.  Removing Marty Mason would had been a better step...

 

And the kicker is that Meyer is not pitching that much different than last season.  His FIP is 3.76 vs 3.66 last season, K% is down 22% from 27.1% and BB% is slightly up 12.9% from 11.3%.  His BABIP (.419) is what kills him, and if the Twins had any sense, they would realize that the scrubs du jour like Brock Peterson, Argenis Diaz and Jose Martinez who are playing the IF are hurting the team.

 

Really disappointed by that move.  Major housecleaning in the Front Office is needed.

 

100% with you on Meyer, whatever the message/approach is/has been, it's not working.

 

 

Seth seems to think they are adequately covered at the corner IF spots (to the point that Kepler and Sano shouldn't be promoted- not seeing how that's true, just how much does Ryan Walker add to the equation? He seems more like a promotion blocker at this point ), and Bernier and Beresford seem to be solid up the middle. Rosario and Hicks and Ortiz were probably fine in the OF.