Monday, March 30, 2015

Sending down velocity

Stephen Pryor cleared
waivers and remains
in the Twins system.
The Twins had optioned out Stephen Pryor about a week ago; on Sunday they outrighted him to Triple A. So now they have the two openings on the 40-man roster they needed to to fit Shane Robinson and Blaine Boyer onto the 25-man roster.

Pryor is a big bodied (listed at 6-4, 245) right-handed reliever who the Twins picked up from Seattle last summer for Kendrys Morales. His reputation is as a hard-thrower, but he was recovering last year from arm surgery, and I really don't know if the velocity and or command is back. For what it's worth, he had a 1.50 ERA in six spring training innings, but just one strikeout. The Twins, at least, were not impressed enough to keep him in the hunt for a bullpen job, and they supposedly are looking for velocity.

The same can be said of Lester Oliveros, outrighted late last week: Has had good velocity in the past, has had significant arm surgery, didn't show enough in camp to remain on the 40, much less crack the active roster. (I had thought that Oliveros had been outrighted before, but that's incorrect. His previous time on the 40-man roster ended when he was non-tendered; the Twins then re-signed him as a minor league free agent. Since he had never been formally outrighted before, the Twins retain his rights.)

The Twins retain both in their system, so they haven't completely discarded either. But they were passed this spring by non-roster invitee Boyer and by Rule 5 pick J.R. Graham, and there are a bunch of big-armed relievers coming up behind them. The clock is ticking.

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