Under the radar Minnesota Twins minor league pitcher Randy Rosario is drawing more attention.
Randy Rosario, Minnesota Twins minor league pitcher, has flown under the radar of most fans. That is until the Twins added him to the 40-man roster in November. Since then his stock has slowly risen and fans are taking notice.
A left-handed starter, Rosario is currently pitching for the High-A Twins minor league team, the Fort Myers Miracle. Currently sporting a 1.57 ERA in 23 innings pitched, he is on pace to set career bests in all categories. His hot start to the year so far reinforces the decision made to add him to the 40-man roster, making him unavailable in the Rule 5 draft.
When the Twins decided to give Alex Meyer a chance to start in Houston, a discussion started about the eventual Twins starting rotation. Wyatt Stevens brought Rosario into the mix.
@mschlegel34 I think Randy Rosario is in that mix, maybe Lewis Thorpe!
— Wyatt stevens (@wyatt_stevens14) April 29, 2016
The suggestion is a good one. Rosario is making a name for himself and could sneak past other top 30 prospects in the pecking order. However, I fear that Rosario isn’t ready for a heavy load of innings just yet.
The 2014 season could very well have been Rosario’s last. He underwent Tommy John surgery after pitching just three games. At 22, Rosario has to prove he can handle an increased amount of innings. Previously, he’s never pitch more than 100 innings in a season.
@mschlegel34 haha, 4+ years? Good chance Rosario pitches in AA this year.. And AA is one step away from MLB. Thorpe yea he'll have 1 more
— Wyatt stevens (@wyatt_stevens14) April 29, 2016
Agreed. Rosario, with the way he’s started the year off strong, has a great opportunity to pitch with double-A Chattanooga.
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Despite his hot start to the year I still remain skeptical of Rosario quickly climbing the ladder.
Veteran pitchers Phil Hughes, Ervin Santana, and Kyle Gibson (barring any foreseeable trades) are all entrenched in the rotation until the 2019 and 2020 seasons.
Seeing as the Twins tend to favor a veteran pitcher over an up-and-comer, I believe it will be at least four years until fans see Randy Rosario pitching for the Twins. It isn’t a knock against him, just taking into account the pitchers who are blocking his path to the majors.
Rosario isn’t a strikeout pitcher necessarily. He doesn’t have a SO/9 over 10 in any full season, unless you count the two starts he made in 2015 with the Gulf Coast Twins.
He is continuing to lower his BB/9: 4.9 in 2011 to 2.3 in 2016.
His fastball, before the surgery, clocked in around 97 mph. Rosario admitted in a Star Tribune article that it is straight with little movement. But his out pitch his is slider which he says is deadly against left-handed batters.
He has no doubt been one of the better minor league pitchers thus far. Rosario shares the Fort Myers rotation with top 30 prospects Tyler Jay, Stephen Gonsalves, Kohl Stewart, and Felix Jorge. With all the potential talent on the same team, it is easy to overlook Rosario. In a small sample of early season success, it would be smart not to.