The Minnesota Twins are well on their way to selling off assets at the trade deadline this season.
One of the Minnesota Twins more valuable assets could prove to be reliever Addison Reed. The former closer has recently fallen out of favor with the Twins and was removed from his role as set-up man.
However, it’s his experience pitching late in games, especially as a closer, that is the most tantalizing about acquiring him. Reed has a 3.40 ERA with 125 saves during his career, including 40 saves for the White Sox during the 2013 season. His contract definitely adds to his appeal for teams around MLB.
Reed signed a very affordable two-year contract with Minnesota during the offseason. Although he has scuffled a little bit recently, Reed has been consistently effective throughout the majority of his career.
Why Minnesota should keep Reed
That same affordable contract is a big reason the Minnesota Twins should keep Reed beyond this season. Minnesota has assembled a strong bullpen with Ryan Pressly and Trevor Hildenberger‘s breakout season. Fernando Rodney has been very good for the Twins during this season, but he could be traded before the deadline too.
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Minnesota should hold on to both Rodney and Reed stay within reach of playoff contention moving forward. With four solid pitchers already under contract, Minnesota can concentrate on more pressing needs than the bullpen. Reed will cost only $8.5 million for next season and shows no signs of regression.
Reed has appeared in 36 games during this season and has a 3.38 ERA. He has 32 strikeouts and 13 walks through 37 1/3 innings pitched. Batters are hitting .272 with a .793 on-base plus slugging percentage. Those numbers are the reason manager Paul Molitor will be deploying Reed in lower-leverage situations.
However, Reed pitched 26 2/3 innings with a 2.36 ERA and a .237 batting average against through his first 25 games. Although he has hit a snag with an ERA over five across his last 11 games, he will turn things around and be effective again diring this season.
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With or without Reed, the Twins bullpen looks pretty well solidified heading into next season. The entire pitching staff will be a strength as we look toward the future. Twins fans should be excited about the future of baseball in the Twin Cities.