Minnesota Twins haunted by last years trade of Ryan Pressly

With the Minnesota Twins looking more and more like a playoff contender, there are still some glaring weaknesses inside the Twins clubhouse, with a Ryan Pressly sized hole being front and center.

The Twins found an absolute gem in the 2012 rule 5 draft nabbing Ryan Pressly from the Boston Red Sox. Pressly appeared in his first major league game with the Twins that year and stuck with them up until last years trade deadline. Having only 1 year with an ERA above 4.00, Pressly was a stalwart in the Minnesota pen.

Posting an ERA of 3.40 with the Twins last season, Ryan went on to post an incredible .77 ERA with the Houston Astros following the trade. What’s even more outstanding is his current ERA of .64 with 32 strikeouts in 28 innings with only 2 earned runs. You might as well pencil him in for the 2019 All-Star game right now.

The Twinkies have had a difficult time finding, and sticking with, solid players in the bullpen. Taylor Rogers is outstanding but even the best shutdown reliever the Twins have is prone to giving up the occasional big inning a little too often (especially with some trouble as of late). Blake Parker, an off-season addition for the Twins, got off to a hot start but has seen his ERA skyrocket to a little under 4.00.

Trevor May has done an admirable job in the pen since coming back from Tommy John surgery last year, though struggling with his command at times, he has the stuff to be a high-leverage reliever. Tyler Duffey has dominated triple-A hitters but has had his fair share of struggles when called up to the majors, seemingly doing better as of late.

A couple big time prospects in John Curtiss and Alan Busenitz have failed to succeed at the highest level for the Twins and have since moved on from the organization. Fernando Romero has made a move to the pen but the power throwing righty has yet to show the club enough to warrant staying on the active roster.

Watching Blake Parker give up a couple massive homers to a shoddy Cleveland Indians line-up was excruciating. The past couple weeks have shown a glaring hole in the Minnesota Twins bullpen, something that needs to be taken care of with haste. A game like the one the Minnesota fan base had to endure last night is something I’d like to avoid if possible.

With the Twins needing a pure shut-down reliever, a guy that can go out there and get you 3 outs no questions asked, it’s time to make some moves. It’s tough to find dominant relievers in the MLB and that’s why letting a guy like Pressly go may come back to haunt the surprisingly successful 2019 Minnesota Twins.