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Minnesota Twins: Glen Perkins Has Surgery, Tweets Explanation to Fans

By Benjamin Chase

Jun 17, 2015; Minneapolis, MN, USA; Minnesota Twins relief pitcher Glen Perkins (15) delivers a pitch in the eighth inning against the St. Louis Cardinals at Target Field. The Twins won 3-1. Mandatory Credit: Jesse Johnson-USA TODAY Sports
Jun 17, 2015; Minneapolis, MN, USA; Minnesota Twins relief pitcher Glen Perkins (15) delivers a pitch in the eighth inning against the St. Louis Cardinals at Target Field. The Twins won 3-1. Mandatory Credit: Jesse Johnson-USA TODAY Sports /
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Minnesota Twins closer Glen Perkins attempted for an extended time to rehab his injured left shoulder before finally succumbing to shoulder surgery this week, but his biggest moment may have been the tweet he sent to explain his process.

Coming into 2016, there had been only 2 left-handed pitchers to appear in the top 20 of the relief pitchers of the 2010s in Fangraphs WAR to also record 30 saves. Nearly any baseball fan would guess Aroldis Chapman to be one of those two lefties, but the work that Glen Perkins has done quietly as the closer for the Twins has largely gone unnoticed in the national baseball landscape.

On Wednesday, Perkins announced that he would go under the knife to have surgery on the shoulder that he’s been attempting to rehab for nearly all of the 2016 season, having only made two appearances on the year. The surgery will end his 2016 season.

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Perkins was the Twins first round selection in 2004 out of the University of Minnesota after becoming a Gopher out of high school in Minnesota, so he’s a local boy to Minnesota, and that’s something the Twins do value. That said, Perkins was a legit talent at that point in the draft, not a favor to a local kid or something.

Perkins reached the majors quickly, making his debut in 2006. In 2008, he made the opening day rotation, but it was quickly apparent that he wasn’t working as a starter. By the end of 2009, the decision was made to move him to the bullpen, and by 2011, he was a dominant reliever, taking over as the Twins closer in 2012 and making the All-Star game as a Twins representative in 2013, 2014, and 2015.

He had attempted to rehab his shoulder, much like Twins recent “legend” Brad Radke (another underappreciated but surprisingly accomplished pitcher) had done many times in his career, before retiring at a young age (33), still pitching well. Many Twins fans were very openly worried that Perkins could be done and not able to complete the last $7M guaranteed in his contract for 2017 (and a 2018 option buyout).

Instead, Perkins showed his own frustration with the situation with one of the more honest and open tweets you’ll ever see from a ball player:

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When you read the raw emotion in that tweet, you get how frustrated Perkins truly is to be in this situation, and it’s hard not to root for a guy that open and honest with the fans of the team. The Star Tribune revealed that the surgery was quite extensive, having to re-attach the labrum to the bone. Here’s hoping we can see the Minnesota boy pitching again for his hometown team in 2017!

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