Torii Hunter, Minnesota Twins agree to one year deal

The Minnesota Twins have signed Torii Hunter to a one-year $10.5 million dollar deal according to Bob Nightengale of USA Today and Ken Rosenthal of FOXSports.com. The right fielder is headed to Minnesota once again where he started his career after drawing interest from numerous teams in free agency.

The Texas Rangers, Kansas City Royals, Seattle Mariners, and Baltimore Orioles have been the most aggressive teams vying for his services. Earlier today, Texas was making a heavy push to sign Hunter, but Ken Rosenthal reports that the Twins made a higher offer and were able to agree to terms with the 39 year-old.

This will be Hunter’s 19th major league season after playing the last two years with the Detroit Tigers. After leaving the Twins in 2008 he signed with the Los Angeles Angels for five years and $90 million. In May 2007, Hunter turned down a three-year $45 million dollar extension with the Twins. Following the contract with the Angels, Hunter signed a two-year, $26 million deal in 2012 with Detroit. In the early stages of the offseason, general manager and team president Dave Dombrowski told reporters that they would not re-sign Torii Hunter after the signing of designated hitter Victor Martinez.

Hunter, the 20th overall pick in the 1993 draft, returns to the Twins where he hit .271/.324/.469 with 192 home runs while notching seven Gold Glove awards in eleven seasons. He returns to his original team and will likely be the final chapter of his career as he is viewed as a major piece in respects of a leader in the clubhouse.

Hunter will be patrolling right field for the upcoming 2015 season, with Danny Santana, Oswaldo Arcia, and Jordan Schafer fighting for center and left field spots. Minnesota is also under new management with former teammate Paul Molitor, after the firing of long-time manager Ron Gardenhire.