Minnesota Twins add Matt Belisle on major league deal
The Minnesota Twins announced today that they are bringing back veteran reliever Matt Belisle on a major league deal. Was this really needed?!
The Minnesota Twins announced the signing of Matt Belisle to the bullpen on a big league deal on Tuesday. Terms were not immediately available. However, regardless of the financial terms, the question was strong in Twins territory – was this necessary?
Matt Belisle enjoyed a tremendous close to the 2017 season that coincided with the Minnesota Twins late surge to the second Wild Card. He was installed as the primary closer after Brandon Kintzler was traded, and from August 1st to the end of the season, Belisle made 18 appearances, throwing 17 2/3 innings, with a 2.55 ERA and a 3/19 BB/K ratio, converting 9 saves. More impressively, the Minnesota Twins were 17-1 in games that he appeared in during that time.
Like many veterans, Belisle struggled to find a major league contract this offseason, signing a minor league deal near the end of February with the Indians but earning a spot on the Opening Day roster with the Indians. However, he had a rough game when asked to go past an inning on no days rest on April 13, allowing 3 runs on 3 hits in 1 1/3 innings to the Blue Jays. Outside of that, he had a 2.89 ERA, 0.75 WHIP, and a 1/3 BB/K over 9 1/3 innings when he was released by the Indians. He signed a minor league deal with the Indians that allowed him to leave if another club offered him a major league contract, and now the Minnesota Twins have done just that.
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What’s the need?
The Minnesota Twins overall have a 4.20 ERA, but right now, the bullpen has pitched to a 4.15 ERA. Matt Belisle does offer the ability to help with high walk totals, but the Twins bullpen has posted a 7.8 BB% to this point in the season, a very, very respectable rate. No, what the Minnesota Twins bullpen needs is firepower – velocity that can miss bats, as the bullpen has one of the highest cumulative batting averages against in the game at .260. That is an area that Belisle struggles with, allowing a .278 average against over his career.
The thing that makes no sense is that the Twins have a handful of pitchers that match exactly what would help their current need in the bullpen (low hit rate, good control, high strikeout rate) in AAA, all with major league experience to some level in Tyler Duffey (1.38 ERA, 0.85 WHIP, 26/7 K/BB, 15 H in 26 IP), Alan Busenitz (0.38 ERA, 0.83 WHIP, 28/5 K/BB, 15 H, 24 IP), John Curtiss (1.61 ERA, 1.07 WHIP, 31/10 K/BB, 14 H, 22 1/3 IP), Gabriel Moya (2.11 ERA, 1.27 WHIP, 29/8 K/BB, 19 H, 21 1/3 IP), and Luke Bard (2.65 ERA, 1.06 WHIP, 19/6 K/BB, 12 H, 17 IP).
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While this does not seem like the wisest use of the Minnesota Twins financial resources, Matt Belisle is a great guy, and he’s an easy one to cheer for, so here’s hoping he has great success for the rest of 2018!