Minnesota Twins: Three recently non-tendered players of interest

With COVID behind him, Ryne Stanek is a bounceback reliever candidate who can help the Minnesota Twins.

With a number of intriguing bullpen arms being non-tendered and the Minnesota Twins in need of more than one reliever, let’s take a look at another interesting option, former Tampa Bay Rays and Miami Marlins reliever Ryne Stanek.

The 6’4″, 225-pound reliever owns a career strikeout rate just south of 30% and is similar to the fastball/slider reliever type Minnesota loves to employ.

Last season in Miami was a down year for Stanek, meaning he can likely be had a pretty low cost, but he’s a solid bounce-back candidate.

In just 10 innings last season, Stanek gave up eight runs on 11 hits and eight walks, but he did strikeout 11 hitters.

But those numbers may just be a blip. Stanek missed an entire month after contracting COVID-19 and did experience symptoms that left him feeling “weak” and “sluggish” for a few weeks. It’s safe to say that Stanek never had an opportunity to settle in and go at it with full strength in Miami.

That may also contribute to his big dip in velocity. Stanek’s fastball averaged just under 96 mph last season, a pitch that normally sits around 98 mph.

If his fastball velocity can bounce back after a full recovery from COVID and an offseason of rest, it will once again be a solid pitch to pair with his slider, which has produced a whiff rate of 48% and 45% in each of the last two seasons (2018-2019).

A number of quality free agents joined the market this week at the non-tender deadline, leaving the Minnesota Twins with a few intriguing options to take a look at and possibly fill a few voids in their roster.