The Minnesota Twins and reliever Taylor Rogers agreed on a contract to keep the reliever in Minneapolis. The deal is reportedly for one year and will pay the lefty $6M. Rogers was the last arbitration-eligible player on the Twins roster.
Career Breakdown
Rogers collected nine saves in 11 chances last season pushing his career total to 41. His 4.05 ERA for the 2020 season was out of character as his career mark is almost a full run lower. Rogers’ 2.63 and 2.61 ERA marks for the previous two seasons are more the norm. The Denver native will likely remain part of the closing equation as he has since late in the 2018 season. Reliability has been one of Rogers’ best qualities as he’s compiled 274 innings in 279 appearances over five seasons.
How He Does It
The Twins’ eleventh round pick in the 2012 draft, Taylor Rogers engineered a career breakthrough in the 2018 season when he added a slider to his repertoire. The pitch has become a mainstay in Rogers’ attack accounting for almost 45% of his pitches. That slider averages around 82 mph and offers both a change of pace and a pitch that moves laterally. It’s a great compliment to Rogers’ power sinker that sits at 94-95 mph and breaks the vertical plane on an average of 30-35%. Rogers also throws the sinker around 45% of the time making for a classic sinker/slider approach.
Outlook
Twins fans can look forward to Rogers returning to the role of primary closer finishing for a strong bullpen cast. Fellow lefty Caleb Thielbar and right-hander Tyler Duffey both performed well in set-up roles last season and are in place for the same duty in 2021. The Twins have a bevy of bullpen innings to replace. Trevor May signed as a free agent with the New York Mets, Tyler Clippard, and Sergio Romo are on their own free agency journeys and Matt Wisler was non-tendered. Young arms like Jorge Alcala and Cody Stashak will be counted on to step in and perform.
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