Minnesota Twins Officially Cut Bait with Bust Reliever

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Justin Topa, Minnesota Twins
Credit: IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

When the Minnesota Twins swung a trade that sent Jorge Polanco to the Seattle Mariners, there were a handful of reasons behind the decision, most of which had to do with the infielder going out. Polanco had been dealing with injury issues for years and wasn’t getting any cheaper.

In return, the Twins received major league assets Anthony DeSclafani and Justin Topa. The former never pitched for Minnesota, after he immediately suffering an injury. Topa, however, has been working out of the Minnesota bullpen (when available) ever since.

Well, that was until earlier this week (May 19), when they designated Topa for assignment in order to make room for another top prospect’s debut. Coincidentally, that prospect was Gabriel Gonzalez, who happens to be the most notable piece that came back in the Polanco trade.

Justin Topa no longer with MN Twins

Despite being owed just the prorated portion of a $1 million contract, no team claimed Topa on waivers. But rather than allow the 35-year-old reliever a spot down in Triple-A St. Paul, the Twins decided to outright release him.

It’s not exactly a surprising decision, even for a team whose bullpen has struggled so mightily. Topa owns an 8.05 ERA (6.47 FIP) across 19 innings this season. He has a near-even 12/11 K/BB and coughed up 27 hits. Unable to miss bats, and nowhere near trustworthy in leverage situations, it’d be difficult for him to work his way back into Derek Shelton’s good graces.

Unfortunately for Topa, it’s a big fall from grace. A year ago Topa was finally healthy pitching 60 innings for the Twins. His 3.90 ERA was backed by a 3.04 FIP and he recorded a career-high four saves. It was exactly the type of performance Minnesota hoped they were getting from a guy who owned a 2.61 ERA during his lone season with the Seattle Mariners.

With his release, it’s only Gabriel Gonzalez who remains for the Twins from the Polanco trade with Seattle. Meanwhile, Polanco has since been signed by the New York Mets as the first base answer to losing Pete Alonso, and he’s hurt there too.

Minnesota Twins have continued bullpen overhaul

When you rank as one of the worst bullpens in the sport (26th by ERA), you’re going to constantly make tweaks. They have to come on the fringes, or internally, when you don’t do anything to supplement the area over the offseason. Roughly one-third of the way through the season, it’s been quite the overhaul already.

Thus far Derek Shelton has called upon ten different relievers to record a save. Both of them with two, including Topa (and Luis Garcia) are no longer on the roster. It’s been a consistent mix-and-match that has helped to piece things together for Minnesota.

The Minnesota Twins aren’t likely to make the playoffs, but their hopes continue to hang on as they have been intriguing. This team has already seen several of their top prospects, and they haven’t been afraid to make difficult decisions (see: Matt Wallner, Royce Lewis).

At the end of the day, no matter what happens this season, the players on the field have kept a level of intrigue that the Pohlads weren’t interested in worrying about during the offseason. The front office continues to cut the fat, and the cream keeps rising to the top.

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