Exactly seven years after making his major league debut with the Twins, Tyler Duffey was designated for assignment by the team on Aug. 5.
On Monday, the right-hander was released, officially parting Duffey from the only big league club he has ever pitched for. The 31-year-old is now a free agent.
The Twins designated Duffey for assignment following an Aug. 4 outing against the Blue Jays that saw the reliever surrender three earned runs over 1.2 innings. That appearance inflated Duffey's ERA to 4.91 this season, a far cry from the numbers he posted while helping Minnesota reach the postseason in 2019 and 2020.
The Twins picked Duffey, a Rice University product, in the fifth round of the 2012 MLB draft. He began his career as a promising starter in 2015, recording a 3.10 ERA over 10 starts as a rookie. However, Duffey struggled over an extended sample in 2016, recording a 6.43 ERA over 26 starts.
Banished to the bullpen in 2017, Duffey didn't fare much better in relief at first. He recorded a 5.53 ERA over 75 games from 2017-2018, but turned a corner in 2019.
He lowered his ERA to 2.50 over 58 appearances that season, all the while striking out 34.5 percent of batters faced. Duffey was just as dominant in 2020, pitching to the tune of a 1.88 ERA while still striking out over 33 percent of hitters in 22 games.
Duffey remained effective following the pandemic-shortened season, tallying a 3.18 ERA in 2021. But his strikeout numbers took a hit while his walk rate jumped. This year, Duffey has looked more like the pitcher who struggled early in his career while dealing with a loss in velocity and plenty of longballs.
The Twins recalled right-hander Cole Sands when Duffey was designated for assignment. Sands, 25, has a 7.45 ERA over six major league games this season.
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