After spending part of 2023 playing in Korean Baseball Organization (KBO), veteran utility infielder Niko Goodrum has signed a minor league deal with the Minnesota Twins.
The following update comes from the Rotowire fantasy baseball portal:
Goodrum signed a minor-league contract with the Twins on Dec. 14.
ANALYSIS
Goodrum spent the second half of the 2023 season in the Korea Baseball Organization after opting out of his minor-league deal with the Red Sox, but he'll return stateside as organizational infield depth for Minnesota. The 31-year-old has slashed just .196/.271/.334 over his last 549 major-league plate appearances dating back to the beginning of the 2020 campaign.
Lifetime, he's a .226 hitter who did enjoy a nice run with the Detroit Tigers in the 2018 and 2019 seasons. He hit 16 homers in 2018 and 12 in 2019, serving as a near every-day player in the Motor City. He last appeared in a major league game in 2022 with the Astros.
The Twins currently have several infielders on the 40-man roster so it will be an uphill battle for Goodrum to make the team out of spring training. Carlos Correa, Kyle Farmer, Edouard Julien, Royce Lewis, Austin Martin, Jose Miranda, Jorge Polanco and Yunio Severino make up that group.
Of course, the team is rumored to be shopping Polanco so there could be one less person to deal with come spring training.
The Twins won the American League Central this past season and won a wild card playoff round against the Toronto Blue Jays. They were eventually beaten by the Houston Astros in the American League Division Series.
More must-reads: