The Twins announced they’ve selected southpaw Kody Funderburk onto the major league roster. Minnesota optioned Bailey Ober to Triple-A St. Paul to clear an active roster spot. In order to open 40-man space, the Twins transferred Oliver Ortega to the 60-day injured list.
It’s a bit surprising to see the Twins send Ober down. The 6’9″ righty has been an effective starter over the course of the season. He owns a 3.67 ERA through 122 2/3 innings, striking out a solid 24.1% of opponents against a tidy 5.2% walk percentage. Ober now carries a 3.75 ERA with better than average strikeout and walk marks in 53 big league starts over parts of three campaigns.
That said, Ober’s performance has tailed off recently. He hasn’t topped five innings in any of his past six starts, allowing multiple runs in each. Ober was tagged for five runs in four frames by the Rangers yesterday, bringing him to a 6.75 ERA over his past 28 innings. It’s possible fatigue has played a role. Ober is up to 140 1/3 innings between Triple-A and the majors. His previous high as a professional was 108 1/3 frames during the ’21 campaign.
Optioning him allows the Twins to keep an eye on Ober’s workload down the stretch. Minnesota is six games clear of the Guardians in the AL Central, putting them in great position to secure a division title. They’re far enough behind the AL West and East leaders that a first-round bye is almost certainly not viable. The very likely outcome at this point is that Minnesota will get into the postseason as the #3 seed. Ober seems likely to be a factor in the playoffs, with the club using the intervening month to try to keep him fresh. Dallas Keuchel can step back into the rotation behind Joe Ryan, Sonny Gray, Pablo López and Kenta Maeda.
Funderburk, meanwhile, gets his first major league look. A 15th round selection from Dallas Baptist in the 2018 draft, the 6’4″ left-hander is a pure reliever. Funderburk has spent the majority of the season in St. Paul, working 52 innings over 37 appearances. He owns a 2.60 ERA and is striking out nearly 36% of batters faced at the top minor league level. Funderburk’s 10% walk rate is a little higher than ideal, but the missed bats and strong run prevention earn him a major league crack.
The Twins had been using Caleb Thielbar as the only southpaw in their bullpen. While Funderburk has posted reverse platoon splits in the minors this season — he’s stifling righties to a .184/.258/.234 line, while lefty hitters have posted a .195/.292/.254 slash — he’s been excellent against hitters of both handedness. He’ll give Rocco Baldelli a second left-handed option out of the ’pen.
Ortega’s season is almost certainly over. The righty just landed on the injured list with a left lumbar strain a few days ago. An offseason waiver claim, Ortega allowed seven runs in 14 2/3 innings with Minnesota this season.
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