The Twins announced they’ve selected the contract of veteran reliever Nick Vincent. Righty Beau Burrows has been optioned to Triple-A St. Paul to create active roster space. To clear a 40-man roster spot, the club transferred outfielder Alex Kirilloff from the 10-day to the 60-day injured list.
Vincent is now in line to pitch in the big leagues for the 10th consecutive season. The right-hander has been a generally solid middle innings option, pitching to an ERA below 4.00 in each of his first seven campaigns. Vincent has a matching 4.43 mark in each of the past two seasons, with his strikeout rate falling to a career-worst 18.5% during his time with the Marlins in 2020.
Those declining peripherals limited Vincent to a minor-league deal with the Rangers over the offseason. He was released in late June and caught on with Minnesota on a minors pact the following day. Vincent has thus far spent the campaign split between the two clubs’ top affiliates, pitching to a 4.19 ERA but seeing a significant bounce-back in his swing-and-miss capabilities. The 35-year-old has punched out a strong 29.3% of opposing hitters in the minors to earn his way back to the big leagues. He’ll reach free agency again at the end of the season.
Kirilloff was already expected to be out for the rest of the year after undergoing right wrist surgery in late July. His IL transfer is a simple formality, and the expectation remains that he’ll be ready for spring training in 2022.
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