*Photo from NJ.com*
In an effort to upgrade the starting rotation, the Minnesota Twins are turning to an old veteran. The Twins have signed LHP JA Happ to a one year, $8 million deal, according to ESPN's Jeff Passan. Happ is expected to slide into the back of the rotation in Minnesota. Happ has passed his physical, and the deal has been confirmed by the Twins.
Happ spent the shortened 2020 season with the New York Yankees, where he went 2-2 with a 3.47 ERA, striking out 42 hitters in 49 1/3 innings pitched across 9 starts for the Yankees. In Happ's 14 big league seasons, he has a 123-92 record with a 3.98 ERA, throwing 1,741 1/3 innings in 324 games, 298 of which were starts. Happ has spent time with the Philadelphia Phillies, Houston Astros, Toronto Blue Jays, Seattle Mariners, Pittsburgh Pirates, and the Yankees.
Happ said of signing with the Twins that "Frankly, I was just excited when Minnesota showed interest. Then you go down and you start to try to check some boxes, and playing for a perennial contender, that’s exciting. And then you start doing a little more homework and talking to some guys, and you hear how the organization treats families, and right off the bat, you know you’ve got two big boxes checked."
Twins president of Baseball Operations Derek Falvey said that "We’re looking for the right fit in our clubhouse, the right fit culturally, and also the right fit on the field, and I think J.A. checks all of those boxes and then some. He's somebody who comes incredibly highly recommended by every coach, teammate and others who have been around him. A tremendous fit for our clubhouse and someone that’s going to be a leader for us and impact our club and on the field."
Happ will be expected to reinforce a Twins rotation that has lost Jake Odorizzi, one of their more reliable starters, to free agency this offseason. Happ joins a Twins rotation that has Kenta Maeda, Jose Berrios, and Michael Pineda entrenched as starters, with Randy Dobnak and Devin Smeltzer competing for rotation spots along with Happ, with top prospect Jordan Balazovic also likely to be in the mix for some innings as well.
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