The Minnesota Twins didn't have to give up anything to acquire a former first-round pick.
Seems like a simple bit of low-risk business.
The new guy in town is Joey Wentz, a lanky left-handed pitcher. He was a first-round pick back in 2016 by the Braves.
Wentz was available for a waiver claim by the Twins after the Pirates designated him for assignment earlier in the week.
The 6-foot-5 southpaw never actually made it to the majors with the Braves.
He first broke into the bigs with the Tigers in 2022 as a 24-year old and had a 3.03 ERA in seven starts.
The production didn't continue in fuller seasons in 2023 with the Tigers and in a 2024 split between the Detroit and Pittsburgh bullpens.
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Wentz had been better so far this season for the Pirates. He has a 4.15 ERA in 19 appearances, with 22 strikeouts in 26 innings.
The Pirates decided they didn't need Wentz anymore, though, and the 27-year old is now onto his third major league team.
The Twins moved Pablo Lopez to the 60-day IL to make room for Wentz on the 40-man roster.
Minnesota appears to be keeping Wentz on the major league roster to start off, joining Danny Coulombe as a lefty out of the bullpen.
The Twins will see if there's some untapped upside still to be found here.
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