After making two deals on Friday, the Minnesota Twins rolled up their sleeves and made two more on Monday as the team returned home to start a week-long homestand.
The first of two deals came just after the clubhouse opened to the media, as left-handed reliever Zach Duke was traded to the Seattle Mariners. The return for Duke was right-handed pitcher Chase De Jong and minor-league infielder Ryan Costello.
“It’s an exciting chapter,” Duke said as he addressed the Twin Cities media one final time. “I truly enjoyed my time here. Love the guys in this room and I’m gonna miss them. But I’m looking very forward to being out there in a pennant race.”
Duke said he figured he’d be on the move, but never really gave much thought as to where he might be headed.
“I thought about every possibility out there honestly,” the lefty said. “But I didn’t really put any more stake in one than the other. I do have some family up in the Northwest, which is fun. Get to reconnect with them a little bit more and we’ll have to figure out how to make it all work.”
Duke also added that amidst his excitement to join a team in the race, he will miss Minnesota.
“I will miss it here,” he said. “I had a very positive experience here. I enjoyed the area, the city, the fans. The teammates were all great. It’s a very good vibe in this clubhouse, regardless of what the record says. The guys have such a great attitude every day, they get along so well. I will miss that. But, from what I’ve been told, it’s a similar atmosphere there in Seattle. So hopefully I can step in and not mess that up.”
Duke, who shares a birth date with Joe Mauer, closed his season with the Twins with a 3.62 ERA (2.68 FIP) in 37.1 innings with 39 strikeouts and 15 walks and a 1.58 WHIP.
De Jong will potentially likely join Triple-A Rochester, and the 24-year-old righty is already on the 40-man roster after his MLB debut for the Mariners last season. It didn’t go particularly well — 6.35 ERA in 28.1 innings — though he has put up respectable numbers at Double-A Arkansas this year: 3.80 ERA, 89-34 K/BB ratio in 120.2 innings, 1.29 WHIP.
He’s more known for his offspeed stuff than his fastball, and likely profiles as a back-end starter or swingman. Costello, meanwhile, is a corner infielder who has mostly played first base this season and is hitting a robust .266/.360/.486 at Low-A Clinton in the Midwest League.
Now that comes with a few caveats, as he’s not part of the team’s top-30 prospects according to MLB.com. Part of it is certainly his limited defensive profile, but he’s also nearly a year older than the average player in the MWL after going in the 31st round in 2017 out of Central Connecticut University.
The two most recent MLB players to come from that school are right-handed relievers Ricky Bottalico and Evan Scribner.
The other deal came about an hour before the game on Monday, as right-handed starter Lance Lynn was traded to the New York Yankees for first baseman/outfielder Tyler Austin and minor-league right-handed pitcher Luis Rijo.
Prior to signing a one-year deal with the Twins, Lynn had spent the entirety of his MLB career with the St. Louis Cardinals. While the overall body of work hasn’t been good this year — 5.10 ERA (4.73 FIP), 1.63 WHIP — he’d put together a respectable run since posting an 8.37 ERA in April.
In the 15 starts since, he’s got an ERA of 4.12, an OPS against of .729 and nearly a strikeout per inning.
“I’ve never been through this before,” Lynn said. “Trying to get everything situated, really. Let it all sink in. I really enjoyed my time here. I wish I could have done better. Got off to a late start but I really enjoyed everybody here, they were great to me. Great people. Great organization. You see a lot of good things in the future here. I wish them all the best and thank them for the opportunity.”
The one thing Lynn was most enthused about was the chance to go to Fenway Park as a member of the Yankees.
“I’ve never been to Fenway as Yankee,” he said. “I think they dislike you even more so that should be exciting. I’m guessing they say a little bit nastier things to Yankees players than they do anybody else. It should be exciting. But it’s about going out there and doing your job and not letting anything change your routine.”
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