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The Twins are clinging to a playoff spot for dear life and Minnesota has added an ex-Baltimore Orioles pitcher for the home stretch. The Twins claimed lefty Cole Irvin off waivers, designating Randy Dobnak for assignment to make room on the 40-man roster.
Minnesota will place Irvin on the active roster prior to their game Tuesday night in Cleveland. Because the move is happening now and not at the beginning of the month, Irvin will not be eligible for the Twins' postseason roster should they reach the playoffs.
Irvin pitched in 25 games this year for the Orioles, starting 16. Overall, he's 6-5 with a 4.86 ERA and a 1.407 WHIP.
The numbers aren't great, but the Twins are in no position to be picky. With a staff ravaged by injury, they need another pitcher capable of eating innings or starting a couple games in the final two weeks of the season. The Twins are currently relying on three rookies to get their rotation to the finish line, and only Simeon Woods Richardson has a sub-5.00 ERA.
As Minnesota begins a crucial four-game series against the division-leading Cleveland Guardians, the team needs all the firepower it can get. As of Monday afternoon, Pablo Lopez, Zebby Matthews, Bailey Ober, and Woods Richardson are scheduled to take the mound in that order in Cleveland.
If the Twins want to use him as a starter, they shouldn't rely on him to go too deep into games. He has not completed five innings since June and has only exceeded four innings three times in that span. Minnesota could use him as a piggy-back with one of the younger pitchers if they're not comfortable trying to squeeze innings out of him.
Cole Irvin still has two more years of team control if the Twins want to keep him
Despite his sub-par numbers in 2024, Irvin can use these last two weeks of the season as an audition period, if not for the Twins than someone else.
He does have two years of team control remaining, and given his 2024 salary ($2 million) and lackluster performance, he will remain relatively affordable. For this year, Minnesota is only responsible for paying the remaining $151,000 he's due by the end of the season.
With Lopez and Chris Paddack's combined salaries about to nearly triple from this year to next, maybe Minnesota wants another starting pitching option at a low cost. Meanwhile Ober is about to hit his first season of arbitration and will enter the offseason after arguably the best year of his career to date.
At some point, you are simply what your numbers say you are, and Irvin is 30 years old. His numbers show that he's not likely to ever perform to a level that would command a bank-breaking salary. The Twins are about to see what kind of investment he's worth — if any at all.
