Minnesota Twins Rumors: Tommy Millone Named No. 5 Starter, Aaron Hicks Cut
Minnesota Twins rumors have the team naming Tommy Millone as the No. 5 starter in the rotation. The decision was revealed by Fox Sports on Saturday (March 28) as the team starts to settle its spring training roster competitions. That wasn’t the only move by the Twins, though, as the team had to cut a number of players to try to get the roster down to just 25 men. It included the demotion of Aaron Hicks after he failed to impress the team during camp.
Tommy Millone was the primary piece of news in the Minnesota Twins rumors from the weekend. He pitched in four games for the team during spring training, going 14 innings and posting relatively unimpressive statistics. Millone had an ERA of 4.50, a WHIP of 1.36, and opponents were hitting.263 against him. He seemed to be in direct competition for the spot with Trevor May and Mike Pelfrey, but the Twins seemed most comfortable moving on with Millone.
May was demoted and Pelfrey was told that he will be pitching out of the bullpen in 2015. May had posted a 4.22 ERA and 1.13 WHIP during his 10-and-two-thirds innings of work, and Pelfrey had a 1.23 ERA and 1.16 WHIP over 14-and-two-thirds innings. The Star Tribune (in Minnesota) reported that Pelfrey was not pleased with the news that he would be working out of the bullpen. He gave a soundbite getting played around the league when asked if he would entertain a trade at this point.
“Yes, it’s frustrating after all the hard work I put in. I know what I was told during the offseason about my opportunity. I know I didn’t get out-pitched. Obviously, they did it for another reason I don’t understand and, I guess, don’t have to. I’m going to go to the pen.”
The news about the Minnesota Twins going with Tommy Millone over Mike Pelfrey could lead to the team getting brought up in trade rumors soon. It would seem that he wants to play for a new team now, and that the team has more confidence in Millone moving forward. Twins general manager Terry Ryan also spoke on the topic, possibly shedding some additional light on the situation.
“We’ve been good to Mike. As we know, we’re going to go through a number of starting pitchers here. Historically it’s just the way it is. I would like to think he would go in the pen and get some guys out. And if an opening occurs he would be a guy we would consider.”
As for the move to cut Aaron Hicks, the team will have Jordan Schafer and Shane Robinson split time in center field for the time being. That’s big news for Robinson, as he was an invitee to camp this spring. As previously reported on the Inquisitr, the Minnesota Twins hired Paul Molitor as the new manager of the team for 2015. That should allow the team to make a splash right out of the gate and overcome any negative rumors.
[Image Source: Brian Blanco/Getty Images]
