In a small bit of roster news this Sunday morning, Dan Hayes of The Athletic was first to report this morning that the Minnesota Twins swapped out relievers on the 28-man active roster.
Sean Poppen, who tallied up 66 pitches in the past two games, has been optioned off the active roster and has been sent to the St Paul training site. The righty, who was called up a week ago today, put in three innings of work so far this season, all against the Kansas City Royals. He allowed one earned run on two hits while striking out four and walking two batters.
In his place, the Twins selected the contract of Cory Gearrin. The 34-year-old right-hander has seen time in the majors since coming up with the Atlanta Braves in 2011, spending time with the San Francisco Giants, Texas Rangers, and Oakland Athletics. Last year, he sported a 4.07 ERA (4.26 FIP) in 55.1 innings of work between the Seattle Mariners and New York Yankees. He’ll rely on a slider that sits in the mid-80s and a sinker that is in the low-90s. He also has a change-up and a four-seamer in his arsenal.
A word of caution: our blog overlord has already made a pun or two with Gearrin’s name. Beware!