Roster Moves: Alex Kirilloff to IL, Jharel Cotton Designated for Assignment

This morning, Aaron Gleeman of The Athletic reported a series of roster moves.

The Twins have to be disappointed with Kirilloff’s health. After missing the majority of last season with a wrist issue, his surgically repaired wrist flared up again yesterday. He will head to the IL for what is hopefully a minimal stay. Kirilloff was off to a slow start this year, but he will need to be a major part of the offense if the Twins hope to contend in 2022.

Trevor Larnach will likely be called up to replace Kirilloff on the roster and in the everyday lineup. Larnach hit .223/.322/.350 for the Twins in 2021. After a hot start, he sputtered later in the year as he struggled to adjust to big league pitching. His St. Paul numbers aren’t any more encouraging, but Larnach has shown enough flashes that he still figures to be a major part of the Twins plans going forward.

Additionally, the Twins selected the contract of RHP Dereck Rodríguez and designated for assignment Jharel Cotton to clear space on the 40-man roster. Cotton appeared in two games for the Twins this year, never allowing a run. However, Cotton walked 4 batters in his 2 innings pitched. The Twins will hope they can sneak him through waivers and stash him at Triple A.

Dereck Rodríguez, perhaps most famous for being the son of Hall-of-Famer Pudge Rodríguez, has already joined the Twins and will be in uniform for today’s matchup with the Dodgers. After coming up through the Twins system, Rodríguez signed with the San Francisco Giants as a minor league free agent in 2017. Son-of-Pudge proceeded to have a solid three year stretch with San Francisco from 2018-2020, where he threw 221.1 innings with a 4.27 ERA and a slightly less encouraging 4.74 FIP. Those numbers are largely buoyed by a strong season in 2018. Rodríguez’s Triple A numbers in 2021 were discouraging, to say the least, pitching to the tune of a 6.72 ERA over 85.2 innings.