Twins’ next Griffin Jax, Louie Varland, ready to shine in the bullpen – Twins

In two seasons and 114 1/3 innings as a major league starter, Louie Varland posted a 5.27 ERA. While he showed flashes of brilliance, those moments were too often overshadowed by an inevitably explosive inning where things went south. When Varland fell apart, it was usually with the long ball: He allowed 27 home runs as a starter, nearly two per nine innings. To put that in perspective, the league leader in HR/9 this season was Adam Gomber, at 1.69. Gomber works at Coors Field, the league’s most home run-prone stadium.

At this point, it’s hard to justify continuing on the same path with Varland in the rotation when the results aren’t there. His true potential seems to lie elsewhere.

That potential became apparent when the Twins moved Varland into a relief role late last season. Freed from the need to pitch for multiple innings, Varland was able to increase his velocity to 98 MPH or higher and dominate hitters with pure heat. In 12 innings as a reliever, he allowed just six hits and two earned runs, and struck out 17 batters. His postseason performance—two scoreless appearances at high-leverage positions—was nothing short of heroic.

Despite Varland’s struggles in the rotation, the Twins continued to try him as a starter this year, even though their bullpen was crying out for help. But as the season wore on and rotation depth became less of a priority, the team moved him back to the bullpen. While he had a few rough outings in long relief (14 earned runs against Tampa Bay and Cincinnati, wow), Varland quickly found his groove as a late-inning reliever. In three straight scoreless appearances, including a standout performance in Boston last Friday, he delivered hitless, high-leverage innings.

This isn’t an unusual situation for the Twins. Griffin Jax followed a similar trajectory, struggling mightily as a starting pitcher before the team moved him to a reliever role, where he became one of the most reliable relievers in baseball. In 14 games as a starter for the Twins, Jax looked completely out of his depth, with a 6.10 ERA. Like Varland, Jax struggled mightily with the long ball, giving up 18 home runs in just 69 1/3 innings. After a stint in the bullpen and some intense offseason work on his velocity and pitch mix, he’s a completely new pitcher.

Varland could follow the same path, giving the Twins a formidable bullpen trio with Duran, Jax and Varland heading into the playoffs (hey, we can dream) and beyond.

At this point, it’s clear: Varland is a reliever. He’s proven he can play his heart out when allowed to let off steam for short periods of time. The Twins can’t afford to keep forcing him into a role where he’s prone to failure.

While starting pitchers will always have more intrinsic value due to their workload, a dominant reliever is far more valuable to the Twins right now than a struggling starter. The transition has already worked with Griffin Jax, and Varland has the potential to be even better. It’s time to consider his future in the bullpen.

What do you think? Should the Twins commit to signing Varland as a full-time reliever, or is it worth continuing to try to sign him as a starter next season? Let us know your thoughts!