Jose Berrios could soon make his Major League debut with the Minnesota Twins, and if his start at Triple-A Rochester Wednesday night was any indication of what is in the pipeline, Twins fans should get very excited.
Berrios, with Twins General Manager Terry Ryan in attendance, dazzled in a 7-inning, 12-strikeout performance. He allowed 3 hits, 1 walk and he didn’t allow a run.
The line on Jose Berrios with Twins GM Terry Ryan in attendance at Triple-A Rochester: 7 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 12 Ks. ERA down to 2.78.
— Rhett Bollinger (@RhettBollinger) August 27, 2015
“I feel a little bit excited,” Berrios said, via MiLB.com. “But for now, I do what I can do — pitch. I don’t think about much else. I try to do my work and stay healthy.”
Berrios is 12-5 with a 2.95 ERA between Double-A and Triple-A this season, but he’s been better at Triple-A than he was at Double-A (and he was really good there). Per Baseball-Reference, Berrios has increased his strikeouts per 9 innings to 10.1 while lowering his walks per 9 innings and ERA.
Look at how nasty his breaking ball is on his 12th strikeout of the game.
Glory to God!! Never Quit your Dream and Goals #PUSHTHEGAME #MNTwins pic.twitter.com/NcBdhJ1tNb
— Jose O. Berrios (@JOLaMaKina) August 27, 2015
“Tonight, all three pitches were really nice. The best one was the curveball. I used it to strike them out,” Berrios told Seth Stohs.
Here’s video of him throwing the huge curveball to get out of a jam early in the game.
Innings limit for Berrios?
The right-hander from Puerto Rico has thrown 155 1/3 innings this season. His previous career high was 140 innings, but reports say he hasn’t shown any signs of fatigue. That said, the Twins might have an innings limit on him in mind.
“I think (Twins officials) are concerned about that to some degree,” Twins manager Paul Molitor told the Pioneer Press. “I’m not sure if they have a number in mind. You would think each year you increase. I’m not sure what the magic number is.”
When will he debut?
Berrios should get a crack at the big leagues as a September call-up. Twins Daily suspects he’ll make his debut with the Twins by Sept. 5, perhaps out of the bullpen depending on how many innings he’ll be allowed to pitch.
By the way… the kid is only 21 years old.
Proud and #StraightOutta #PuertoRico my beautiful island pic.twitter.com/eKi9yrTgEl
— Jose O. Berrios (@JOLaMaKina) August 12, 2015
