Twins lefty Gabriel Moya earned top honors in the minor leagues on Thursday.
Moya was named minor league reliever of the year, according to MILB.com. The south paw only spent about five weeks in the Twins minor league system, as he was acquired from Arizona in late July in exchange for John Ryan Murphy.
Across 47 games this season in the minors, Moya allowed just five earned runs in 58 innings of work while striking out 87 batters and walking just 15.
He was called up by Minnesota in September and appeared in seven games. Moya didn’t quite have the electric stuff he showed in the minors as he pitched seven times out of the bullpen and dangled an ERA of 4.26.
Twins fans may remember Moya as he has one of the oddest deliveries you’ve ever seen.
Gabriel Moya's pitching motion…interesting to say the least.#Indians #Cleveland #twins #baseball #baseballers #playoffs #baseballlife pic.twitter.com/Tdtj8wC4iH
— The Baseballers (@The_Baseballers) September 28, 2017
The 22-year-old was primarily a closer when he was in Arizona’s farm system as he picked up 24 saves and even picked up a save with the Twins on Oct. 1.
With Matt Belisle being a free agent, Moya could be the team’s closer at some point next season.
With the Twins already getting a feel for him in September, he has a realistic shot to at least make the team out of spring training next year.
