Vance Worley probably wouldn’t mind if Major League Baseball forgot he existed in 2013.
The Twins acquired “Vanimal” from the Phillies in a trade for outfielder Ben Revere. Worley was Minnesota’s Opening Day starter last season; a season in which he made just 10 starts before being demoted to Triple-A Rochester.
He never returned to the Twins’ starting rotation. In fact, he had a difficult time getting minor-league hitters out. With the Twins, Worley went 1-5 with an absurd 7.21 earned-run average.
The Pirates took a chance by purchasing Worley’s contract from the Twins.
“Fastball command, a changeup that has been a go-to pitch, and he can spin the ball on occasion,” Pirates manager Clint Hurdle said after notifying the media of Worley’s promotion, according to ESPN. “The past three or four games he pitched in the minor leagues have been crisp.”
He stayed crisp in his season debut with the Pirates on Sunday, tossing seven shutout innings. He allowed five hits with zero walks and five strikeouts.
Here’s how the Bucs Dugout blog described Worley’s outing.
Worley struck out five, walked none, and threw 68 of his 95 pitches for strikes. He rarely topped 90 and mostly worked in the high 80s, but he didn’t walk anyone and didn’t make many mistakes, usually avoiding the middle of the plate. It’s funny how these things work out. Worley didn’t look like a Quad-A pitcher who backed into a good start, he looked like a real big-leaguer. Not bad for a free-talent acquisition.
Meanwhile, Revere is hitting .286 with one home run, nine RBIs and 19 stolen bases for the Phillies.
The other player Minnesota acquired from Philadelphia in the Worley trade is right-handed pitcher Trevor May, who continues to pitch well at Triple-A Rochester. May is 6-4 with a 2.98 ERA, according to Baseball Reference.
