The Minnesota Twins upgraded their pitching staff quite a bit Thursday when they signed right-handed starter Ervin Santana, the Star Tribune reports.
ESPN reports that Santana inked a four-year, $55 million deal. There is a fifth-year player option included.
Santana went 14-10 with a 3.95 ERA in his only season with the Atlanta Braves this past summer. The deal will pay the 31-year-old $13.5 million per season.
Source confirms the #MNTwins sign Ervin Santana to a four-year deal worth $13.5 million a year.
— Rhett Bollinger (@RhettBollinger) December 11, 2014
Aaron Gleeman reports that the $55 million deal is the largest free-agent spend the Twins have ever made, topping last year’s $49 million contract given to Ricky Nolasco.
Minnesota’s starting rotation now looks like this:
Twins' rotation:
1. Phil Hughes
2. Ervin Santana
3. Ricky Nolasco
4. Kyle Gibson
5. Tommy Milone
6-8. Mike Pelfrey, Trevor May, Alex Meyer— Aaron Gleeman (@AaronGleeman) December 11, 2014
Santana’s strikeout pitch is his slider, according to Twins Daily’s Parker Hageman. Santana struck out 179 batters last season. Twins Daily adds that Santana has been one of the most durable starters in the big leagues the past 12 years.
https://twitter.com/ParkerHageman/status/543119474023358466
