The Minnesota Twins made a move on Saturday, signing former No. 1 overall pick Tim Beckham to a minor league deal.
Beckham was selected by the Tampa Bay Rays with the first overall pick in the 2008 MLB Draft. His minor league career was plagued with a pair of 50-game suspensions for “a drug of abuse” but he made his major league debut in September of 2013.
After missing the 2014 season with a torn ACL, Beckham was the utility man for the Rays the following season but never became a full-time player. The Rays traded Beckham to the Baltimore Orioles in July of 2017 and he signed a one-year contract with the Seattle Mariners for the 2019 season.
But the drug problems continued when Beckham received an 80-game suspension for violating MLB’s performance-enhancing drug policy. He went unsigned for the 2020 season and spent the 2021 in the Chicago White Sox organization, hitting .279/.330/.546 with 11 homers and a stolen base at Triple-A Charlotte.
Over six major league seasons, Beckham has hit .249/.302/.431 with 63 home runs and 13 stolen bases.
Although MLB is currently in a lockout, teams can sign players to minor league deals if they are not currently on a 40-man roster.
When the Twins resume business, Beckham projects as a player that can add depth at several positions in the organization.
