LG fans’ favorite pitcher Adam Plutko, 32, has found a new job in the United States. Coincidentally, it’s the Twins.
According to MLB Trade Rumors (MLBTR), the Minnesota Twins signed the right-hander to a minor league contract on April 4 (KST). Plutko confirmed the news on his wife’s social media. “From LG Twins to Minnesota Twins…thankful for my husband’s health and new opportunity,” his wife, Allison, wrote.
MLBTR reports that Plutko will initially start with the Triple-A St. Paul Saints. This is the same team that Byung Ho Park once spent time with. However, Plutko didn’t make spring training this year, so he’ll have to go through a program to make up for it before joining the team.
Minnesota has been playing well this season. They’ve won 10 straight games and are 17-13 (through three days) for a .567 winning percentage. However, their division (AL Central) is in a “group of death” right now, 안전놀이터 추천 so despite their hot start, they’re only fourth out of five teams.
More than anything, they’re struggling to organize their starting rotation.
Right-hander Anthony Desclafani is out for the season after undergoing surgery before the start of the season, longtime closer Louis Varland is not healthy, and left-hander Brent Hedrick is on the 60-day disabled list with arm soreness.
So Minnesota is hoping Plutko can get healthy by the summer and help the rotation. Plutko was drafted by Cleveland in the 11th round of the 2013 season before being traded to Baltimore in 2021.
Plutko parted ways with LG after last season. He then underwent hip surgery in the U.S. and spent about five months rehabilitating.
His two years in Korea weren’t bad. In his first year, 2022, he started 28 games, going 15-5 with a 2.39 ERA. Then, last year, he was the No. 1 starter, going 11-3 with a 2.41 ERA in 21 games.
However,
Despite a respectable 26-8 record (2.40 ERA) in 49 games over two years, his postseason performance has been controversial due to his handling of the postseason after the regular season. Injuries prevented him from pitching well. In particular, he was criticized for his lack of “walk-ability,” which led to his exclusion from the Korean Series in 2023.
The timing of Plutko’s signing with Minnesota is also odd. It comes at a time when LG is already worried about the decline of two of its foreign pitchers.
Newly acquired left-hander Dietrick Enns won three straight to open the season, but has struggled in his last three games. His ERA is 8.36 with 16 runs (13 earned) in 14 innings, 토토사이트 모음 and he suffered his first loss of the season against Doosan the previous day, giving up five runs (two earned) in five innings.
Casey Kelly also hasn’t looked like himself. He is 1-4 with a 5.09 ERA in seven games, the lowest point in his six-year KBO career. So far, there’s been no word on the changes. However, there is a consensus that the team should consider a number of options. (Of course, that doesn’t mean that Plutko would be considered as an alternative, just that it brings back bad memories.)