Angels roster littered with ex-Twins, trade reminders
If you’re the kind of person who thinks about the Twins and thinks, “I wonder what happened to (Player X),” then you should have been watching Thursday’s 4-2 Twins victory over the Angels. Their roster has five former Twins on it — and plenty of reminders of past trades.
A quick rundown:
Alex Meyer: Remember him? He was the prize of the Denard Span trade after the 2012 season, but he never quite panned out with the Twins. He made it to the Twins for a couple of brief, unsuccessful stints in 2015 and 2016 before being dealt midyear to the Angels last season along with Ricky Nolasco for Hector Santiago. Los Angeles put him in its starting rotation this season with mixed results, but he was good against the Twins on Thursday — allowing just one run in six innings.
Ricky Nolasco: He’s pitched decently at times for the Angels this season, but overall it’s been the same inconsistent story that was told in Minnesota. For the season, he’s 2-5 with a 5.07 ERA. The Angels have lost the last six games he pitched, though three of them were quality starts. The Twins are slated to face Nolasco on Sunday.
Ben Revere: He was part of the other 2012 offseason trade involving a center fielder (a pair of deals that sent the Twins on a years-long search for a permanent replacement). The Twins traded him to the Phillies for Trevor May, who has had some success here but is out for the season after Tommy John surgery. Revere is a reserve outfielder for the Angels. He had an infield single as a pinch hitter on Thursday and stayed in the game, eventually making the final out in the ninth.
Shane Robinson: Revere pinch hit for Shane Robinson, another reserve outfielder getting some playing time with the Angels in part because of Mike Trout’s recent injury. Robinson was with the Twins in 2015 and has sustained an MLB career spanning eight different seasons.
Deolis Guerra: Wow, there’s a blast from the past. A decade ago, Guerra was a young arm the Twins acquired as part of the Johan Santana trade with the Mets. Now he’s part of the Angels bullpen. He warmed up Thursday but did not pitch. He’s performed decently with Los Angeles in parts of two seasons.