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The Minnesota Twins announced on Sunday afternoon that they acquired veteran starting pitcher Sonny Gray from the Cincinnati Reds in exchange for 2021 first-round pick Chase Petty.
The 18-year-old Petty was the Twins’ No. 7 overall prospect, which makes the decision to trade for a pitcher at Gray’s caliber puzzling. However, Minnesota needed another viable starting pitcher with Kenta Maeda rehabbing from Tommy John surgery and Michael Pineda currently an unrestricted free agency.
Last season, the Twins’ pitching staff had one of the worst ERAs in the majors at 4.83, only the Chicago Cubs, Pittsburgh Pirates, Arizona Diamondbacks, and Baltimore Orioles had higher ERAs. Gray should provide their rotation some stability and will likely log a lot of innings.
In 2021, the 32-year-old right-handed pitcher had a record of 7-9 with an ERA of 4.19 in 26 starts. He also recorded 155 strikeouts, but gave up a season-high 19 home runs in 135.1 innings pitched. Gray is entering the last year of his four-year, $38 million contract, but has a $12 million club option for 2023.