Twins add veteran reliever on minors pact
The Twins have signed reliever Austin Brice to a minor league deal, according to an announcement from their Double-A team in Wichita. It’s the second time Brice has landed with the Minnesota organization. He finished last season with their Triple-A club in St. Paul.
Brice never got a major league call from the Twins. He returned to minor league free agency at the start of last offseason and inked a non-roster deal with the Phillies. The 31-year-old only pitched twice in the Philadelphia organization before he was released on April 7. He lands another opportunity a month later, but he’ll at least begin his second Minnesota stint in Double-A.
A former ninth-round pick of the Marlins, Brice has pitched in parts of seven MLB seasons. His best year came in 2019, when he turned in a 3.43 ERA with a league average 23.1% strikeout rate in a career-high 44 2/3 innings. Brice increased his strikeouts the following season after being traded to the Red Sox. Yet his walks also spiked, and he allowed nearly six earned runs per nine innings. Brice struggled again the following season and was twice sent through waivers.
His most recent MLB action came via a four-game stint with the Pirates in 2022. He spent all of last season in Triple-A between the Arizona and Minnesota organizations. Brice struggled at the top minor league level, allowing a near-7.00 ERA. Some of that damage came in a disastrous three games for the D-Backs’ affiliate in Reno — one of the toughest places to pitch in affiliated ball — but he also managed only a 5.54 mark over 37 1/3 frames for St. Paul.
