MINNEAPOLIS — The Twins added a little balance to an all-right-handed starting rotation on Wednesday by signing veteran lefthander J.A. Happ to a one-year contract worth $8 million.
Happ (whose initials stand for James Anthony and are simply pronounced "Jay") has spent more than a decade in the big leagues, most recently the past three seasons with the Yankees. He owns a 3.98 career ERA, and it was 3.47 last season in New York.
Happ's contract will become official upon completion of a physical exam, a source with knowledge of the negotiations said.
The 38-year-old left-hander is the lone veteran left-hander on the Twins' starting staff. Left-hander Rich Hill and righty Homer Bailey spent 2020 with the Twins on a similar one-year contracts.
The Twins also have second-year left-handers Lewis Thorpe and Devin Smeltzer as an option, but 48 of their 60 games last season were started by right-handers.
Happ was drafted in 2004 by the Phillies out of Northwestern, and he made it to the majors, albeit for only one game, by 2007. He went 12-4 with a 2.93 ERA in 2009, helping Philadelphia win the National League pennant, and was the runner-up to Marlins outfielder Chris Coughlin in NL Rookie of the Year voting. But the following summer, he was included in a trade to Houston for Roy Oswalt, and that began a period of switching teams; he's been traded five times and has now signed three free-agent contracts.
He's unusually durable, however, having started 23 or more games nine times, and he made nine starts in the short season of 2020.
Primarily a fastball pitcher, Happ's velocity has largely stayed consistent in the 91-93 mph range, and averaged 92.0 mph in 2020. He throws a slider roughly 20% of the time, according to MLB pitch data, a pitch that averages 89.6 mph. He's not the strikeout pitcher he once was, but he still whiffed 42 batters in 49 1/3 innings in 2020.
Home runs can be a problem, although pitching in Houston, Toronto and Yankee Stadium over the past decade likely made the flaw worse; Happ has allowed more than 20 homers in a season six times in his career, including a career-high 34 in 2019, fifth-most in the AL.
Happ has pitched 14 seasons in the major leagues, and the Twins will be his seventh team. He was an All-Star in 2018 with Toronto, and was 17-6 that season combined with the Jays and the Yankees.
