Francisco Liriano Thinks the Twins Are Cheap

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Once upon a time, sending Francisco Liriano to the minors to start the year seemed like a smart move. He was returning from Tommy John surgery, and it made no sense to risk a setback by asking him to push himself too early.

But now? Seriously, what's the guy got to do to get back in The Show? He's regained his All-Star form the last couple of months, and yet the Twins have left him in the dark. Understandably, he's not happy. From Ken Rosenthal:

[Liriano's agent Greg] Genske contacted the players' association about pursuing a grievance, and the union agreed to investigate whether the Twins are violating the collective-bargaining agreement by keeping him at Class AAA Rochester, the agent said.

Liriano, demonstrating that he is fully recovered from elbow-ligament transplant surgery, is 7-0 with a 2.73 ERA in his last nine starts at Rochester, averaging 9.6 strikeouts and 1.8 walks per nine innings. His fastball is consistently in the mid-90s and touching 97 mph, scouts say.

By keeping him in the minors, the Twins have effectively stopped Liriano's clock when it comes to accruing major league service time, keeping him that much further away from arbitration, and eventually free agency. The Twins do have a somewhat reasonable excuse -- the team is winning and they don't want to disrupt a good thing -- but given this team's notoriously stingy ownership (and the fact that Livan Hernandez has been just plain awful of late), it wouldn't be a surprise in the least if finances factored into their decision as much as the standings.

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

7-19-2008 @ 12:20AM

George B Vieto said...

If the Twins are tightwads with their salaries with their star pitchers I don't blame Fransisco Liriano for calling his employers cheap skates for keeping him in the minors.

7-19-2008 @ 7:36AM

Cal said...

The Twins are the employer. Liriano is the employee. If they want to keep him down then so be it. He works for them. These idiot athletes and their agents want to receive the benefit that baseball is a business, i.e. they make ridiculous coin, but are outraged when their bosses run it like a business. They make it tough to be a fan. The Players Union is a disgrace.

7-19-2008 @ 9:42AM

Bruce Ciskie said...

In fairness to the Twins, Liriano could come up now and likely not qualify for arbitration this offseason.

Liriano and Livan Hernandez have the same agent, and while I'm sure that means something, I have no clue what to make of it.

7-19-2008 @ 10:00AM

Matt said...

"The Twins do have a somewhat reasonable excuse -- the team is winning and they don't want to disrupt a good thing"

They're a game and a half behind the White Sox. Most teams are looking to trade quality young players to put them over the top and the Twins don't have to lose a thing to bring a potentially dominant pitcher into their rotation. Look what the Phillies just gave up for the stiff that is Joe Blanton. Do the Twins seriously want to win?

What a joke that organization has become in the past year.

7-19-2008 @ 1:47PM

Crash173 said...

Twins in second place, with better record than Yankees, Mets, Dodgers and Tigers. Money doesn't buy happiness or the pennant. Why would the Twins management want to bring Liriano (13-8 career) into the clubhouse and destroy their Karma. Trade him for Beltre, now.