Twins promote Brusdar Graterol, Jorge Alcala to Triple-A Rochester
Brusdar Graterol might be on the fast track to the big leagues and becoming a big-time arm in Minnesota's bullpen as they fight for the AL Central title.
Graterol, the No. 3 prospect in the organization, was promoted to Triple-A Rochester Saturday. Joining him in the jump from Double-A Pensacola to Triple-A is right-handed pitcher Jorge Alcala, the No. 23 prospect.
Both pitchers can reach 100 mph on the radar gun, but Graterol is otherworldly electric. The 6-foot-1, 180-pound 20-year-old recently had a fastball clocked at 103.8 mph.
103.8 to be exact.
— Pensacola Blue Wahoos (@BlueWahoosBBall) August 18, 2019
But who's counting? pic.twitter.com/BfLIRWwkFh
Twins General Manager Thad Levine told the Star Tribune that the only other pitcher he's seen "sit above 100 mph for an entire inning" is Yankees All-Star closer Aroldis Chapman.
In the minors this season, Graterol, owns a 1.62 ERA in 55.2 innings and opponents are hitting just .176 against him.
Graterol could be the future ace of the Twins' pitching staff, but he was recently moved to the bullpen in what could be a preview for the Twins if they call him up in September, or perhaps even before then.
Alcala, 24, has a 5.87 ERA with 105 strikeouts in 102.2 innings at Double-A this season. Sixteen of his 26 appearances have come as a starting pitcher.
According to the Twins, Alcala was recently converted to a reliever role and has allowed just two earned runs in 10.2 innings (1.69 ERA) while striking out seven and walking two.
The Twins acquired Alcala in the trade that sent Ryan Pressly to the Houston Astros last summer.
Title: Bring Me The Sports co-owner, editor Email: joe@bringmethenews.com Twitter: @JoeBMTN Education: Southwest Minnesota State University Location: Minneapolis, Minnesota Expertise: All things Minnesota sports Nelson has covered Minnesota sports for two decades, starting his media career in sports radio. He worked at small market Minnesota stations in Marshall and St. Cloud before joining one of the nation's highest-rated sports stations, KFAN-FM 100.3 in the Twin Cities. There, he was the producer of the top-rated mid-morning sports show with Minnesota Vikings announcer Paul Allen. His radio experience helped blossom a career as a sports writer, joining Minneapolis-based Bring Me The News in 2011. Nelson and Adam Uren became co-owners of Bring Me The News in 2018 and have since more than tripled the site's traffic and launched Bring Me The Sports in cooperation with the Sports Illustrated/FanNation umbrella. Nelson has covered the Super Bowl and numerous training camps, NFL combines, the MLB All-Star Game and Minnesota playoff games, in addition to the day-to-day happenings on and off the field of play. Nelson also has extensive knowledge of non-sports subjects, including news and weather. He works closely with Bring Me The News meteorologist Sven Sundgaard to produce a bevy of weather and climate information for Minnesota readers. Nelson helped launch and manage the Bring Me The News Radio Network, which provided more than 50 radio stations around Minnesota with daily news, sports and weather reports from 2011-17.