The Twins optioned pitcher Travis Adams down to Triple-A St. Paul on Monday, according to their official transactions log. There was no corresponding move. Because it’s an off day for the team, they can wait until tomorrow to call up a replacement — which, in this case, is widely expected to be starting pitcher Simeon Woods Richardson.
Why send Adams down on Monday and wait until Tuesday to call up SWR? Well, because doing so saves the Twins a little bit of money. The minimum daily salary for a player on a 26-man MLB roster is slightly over $4,000. Players in Triple-A, even those on the organization’s 40-man roster, make quite a bit less than that. Sending a player down on an off day means the Twins don’t have to pay them, and it also saves the team a day of MLB service time for that player.
It’s a move the Twins have made multiple times this year and in previous years. They did it with outfielder Carson McCusker on their most recent off day (May 29), waiting until the following day to activate Byron Buxton from the IL. A week earlier, they did the same with shortstop Ryan Fitzgerald, who was up while Carlos Correa was on the IL. Twins Daily contributor Greggory Masterson has estimated that the team’s total savings this season, using this specific type of transaction, are approaching $100K.
From the team’s perspective, you can sort of understand it, even if $100K is a pretty insignificant figure for a franchise with a $145 million payroll. From the players’ perspective, it’s kind of a bummer. Not only is it one fewer day on an MLB roster and one fewer day of getting paid as an MLB player, it’s also one fewer day of service time, which can matter for things like pension eligibility and future arbitration cases.
You can make the argument, like Matthew Taylor did at Twins Daily, that it’s not the way the Twins should be operating. You can also make the argument that it’s just a part of the business. The Twins are surely not the only team who does it, and if it’s within the rules of the CBA, why shouldn’t they?
Adams’ specific situation is unfortunate. He was called up for the first time on Friday, which was undoubtedly a very exciting moment for him and his family. His lifelong dream of being a big-leaguer had been realized. Except he never got an opportunity to pitch in a competitive weekend series against Toronto, and because the Twins need another starter for injury reasons (Zebby Matthews joining Pablo Lopez on the IL with a shoulder issue), Adams heads back to St. Paul without having made his MLB debut.
Players going up and down between Triple-A and MLB is part of the business. The Twins have made it clear that they view off-day demotions to save a few dollars as part of the business as well.
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