Farewell, Real Deal

The Twins have reportedly waived J.D. Durbin, and Arizona has claimed him. This marks the second time this off-season that the Twins lost a player to a Diamondbacks waiver claim (the last being OF Alex Romero in January). Durbin's departure indicates that the Twins will be carrying just 11 pitchers on the roster at the start of the season, and opens the door for either Chris Heintz (75%) or Josh Rabe (25%) to make the roster.

First things first: anyone who was screaming about Mike Venafro being cut to make room for Durbin should apologize to Twins management. Venafro was cut because the Twins didn't want to keep 12 pitchers around, not because the Twins were planning on taking Durbin north. As much as I wanted Durbin to make the team, the Twins were clearly looking to go in another direction after it was clear that Durbin was going to struggle this spring. I can't even recall how many screeds I read suggesting how stupid management was for cutting Venafro and keeping Durbin -- this is why it's a good idea to pause before you yell.

Next, let me say that I'm sad to see Durbin go. He had (and has) tremendous potential, and I think he still could turn into a serviceable major league ballplayer someday, either as a middle relief guy or a back of the rotation starter. If his arm strength comes back fully, I could even see him becoming a setup guy, and maybe getting a chance to close. I understand why the Twins didn't exactly bend over backwards to keep him, though; there's so much talent in the system that Durbin just wasn't needed anymore. Good bye, J.D.