Twins pick up Giants reliever Sam Dyson at trade deadline

MIAMI – After striking out in attempts to land top starting pitching, the Twins hung out the Help Wanted sign for experienced bridge builders.

After trading for Sergio Romo on Saturday, they added Giants righthander Sam Dyson minutes before the 3 p.m. trade deadline Wednesday. The Twins sent San Francisco three prospects — outfielder Jaylin Davis, righthander Prelander Berroa and righthander Kai-Wei Teng — for Dyson, who saved 38 games for the Rangers in 2016.

The deal was agreed upon about five minutes before the deadline, giving the Twins a reliever who was 4-1 with 2.47 ERA and two saves for the Giants. Now, pairing Tyson with Romo, the Twins say they believe there's a stronger bridge to the ninth inning.

"[Dyson has] pitched really well for them toward the back end of games," Twins Chief Baseball Officer Derek Falvey said. "He's a guy who has had a lot of late-game experience. So we put him on a list. As we got a little bit closer to the deadline, having conversations with the Giants ultimately led us down the path where we were talking about a few of their guys. Ultimately Sam was the one we were able to access and bring to the team, and I'm excited about that."

Dyson has also pitched for Toronto and Miami in his eight-year career. He pitched for Team USA in the 2017 World Baseball Classic. He also threw the pitch that led to the bat flip heard around the world during the 2015 playoffs, when Toronto's Jose Bautista hit a walk-off home run off him.

Thanks to a fastball that averages 93.9 miles per hour as well as a cut fastball, Dyson has been one of the more reliable relievers in baseball. He's 19th among relievers with a 1.1 Wins Above Replacement. He also throws a slider and changeup. And he's walked only seven batters in 51 innings.

"He's a hard-throwing guy," Twins manager Rocco Baldelli said. "He's a guy with very, very good command. His fastball is a weapon in and of itself. I don't know if he calls it a sinker or a two-seamer or what he calls it, but I think he gets great action on that pitch."

Taylor Rogers, who picked up his 16th save Tuesday, is expected to get the brunt of ninth-inning work. But Dyson could finish up occasionally if Rogers needs a break. The late-inning structure looks more stabilized with Dyson and Romo on board.

Dyson, who will join the team Thursday in Miami, is making $5 million this season. The Twins will pay the remainder of the salary going forward, or about $1.6 million. He's eligible for arbitration after the season, so he's under team control for 2020.

The Twins' package for Dyson did not include any of their top prospects. Davis hit .298 with 25 home runs in 99 games split between Class AA Pensacola and Rochester. He has to be put on the 40-man roster during the offseason or be eligible for the Rule 5 draft. Berroa made seven starts for the E-Twins and was 2-1 with a 4.55 ERA. Teng, 20, started eight game for the Kernels and was 4-0 with a 1.60 ERA. The Twins signed him out of Taiwan in 2017 for $500,000.

The Twins did look into starting pitching upgrades before the deadline. They inquired about Marcus Stroman before Toronto dealt him to the Mets. They asked the Mets about Noah Syndergaard but didn't like their asking price. And it was learned Wednesday that they called Arizona about former Cy Young winner Zack Greinke. The Twins are on his 15-team no-trade list, and they were told Greinke would not waive it. So the Twins will fight for the playoffs with an improved bullpen.

"We certainly fed into some potential opportunities outside of [relievers] across the board, across our roster, because that's our job and we want to make sure we don't leave any stone unturned," Falvey said, "but I feel like adding two really quality, experienced guys who are having success this year that can help lengthen out our bullpen only adds to the group."