Fantasy News

• Twins' Griffin Jax: Notches another save

  Rotowire Apr 24, 2024

  Jax pitched a perfect ninth inning and struck out one to pick up his third save of the season Wednesday against the White Sox. Jax seems to have taken hold of the closing job in place of Jhoan Duran, who's on the mend after sustaining an oblique injury. Jax has twirled back-to-back perfect innings for a pair of saves and owns a 2.70 ERA with a 14:3 K:BB over 11 appearances (10.0 innings).

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• Twins' Griffin Jax: Picks up save No. 2

  Rotowire Apr 20, 2024

  Jax pitched a perfect ninth inning with two strikeouts against the Tigers on Saturday en route to his second save of the season. Called upon to protect a one-run lead, Jax was nails Saturday, retiring the side in order on 12 pitches. He reached as high as 96.9 mph on his fastball and earned his first save since Opening Day. While Jax appears to be first in line for save chances right now, he doesn't seem to have much of a window with Jhoan Duran (oblique) closing in on a rehab assignment. Duran threw 21 pitches in live batting practice Friday.

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• Twins' Griffin Jax: Used in eighth inning

  Rotowire Apr 4, 2024

  Jax threw a scoreless eighth inning in Wednesday's win at Milwaukee while Steven Okert pitched a scoreless ninth inning. Okert would have be in line for a save had the Twins not scored in the top of the ninth inning. "At that point in the game, Okert with the experience was probably the answer," manager Rocco Baldelli told the Minneapolis Star Tribune. Jax, who has Minnesota's only save with Jhoan Duran on the injured list, was used in the eighth inning against the heart of the Brewers' lineup. Jax is still likely to be the first option and get the most save chances with Duran out, but Wednesday's game shows that Baldelli may play matchups with his bullpen regardless of the save statistic.

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• Twins' Griffin Jax: Records first save

  Rotowire Mar 28, 2024

  Jax threw a scoreless inning with a walk and strikeout to record the save in Thursday's Opening Day win at Kansas City. With Jhoan Duran (oblique) on the injured list and expected to miss several weeks, it was Jax who got the call in the ninth inning to protect a three-run lead. Brock Stewart was used in the eighth inning, so it looks like Jax will be the primary closer with Duran out. However, the Twins could mix and match the two in save situations.

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• Twins' Griffin Jax: Could fill in at closer

  Rotowire Mar 18, 2024

  Jax and Brock Stewart are likely to fill in at closer for the Twins while Jhoan Duran (oblique) is sidelined, Bobby Nightengale of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune reports. Jax has turned into a weapon out of the Twins' bullpen over the last two seasons, posting a 3.60 ERA and 146:39 K:BB over 137.2 innings, collecting five saves along the way. He's also been dominant this spring, yielding just two hits and no runs with a 10:0 K:BB over six frames. Both Jax and Stewart are worthy short-term fantasy darts, though it's possible manager Rocco Baldelli won't settle on one guy.

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• Twins' Griffin Jax: Picks up first save

  Rotowire Jun 14, 2023

  Jax picked up the save Wednesday against the Brewers, striking out one over one scoreless inning. Jax entered the game in the ninth inning and went 1-2-3 through the Brewers' lineup to nail down his first save of the season. The right-hander, who'd blown all four of his save opportunities this season coming in, threw a sweeper on seven of his 11 pitches to end the game. He has not allowed a run since May 19 against the Angels, registering 12 strikeouts with no walks over that stretch (9.2 innings).

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• Twins' Griffin Jax: Continues recent turnaround

  Rotowire Jun 1, 2023

  Jax (3-6) earned the win in Thursday's 7-6 win over the Guardians. He didn't allow a hit or walk while striking out one over a scoreless inning. Jax struggled with an 8.18 ERA and three blown saves between April 21 to May 19. He's since thrown five scoreless innings in his last five appearances with an 8:0 K:BB ratio, so it looks like he's back to being a reliable setup man.

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• Twins' Griffin Jax: Gets hold in season debut

  Rotowire Mar 31, 2023

  Jax threw a scoreless eighth inning with a walk in Thursday's win over against Kansas City to earn his first hold of the season. It was notable that Jax was used in the eighth inning ahead of Jhoan Duran in the ninth, while Pablo Lopez worked the seventh. Jax had a breakout season in 2022 after moving to the bullpen and became a key setup man for the Twins. He improved both his strikeout (26.9 percent) and walk (6.9 percent) rates with a 78:20 K:BB over 72.1 innings. It looks like he could be the main set-up man and rack up holds again, and possibly be in the mix for saves if manager Rocco Baldelli sticks to his previous matchup-based bullpen usage.

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• Twins' Griffin Jax: Records 10th hold

  Rotowire Jul 31, 2022

  Jax threw a scoreless inning while striking out one batter over two-thirds of an inning in Saturday's 7-4 win over the Padres to earn his 10th hold. Jax has become a key setup man after transitioning from being a starting pitcher last season. He's improved both his average fastball velocity (95.3 mph from 92.7 mph last season) and strikeout rate (9.6 K/9 from 7.1 K/9 last season). Despite Minnesota's struggles to find a steady closer at times, Jax hasn't been used at the end of games, however.

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• Twins' Griffin Jax: Earns second win

  Rotowire May 7, 2022

  Jax (2-0) picked up the win Saturday against the Athletics, striking out two while allowing one hit across 1.2 scoreless innings. Jax entered a scoreless tie with one out in the sixth inning and completed the frame without allowing a baserunner. The Twins went ahead 1-0 in the bottom of the inning, and Jax remained on the mound for the seventh, allowing just a two-out double. He now owns a 1.35 ERA in 13.1 innings of relief this season, a far cry from the 6.37 ERA he posted as primarily a starter last year.

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• Twins' Griffin Jax: Picks up first career save

  Rotowire Apr 28, 2022

  Jax earned the save, tossing three scoreless innings and striking out two while allowing two hits, a walk and a hit batsman in a 7-1 win over Detroit. Jax got the unconventional save by tossing three innings in a lopsided affair. After making 14 starts last year, the righty has pitched exclusively in relief for the Twins early in 2022. Thursday's three-inning save was his longest appearance of the season and first save at any level in professional baseball. He's allowed two runs and has 11:3 K:BB in nine innings of work on the campaign.

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• Twins' Griffin Jax: Returns to big club

  Rotowire Apr 12, 2022

  The Twins recalled Jax from Triple-A St. Paul on Tuesday. Jax had been preparing for a starting role for St. Paul after he was optioned to the affiliate Thursday, but his turn in the rotation never came up before he was called back up to Minnesota. He's expected to serve as a multi-inning option out of the bullpen while he's up with the Twins.

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• Twins' Griffin Jax: Optioned to Triple-A

  Rotowire Apr 7, 2022

  The Twins optioned Jax to Triple-A St. Paul on Thursday, Phil Miller of the Minneapolis Star Tribune reports. Jax was moved to the bullpen this spring and was competing for a middle-relief role, but he ultimately fell short in his bid for the Opening Day roster. The Twins could consider moving Jax back to a starting role as he heads to St. Paul.

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• Twins' Griffin Jax: Moving to bullpen

  Rotowire Mar 16, 2022

  Jax will move to the bullpen and work in a relief role this season, the Minneapolis Star Tribune reports. Jax will get ready for one-to-three-inning assignments, two or three times a week, according to manager Rocco Baldelli. Jax finished his first big-league season with a 6.37 ERA, 1.35 WHIP and 65:29 K:BB across 82 innings. He was a starter in 14 of 18 outings. He'll try to win a role in middle relief. Jax and Lewis Thorpe moving to the bullpen could be a sign the Twins are set to bring in more veteran starting pitchers or are ready to have younger talent contend for rotation roles.

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• Twins' Griffin Jax: Allows four runs in loss

  Rotowire Sep 27, 2021

  Jax (3-5) allowed four runs on six hits while striking out two over five innings as he took the loss against the Blue Jays on Sunday. Jax was punished by the long ball Sunday. He allowed two runners on in the second before serving up a three-run blast to Danny Jansen to give the Blue Jays a 3-1 lead. George Springer later added a home run of his own after hitting a solo shot against Jax in the fifth. Jax would end up finishing the frame before calling it a day at 83 pitches. He was finding the strike zone a lot, as he threw 61 strikes and didn't walk anybody but was hurt by a few big mistakes. The 26-year-old hasn't won a game since Aug. 10 and sports an ugly 6.78 ERA, 1.40 WHIP and 62:27 K:BB over 77 innings this season. He's projected to take the hill one more time in Kansas City next weekend.

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• Twins' Griffin Jax: Bested by Cleveland

  Rotowire Sep 15, 2021

  Jax (3-4) allowed five runs (three earned) on seven hits and a walk over 4.2 innings to take the loss Wednesday against Cleveland. He also had three strikeouts. Jax kept Cleveland off the board until the fourth inning when Bobby Bradley broke a scoreless deadlock on a run-scoring double. Cleveland tacked on four more runs in the following frame, the big blast coming on Oscar Mercado's three-run homer. Jax has been throttled to the tune of a 9.36 ERA over his last five starts, yielding eight home runs in that stretch.

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• Twins' Griffin Jax: Allows four runs in no-decision

  Rotowire Sep 11, 2021

  Jax allowed four unearned runs on five hits and one walk while striking out four across six innings in the loss to the Royals on Friday. He did not factor in the decision. Jax surrendered a three-run home run to Andrew Benintendi in the first inning. He gave up a fourth run in the fourth frame on a Michael Taylor double. The 26-year-old has allowed 23 earned runs in his last four outings. On the season, he has a 6.72 ERA and 1.37 WHIP with 51 strikeouts in 64.1 innings.

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• Twins' Griffin Jax: Yields four runs in no-decision

  Rotowire Sep 5, 2021

  Jax allowed four runs on six hits and a walk over 4.2 innings in Sunday's win over the Rays. He struck out three and did not factor in the decision. Jax kept the Rays off the board for two innings before coughing up a two-run blast to Brandon Lowe in the third. He allowed another run in the fifth and was charged with a fourth and final run after Austin Meadows went deep off Caleb Thielbar. Jax has been hammered for 19 runs over 14.1 innings (11.93 ERA) over his last three outings. He's lined up to face Kansas City at home next week.

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• Twins' Griffin Jax: Gives up six in another loss

  Rotowire Aug 30, 2021

  Jax (3-3) allowed six runs on six hits and three walks while striking out five over five innings Sunday in a 6-2 loss to the Brewers. Jax had a clean opening inning but was chased for six runs over the next three frames. Luis Urias took him deep in the second for a solo homer. A double and a walk would put two runners on in the third before Rowdy Tellez cleared the bases with a three-run blast and then Kolten Wong would drive in two more in the fourth with a double. The 26-year-old has given up 15 runs over his last two outings, which has inflated his ERA to a 6.71 to go along with a 1.40 WHIP and 44:22 K:BB over 53.2 innings. Jax lines up for a tough matchup against the Rays his next time out.

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• Twins' Griffin Jax: Sunday's start postponed

  Rotowire Aug 21, 2021

  Jax and the Twins won't play Sunday against the Yankees after the game was postponed due to inclement weather. Hurricane Henri is forecasted to hit the East Coast on Sunday, so the teams will be unable to play their series finale. The Twins haven't revealed their revised rotation plans, but it wouldn't be surprising to see Jax start on the road against the Red Sox on Tuesday.

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