Former SF Giants Reliever Signs with Minnesota Twins

Former SF Giants reliever Derek Law announced via his Twitter that he has signed a contract with the Minnesota Twins.

The Minnesota Twins have signed relief pitcher Derek Law to a minor-league contract, according to a Tweet on his personal Twitter. The deal is a minor league pact worth $750,000 at the major league level with an invite to Spring Training. Law spent the first eight years of his career in the SF Giants organization.

Originally drafted Law in the ninth round of the 2011 draft out of Miami-Dade College in Miami, Florida, Law made a deliberate and gradual ascent through the Giants minor league ranks. While he was stalled by Tommy John surgery, he performed well at nearly every level of the minor leagues before making his big-league debut in 2016.

As a rookie, the right-hander was an immediate success registering a 2.13 ERA, 2.53 FIP, 0.964 WHIP, and a 23.4 percent strikeout rate to go along with a 4.2 percent walk rate across 55 frames. Law avoided loud contact and induced a ground ball in 50.3 percent of his batted ball events to help generate a stout 1.79 GB/FB ratio that season.

He showed good command of a four-pitch arsenal that included a low-90’s fastball, slider, changeup, and curveball. While the Giants 2016 bullpen was old and performed like one of the worst in MLB history, Law emerged as a potential closer of the future. By the end of the season, manager Bruce Bochy seemed to trust him more than anyone else.

However, as the season progressed, and his usage increased, Law’s production seemed to dip. By the end of the season, he was finding it harder to generate strikeouts and ultimately was a part of the Giants devastating blown save in Game 4 of the 2016 NLDS against the Chicago Cubs.

Law has never regained that early-career form. Over the next two years, Law completed just 50.2 innings and managed an underwhelming 5.68 ERA. Prior to the start of the 2019 season, likely about to be designated for assignment, Law was shipped to the Toronto Blue Jays in the package that brought Kevin Pillar back to San Francisco.

In his lone season with Toronto, Law posted a 4.90 ERA, 4.85 FIP, and 1.665 WHIP in 58 appearances. Far from his 2016 campaign, there were signs of progress. Law regained some velocity in his fastball and saw his strikeout rate return to a robust 23.5 percent. However, he no longer showed the pinpoint command he once had.

Non-tendered by the Blue Jays following the season, Law signed a minor-league contract with the Texas Rangers but failed to make the big-league roster. Without a minor-league season, it’s hard to know whether he continued building on his 2019 campaign or not. Still, at just 30-years old, a resurgence is far from out of the question.

Now, former SF Giants reliever Derek Law will be looking to rekindle some of his early career success for the Minnesota Twins. Perhaps the righty will be able to find his niche in the Twins pen.