The Cincinnati Reds traded right-handed pitcher Sonny Gray to the Minnesota Twins on Sunday in exchange for RHP Chase Petty, the No. 26 pick in the 2021 MLB Draft. The Reds also sent minor leaguer Francis Peguero to Minnesota in the deal.
The 32-year-old Gray had a 4.19 ERA across 26 starts in 2021, striking out 155 batters in 135 1/3 innings. He owns a career 3.61 ERA and 1.22 WHIP.
Gray, who was drafted by the A's with the No. 18 pick in the 2011 draft, is three years into a four-year, $38 million contract with a team option for a fifth year in 2023. He finished third in AL Cy Young voting in 2015 and was an All-Star as recently as 2019 with the Reds.
Petty, 18, was drafted out of Mainland Regional High in New Jersey. He logged five innings in the minors in 2021 (one start), giving up three runs on six hits and six strikeouts.
"(Petty) has a chance to be a high-end starting pitcher for a long time," Reds general manager Nick Krall said Sunday. "We thought we had a chance to get him with our comp pick last year. He’s a player we’ve liked for a long time. For us, we really like Chase. We think he’s got a chance to be a high-caliber major league starter or reliever and time will tell.”
(Photo: Dylan Buell / Getty Images)
C. Trent Rosecrans, Reds senior writer: Well, it depends on what the end goal is. If the goal is to save money, then jettisoning more than $10 million in salary this season and an option for next year makes perfect sense. If the goal is to win in 2022? Nope. It does not. But the team has already given away its top starter from 2021, Wade Miley, and a two-time Gold Glove catcher in Tucker Barnhart, so it was evident that was never the goal.
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Aaron Gleeman, Twins beat writer: Front-line starting pitching was the Twins' biggest offseason priority, by far. Their projected rotation prior to this move was Dylan Bundy, Bailey Ober, Joe Ryan and … well, it was obviously a work in progress. Gray steps in as the clear No. 1 starter, essentially replacing José Berríos, who was traded to the Blue Jays in July.
Gray is under team control for 2022 and 2023, whereas at the time of the trade, Berríos was eligible for free agency after 2022. There's plenty of room to debate the decision to trade Petty for Gray, but there's no doubt it addresses the Twins' most glaring weakness.
Rosecrans: The Twins are getting a two-time All-Star in Gray, one who resurrected his career in Cincinnati with his college pitching coach, Derek Johnson. With the Reds, Gray concentrated on what made him one of the AL's best pitchers when he was with Oakland, his curveball and a sinker that not only produced groundballs, but also swings and misses.
He's a big-time competitor that will not only help the Twins once every five days on the mound, but in the other four days, as well.
Gleeman: In back-to-back days, the Twins' added a new starting shortstop in Isiah Kiner-Falefa and a new No. 1 starter in Gray. Those were the biggest boxes to check this offseason, but there's still plenty of work remaining if the Twins are going to be a legit playoff contender. They need at least one more veteran starting pitcher, plus some right-handed bullpen help.
With a projected payroll around $105 million, there should be plenty of spending room, although high-end free-agent options are pretty limited at this stage.
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