Minnesota Twins select the contract of former Toronto Blue Jays relief pitcher

Cabrera made his Twins debut today making short work of the first and only three batters he faced.

Cabrera, 28, signed with the Rays out of the Dominican Republic and made his pro debut back in 2014.

His MLB debut came as a member of the Cardinals in 2019. After a middling start to his career as a swingman, he moved into a pure relief role and turned in solid results over the next few seasons with a 3.81 ERA and 4.53 FIP in 255 1/3 innings of work from 2020 to 2024 with St. Louis and Toronto.

After pitching to a 3.59 ERA and 5.13 FIP in 69 appearances for Toronto last year following his inclusion in the trade that sent Jordan Hicks to the Jays at the 2023 trade deadline, he reached free agency for the first time in his career.

Upon arriving in free agency, Cabrera signed in Queens on a minor league deal. He's bounced between a handful of MLB clubs this year, pitching for the Mets, Cubs, and Pirates at various points this season.

He's not pitched especially well in those outings, with a 5.79 ERA and 5.65 FIP across 28 innings of work.

Even so, the Twins scooped him up on a minor league deal and are now bringing him onto the roster after one outing with Triple-A St. Paul.

In Minnesota, Cabrera will help to fill out a bullpen that lost Jhoan Duran, Louis Varland, Griffin Jax, Brock Stewart, and Danny Coulombe at this year's trade deadline.

That exodus of quality pitching talent has left the Twins' relief corps in desperate need of reliable innings, and that's something Cabrera can provide even if his results have generally been below average in recent years.

His arrival also provides some support to Kody Funderbunk, who had previously been the only lefty in the Twins bullpen following Coulombe's departure.