Minnesota Twins’ dismal start to the season got a little bit worse on Sunday when star pitcher Bailey Ober was pulled after just 2 ⅔ innings with the St Louis Cardinals already having eight runs on the board.
With Ober out of the game and an Opening Series reverse sweep an inevitability, Rocco Baldelli turned to right-hander Randy Dobnak to extinguish the inferno that swirled around Busch Stadium.
30-year-old Dobnak is one of baseball’s great stories. He went undrafted out of college, so he grabbed his accounting degree certificate and his pitcher’s mitt and joined the Utica Unicorns in the United Shore Independent League. He was famously scouted via YouTube and signed with the Twins in August 2017 as a non-drafted free agent.
With no signing bonus to lean into and on MiLB minimum wage, Dobnak worked part-time as an Uber driver – a 4.99 star Uber driver. In 2019, he tossed 135 innings across three different levels of the minors for a dominant 2.07 ERA, which earned him a call-up to The Show.
The fairy tale reached its climax when he not only pitched nine MLB games for just a 1.59 ERA but was also given the ball to start against the Yankees in the AL Division Series.
After a year on pre-arbitration minimum, Dobnak signed a five-year extension with the Twins for $ 9.25 million. Just to be clear, that’s five years for less than $2 million per year. It was a sliding deal, so he would only receive “real” money towards the end of the contract. With three team options for the years 2026, 2027 and 2028, this was a team-friendly deal that probably had the Atlanta Braves eyeing enviously.
Numerous finger injuries and erratic form have seen him flip between Triple-A and the majors, but Dobnak entered spring training with over 1,000 innings and a 3.41 ERA across all levels and an outside shot of breaking camp… which he did.
A spring training which yielded seven strikeouts over six scoreless innings was enough for the Twins to return Rule 5 draft pick Eiberson Castellano to the Phillies to create room to add Dobnak to the 40-man roster.
However, the 2025 season has not started as planned.
Game 1: Twins lost 5-3 to the Cardinals, with Pablo López allowing four runs on eight hits over five innings.
Game 2: Twins lost 5-1 to the Cardinals after Jorge Alcalá imploded to blow a decent Joe Ryan start
And so to Game 3.
Despite having spent two days with a virus, Bailey Ober made the start but only recorded eight outs before he was pulled. The damage was already done with the Cardinals 8-1 up in the third inning.
The options for the Twins were to (1) tax the already overused bullpen, (2) sacrifice a position player as a pinch pitcher, or (3) send Randy Dobnak out there for as long as it takes.
And the moustachioed maestro was marvellous. He pounded the Cardinals with his groundball-inducing sinker and mixed in his fastball, slider and changeup just to keep the St. Louis hitters guessing. The Uber driver-cum-fireman allowed just one run – a Nolan Gorman solo homer – in 5⅔ innings of work.
By saving the bullpen and not letting the score get out of control, Dobnak was the hero of the hour.
Although, just three hours later he was designated for assignment. Booted off the 26-man active roster and off of the 40-man roster. Scant reward for the best pitching performance of the Twins season.
The presumption is that, due to his contract – he is owed $3 million this year – no other club will be interested in claiming Dobnak, so he will pass through waivers to join Triple-A St. Paul. Of course, Dobnak can decline the assignment and elect free agency, but then he would be gambling on getting a shot with another team on minimum salary.
It’s a harsh world. MLB should implement a rule prohibiting teams from releasing or demoting relievers after throwing multiple innings in blowout games, but there is little appetite for the rule change among billionaire owners.
I know you can’t really blame the Twins, as they are working within MLB rules, but there is something unsavoury about treating your players this poorly. Surely, all employees of the franchise deserve a greater level of respect.
In the fourth game of the season, the Twins faced the White Sox, the team that lost 121 games last season and has got worse. I tuned into the game in the third inning…
Twins starter Chris Paddack was pulled in the fourth inning, having allowed nine runs on six hits with four walks.
Who says Karma isn’t a bitch?
Featured image photo of Randy Dobnak by Dilip Vishwanat/Getty Images
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