Terry Ryan was talking about Kevin Slowey last winter when a lot of fans hadn’t heard of the 23- year-old right- handed pitcher. The Twins general manager identified Slowey, who was drafted out of college by the Twins in 2005, as a prospect to watch in spring training.
The Twins recognized Slowey as their Minor League Player of the Week last week. He was 2-0 with a 1.80 ERA, striking out 13 batters and walking two.
So far this season at AAA Rochester, Slowey’s record is 6-2 with a 1.54 ERA. He’s walked five batters in 64 and one-third innings.
The guess is Slowey will join the Twins before the week is over, replacing Ramon Ortiz as a starter. Management admires Slowey’s poise, competitiveness and control of his pitches. He’s distinguished himself from teammate Matt Garza who many media thought would be with the Twins instead of Rochester. Garza, who even drew mention as a possible American League Rookie of the Year candidate this spring, has struggled with his emotions and willingness to mix his pitches at Rochester where his record is 2-5 with a 3.21 ERA. He has walked 22 batters in 56 innings.
Garza reportedly wasn’t happy with the decision to send him to Rochester. Twins pitcher Boof Bonser is a former roommate and buddy of Garza. “All I can say is he’s hungry,” Bonser said. “He wants to be up here and who doesn’t? It’s the big leagues. Plus, he got a taste last year. …”
Garza pitched in 10 games with the Twins in 2006, with a 3-6 record and 5.76 ERA. He was here long enough to excite observers with his power pitching. “He’s got a great arm,” Bonser said. “It’s still fresh. He’s got good stuff. He’s got to learn to mix up his pitches. That’s all it is.”
Bonser, who joined the Twins last season after pitching with Garza at Rochester, has less familiarity with Slowey. “I didn’t see much of him (in spring training) but he was the big talk and he’s got great command (of his pitches),” Bonser said. “He knows how to pitch. Obviously he’s proven it right now. I read about all those guys down there in the papers. ….”