Juan

Rincon

His 11 wins leads all AL relievers and he has held opposing batters to a cumulative .198 batting average. Rincon also has struck out 10.9 batters per nine innings. He has been a very valuable pitcher for the Twins and in fantasy baseball circles this season.

Rincon improved 10-5 while lowering his ERA to 2.52. He’s the first Twins pitcher to win 10 games in relief since 1979 when Mike Marshall did it.

The Twins scored a run in the bottom of the eighth to make it a 9-5 game, so there was no save opp available for Joe Nathan. Rincon relieved Jesse Crain with the bases loaded and none out in the eighth. Kenji Johjima hit a grounder to second on the first pitch. Luis Castillo grabbed the ball and tagged the runner from first before throwing to get Johjima. Carl Everett, who began the play on second, rounded third and was thrown out by Justin Morneau, so the Twins got a triple play while giving up a run. It was the Twins’ first triple play since July 17, 1990, when they turned two in one game against Boston.

He’s really been struggling lately, with a 5.06 ERA since the break before Sunday’s action, putting his set-up job in jeopardy. “He threw the ball great today,’' manager Ron Gardenhire said. “That’s huge. We wanted to put him in a more relaxed situation.’' Look for Rincon to continue to garner hold chances.

That’s the main reason why manager Ron Gardenhire opted to use Jesse Crain over Rincon in a set-up situation Monday. It doesn’t look like Rincon has slipped below Crain in the depth chart, but if you’re tracking holds, keep an eye on this.

It’s actually a split contract which doesn’t include an invite to spring training. Rincon pitched for Bridgeport Bluefish of the independent Atlantic League last season and hasn’t appeared in the big leagues since 2010 as a member of the Rockies. The 33-year-old right-hander will serve as minor league depth.

Rincon will pitch in relief until Mike Fetters is ready to come off the disabled list.

Johan Santana was great for five innings and Grant Balfour retired all six batters he faced after taking over in the sixth, but Rincon put too many pitches in bad spot and paid for them, getting just one out in the eighth. That along with some more bad baserunning doomed the Twins. Esteban Loaiza was certainly ripe for the picking, but because of two caught stealings, the Twins went scoreless against him in two innings. Also helping the Yankees was a terrible call in the first inning. Jacque Jones was called out on his steal attempt even though Derek Jeter’s tag missed him by a foot.

Rincon posted a 3.12 ERA in 17 games at Triple-A Salt Lake, even making three starts. He’ll look to latch on elsewhere with a team looking for relief depth.

Chris Cotillo of MLB Daily Dish reported back in November that Rincon was drawing interest and intended to pitch in 2014. The 34-year-old right-hander hasn’t appeared in the majors since 2010 and spent last year in independent ball.