Free agent reliever Blaine Boyer would welcome a return to the Twins, per Mike Berardino of the St. Paul Pioneer Press. The Royals have checked in with the right-hander as well, but it sounds like the Twins are tops on Boyer’s list of priorities.
“I think I showed this year, and really my whole career, that I can step in for the eighth inning or the seventh inning,” Boyer said Saturday. “I can also go long. I pride myself on being a multi-role bullpen piece. I think they know that, and I conveyed that to Mollie.”
Boyer added that his time in Minnesota was “so wonderful” and “just awesome”.
Boyer, 34, posted a career-best 2.49 ERA for the Twins this past season along with a 33/19 K/BB ratio in 65 innings. However, advanced metrics suggest that Boyer is unlikely to repeat that success going forward considering he has a tough time consistently missing bats. Boyer’s 7.8 percent swinging strike rate was the seventh-lowest among qualified relievers in 2015.