Twins Sign Deduno, Vaszquez; Pursue James Shields
The Twins signed right-handed starting pitchers Sam Deduno and Esmerling Vasquez to minor league contracts. The 29-year old Deduno was 6-5 with a 4.44 ERA for the Twins in 2012. The 28-year old Vasquez was 0-2 with a 5.68 ERA for the Twins in 2012. Both players are expected to compete for a starting spot in the Twins rotation this spring.
The Twins are one of 3 teams that are reportedly interested in trading for starting pitcher James Shields from Tampa Bay. The 30-year old Shields had the option on his contract picked up by the Rays last month. Shields was 15-10 with a 3.52 ERA in 227 2/3 innings pitching for the Rays in 2012. The Dodgers are reportedly one of the other team pursuing Shields.