Alex Speas, a 26-year-old righthanded reliever, signed a minor league contract with the Twins, his agency reported Sunday.
Speas has pitched in four major league games, three for Texas in 2023 and one for Houston last season. The one outing this year was against the Twins; he threw the final two innings for the Astros in a 6-1 loss at Houston on May 31, giving up a home run to Carlos Santana to start the outing.
Although his fastball hits 100 mph, Speas has been plagued by control issues during his career.
A second-round pick in 2016 by the Rangers out of McEachern High School in Powder Springs, Ga., Speas has been in 138 minor league games (14 starts) with 267 strikeouts and 162 walks in 173 innings.
Speas made the rounds in the past year. He was claimed off waivers by the White Sox from Texas at the end of the 2023 season, then was traded to Oakland in April. He was then plucked off waivers by Houston and Boston during the season.
He pitched, as a result, for four Class AAA teams in 2024. In 32 games, he had a 12.13 ERA with 45 strikeouts but 43 walks in 29⅔ innings.