June 24: Jackson went on waivers unclaimed and was assigned to Triple-A St. Paul, according to the team’s career history on MLB.com. As previously noted, he would have the right to decline that assignment but is highly unlikely to do so, as that would require him to forfeit the remaining $685K in this year’s salary and a $200K buyout in next year’s $3MM club option.
June 20: The Twins designated a reliever Jay Jackson for work, manager Rocco Baldelli told the team’s rhythm after today’s loss to the Rays (reported to X by Bobby Nightengale of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune). SKOR North’s Darren Wolfson reports (in X) that Minnesota will miss the southpaw Kody Funderburk from Triple-A St. Paul to enter the bullpen. The number of 40 men in Minnesota dropped to 39.
This is the second time this season that Minnesota has removed Jackson from the roster. The Twins appointed him to work in May and successfully led him into retirement. The righty accepted his assignment at St. Paul and went back to the big leagues a few weeks later. Jackson had made just three appearances in Triple-A, working three innings of one-run ball.
He pitched 20 times for Minnesota at the major league level. Despite good hitting and walking numbers, he had a tough time keeping runs off the board. That continued in the afternoon. Jackson allowed three runs on homers Jose Siri again Yandy Diaz, stretching the one-run deficit to a 6-2 deficit. Minnesota scored four in the bottom of the ninth to tie it but lost in the tenth inning.
The longball has been Jackson’s biggest concern. He hit seven homers in 26 1/3 innings. That’s a big reason why he can shut down so many baserunners. After today’s outing, he holds a 7.52 earned run average. That’s a big drop from the excellent 2.12 ERA he posted in 29 2/3 frames for the Blue Jays last year. Jackson’s strikeout and walk numbers have not changed in his win in Toronto, but his batted ball results have knocked him off the list twice.
It’s possible that Minnesota will re-sign the 36-year-old in the next few days. Jackson could decline the outright assignment if not claimed, though doing so would require forfeiting the remainder of this year’s $1.3MM salary and a $200K buyout for next year’s $3MM club option. As a result, he was able to finish and return to St.
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