Louis Dennis Varland (born December 9, 1997) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Minnesota Twins of Major League Baseball (MLB). He made his MLB debut in 2022.
Career
Varland attended North High School in North St. Paul, Minnesota and played college baseball at the Concordia University, St. Paul. He was drafted by the Minnesota Twins in the 15th round of the 2019 Major League Baseball draft.
Varland made his professional debut with the Elizabethton Twins. He did not play in a game in 2020 due to the cancellation of the minor league season because of the COVID-19 pandemic.[1] He returned in 2021 to pitch for the Fort Myers Mighty Mussels and Cedar Rapids Kernels.[2][3] He was named the Twins minor league pitcher of the year after going 10–4 with a 2.10 earned run average (ERA) and 142 strikeouts.[4]
Varland started 2022 with the Wichita Wind Surge. After posting a 3.34 ERA in 20 games with Wichita, he was promoted to the Triple–A St. Paul Saints. After Jake Jewell was designated for assignment on September 7, Varland was selected to the 40-man roster and promoted to the major leagues for the first time.[5] He made his major league that same day in a doubleheader against the New York Yankees.[6] On October 5, Varland earned his first career win after pitching five scoreless innings in a 10–1 victory over the Chicago White Sox.[7]
Varland was optioned to the Triple-A St. Paul Saints to begin the 2023 season.[8]
Personal life
His brother, Gus, pitches in the Los Angeles Dodgers organization.[9]
References
- ^ "2020 Minor League Baseball season cancelled". mlb.com. Retrieved June 16, 2023.
- ^ "Louie Varland Earns Attention".
- ^ "Louie Varland makes himself next Twins pitching prospect to watch out for". Star Tribune.
- ^ "St. Paul's Louie Varland 'a tremendous success story' for Twins". November 26, 2021.
- ^ "Twins Select Louie Varland, Designate Jake Jewell". mlbtraderumors.com. Retrieved June 16, 2023.
- ^ "Louie Varland set for major league debut as Twins face Yankees in doubleheader". Star Tribune.
- ^ "Twins' Louie Varland: First career win in final game". cbssports.com. Retrieved June 28, 2023.
- ^ "Twins' Louie Varland: Sent to Triple-A". cbssports.com. Retrieved 2023-03-22.
- ^ "Varland brothers square off in 'emotional' pitching matchup".
External links
- Career statistics and player information from MLB, or ESPN, or Baseball Reference, or Fangraphs, or Baseball Reference (Minors), or Retrosheet
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