Kevin Correia could give Minnesota Twins upside in rotation

The Minnesota Twins recently signed right-handed pitcher Kevin Correia to a two-year, $10 million deal. He'll enter the starting rotation, which fills a need for the Twins given their general lack of potential starters. According to Phil Mackey of ESPN Twin Cities, that's where the positives end for the Twins.

Mackey suggests that Correia fits the bill well because the Twins literally "need pitchers with pulses." The bad news, he says, is that Correia doesn't miss bats, doesn't eat innings, and allows a lot of runs.

To back up his claims, Mackey notes that Correia's 4.82 ERA ranks 142nd out of 164 starters who have pitches at least 200 innings, and only six starting pitchers have had lower strikeout rates than Correia. He went beyond six innings only five times in 2011, and he only threw 100 pitches twice.

Those are definitely some poor numbers, but there are some other positives. Correia doesn't allow stolen bases, with just 13 allowed over two seasons. The Twins have been very bad in that area, and that could be where Correia contributes.