The Minnesota Twins starting rotation has drastically changed from the start of the season. There’s been plenty of new faces, and one of those players is rookie Griffin Jax. However, after appearing in 17 games with the team, it’s evident he’d have more success out of the bullpen.

The Twins drafted Jax in the third round of the 2016 MLB Draft. Throughout his minor league career, his win-loss record was never great – hovering around .500. Through 55 games (295.1 IP), he had an ERA of 3.26. Opponents also hitting .254 over five years (2020 was not included).

At 26 years old, it was time for the right-handed pitcher to make his first appearance in the majors this year. The hope was he could become a back-end of the rotation player, or at least show some sort of value to the organization.

It hasn’t worked out as a starter, but he could become a lights-out middle relief pitcher.

This season he’s 3-5, with an ERA of 6.78 – which isn’t great for obvious reasons. In 77.0 innings, he’s surrendered 23 home runs and 58 earned runs. Despite those high numbers, batters are only hitting .266 off him. This could be lower, but it’s not astronomically high for someone whose ERA is so high.

That’s because Jax has been dominant when he faces the batting order once. However, his numbers spike through the roof when he faces them a second and third time.

• First time through lineup: 29.0 IP, 3.72 ERA, .181/.256/.371, 19 H, 6 HR, 9 BB, 23 SO
• Second time through lineup: 23.2 IP, 8.37 ERA, .300/.377/.680, 30 H, 10 HR, 10 BB, 23 SO
• Third time through the lineup: 11.2 IP, 10.03 ERA, .360/.382/.660, 18 H, 2 HR, 3 BB, 5 SO

Opponents are batting .181 and have a low on-base percentage through the first part of the lineup.

As soon as he gets through the first nine, that’s when it starts to spell trouble. His ERA jumps to 10.03, and opponents are hitting .300 off him. Those are All-Star type numbers from batters, and Minnesota has been the victim of some rough outings when he’s on the mound.

The argument that he’s a rookie and needs more time doesn’t apply in this scenario. It’s hard to envision him making any sort of drastic change next season.

Because Jax is so dominant when facing the first nine batters, he would be perfect as a middle reliever moving forward. He can come in and pitch two-to-three innings and play a key role in the bullpen.

Jax uses four pitches to get batters out, those being the four-seam fastball, slider, changeup and curveball. If he knows he’ll pitch two-to-three innings out of the bullpen, then he can potentially increase his velocity – which would make his stuff electric.

Right now, Minnesota needs starting pitchers to eat innings, which is why Jax is still starting games. It’s also why John Gant is taking the mound every five games.

Heading into next season, Minnesota would be wise to move Jax into the bullpen, where he can become a potential All-Star reliever for years to come.