SARASOTA, Fla. -- First baseman Kennys Vargas is back in the Twins organization after the team claimed him off waivers from the Reds. Cincinnati designated the switch-hitting slugger for assignment or release on Friday, opening the door for a return to the only organization he had known as a pro.
Twins manager Paul Molitor was happy to hear the news while traveling from Fort Myers to Sarasota. Vargas played parts of the past four seasons with the big league club, batting .252 with 35 home runs and 116 RBIs in 236 games.
"Kennys is back," Molitor said with a smile. "As it often is, it was all timing."
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Vargas was designated by the Twins eight days ago to make room for Jake Cave, who was acquired in a trade from the Yankees.
Cincinnati claimed the 27-year-old Vargas but quickly designated him for assignment again with the hope of sending him to Triple-A as additional depth. The 80-game suspension for shortstop Jorge Polanco for violating MLB's performance-enhancing drug policy freed up a spot on the roster for the Twins, who put in the claim on Vargas.
"I think even when we put him out there [on waivers] the first time that there was value there, he just wasn't a good fit for now. That's obvious," Molitor said. "But there is a lot of history there and we'll see how things play out."