Twins trade for closer Capps

By Bud L. Ellis

Matt Capps’ season highlight appeared to come July 12, when the then-Washington Nationals reliever earned the victory in the All-Star game.

Now, the right-handed closer may get a chance to pitch in the bright lights again … in October.

Capps was traded from the cellar-dwelling Nationals to Minnesota, a team squarely in the hunt for the AL East title.

In exchange for Capps, the Twins sent Washington minor-league catcher Wilson Ramos and minor-league pitcher joe Testa.

Capps, 3-3 with a 2.74 ERA, converted 26-of-30 save chances for lowly Washington. He cashed in his first save chance for the Twins on Friday, earning his 27th save of the season.

With the preseason loss of closer Joe Nathan to injury, the back end of the bullpen was a big concern for the Twins. But Jon Rauch did an admirable job filling in, going 21-for-25 in saves and posting a 2-1 record with a 3.05 ERA.

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Saturday, July 31, 2010 at 4:25 pm by bud

Tags: AL Central, Joe Nathan, Jon Rauch, Major League Baseball, Matt Capps, Minnesota Twins news, Minnesota Twins schedule, Minnesota Twins tickets, Washington Nationals