5 reasons the Minnesota Twins will win the wild card

Glen Perkins will overcome injuries and anchor the bullpen

The Twins’ bullpen is not spectacular by any means. On paper, they are actually pretty bad.

That is why the health and success of closer Glen Perkins is so crucial to their playoff chances.

Perkins was dominant for the majority of the season, with his earned run average dropping to 1.21 on July 11. In his next outing, however, Perkins blew his first save of the season against the Oakland Athletics. A few days later, he gave up four earned runs to the New York Yankees in two-thirds of an inning.

It turns out that an injury could have been to blame. Perkins missed several games in August to receive treatment for a bulging disc in his neck, a move that some teammates saw as a necessity in order to get the anchor of their bullpen back to full strength.

"“Obviously he hasn’t been the same guy,” Twins starter Mike Pelfrey told the Pioneer Press while Perkins was sidelined. “Hopefully he gets that right and comes back and becomes Glen Perkins again. He’s been pretty special. In the end, he needs to be right to be Glen Perkins.”"

Perkins made a triumphant return to the bullpen on July 23, leaving two runners stranded and picking up a win against the Baltimore Orioles. He missed a few games due to back spasms recently, but has picked up two saves since.

The organization is taking Perkins’ injury woes seriously, as neck issues ended his 2014 season. But given the instability of the rest of the bullpen, it will be difficult to keep their All-Star closer off the mound in the ninth inning.

During the first half of the season, Perkins was one of the most dominant relief pitchers in MLB. Now that he appears to be healthy once again, he will be a vital part of the Twins’ wild card aspirations.

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