Twins Release Tony Batista

[ThomasTomasz]

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) -- The Minnesota Twins released third baseman Tony Batista on Monday, six days after he was designated for assignment.

In 50 games with the Twins, Batista hit .236 with five home runs. The 32-year-old also was a liability on defense, forcing general manager Terry Ryan and manager Ron Gardenhire to end the experiment with a player signed from Japan in the offseason.

The Twins were hoping Batista could regain the form that made him a two-time All-Star with at least 25 homers and 87 RBIs in the majors from 1999-2004, after which he signed a two-year, $15 million deal with Fukuoka of the Japanese Pacific League.

But after lasting one season in Japan, Batista never panned out in Minnesota. He was designated for assignment June 13.

Since then, the Twins have won seven in a row to get back to .500, using a combination of Terry Tiffee, Luis Rodriguez and Nick Punto at third base.

http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/news?slug=ap-t...ov=ap&type=lgns

[mntwinsfan]

wtf!!! He sure as hell could have been the DH.. Damn it White has not done anything! looks like another Boone experiment from last season..