Bartolo Colon, Minnesota Twins Agree to Minor League Contract

Starting pitcher Bartolo Colon signed a minor league contract with the Minnesota Twins on Friday.

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Minnesota just got sexier! #MNTwins sign Bartolo Colón to a minor league deal. #BigSexy pic.twitter.com/kwAL2bmoFm

— Minnesota Twins (@Twins) July 8, 2017"

Pitchers come and go, but the 43-year-old Colon is forever. The veteran has remained steady later in his career, going 15-8 with a 3.43 ERA, 1.21 WHIP and 128 strikeouts in 191.2 innings for the New York Mets in 2016. That prompted the Braves to sign him to a one-year, $12.5 million contract this offseason.

The Braves ultimately designated him for assignment in June, however, after he went just 2-8 with an 8.14 ERA and 1.78 WHIP.

Colon won the American League Cy Young Award in 2005 as a member of the Los Angeles Angels, though he struggled to stay healthy and effective in the years following, and his career looked to have come to a close.

He managed to revitalize his career in 2011 with the New York Yankees, but that comeback was called into question as Major League Baseball suspended him 50 games after he failed a testosterone test in 2012.

Subsequent stints with the Oakland Athletics and Mets were largely successful for the veteran pitcher, as Colon continues to defy Father Time. His time with Atlanta was the first hint that perhaps age was finally catching up to him.

While he isn't going to blow away hitters with velocity or overwhelming stuff, he's a smart, experienced pitcher who knows how to get batters out.

The Twins won't expect Colon to be one of its top pitchers if he ultimately finds his way onto its rotation, but he should eat up innings and solidify a pitching staff in need of another solid arm if he can turn around his disappointing form from earlier in the season.