Minnesota Twins sign Jared Burton

Jared Burton will be staying with the Twins at least until 2014 according to a tweet from Darren Wolfson of ESPN.

Although terms of the deal have not been released, it would be reasonable to assume that Burton will earn more than the $750,000 he earned for the Twins last season.

Burton shined in his role as set-up man for Twins closer, Glen Perkins, in 2012. He posted a 2.18 ERA and struck out 8 men per nine innings. His 18 holds and 5 saves were complemented by his stellar 0.92 WHIP. Opponents had a lot of trouble facing Burton in 2012, hitting just .186 off of the 6 foot 5 right hander.

The 31 year-old veteran posted similarly strong numbers for the Cincinnati Reds in 2007 and 2008. The Western Carolina product has a few pitches in his arsenal and uses a mix of pitches to go along with his cut fastball to get batters out.

The Twins lost 96 games in 2012 and are hoping to bounce back to relevance in the coming years. Locking up quality bullpen help like Jared Burton appears to be a step in the right direction.