David Festa DVOA, Advanced Stats, & Fantasy Rankings

Minnesota Twins starting pitcher David Festa tossed five shutout innings in his first Triple-A start of the campaign. He allowed just three hits and tallied four punchouts. Festa was competing for a spot in the Opening Day rotation but fell short. In spring training, Festa struggled as he posted a high 11.91 ERA with a 1.94 WHIP across 11 1/3 innings of work. However, the Seton Hall product was able to get himself back on track on Friday evening. Fantasy managers in deeper formats should continue to monitor his status at Triple-A, as he could eventually work his way back to the major leagues. He made his MLB debut last summer and posted a 4.90 ERA with a 1.32 WHIP. Across 60 1/3 innings with Triple-A St. Paul last summer, Festa held a 4.03 ERA and a 1.36 WHIP. For now, Simeon Woods Richardson will operate as the No. 5 starter in Minnesota.

Minnesota Twins starting pitcher David Festa was sent to Triple-A St. Paul on Sunday. The young right-hander was competing for the final spot in the rotation but fell short. As a result, he will open the season at the top level of the minor leagues. Last summer, Festa made his MLB debut and logged 64 1/3 innings to the tune of a 4.90 ERA with a 1.32 WHIP. He tallied 77 strikeouts and served up 23 free passes. He generated a modest 4.14 xERA and a .240 xBA. During spring training, he held a high 11.91 ERA with a 1.94 WHIP across 11 1/3 innings of work. Festa flashed impressive strikeout upside at Triple-A last season as he tallied 89 punchouts across 60 1/3 innings of work. Fantasy managers should continue to monitor his progress at Triple-A as he should contend for an early return. With Festa opening the season at Triple-A, Chris Paddack and Simeon Woods Richardson will operate as the No. 4 and No. 5 starters.

Minnesota Twins rookie starting pitcher David Festa improved to 2-2 in Monday's 3-0 win over the Cubs. Festa pitched five innings, allowing just two hits and two walks with nine strikeouts. The 24-year-old has made five appearances with the Twins this season, four of them starts and owns a 5.55 ERA with an 11.10 K/9 rate and a 2.22 BB/9 rate in 24 1/3 IP. Festa is the Twins' top pitching prospect, per MLB Pipeline, and showed high strikeout potential with Triple-A St. Paul, although he did struggle a bit with home runs. Both his strikeout upside and HR issues have carried over in his limited big-league sample size. His next start is scheduled to be a tough one against the Guardians. Fantasy managers may want to consider sitting him if they can.