Louis Varland

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Louis Dennis Varland
(Louie)

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Biographical Information[edit]

Louis Varland, whose first name was usually spelled Louie in his first few seasons, made his major league debut on September 7, 2022 as the starting pitcher for the Minnesota Twins against the New York Yankees in the first game of a doubleheader. He gave up 2 runs in 5 1/3 innings but was not involved in the decision as New York won the game in 12 innings, on its way to sweeping the twinbill. His first career strikeout victim was none other than Aaron Judge, who later got even by hitting his 55th homer of the season off him.

He was selected in the 15th round of the 2019 amateur draft out of Concordia University-St. Paul. After sitting out the 2020 season because the minor leagues were shut down by the Covid-19 pandemic, he was the Twins Minor League Pitcher of the Year in 2021. He went 10-4, 2.10 in 20 games between the Fort Myers Miracle and Cedar Rapids Kernels, in Low-A and High-A respectively. In 2022, before his call-up, he had spent the bulk of the season in AA with the Wichita Wind Surge before getting a late-season promotion to his hometown team, the AAA St. Paul Saints. He went 8-5, 3.06 in 25 games between the two stops.

He went 1-2, 3.81 in 5 starts in his first season, then followed that up by going 4-3, 4.63 in 17 games in 2023. Ten of his appearances were as a starter and he struck out 71 batters in 68 innings. He also pitched twice in relief against the Toronto Blue Jays in the Wild Card Series. In 2024, he fell to 0-6, 7.61 in 16 games, including 7 starts, then moved to the bullpen full time in 2025. He had a good first four months, as he was leading the American League with 51 appearances by the end of July and had an ERA of 2.02 with a 3-3 record. The Twins got rid of a number of veteran players at the trading deadline, and Louie was one of them, being sent to the Toronto Blue Jays alongside 1B Ty France in return for two youngsters, OF Alan Roden and P Kendry Rojas. He quickly earned manager John Schneider's trust with Toronto, as he was thrust into all sorts of situations in 23 appearances, including as an opener on one occasion. He went 1-0 with a 4.94 ERA but impressed by being unflappable and always ready to take the mound. That proved particularly useful in the postseason when he appeared in 15 of the 17 games the Blue Jays played. His only decision was a loss, which came as an opener in the Division Series against the New York Yankees and he logged 16 innings, most of them in high pressure situations, with a 3.93 ERA.

Varland started off the 2026 red hot, not giving up an earned run in his first 11 outings and striking out 19 in 12 1/3 innings. That was in stark contrast to closer Jeff Hoffman, who had a number of prominent meltdowns during the same period. Things came to a head on April 21st when Hoffman was unable to nail down a 4-1 9th-inning lead over the Los Angeles Angels, giving up a run and loading the bases while recording just one out. Varland was summoned at this point and needed just one pitch to force Nolan Schanuel to hit into a game-ending double play. That was the first save of his major league career. His second save on April 25th was more of a slog, as he allowed a run and loaded the bases before getting the final two outs on strikeouts after coming in with a 5-2 lead against the Cleveland Guardians in the 9th inning at the Rogers Centre. He was named the Reliever of the Month in the American League as he put up an ERA of 0.56 with 26 strikeouts in 15 innings. He allowed what was only his second earned run of the season in the top of the 9th inning against the Philadelphia Phillies on June 9th, breaking a 1-1 tie, but instead of being charged with a loss, he won for the third time when the Blue Jays mounted an improbable comeback off closer Jhoan Duran in the bottom of the inning, with the first three batters all getting hits, capped by Brandon Valenzuela's game-ending single that scored Daulton Varsho for a 3-2 win. The run increased his ERA to 0.50 after 32 games.

His older brother Gus Varland made his major league debut in 2023. Louie was the first graduate of Concordia to reach the major leagues since it became a four-year university, and his brother was the second.

Further Reading[edit]

  • Martín Gallegos: "Varland ties appearances record that he's likely to break in Game 7", mlb.com, November 1, 2025. [1]
  • Do-Hyoung Park: "Local kid Varland makes it to The Show", mlb.com, September 7, 2022. [2]

Related Sites[edit]

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