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Twins Minor Leaguer Accused of Cheating Finally Denies Allegations
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- Twins Minor Leaguer Accused of Cheating Finally Denies Allegations
Ron Schloerb/Cape Cod Times / USA TODAY NETWORK
It's been over five months since the story broke about Derek Bender , the Minnesota Twins ' 2024 6th round pick out of Coastal Carolina. When news first broke that Bender had allegedly told opposing hitters what pitches were coming from his own pitchers, during a crucial game late last fall, the Twins released the 22-year-old.
That caused the story to mostly fizzle out. That is, until Thursday when Bender broke his silence. But before we jump ahead to what the former Twins catcher prospect said in his interview with The Athletic , let's start with a clip notes version of what happened, so everyone can get caught up to speed.
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What's the story with Derek Bender?
Back on Sept. 6, 2024, Bender and the Fort Myers Mighty Mussels, the Minnesota Twins' Single-A affiliate, lost their seventh-straight game, this time falling to the Lakeland Flying Tigers, knocking them out of playoff contention.
After the game, Lakeland coaches were told by their players that Bender was telling them what pitches were being thrown by his pitchers. Lakeland coaches then informed the Fort Myers coaching staff after the game. This led to Bender spending the final two games of the season in the bullpen, before being kicked out of the organization.
Here's a Derek Bender home run, #MNTwins fans pic.twitter.com/XClqdEJrZo
— JD Cameron (@J_D_Cameron) July 15, 2024
During the streak, and in the weeks leading up to the end of the Mighty Mussels' 2024 season, Bender had been telling teammates about how badly he wanted the summer to be over, even "joking" with that they should let a grounder or two slip under their glove, if that's what it took to bring the season to an end.
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While Bender admits he did want the season to end, he told Blum the comments he made to his teammates were not serious. He was not intentionally trying to throw the game, and while he was desperate for a break from baseball, Derek Bender insists he never did what he is being accused of.
Bender : "A lot of us are coming off of college seasons, coming off of a pretty grueling summer schedule. Then you get there and you're hitting .200, you're facing some of the best stuff consistently you've ever seen. You're sinking or swimming, and you're pretty close to sinking. "
Blum : "You were accused of giving away pitches as they were coming up to bat. Did that happen?"
Bender : "No, and I'll live with this until the day I die. I never gave pitches away. I never tried to give the opposing team an advantage against my own team."
The Mussels' losing streak is important to this story because, prior to their end-of-season debacle, the Mighty Mussels were on pace to make the playoffs. A main part of the accusations stem from Bender's apparent eagerness to end the 2024 baseball season, which couldn't happen if the team made the playoffs..
Derek Bender pleads his innocence
Bender originally kept his silence because of advice given by his agency. They didn't want him to make any comments during an ongoing investigation. Bender took that advice up until the moment he decided to do The Athletic interview.
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If found guilty, Bender will be banned from Major League Baseball for life. That's why he felt like he had to speak up, even if everyone around him advised against it. In fact, the interview he did with The Athletic cost him a spot with the agency that was representing him.
"It's about gaining control over my life, and this whole situation. I'm not doing this as a last-ditch effort to get back into affiliate ball. It's more of this is the start of me taking control of my life again. Because I've let this completely control me for months now."
[Bender's] primary agent, Jake Rosner, said he was unaware the interview had taken place. And after The Athletic reached out to Rosner to request comment, Octagon dropped Bender as a client.
The Twins were originally willing to keep him as long as he apologized. Bender did, but he didn't feel like he had anything to apologize for. Minnesota Twins GM Jeremy Zoll led an internal investigation that ultimately led to the team terminating Bender on Sept. 12.
MLB, Minnesota Twins supposedly has hard evidence against Bender
Credit: Ron Schloerb/Cape Cod Times / USA TODAY NETWORK
No team or former teammate was willing to speak with The Athletic, on the record. Off the record, however, it was noted that the MLB's investigation has supposedly found evidence that Bender was giving away his pitchers pitches, but as of now, we do not know what that evidence is.
League sources briefed on the investigation say the inquiry has uncovered evidence against Bender. More than a dozen people have spoken to investigators, including multiple with direct knowledge of the alleged conduct. Notably, there was no video broadcast of the game, despite the other five games in that series being aired. If the league finds he violated the rules, he'd be looking at a permanent ban, with the opportunity to apply for reinstatement after a year.
In 19 games in Fort Myers, he hit .200 with two homers, eight RBIs and five walks. He will be playing independent ball this summer for the Brockton Rox of the Frontier League. He has no ill-will towards the Twins, but he doesn't feel like they ever had his back throughout the process.
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This stint with the Rox is a chance at redemption. Bender wants to prove to GMs like Zoll that all he cares about is winning. It might involve a move to first base, as most pitchers will likely be hesitant to throw to him now, but that's fine with him. He just wants to play. We'll see if that will ever happen with an MLB affiliate.
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