Results tagged ‘ Jeff Manship ’

Game 4: Twins sloppy in 10-2 loss to Red Sox

FORT MYERS, Fla. — The Twins didn’t exactly look sharp in a 10-2 loss to the Red Sox in their first and only night game of the spring at Hammond Stadium.

Right-hander Jason Marquis struggled in his Grapefruit League debut, allowing four runs on three hits and three walks over just 1 2/3 innings.

What went right: Joe Mauer continued to look good at the plate and went 2-for-3 with an RBI single in the fifth inning. Tsuyoshi Nishioka also added an RBI single and went 1-for-3.

New additions Josh Willingham and Ryan Doumit combined to reach base five times. Willingham was hit by a pitch, singled to left and walked, while Doumit walked and singled to center. Denard Span also went 1-for-2 with a walk.

Right-hander Liam Hendriks threw two scoreless innings with three strikeouts — all looking. His lone mistake was a double by David Ortiz that went off the wall in left field. Right-hander Carlos Gutierrez bounced back after a rough outing in last week’s “B” Game, throwing a scoreless inning with two strikeouts. Brendan Wise and Tyler Robertson each threw a scoreless frame.

What went wrong: Well, where should we start?

Marquis didn’t impress in his debut, as he had trouble finding the strikezone and threw three wild pitches, including one that allowed a run to score. He also wasn’t helped by the defense, as Ryan Doumit — making his first-ever start in left field — booted a ball for an error, and Justin Morneau made a throwing error after a nice play at first base.

Right-hander Jeff Manship came in and got of the second-inning mess left by Marquis, but then served up a solo homer to Ortiz in the third inning.

And right-hander Deolis Guerra allowed five runs in the seventh inning, including a three-run homer to Dan Butler. He allowed four hits and walked one.

What they said: “10-2 tends to take the wick out of you on Fireworks Day as they say,” Twins manager Ron Gardenhire joked after the game when asked if there were any positives to find in the game.

What’s next: Right-hander Scott Baker is set to make his first Grapefruit League start tomorrow against the Rays at 12:05 p.m. CT at Charlotte Sports Park. Ryan Doumit is also slated to make his first start at catcher after seeing time at designated hitter and in left field so far this spring. Right-hander Jeff Niemann is scheduled to start for the Rays. The game will be aired live on Fox Sports North and the Twins Radio Network.

Injury update: Infielder Luke Hughes (strained right shoulder) served as designated hitter for a second straight day. He hopes to make his first start in the field sometime this week. … Infielder Ray Chang, who left Sunday’s game after taking a knee to the jaw, took infield on Monday without any issues. He said he suffered from some jaw spasms last night, but felt OK this morning. … First-base coach Jerry White is staying in the hospital overnight for precautionary reasons to get checked out for stomach and chest tightness.

Game 20: Twins vs. Indians

After what felt like a long break to make the move from Southern California to Minnesota, I’m back and ready for Twins coverage.

It sure seems like much has changed, with Joe Mauer going on the disabled list with bilateral leg weakness and relievers Jeff Manship and Alex Burnett being optioned in favor of Jim Hoey and Eric Hacker, respectively.

But the Twins at least received some good news today with the return of Justin Morneau to the lineup after missing five games with the flu. And left fielder Delmon Young could return tomorrow as long as his batting practice session goes OK today.

The club is obviously in a hole to start out the year, but if they get healthy and start hitting, the season is certainly from from over, especially considering the early struggles of the White Sox and Tigers.

It’s been an unpredictable start to the year in the AL Central with the Indians in first place and the Royals right behind them in second, but it’s worth repeating that we’re still only 20 games into a 162-game season.

So my advice is to buckle up and enjoy the ride, as it should be an interesting race in the AL Central this season.

Follow

Get every new post delivered to your Inbox.

Join 34 other followers