Minnesota Twins Daily Clips

Monday, April 10, 2017

 Ervin Santana plays his ace card, leading Twins to 4-1 win. Star Tribune (Miller) p. 1  Twins Brandon Kintzler's broken nail becomes a casualty. Star Tribune (Miller) p. 2  Santana would have pitched seventh; Twins spend extra night in Chicago. Star Tribune (Miller) p. 3  Twins are worth watching, analyzing. Star Tribune (Rand) p. 4  Ervin Santana leads to series victory over Chicago White Sox. Pioneer Press (Bernardino) p. 4  Minnesota Twins considering Louisville lefty Brendan McKay along with Hunter Greene. Pioneer Press (Bernardino) p. 5  Polanco, Sano key factors on offense. MLB (Bollinger) p. 7  Santana quiets White Sox; Twins move to 5-1. MLB (Bollinger and Merkin) p. 7  Falvey to be involved in Draft process. MLB (Bollinger) p. 9  Santiago in search of second win. MLB (Bollinger) p. 9  Wetmore’s 5 thoughts: Dropping Buxton, leveraging relievers, Sano homers again. ESPN 1500 (Wetmore) p. 10  Arizona Diamondbacks, Minnesota Twins Headline Week One Surprises. FOX Sports (Burke) p. 11  Sizzling Santana, bullpen hold White Sox in check. FOX Sports () p. 12  Twins boast AL's best record: MLB Sunday scores, news, highlights, injuries. CBS Sports (Snyder and Anderson) p. 13  As Diamondbacks go on without him, Ron Gardenhire readies for cancer fight. USA Today (Nightengale) p. 13

Ervin Santana plays his ace card, leading Twins to 4-1 win Phil Miller | Star Tribune | April 10, 2017

CHICAGO – Ervin Santana produced almost an exact replica of his Opening Day brilliance on Sunday — two hits, two walks and a win in six whisper-quiet innings — and raised the question: When he’s pitching like this, can anybody hit him?

Turns out: Yes.

“I can,” Miguel Sano said confidently after Santana pitched the Twins to a 4-1 victory over the White Sox, and their first 5-1 start to a season since 2010. “One time in , I hit a homer off him.”

These days, Sano’s homers are put to use in support of the Twins’ ace, not against him, and they’re a sight to behold. The 23-year-old slugger drove a 96-mph fastball 410 feet into a howling wind on Sunday, landing it seven rows up in the center field seats to give the Twins a four-run cushion. “I’d have liked to see that ball if the wind was blowing out,” Twins manager Paul Molitor said. “That ball was smoked.”

Jorge Polanco’s wasn’t exactly lightly basted, either: The 23-year-old shortstop cranked his first homer of the year into left-center in the seventh inning, one pitch after another blast succumbed to the gale from the east. “Under normal conditions would have been a homer,” Molitor said. “The wind carried it foul, but he came back on the next pitch.”

The White Sox weren’t able to do that, or much of anything, against Santana, who had never before in his 13-year career collected a win in his first two starts of a season. Mixing mostly sliders with his now-you-see-it fastball — “I didn’t have a today,” he shrugged — Santana didn’t allow solid contact all day. Only once did a Chicago base- runner advance as far as second base. The only surprising part of his performance, in fact, was its length.

Santana was pulled after six innings, having thrown 87 pitches. Caution now will pay off late, Molitor said.

“I’m not too enthused about the prospect of him going much past 100 [pitches], if at all. Rather than having him start the inning and maybe having something created, we went with the clean inning,” Molitor said of his decision. “[With] Six months of ahead of us, to try to push a guy for an extra inning in the second start — that’s where we ended up landing.”

Twins first-week statistics

The bullpen wasn’t nearly as sharp as Santana, but the home runs gave them room to endure a little sloppiness. Chicago put runners on base in each of the final three innings, though the only run the Sox scored may have had to do more with super glue than pitch location. After rescued from a two-on, one-out jam in the seventh, closer Brandon Kintzler tried to do the same for Matt Belisle, who loaded the bases with a couple of walks and a hit.

But the nail on Kintzler’s right index finger is cracked, and the closer had glued it shut — a little too aggressively, it turned out. “I put too much on there, and I couldn’t feel the ball on the tip of my finger,” Kintzler said. “That pitch got away from me.”

It hit Avisail Garcia in the ribs, actually, forcing in Chicago’s lone run. Kintzler came back to strike out Yolmer Sanchez to end the inning, and he got through the ninth unscathed, except for the blood on his finger.

He wasn’t too concerned about it after the game, not with reason to celebrate.

“You can’t ask for a better start to the season,” Kintzler said. “We sweep the first series, then we win our first road series, and now we get a day off to enjoy it. This is the start we told ourselves we could make happen.”

Twins closer Brandon Kintzler's broken nail becomes a casualty Phil Miller | Star Tribune | April 10, 2017

CHICAGO – Brandon Kintzler looked at his index finger, saw the blood oozing around the broken fingernail, and summoned home plate umpire Dana DeMuth, along with Twins manager Paul Molitor and athletic trainer Tony Leo, to the mound in the ninth inning.

Not because he wanted medical assistance. He just wanted a witness.

“We put too much super glue on [the nail]. It was covered, and I was having trouble feeling the ball,” the Twins’ closer said. “So I was trying to peel it off without looking like I was cheating.”

A crowd gathered on the mound, and Kintzler was able to peel away enough of the glue to continue pitching. “It wasn’t really an injury,” he said. “I was afraid [DeMuth] would think I was filing it or doing something to the ball.”

The nail cracked during spring training, but with three days off between each outing, it was never a problem. “I just cut and filed it each time, and it was fine. It never even bled in spring training,” Kintzler said.

It bled Sunday, though, which may be more problematic.

“I didn’t even notice it until I was in the game, so we put more super glue on after the eighth inning ended,” he said. “I’m glad we have [Monday] off. We’ll see how it does.”

Sneaking a peek

Derek Falvey doesn’t want to comment on possible draftees yet, but his interest in Sherman Oaks, Calif., /shortstop Hunter Greene is a little conspicuous: That was Falvey sitting behind the plate (and caught on video) at Greene’s complete-game performance for Notre Dame High School on Friday.

“You can [scout] a lot off of video. You can get a pretty good look. But when you get a chance to meet somebody, interact, say hello, meet their parents, be around the teammates, talk to the coaches, it just gives you a broader perspective,” the Twins’ chief baseball officer said Sunday, after jokingly pretending to know nothing about the trip. “Our scouts — Taylor Cameron was out there, and [scouting director] Sean Johnson and [West Coast supervisor] Elliott Strankman — they’re all doing that, too. So it’s just another set of eyes.”

The Twins will select first in the June 12 draft, and Greene, a 17-year-old righthander who hit 100 mph with Falvey in attendance, is widely considered the likely choice. But the Twins are a long way from deciding that, Falvey said. “There are some years where the industry might see a 2 clear number one, there are other years where it’s a little bit more spread out. We’re not going to cross anyone off the list at this stage,” he said. “The reality is, we won’t have a decision made until we get through the entirety of the scouting season. We want to make sure we get all the way to the end, with as much information as possible.”

He and General Manager Thad Levine will both take several trips to personally view prospects, more this year with the overall No. 1 than in a year when they pick later. “We’re getting to know as many players as possible, as deep as possible,” Falvey said.

On the mend

• threw 25 pitches “with about 80-90 percent intensity” on Saturday, Falvey said, and will increase it to 30 on Tuesday as he works back from shoulder surgery.

• Infielder Ehire Adrianza played catch and hit off a tee but has yet to take part in more serious work as his strained oblique heals. He’ll require some rehab games before the Twins decide whether to put him on the roster or try to get him through waivers.

• Lefthander Ryan O’Rourke, sidelined because of a forearm strain, will begin a throwing program late this week.

Santana would have pitched seventh; Twins spend extra night in Chicago Phil Miller | Star Tribune | April 9, 2017

CHICAGO — A couple of extras from the series finale at whatever they’re calling New Comiskey Park these days:

— Ervin Santana admits he was a little surprised when Paul Molitor approached him after the sixth inning and told him they were going to have Taylor Rogers pitch the seventh. “I wanted to go back and pitch,” Santana said, “but he told me it was good enough for today.”

Molitor said he made the decision based on the long season still ahead, figuring saving pitches now will pay off later. Santana had thrown 87, and it sounds like the manager doesn’t intend for his 34-year-old ace to ever eclipse 100 pitches in a game. He could have faced a few more batters, Molitor said, but he didn’t want to risk Santana suddenly getting into trouble, particularly with only a 2-0 lead.

“Rather than having him start the inning and maybe having something [a rally] created, we went with the clean innings,” Molitor said. “He was open to going back out, but I don’t think he liked the idea of coming out if he got in trouble. When it’s your game … “

XXX

Ever arrive at your hotel but discover that your room isn’t ready? That’s sort of what happened to the Twins on this road trip.

Rather than depart immediately after Sunday’s game, as they normally would, the Twins chose to remain in Chicago overnight. They’ll depart for Detroit on Monday, a scheduled off day.

The reason? The Tigers, in an unusual bit of scheduling, conclude a four-game series at Comerica Park with Boston on Monday afternoon — and the Red Sox currently occupy the same hotel rooms the Twins will stay in. With the Washington Wizards also checking into the same suburban luxury hotel for their Monday game with the Pistons, the hotel couldn’t make enough rooms available to the Twins for a Sunday check-in.

XXX

The extra night in Chicago gives the Twins a little time to savor their first-week accomplishments, and not just the 5-1 overall record. It’s April 9, and they’re 2-1 on the road.

Know how long it took to win two road games last season? Victory No. 2 came in Houston, in road game No. 12.

On May 2.

3

Twins are worth watching, analyzing Michael Rand | Star Tribune | April 9, 2017

Given the choice between watching three hours of early Sunday coverage of the Masters or three hours of Twins baseball from the first week of the MLB season, I mostly chose the latter.

Call me a sucker for baseball, or maybe more so a local team, or probably even more so for the suddenly compelling Twins. I know there are 162 Twins games a year and only one final round of the Masters every year. A choice is a choice.

At the very least, those three hours allowed for the solidification of a few notions about these suddenly fundamentally sound, 5-1 Twins. Let’s take a spin through five of them:

• Ervin Santana is not an ace, per se, but he inspires roughly the same feeling that Carl Pavano did when he was at his best for the Twins in 2010: that every time he pitches, the Twins have a reasonable expectation of winning.

If you were fooled by his 7-11 record in 2016 and didn’t look more carefully at his 3.38 ERA and solid peripheral numbers, Santana’s 2-0 start this year — with just four hits and one run allowed in 13 innings, to go with reasonable run support — might come as a surprise.

• Remember near the end of spring training when everyone was freaking out because ByungHo Park was sent to the minors after a hot spring in favor of keeping 13 ? Feels like a distant memory thanks to two things: 1) Robbie Grossman has a .389 on-base percentage as the team’s designated hitter and 2) all of those bullpen arms have come in handy.

In the only loss of the year, when starter Adalberto Mejia recorded just five outs Saturday, bullpen depth guys Justin Haley and Michael Tonkin chewed up innings to keep everyone else fresh. That set up Sunday’s strategy of taking out Santana after six innings, letting the bullpen do the rest.

• That said, the bullpen strategy almost backfired Sunday as a handful of relievers worked in and out of danger for three innings.

I like the idea of having confidence in the relievers, even if Santana was rolling. But I’m not sure the Twins have a bullpen good enough yet to make me think they’re better off getting nine outs that way than asking for more from Santana.

• After everything we heard about , Miguel Sano, , Eddie Rosario and Jose Berrios, what if the best of the young Twins players ends up being Jorge Polanco?

It’s not as if Polanco is a no-name or unheralded, but others certainly have been touted more than him. All he’s done so far this year is hit .389, including a Sunday. He looks like he’s a threat to get a hit every time up.

• Then again, Sano has been everything the Twins could have hoped for in the first week of the season. Whatever happened during a disappointing 2016 — whether it was the right field experiment, the expectations after 2015 or just a natural sophomore slump — seems long forgotten.

Ervin Santana leads Minnesota Twins to series victory over Chicago White Sox Mike Berardino | Pioneer Press | April 9, 2017

CHICAGO — Ervin Santana was dominant again Sunday afternoon, but there was no thought about pushing him to his limit this early in the season.

“I’m not really too enthused about the prospect of him going much past 100 (pitches), if at all past,” Twins manager Paul Molitor said after a 4-1 win over the Chicago White Sox. “Rather than have him start the (seventh) inning and maybe have something created, we went with the clean inning. With six months of baseball ahead of us, we won’t try to push a guy for an extra inning here in his second start.”

Off to a 5-1 start, their best since 2010, the Twins hadn’t won consecutive series since claiming three straight over the White Sox (home), Cleveland Indians and Tampa Bay Rays from July 29 to Aug. 8 last season.

Pulled at 87 pitches with a two-hit shutout working, Santana said he understood the decision after conferring with Molitor and pitching coach Neil Allen.

4

“I think he was open to going back out,” Molitor said, “but I don’t think he liked the idea of coming out if he got in trouble, when it’s your game and your runs.”

Striking out seven, walking just one and lowering his earned-run average to 0.69, the smooth-tossing right-hander outdueled White Sox ace Jose Quintana. Spellbinding despite missing his changeup, Santana improved to 2-0 behind Joe Mauer’s two-out, run-scoring single in the third and homers by shortstop Jorge Polanco and Miguel Sano.

“We’re just trying to do everything we can to try to win games,” Santana said. “We’re playing better now. We have a lot of good defense, a lot of good offense right now. We just have to keep it up and don’t worry about the past.”

He touched 94 mph in the fourth inning but kept White Sox hitters guessing by mixing in a liberal helping of sliders and . Just one of the final six White Sox batters to face Santana got a fastball to start the confrontation.

All nine of Santana’s swing-and-miss strikes came on his vaunted , which helped compensate for a first-pitch strike percentage that was barely over 50 percent (12 of 22).

“You can’t say too many superlatives, but he makes it look easy at times,” Molitor said. “He gets people to expand on his off-speed, and his fastball he just has a lot of trust in being able to command on the inner third, both right and left.”

When Molitor’s comment was relayed to him, Santana shook his head and smiled. Is it ever easy for him to zip through big-league lineups?

“Never,” he said. “It looks easy from the outside, but it’s a lot of work, a lot of preparation and a lot of focus.”

The Twins’ first two-homer game of the year included blasts of 394 feet and 409 feet from Polanco and Sano, respectively. The boyhood friends from San Pedro de Macoris in the Dominican Republic had homered in the same big-league game just once before, last Sept. 24 at home against Ariel Miranda of the Seattle Mariners.

“I would have liked to see that ball if the wind was blowing out, I know that,” Molitor said of Sano’s shot off Team USA reliever Nate Jones. “That ball was smoked.”

As he did on the homer, Sano came through with two strikes on leadoff double in the second, surviving a 10-pitch battle with Quintana. Sano credited extra tee work on his improved two-strike success.

Relievers Ryan Pressly and Brandon Kintzler worked out of inherited jams in the seventh and eighth, respectively. Pressly stranded two more runners with two quick outs after a pair of singles off Taylor Rogers.

Kintzler, notching his third in four days despite a cracked nail on his pitching hand, hit Avisail Garcia with a pitch to force in a run after veteran Matt Belisle loaded the bases. Kintzler then rebounded to strike out Yolmer Sanchez on an offspeed pitch in the dirt to end the threat.

Twins center fielder Byron Buxton went hitless in four more at-bats and dropped to 2 for 26 (.077) on the year with 14 .

Minnesota Twins considering Louisville lefty Brendan McKay along with Hunter Greene Mike Berardino | Pioneer Press | April 9, 2017

CHICAGO — Twins chief baseball officer Derek Falvey answered coyly when asked Sunday about this weekend’s trip to watch Hunter Greene for the first time in person.

“What trip out west?” Falvey said with a laugh.

Greene, a Sherman Oaks, Calif., high school right-hander with a triple-digit fastball who doubles as a power-hitting shortstop, is widely projected to go in the top two picks in the June 12-14 amateur draft. No prep righty has been selected with the first overall pick, which the Twins hold for just the third time in their history.

“You can do a lot off video,” Falvey said. “I think when you get a chance to meet somebody, say hello, interact, meet the parents, be around the team and teammates, talk to coaches and otherwise, it just gives you a broader perspective.”

Hunter, who is expected to use CAA Sports as his pre-draft adviser, is hardly a done deal at 1-1. According to sources familiar with the draft 5 process, the Twins also are giving strong consideration to another two-way player, University of Louisville left-hander/first baseman Brendan McKay.

The fast-rising McKay has vaulted past the likes of fellow college pitchers J.B. Bukauskas (North Carolina), Alex Faedo (Florida) and Kyle Wright (Vanderbilt) in most prospect rankings, thanks to his advanced command of a 94-mph fastball, plus curveball and improving changeup.

A late-blooming product of Darlington, Pa., northwest of Pittsburgh, the 6-foot-2, 203-pound McKay is 21 and probably wouldn’t need much minor league seasoning. Northern California-based agency Sosnick Cobbe & Karon is said to be advising McKay.

Most key Twins scouting officials, plus Falvey and general manager Thad Levine, have seen McKay in person. Senior scouting adviser Deron Johnson is scheduled to see McKay for a second time next weekend when Louisville plays at Georgia Tech, while player-personnel man Mike Radcliff was scheduled to see McKay at home against Wake Forest this weekend.

Recommended slot for the No. 1 overall pick has been cut to $7.77 million this year under the new collective bargaining agreement. With a compressed bonus structure, the chances of a below-slot deal for the Twins’ top pick have been severely reduced as they try to make the most of their $14.2 million total draft pool.

The Cincinnati Reds, picking second, have a recommended slot of $7.2 million.

“A lot of things can change through the course of the next couple months,” Falvey said. “It’s still April. We’ve got a lot more time. You want to make sure you see these guys right until the end.”

PERKINS PLAN

Rehabbing Twins closer Glen Perkins (shoulder surgery) threw a 25-pitch bullpen on Saturday in Fort Myers, Fla., and will increase that count to 30 pitches on Tuesday, the Twins said.

Perkins, who can’t come off the 60-day disabled list until June 1, had been throwing bullpens every fourth day since the start of spring training, so the move to a third-day routine is a sign of progress.

“I think it’s starting to progress to getting closer to 100 percent intensity,” Falvey said.

Infielder Ehire Adrianza (oblique) was slated to progress from underwater swings to light tee work on Sunday. He had been long-tossing without issue, but he is moving closer to starting a rehab assignment.

Out of minor league options, Adrianza would have to be exposed to waivers once healthy if the Twins can’t find room for him on their 25-man roster.

Lefty reliever Ryan O’Rourke (strained flexor mass) had been feeling some “point tenderness” in his throwing arm, Twins manager Paul Molitor said, but he’s now two to four days from starting a throwing program.

BRIEFLY

Assistant hitting coach Rudy Hernandez turned 51 Sunday. A few Twins sang “Happy Birthday” to him in the clubhouse before the game, with fellow Venezuelan Eduardo Escobar presenting him with a birthday bagel on a paper plate, candle, potato chips and all.

6

Polanco, Sano key factors on offense Rhett Bollinger | MLB| April 9, 2017

CHICAGO -- While third baseman Miguel Sano and shortstop Jorge Polanco entered the year with questions about their defense, the Twins were hopeful they'd both be major parts of the offense this season.

So far, that's been the case as they've both been two of the club's hottest hitters and it was evident yet again in Sunday's 4-1 win over the White Sox at Guaranteed Rate Field to help the Twins improve to 5-1. Sano went 2-for-4 with a two-run homer in the eighth and a double in the second, while Polanco went 2-for-4 with a solo homer in the seventh.

"It was a good win coming back after yesterday," Twins manager Paul Molitor said. "Polanco and Miggy kind of sealed the deal as far as offense was concerned."

All four of their hits were crushed, as Sano's double off ace Jose Quintana had an exit velocity of 109.1 mph and his two-run homer off reliever Nate Jones left the bat at 111 mph and went a projected 426 feet, per Statcast™. Polanco's single in the fourth left the bat at 104.3 mph and his homer off Quintana in the seventh had an exit velocity of 102.5 mph, going a projected 405 feet.

Sano, bouncing back after a bit of a sophomore slump last year, is hitting .350/.458/.850 with two homers, two doubles, a triple and eight RBIs in six games.

"It's been a great start," Molitor said. "He seems to be seeing the ball well. He expands occasionally but he's making guys throw him strikes. He's had some really good battles with two strikes, including that double in the second."

One of the more encouraging signs about Sano is he's struck out seven times in 24 plate appearances, and both of his extra-base hits on Sunday came with two strikes. Four of his seven hits this year are with two strikes.

"I've been working hard to hit with two strikes," Sano said. "I've been working a lot with a tee. I'm trying to put the ball in play."

Polanco, meanwhile, is batting .389/.450/.667 with a homer, two doubles and four RBIs in five games. He's not known for his power, but after a long foul off Quintana that likely would've been a homer if it weren't for the wind, hit the next pitch he saw for his first homer of the year.

"I wanted to go up and away," Quintana said. "I was in the zone. I was trying to [give him] something to chase, missed the spot a little bit. He hit the ball good, though."

Polanco, a switch-hitter, has been batting in the second half of the lineup early this season, but could see himself moved up into the two-hole with the way he's been swinging the bat.

"I've been feeling good so far," Polanco said. "I've been having good at-bats."

Santana quiets White Sox; Twins move to 5-1 Rhett Bollinger and Scott Merkin | MLB | April 9, 2017

CHICAGO -- In a pitchers' battle befiting staff aces, Ervin Santana was a bit sharper than Jose Quintana during Minnesota's 4-1 victory over the White Sox in Sunday's series finale at Guaranteed Rate Field.

Santana worked six shutout innings and 87 pitches, allowing two hits, two walks and striking out four. Quintana bounced back from a subpar Opening Day performance against the Tigers by limiting the Twins to two runs on five hits over 6 1/3 innings, striking out seven and walking one in 100 pitches.

"I feel pretty good," Quintana said. "My command was better. Santana was good. It was a tough game. Played good, just two runs, but I feel pretty good today, better than last time."

Joe Mauer broke a scoreless tie in the third with a two-out single to left-center over the head of shortstop Tim Anderson. That base hit scored Robbie Grossman, who doubled with two outs and moved to third on an Omar Narvaez passed ball.

Minnesota padded the lead on Miguel Sano's two-run homer to center in the eighth off of reliever Nate Jones. Brian Dozier and Grossman opened the inning with singles, but Jones had a chance to escape after inducing a Mauer double-play grounder. Sano wouldn't let him off the 7 hook, with his long drive featuring an exit velocity of 111 mph and a launch angle of 29 degrees, with a hit probability of 98 percent, according to Statcast™.

"It was good win coming back after yesterday," Twins manager Paul Molitor said. "Ervin did a really nice job. We had some big hits with Robbie and Joe combining for a run. Jorge Polanco and Miggy kind of sealed the deal as far as offense was concerned." That home run marked the first runs allowed by the White Sox bullpen this season. It also ended Jones' scoreless streak at 11 2/3 innings over his last 11 games dating back to last season.

The White Sox rallied off of Matt Belisle and Brandon Kintzler in the eighth, scoring one when Avisail Garcia was hit by a Kintzler pitch with the bases loaded. But Kintzler struck out Yolmer Sanchez with the bases loaded to end the rally.

MOMENTS THAT MATTERED

Polanco punishes pitch: Polanco gave the Twins a two-run lead by going deep on a 1-2 pitch from Quintana leading off the seventh. He just missed a home run on the pitch before, but Quintana then caught too much of the plate with a 91.8 mph - four-seam fastball. After getting the next baseball, Quintana knocked himself in the head with the ball indicating his frustration over that pitch.

"I was just trying to stay back and react to the fastball," Polanco said. "Just trying to hit it hard."

"Frustrated with the pitch," Quintana said. "It was a 1-2 count. I knew I had two more pitches to get him to chase or something. I missed with fastball. Little emotion at that time."

Second-inning escapes: Both the Twins and White Sox had runners on first and second with nobody out in the second, but neither team scored.

Miguel Sano doubled to left-center, with an exit velocity of 109.1 mph per Statcast™, followed by Jason Castro drawing a walk. But Quintana struck out Polando, retired Eddie Rosario on a fly ball to right and then struck out Byron Buxton to end the frame. Todd Frazier walked and Cody Asche singled off of Santana in the bottom half of the inning, but a running catch by Rosario in left on Yolmer Sanchez's opposite-field drive staved off any trouble. Quintana threw 34 pitches in the second alone.

QUOTABLE

"I'm not happy because we don't have results. We think we could have won the series. But you just keep going. I'll have a chance again next time." -- Quintana, on whether he was happy to have better results than Opening Day.

SOUND SMART WITH YOUR FRIENDS

Sano had two of the three hardest-hit balls in the game, per Statcast™. His double in the second had an exit velocity of 109.1 mph while his homer left the bat at 111 mph.

UNUSUAL MOUND WOES

Dating back to Sept. 1, 2016, Quintana has a 2-5 record with a 5.51 ERA in eight starts covering 47 1/3 . Those numbers do not include his World Baseball Classic start for Colombia.

WHAT'S NEXT

Twins: After an off-day on Monday, the Twins begin a three-game series against the Tigers in Detroit on Tuesday at 12:10 p.m. CT. Left-hander Hector Santiago, who limited the Royals to one run over five innings in his season debut, starts for Minnesota opposite Detroit lefty Matt Boyd. White Sox: The White Sox get an off-day Monday and then travel to Cleveland for the Indians' home opener Tuesday, with a first pitch scheduled for 3:10 p.m. CT. James Shields, who beat the Tigers in his first start Thursday, gets the call against Cleveland.

8

Falvey to be involved in Draft process Rhett Bollinger | MLB| April 9, 2017

CHICAGO -- With the Twins holding the No. 1 overall pick in the 2017 Draft on June 12, chief baseball officer Derek Falvey said he plans to be heavily involved in the decision-making process and will help scout the top amateur prospects.

Falvey flew to Southern California on Friday to watch right-hander Hunter Greene, ranked as MLB.com's No. 1 amateur prospect, play for Notre Dame High School in Sherman Oaks. Greene, who also plays shortstop, struck out 12 batters while reportedly hitting 100 mph with his fastball.

"It was good," Falvey said. "I love seeing amateur players. It's hard not to love that part of it. It's how I got my start in baseball and it's what I still love to do. I've seen a lot of video of some guys and so being able to see them in person is good."

Falvey wouldn't comment on the specifics of what he saw from Greene, but noted that it's important to get a feel for more than just a player's baseball skills.

"You can do a lot with video, but when you get to meet somebody and interact and meet the parents, teammates and coaches it gives you a broader perspective," Falvey said. "I think our scouts are all doing that, too, but it's nice to have another set of eyes." Falvey added that he and general manager Thad Levine will work with scouting director Sean Johnson on when and who to see in person. Other top amateur prospects include Louisville left-hander/first baseman Brendan McKay, Vanderbilt outfielder Jeren Kendall and North Carolina right-hander J.B. Bukauskas.

"I've worked with Sean a little bit where it makes sense for me and Thad to go out and see some of these guys," Falvey said. "I think over time help provide another perspective. It's an opportunity to do what we did the other day with a number of players. We're not going to cross anyone off the list at this stage. We're going to scout the entirety of the top of the draft because things change over the course of the year."

Worth noting

• Infielder Ehire Adrianza (oblique strain) has been throwing without any issues and progressed to hitting off a tee on Sunday. He'll need a rehab assignment before he's activated from the 10-day disabled list.

• Left-hander Ryan O'Rourke (forearm strain) has yet to start throwing, but Falvey said he's likely to start his throwing program in the next two to four days.

• Closer Glen Perkins (labrum surgery) threw a 25-pitch bullpen on Sunday at 80-90 percent intensity, Falvey said. He'll progress to a 30-pitch bullpen on Tuesday.

Santiago in search of second win Rhett Bollinger | MLB | April 9, 2017

The Tigers took advantage of the Twins' down season in 2016, winning 15 of their 19 matchups, but Minnesota is off to a hot start this year and will be looking to reverse that trend when the two division rivals meet for the first time in a three-game series that begins on Tuesday at Comerica Park.

Left-hander Matt Boyd starts for Detroit, while the Twins will turn to lefty Hector Santiago. Boyd is coming off a rough outing against the White Sox on Thursday, allowing five runs over 2 1/3 innings. But he's had success against the Twins, going 3-1 with a 3.94 ERA in five starts.

Santiago was better in his debut, limiting the Royals to one run on four hits over five-plus innings to get a win on Wednesday. Santiago has a career 3.50 ERA in 69 1/3 innings against Detroit, but only a 2-5 record to show for it.

Things to know about the game:

• Tigers first baseman Miguel Cabrera got his first hit of the season on Sunday after opening the year in an 0-for-12 funk. Cabrera and Santiago are good friends, and Cabrera is 5-for-22 with two homers against Santiago with the homers coming in each of the last two seasons.

• The Twins are facing their fourth left-handed starter of the young season, and could opt to sit left-handed hitters such as Eddie Rosario, Jason Castro or even Joe Mauer. All three were in the lineup against lefty Jose Quintana on Sunday, however, and the Twins have an off-day on Monday so rest shouldn't be an issue.

9

• Tigers outfielder J.D. Martinez remains sidelined with a right foot sprain, and manager Brad Ausmus said there's no timetable for his return.

Wetmore’s 5 thoughts: Dropping Buxton, leveraging relievers, Sano homers again Derek Wetmore | ESPN 1500 | April 9, 2017

On Saturday, I wrote about how a fast start doesn’t necessarily foretell great fortune for this club, but it also shouldn’t be ignored.

This column presents 5 thoughts from Sunday’s game:

1. Has the patience run out for Byron Buxton?

Paul Molitor wrote Buxton’s name third on the lineup card during the opening series of the season. Buxton struggled mightily at the plate, with plenty of strikeouts and plenty of underlying concerns, like swinging and missing at way too many breaking balls and offspeed pitches.

The Twins, however, went 3-0 in those games, even without offensive production from one of their most pivotal players.

After the short homestand, Molitor was asked if he’d given thought to moving Buxton down the lineup to alleviate any pressure he might be putting on himself to produce at that critical spot. “I’m not thinking about doing that,” the manager said. “We just won three games.”

It wasn’t long before Molitor started thinking about it, though. Buxton was bumped down in the lineup Saturday, struggled again, and then against a tough lefty on Sunday, Buxton batted 8th.

I’m not sure if we can take anything substantial from the move, at least as far as the long-term is concerned. It doesn’t appear that Molitor will be stubborn with lineup decisions. It was a fairly quick hook from my perspective, although I’ll concede that other observers I’ve heard from believe it was overdue. The lineup looks much better and deeper if Buxton is hitting in the top 3 and is a force at the plate. But if he’s a speed- only hitter who fails to make enough contact to get on base at a respectable rate, then the Twins don’t really have much choice in the matter.

2. I’m not questioning Jorge Polanco’s bat.

The Twins shortstop had a pair of hits, including a solo home run against Jose Quintana. He’s off to a good start to the year offensively, and that’s in keeping with his minor league production levels.

Keep in mind, Polanco is just 23 years old. Last season with the Twins he hit .282/.332/.424 in a partial season and took over the shortstop role. At Triple-A Rochester that season, he hit .276/.335/.457. He frequently posted good on-base percentages in the minor leagues, especially if you’re giving bonus points for his age and defensive position. He hasn’t delivered much power in the past, although it might be worth pointing out that he came to spring training last year looking significantly more muscular than he had in the past.

After a misplay during Saturday’s game, I still think it’s fair to say there are open questions about his defense. But I do believe he can hit.

3. Molitor has shown a willingness to have bullpen flexibility.

Against the Royals, Molitor used Ryan Pressly in the 6th inning to get out of a tight spot. That doesn’t mean Pressly is their 6th inning reliever—I actually think Pressly will settle in as their early this year. He’s got the best overall stuff in the bullpen, in my opinion.

I think it’s the right play to use good relievers in the most important spots, rather than designate an inning for every reliever and etch it in stone. That is, assuming the reliever is on board with that kind of flexible usage, and I’ve been told that Pressly is cool with it.

Twins CBO Derek Falvey comes from a team that traded for fireman Andrew Miller at the non-waiver trade deadline last year, and then went to the extreme to put him in high-leverage situations early in games during their run to the World Series.

Molitor also used his closer, Brandon Kintzler, on Sunday with the bases loaded and 2 outs in the 8th inning. Kintzler hit a batter to force in a run, and then uncorked a wild pitch—but luckily for the Twins none of the runners advanced on the ball to the backstop. Then Kintzler came back to strike out Yolmer Sanchez to get out of the jam and preserve the lead. He pitched a scoreless 9th inning to complete the 4-out save.

4. Miguel Sano just keeps mashing.

The big third baseman hit another home run on Sunday, this one off White Sox reliever Nate Jones. It’s safe to say Sano’s bat is off to a much better start than his glove. He’s been unsteady in the field through the first two series of the year, but the real value the Twins have gained comes from Sano’s power. He told me this spring that he wants to strike out less often without losing his power, and he specifically mentioned Miguel Cabrera as a prototype to emulate.

10

The Twins would take that, I’m guessing.

It’s way too early in the year to dig into his stats page and try to figure out if he’s succeeding in his plan to cut down the strikeouts, but it’s clear that he’s still making forceful contact. His first home run of the year left his bat at 114 miles per hour, which matches his hardest hit ball from last season, according to Statcast data. That homer will be displayed on the Exit Velocity leaderboard at the end of the season. In the first series of the season, Sano also clobbered a triple that nearly left the yard to right-center at Target Field. (That sounds like something Miguel Cabrera would do.)

If Sano hits for power, strikes outs a lot, walks a lot and can’t play reasonable defense, he’ll most likely be a good player. But the opportunity for the Twins is much greater than that. If Sano can turn his tools into a polished and dependable third baseman, he would be not just a good player but a great one.

5. Readers: Would you like to see in-game analysis, a Q&A or other?

On Sunday I took to the 1500ESPN Facebook page to stream a live video answeringTwins questions from people that were online. I’m not sharing that to get you to click on the video—I’m more interested in your feedback.

Would you watch that kind of thing if it became a regular feature? Let me know on Facebook or in response to my email newsletter. What would you like to see from our Twins coverage this season?

Arizona Diamondbacks, Minnesota Twins Headline Week One Surprises Jason Burke | FOX Sports | April 10, 2017

Both the Arizona Diamondbacks and Minnesota Twins completed the first week of the 2017 regular season with one loss, which is not exactly what any of us were expecting from either believed-to-be-rebuilding club.

The first question we have to ask is how they’ve each done it. For the Arizona Diamondbacks, the charge has been led by their offense. According to FanGraphs, their bats have accumulated an fWAR of 1.9 and an MLB-high 138 wRC+. In layman’s terms they’ve scored the most runs (48), eight more than their closest competition in the Dodgers. They’re crushing the ball.

This offensive output has helped lead the D-Backs to the highest run differential in the early going at +19, one more that the Dodgers and just two ahead of the Twins.

While typical statistics aren’t quite as high on the Arizona pitching staff, there does appear to be room for improvement. They rank t-8th in overall fWAR as a staff at 0.6 while their cumulative ERA sits at 20th (4.17, just higher than league average) and their FIP (Fielding Independent Pitching) ranks 10th at 3.67. Archie Bradley and Jorge De La Rosa have been racking up the strikeouts out of the bullpen, and if they can continue to get solid relief help coupled with better performances from , Shelby Miller and newly acquired Taijuan Walker, they could become a team to be dealt with in what is shaping up to be a very deep NL West.

We posed this question on Twitter, and so far the responses have been pretty split.

As for the Minnesota Twins, they have had an easier schedule and have one less win overall, but they are in a division that should allow them to rack up some wins with the rebuilding White Sox and soon-to-be rebuilding Royals.

Like the D-Backs, the Twins have been getting some solid relief help, but the Minnesota bullpen has been what’s leading to their early surge. Of the eight arms used out of the bullpen, only Justin Haley has allowed an earned run to score. At the same time five of those eight arms have K/9 rates over nine. The starting trio of Ervin Santana, Hector Santiago and Phil Hughes has really helped out the bullpen by going relatively deep into their starts, and the highest ERA of the three is Santiago’s 1.80.

The Twins’ staff ERA of 2.92 ranks fifth in baseball, but their fWAR is a bit further down at number 19, more in line with their FIP of 4.62, which ranks 20th.

Offensively the Twins rank 8th in WAR at 1.0 as a team with a cumulative 113 wRC+. The alarming stat here is that Jason Castro is the masher that’s leading the charge, accumulating 0.6 of that 1.0 WAR. I’m not a betting man (that’s a lie) but I would bet that he won’t keep this up for more than a couple of weeks, let alone hold that pace for the rest of the season. The good news is that right behind him is Miguel Sano, who could definitely provide some thump for the entire season.

11

The other bright side for Minnesota, although not at the moment, is that Byron Buxton is not hitting–at all. If he can figure things out like he did at the tail end of 2016, then the Twins could legitimately become an offensive force to be reckoned with and should help offset a pitching staff that won’t be able to keep their current pace.

So can the Twins and Diamondbacks keep it up?

Of the two I’d definitely pick Arizona. They’ve faced the stiffer competition in San Francisco and Cleveland (although the Giants did also lose two of three to San Diego over the weekend) and have pitched fairly well at home. The real challenge for them begins today when they start a series with San Francisco in the Bay Area with Walker taking the mound. He has already faced the Giants this season and the quick turnaround could prove detrimental, while their vaunted offense will be playing in a pitcher’s paradise.

While we won’t find out if Walker is about to break out and whether their offense is built for the road in the next three games, we could get an idea as to whether or not the Arizona Diamondbacks are for real this season starting this afternoon. As for the Minnesota Twins, it’s going to take some extra convincing.

Sizzling Santana, bullpen hold White Sox in check Associated Press | FOX Sports | April 9, 2017

CHICAGO — After winning five of their first six games, the surprising Minnesota Twins have the best record in the . And they don’t plan on looking back.

Miguel Sano and Jorge Polanco homered to back Ervin Santana’s six scoreless innings as the Twins beat the Chicago White Sox 4-1 on Sunday for their best start since 2010.

Minnesota finished with the worst mark in the majors last season at 59-103.

“We have a lot of good defense, a lot of good offense right now,” Santana said. “So we just have to keep it up and don’t worry about the past.”

Santana (2-0) held the White Sox to two singles and lowered his ERA to 0.69.

Jose Quintana (0-2) regrouped from a rough opening day start to allow two runs and strike out seven in 6 1/3 innings. Quintana, who has been the subject of trade speculation for the rebuilding White Sox, gave up six runs and three homers against Detroit in his season debut. Last year, he was an All-Star and set career bests for ERA (3.20) and strikeouts (181).

“I’m not happy because we don’t have results,” Quintana said.

Cody Asche’s single in the second was Chicago’s only hit until Jose Abreu singled in the sixth.

Santana has allowed four hits and one run in 13 innings this season.

“He makes it look easy at times,” Twins manager Paul Molitor said.

Molitor said he wanted to conserve Santana, who threw 87 pitches, for the long season. That was OK with the right-hander.

“We’re competing right now. Everything is going our way,” Santana said.

Brandon Kintzler got four outs for his third save in three opportunities. With the bases loaded in the eighth, he hit Avisail Garcia with a pitch to bring in a run.

Kintzler was checked by a trainer in the ninth after issuing a leadoff walk. He had a cracked nail, according to Molitor.

“It was bleeding, but he said he was fine, and he kind of threw better than he did prior to that,” Molitor said.

White Sox relievers had not permitted an earned run in 14 2/3 innings before Sano’s two-run shot off Nate Jones in the eighth. Sano went 2 for 4 with a double and is 7 for 20 (.350) with two home runs this season.

Polanco hit his first home run leading off the seventh against Quintana. The left-hander has given up four homers in 11 2/3 innings.

Minnesota has won seven of 11 against the White Sox. The Twins lost their first game Saturday after they had a chance to start 5-0 for the first time since 1968.

12

BY THE NUMBERS

The Twins have won their first two series for the first time since 2013. Last season, they didn’t win their fifth game until April 21.

GETTING PHYSICAL

Quintana smacked himself in the head with the ball after giving up Polanco’s home run — mimicking former teammate Chris Sale. “Frustrated with the pitch,” Quintana said. “It was a 1-2 count. I knew I had two more pitches to get him to chase or something.”

TRAINER’S ROOM

Twins: INF Ehire Adrianza (oblique strain) is taking swings underwater and expected to swing off a tee. Molitor said Adrianza will take “baby steps” returning from the injury. . LHP Ryan O’Rourke (forearm strain) is not ready to begin throwing due to tenderness.

White Sox: Manager Rick Renteria said the team is debating whether RHP Dylan Covey will start Friday or Saturday at Minnesota in his major league debut. Covey is filling in for LHP Carlos Rodon (biceps bursitis). . The team will re-evaluate RHP Jake Petricka (lat strain) in 10 days, Renteria said.

UP NEXT

Twins: After an off day, LHP Hector Santiago (1-0, 1.80 ERA) is scheduled to pitch Tuesday in Detroit against LHP Matt Boyd (0-1, 19.29).

White Sox: RHP James Shields (1-0, 1.69) starts Tuesday at Cleveland against RHP Carlos Carrasco (1-0, 3.18).

Twins boast AL's best record: MLB Sunday scores, news, highlights, injuries Matt Snyder and R.J. Anderson | CBS Sports | April 9, 2017

The following is an excerpt from the full article:

The Yankees made a late comeback on Sunday to take down the Orioles, 7-3, meaning the Orioles dropped to 4-1. The Twins -- behind a good outing from Ervin Santana and homers from Jorge Polanco and Miguel Sano -- won 4-1 and moved their record to 5-1.

Sano is hitting .350/.458/.850 with two homers and eight RBI. Polanco and Jason Castro are also off to nice starts for the offense. Santana is 2-0 with a 0.69 ERA. Phil Hughes and Hector Santiago made good starts. The bullpen has only allowed four runs all season and three of those came off one guy (Justin Haley).

It’s not as though everything has been glowingly perfect, either. Kyle Gibson and Adalberto Mejia didn’t have good starts. Brian Dozier isn’t hitting well, nor are Joe Mauer, Max Kepler or especially Byron Buxton.

And yet, the Twins are 5-1 with a plus-17 run differential.

Through six games last season, the Twins were 0-6 with a negative-14 run differential.

What a difference a year makes, eh?

As Diamondbacks go on without him, Ron Gardenhire readies for cancer fight Bob Nightengale | USA Today | April 9, 2017

PHOENIX — The Arizona Diamondbacks, off to their best start in franchise history, packed their bags Sunday after sweeping the Cleveland Indians to head off for their first trip of the season.

But one man will be left behind.

Ron Gardenhire, the Diamondbacks’ bench coach.

Gardenhire is flying out also, but he’s going the other direction, back to Minnesota, where he has a different fight on his hands.

Cancer.

Gardenhire, 59, must undergo preparation this week for surgery on April 18 at the Mayo Clinic for prostate cancer.

He will be gone at least a month, perhaps longer, as cancer doesn’t offer timetables. 13

Veteran Jerry Narron is the Diamondbacks’ interim bench coach as they’ve raced out to a 6-1 start after Sunday’s 3-2 victory against the Cleveland Indians. When Gardenhire is healthy, and ready, D’backs manager Torey Lovullo says, Gardenhire will get his old job back.

“Hey, if we’re still winning while I’m gone,” Gardenhire says, “I’ll just go back into the clubhouse and stay out of everyone’s way. I don’t want to mess anything up.”

That’s Gardenhire, the beloved former Minnesota Twins manager, who won 1,068 games and six division titles in 13 years.

He may be fighting his own battle against cancer, but after the Diamondbacks’ opening-day game, he flew to Minneapolis to be at the Twins’ season opener. He wanted to honor his former longtime bullpen coach Rick Stelmaszek, who’s undergoing chemotherapy for pancreatic cancer.

“That’s the kind of guy he is,” Twins bullpen coach Eddie Guardado says. “Gardy’s going through stuff, but his older coach is going through a little bit tougher time, so that’s what he thinks about.

“Gardy is old school. Go get it done. Get it over with. And let’s see what happens.”

So there they were at the Twins’ opener, with nearly 15 former Twins players on hand, watching Stelmaszek throw out the first pitch to Guardado, Gardenhire wrapping his arms around his close friend, and not a dry eye in the house.

“I’ve never seen an opening-day celebration that was as emotionally tied to the fans and the organization,” said Derek Falvey, Twins president of baseball operations, “as that one was.”

Certainly, cancer has a rotten sense of timing, invading Gardenhire’s life just at a time when he was back in uniform for the first time in 2½ years.

He was fired as the Twins’ manager after the 2014 season and hired in 2016 as a Twins special assistant, awaiting another crack at a managerial gig. When Lovullo was hired in November to replace Chip Hale in Arizona, he barely knew Gardenhire personally but was certainly aware of his qualifications. He asked Gardenhire if he would be interested in becoming his bench coach, knowing it might help his chances to become a manager again, too.

“I just always appreciated the way the Minnesota Twins had gone about their business,” Lovullo said. “It started with Tom Kelly, and I knew that Gardy had that DNA all over him. I always thought that if I get a chance to manage, I’d love for him to be on my staff.

“When I interviewed him on the phone, it was as casual and easy as two guys talking over a beer, watching a football game. I felt that connected to him, and I’ve been as comfortable with my interaction with him as I have with anybody in baseball.

“So when I decided to hire him, I called him up and asked him, and he said, 'Oh, my, God. Let me talk to my wife.’ He must have called me back 20 seconds later and said, 'My wife said I’m crazy. I’m taking his job.' ”

Two months later on Lovullo’s drive to Arizona for spring training, his cell phone rang. It was Gardenhire. The routine physical he took as a prerequisite for spring training showed elevated PSA readings. The follow-up and biopsy revealed cancer.

“That physical was a blessing in disguise,” Twins catcher Joe Mauer said. “If he wasn’t on their staff, maybe he puts it off and doesn’t have that physical right away. It’s a little scary to think about.”

Gardenhire told Lovullo on the call that he could come to spring training, but surgery couldn’t wait until after the season. He needed to undergo surgery in mid-April. He would be sidelined for at least a month to six weeks.

“You’re never ready to hear anything like that,” said Lovullo, the Boston Red Sox’s interim manager for six weeks in 2015 when John Farrell underwent chemotherapy for lymphoma. “I said, ‘Look, we’re going to support you through this. We’re going to let you do whatever you want.’

Said Gardenhire: “You don’t ever want to come to camp, take a new job, and on the first day say, ‘OK, I have cancer.’ I told him, ‘If it’s all right with you, I’d love to join you guys and be part of spring training. It will take my mind off it.’

“And really, that’s what’s happened. My best therapy is being on the field. When I’m at the ballpark, I don’t even think about it.

“And being on the baseball field is great for my wife, because if I had stayed home, she said I would have driven her crazy.”

Sure, there have been times when Gardenhire didn’t have the same energy. Never did a day go by when he didn’t think about the cancer.

14

He got to know the players, studied videos, and took a crash course in learning the intricacies of the National League after spending his entire career in the American League.

“It’s been an awkward situation,” Lovullo said, “but just having Gardy by my side for all this time and mentoring me is everything I could ask. He’s as normal and mischievous as normal. I think at times he forgets where he is health-wise, chasing balls out there like he’s 35 years old.

“We know that he has to step away and take care of himself, but he’ll be back.

“And we’ll be waiting.”

Gardenhire, who has been staying in former Twins first baseman Justin Morneau’s Phoenix-area townhouse, will be home in Minnesota this week until undergoing his surgery. He’ll watch the D-backs games on TV, stay in close contact with Lovullo, and try to keep up with all of the messages and phone calls he receives from those offering support.

“Cancer is a big word, you know, but it’s been pretty special having so many people reach out,” Gardenhire said. “Baseball people all over the country have called me. Twins fans have sent me letters. I’ve gotten a lot of funny calls, people coming out of the woodwork reaching out, saying they’re praying for me.

“I’ll get through this, lose a 5-pound prostate, and then it’s back to business.

“And I can’t wait to sit in that dugout again.”

15