Minnesota Twins Daily Clips Friday, April 14, 2017 Twins
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Minnesota Twins Daily Clips Friday, April 14, 2017 Twins off to 6-3 start after home run barrage sinks Detroit. Star Tribune (Miller) p. 1 Phil Hughes points to 'unseen' double play as key in Twins' rout in Detroit. Star Tribune (Miller) p. 2 Justin Haley's save also eats innings for Twins. Star Tribune (Miller) p. 3 Twins minor league report: Jose Berrios, Nick Gordon, Byung Ho Park off to strong starts. Star Tribune (Gonzalez) p. 4 Minnesota Ballpark Authority limits use of publicly owned Target Field suite to charities. Star Tribune (Olson) p. 5 Twins-White Sox series preview. Star Tribune (Miller) p. 5 Twins-Detroit game recap. Star Tribune (Miller) p. 5 With fly-ball pitcher Hughes on mound, Buxton back in Twins lineup. Star Tribune (Miller) p. 6 Justin Haley helps three-homer day hold up for Twins in 11-5 win. Pioneer Press (Berardino) p. 7 Bunt single eases burden for slow-starting Byron Buxton. Pioneer Press (Berardino) p. 8 Twins slug trio of homers to tame Tigers. MLB (Beck & Berry) p. 9 Sano, Kepler form powerful duo for Twins. MLB (Berry) p. 10 Mejia looks to rebound as Twins host Sox. MLB (Berry) p. 11 Wetmore’s 5 thoughts: If Twins need to bench Byron Buxton, who plays centerfield? ESPN 1500 (Wetmore) p. 12 Mining the Minors: Daniel Palka Swinging Well; Nick Burdi Back. ESPN 1500 (Depue) p. 13 Young pitchers throw for White Sox, Twins (Apr 14, 2017). FOX Sports p. 14 Sano, Twins overpower Tigers 11-5. FOX Sports p. 15 Twins, Reds have most to spend on draft signing bonuses. ESPN p. 16 Minnesota Twins' offense explodes in win over Detroit Tigers. Yahoo! Sports (Gauruder) p. 17 Minnesota Twins' bats get hot on cold day, rip Detroit Tigers 11-5. USA Today (French) p. 17 Twins off to 6-3 start after home run barrage sinks Detroit Phil Miller | Star Tribune | April 14, 2017 DETROIT – Each homer traveled a little farther on Thursday, until Robbie Grossman’s clout just inside the foul pole was beginning to look a little puny by comparison. “Hey, every one counts,” Grossman pointed out, and he’s right. All three Twins home runs had the identical effect: They helped move the Twins’ two-game losing streak — and any lingering memories of their 0-9 start to 2016 — a little further away. Grossman, Max Kepler and Miguel Sano all hammered pitches into the Comerica Park seats, and Minnesota salvaged a split of its six-game road trip with an 11-5 rout of the Tigers. After nine games last year, the Twins were still winless; this year, they are back in first place in the American League Central and coming home for a 10-game homestand with a 6-3 record. “It’s a nice bounce-back,” manager Paul Molitor said of the Twins’ response to close losses Tuesday and Wednesday. “Last year, I don’t know how many sweeps we had to endure” — there were 16 — “but to avoid one here early against a team we’ve struggled with, it’s a good sign.” Good signs abounded in this one, from the way the Twins were able to be patient against Jordan Zimmermann, to Kepler and Grossman flashing a little power, to Phil Hughes’ second straight heartening start. And don’t forget the bottom of the order, where Byron Buxton ended his 0-for- 11 skid by beating out a bunt and moving up two more bases, all with his speed. But an offensive explosion, after scoring four or fewer runs in five consecutive games, was particularly welcome, as was the end to a three- losses-in-four-games rut. There was cheering and loud music in the clubhouse afterward, a decibel level that had been lacking this week after the can-you-believe-it 4-0 start. “We’ll certainly take the win, especially after the way we lost the first couple of games. Coming to this city and getting swept after our good start, maybe guys start doubting things,” said Hughes, who came within an out of a quality start. “So coming back with a big win here was nice for the club.” With the Twins trailing 2-0 after two innings, Grossman smacked a two-run shot just inside the foul pole in the third inning to tie the score. Kepler greeted reliever Anibal Sanchez by rocketing a three-run shot 15 runs deep into the right field stands in the fifth, and Sano absolutely obliterated a Sanchez fastball into the center field shrubbery in the sixth, a three-run, 440-foot blast that completed the Twins’ first 10-run eruption since last Sept. 4. “With this lineup, we have a chance to compete very well offensively. Miguel’s been good from Day 1 [while] Max has been hot and cold, but you’d like to think a day like today might springboard him,” Molitor said. “We’re going to have to grow through [some slumps], but they showed you what they can do when they swing the bats well.” Twins team statistics And when Hughes is locating his pitches. The veteran righthander allowed four runs over 5 ⅔ innings, and helped earn Justin Haley, who handled the remaining 3 ⅓ innings, his first career save. After allowing single runs in the first and second, Hughes shut down the Tigers for three innings. He had a runner on base and two outs in the sixth with only Justin Upton standing between him and his first quality start since last May 22. But Upton crushed a changeup into the seats, cutting the Twins’ lead to 11-4 and scuffing up Hughes’ pitching line. “Kind of a bummer. One out away from my line looking really good, to not that great,” Hughes said of the start that inflated his ERA to 3.86. “That’s the way it goes.” If it goes that way, the Twins will certainly take it. Phil Hughes points to 'unseen' double play as key in Twins' rout in Detroit Phil Miller | Star Tribune | April 14, 2017 The Twins are back home to start (weather permitting) a three-game series against Chicago tonight at Target Field. Adalberto Mejia of the Twins (6-3) gets another shot at the White Sox (4-4) after they knocked him around in his first big-league start last weekend. Chicago righty Dylan Covey will make his major league debut on the mound. A couple of extras from the Twins’ road finale, an 11-5 victory in Detroit on Thursday: The game wasn't televised, but it’s not likely that the play that Phil Hughes described as the “turning point” would have made much of an impression. In a game with 16 runs and 20 hits, a strikeout/caught stealing double play can get lost in all the offense. But “that was massive,” Hughes said of the fifth inning play. The Twins led 6-2 at the time, but “you’re looking at an inning where I walked the leadoff guy, then fell behind 3-1 to [Jose] Iglesias — that couldn’t snowballed into a big inning, with the lineup turning over there. Put a couple guys on base and who knows what could happen?” Iglesias, though, tried bunting the next pitch, and it rolled foul. After another foul ball, Hughes said, “I was able to execute a pretty good down- and-away cutter. Fortunately he swung through it.” At the same time, JaCoby Jones took off for second base, and Chris Gimenez threw him out, the first baserunner thrown out by the backup catcher this season. “That was a big turning point in the game,” Hughes said. “It might not have appeared it because it was kind of an innocent situation in a 6-2 game, but it could have gone downhill in a hurry.” Also of note ... Gimenez had a memorable moment in the ninth inning, too, when he led off against Joe Jimenez, the first Gimenez-Jimenez confrontation of his career. It was also the Tiger pitcher’s major-league debut. 2 “I’ve never faced Ubaldo, so this was my first at-bat against a Jimenez,” the Twins’ catcher said. “I was pretty excited, especially against a new kid, until they told me he threw 98 [mph] with a nasty slider.” Gimenez fouled off two of those fastballs before flying out to right. Justin Haley picked up his first major league save in interesting fashion with a 10-out performance. Justin Haley's save also eats innings for Twins Phil Miller | Star Tribune | April 13, 2017 DETROIT – Joe Nathan memorably collected the baseball from the final out of each of his 260 Twins saves. Now another Twin is doing the same. It's a lot smaller collection, though. Justin Haley was presented the ball after Thursday's game to commemorate career save No. 1. He hadn't expected the souvenir. Or the save. "I was not" aware that he was eligible for a save in an 11-5 victory, Haley said. "I came in and everybody said, 'First save!' and I said, 'Ah, I don't think so.' " Sure enough, though, if you pitch the final three innings of a victory — no matter how big the inherited lead — you qualify. The Twins hadn't had a reliever record 10 outs and earn a save since Brian Bass pitched four innings of a 12-5 win over Chicago on April 9, 2008. "I'm just trying to be aggressive, throw strikes, and really, just eat innings," said the Twins' Rule 5 pick from last December.