Umpire Doug Eddings gets under Twins' skin

BOSTON – Home plate umpire Doug Eddings got into a confrontation with Boston's Brock Holt after a called third strike in the third inning, an escalation that caused manager Alex Cora to hurry out to prevent his player from being ejected.

The Twins could commiserate.

Eddings was hostile and argumentative all day, players said afterward, with Logan Morrison saying, "I'm not going to tolerate it."

Morrison was offended by Eddings' demeanor toward Twins starter Jose Berrios in the first inning. When Berrios threw a fastball low to J.D. Martinez for ball four, Berrios asked if the pitch was too low. Eddings said yes, and Berrios turned his back to prepare for the next batter.

When he turned back around, Eddings was standing in front of the plate, his mask off, angrily waiting to get Berrios' attention.

"He said again, 'Yeah, it was down,' " Morrison recalled, but it was his attitude, not his words, that he objected to. "It was a 'How dare you question my authority' type deal, and that's not the way the game goes. … The reaction it caused was not warranted."

Eddie Rosario also had words with Eddings, objecting when the home plate umpire ruled he didn't check his swing in time on a sixth-inning third strike, without asking for help from a base umpire. "Rosie didn't come at him in any way, but yet he's chasing him with his mask off," Morrison said. "Walk away. Turn your shoulder. There's no need for it. Nobody came to see Doug Eddings umpire. They came to watch the Red Sox and Twins."

Morrison said Eddings is known as a "you've got to watch what you say" umpire, "and that's fine. … But what I saw today was not acceptable."

Eddings is not a bad umpire, Morrison said, "not by any means. But the way he acted today … sometimes I think we need to do a better job of keeping our officials in line."

Adalberto Mejía has remained with the Twins all week, wondering when he would pitch again. He found out Sunday: For now, he's a reliever.

The lefthander pitched three innings against the Red Sox, and allowed only one hit while striking out four. It was an impressive follow-up to his start Monday in Toronto, when he gave up just one run in 5⅓ innings.

"He pounded the zone and came after guys. It's a really good sign for us," said bench coach Derek Shelton, who filled in for manager Paul Molitor on Sunday. "A kid that comes in here in a 3-0 game and gets the heart of their lineup and he just goes fastball/changeup. That's not an easy thing to do."

Mejia said he is willing to do it more often, too, if it'll keep him in the majors. He knows it's not likely at the moment, barring a trade.

"I understand the situation — there's five starters and I'm probably the sixth," he said. "If the team needs to use me this way, then so be it. I just want to be here and help the team win."

• Addison Reed walked two and struck out one in a 21-pitch scoreless seventh inning for Class AAA Rochester at Louisville on Sunday, two days after he threw 17 pitches while giving up a run on a pair of doubles in his first rehab appearance. The Twins plan to make a decision about what to do next with the righthander, who is preparing to return from a triceps strain.

• Max Kepler had hoped to return to the lineup Sunday, but after doing some throwing during batting practice, Shelton chose to give him another day of rest. Kepler's right shoulder was bandaged after the game, where he had crashed into the Fenway Park wall on Friday night. Kepler pinch-hit for Bobby Wilson in the eighth inning and took a called third strike.