Home night games are creating extra challenge for Twins hitters

The Twins don’t have any weekday day games for the remainder of the season at Target Field, with mostly 6:40 p.m. start times, and that could have an impact on their hitters.

“The first at-bat in our 6:40, 6:10 games, it’s so hard to see,” outfielder Trevor Larnach said. “I don’t think people understand. I really don’t think TV does it justice at all. I know my parents get frustrated watching me swing and miss, strikeout and whatnot, but it’s hard to see.”

It typically takes two or three innings before hitters feel comfortable seeing the ball in the batter’s box, according to several hitters, and it’s not an issue for 7:10 p.m. start times on Friday nights.

“It’s probably the shadow that is in between the outfield grass and home plate,” utility man Willi Castro said. “It’s really bright in the back and the shadow is really dark. That’s what makes it tough.”

When Larnach homered twice in Saturday’s 6-0 victory, which included a 6:10 p.m. first pitch, he said the biggest adjustment from his first at-bat when he struck out four pitches was just his ability to see.

“I keep reiterating this, but it’s such a big thing for baseball is the visual cleared up,” Larnach said. “As the game goes on, you can just see the ball so much better. That’s huge for hitting, obviously.”

The Twins have scored 67 runs in the first inning this season, which ranks in the top half of the league, but it’s frustrating to hitters when they feel like they are at a disadvantage for their first at-bat.

“It is really hard,” Castro said. “It is really tough to see. I don’t know. We just have to deal with that. Just go out there and try to focus more just to see the pitch better. It’s challenging to go out there and not see the ball pretty good. In the second or third inning, it’s better.”

Zebby Matthews had strong command of his slider, despite hanging one that St. Louis center fielder Victor Scott II hit for a solo homer in the fifth inning Sunday, but it was his fastball that stood out in the Cardinals dugout.

Matthews, a 24-year-old righthander, struck out lefthanded hitters Alec Burleson and Brendan Donovan with elevated fastballs in the first two innings.

“That’s a really good arm,” St. Louis manager Oli Marmol said. “That’s impressive what he was doing with the baseball and the ride on it. You’ve got to be doing something if you punch out those guys on a fastball.

“It’s a live arm, man. I know it’s not a household name or you’re not facing fill-in-the-blank, [Max] Scherzer, [Aaron] Nola, [Zack] Wheeler. That guy right there, that was impressive.”

Matthews, an eighth-round pick out of Western Carolina in 2022, totaled seven strikeouts in five innings, giving up four hits and one run.

“It definitely helps the confidence knowing you can attack with your best stuff in the zone and still be able to get foul balls and get guys out,” Matthews said.

The Twins ended Alex Kirilloff’s rehab assignment Saturday because of a flare-up with soreness in his back.

Kirilloff, who has been sidelined since June, played in a Class AAA game Friday where he had a double and three strikeouts in five at-bats as a designated hitter.

“I just heard he was dealing with some residual back soreness,” Twins manager Rocco Baldelli said. “We’re going to let it calm down before we decide exactly what we’re going to do next.”

• Right fielder Max Kepler was scratched from the lineup Sunday because of soreness in his left knee. “He’s going to get some imaging done on his knee,” Baldelli said. “It was a little bit out of the blue not long before the game started.”

• Brooks Lee had three hits in four at-bats, including two doubles, in the St. Paul Saints’ 5-2 loss to Scranton/Wilkes-Barre on Sunday at CHS Field.

• Lefthander Kody Funderburk threw a bullpen session Sunday, his first since the reliever was placed on the 15-day injured list on July 21 because of a left oblique strain. In a best-case scenario, he’s a couple of weeks from reaching the stage where he could pitch in a rehab game.

• Righthander Justin Topa, who hasn’t pitched for the Twins this season because of a knee injury and elbow inflammation, has resumed playing catch after he was shut down for more than a week. “Obviously, you’re kind of in a time crunch,” he said. “Not an ideal spot where we are in the schedule for getting back as fast as I would like to be.”