When Twins' Andrew Morris is pitching, he’s entirely available for comment

FORT MYERS, FLA. - Like any professional manager, Toby Gardenhire has seen plenty of disputes play out on the diamond, plenty of harsh words traded in the heat of competition. But Gardenhire had never witnessed a squabble like this.

“I remember thinking, ‘Who’s he arguing with?’ “ Gardenhire recalled of that St. Paul Saints game last August. “Is he arguing with himself?”

Indeed he was, sort of. Andrew Morris, one of the Twins’ top pitching prospects, was critiquing his own performance, or figuring out a strategy, or exhorting himself to do better. Heck, maybe just complaining about lunch.

“It can be a lot of things. It’s just a self-talk I give myself to get in the right headspace for the next pitch,” Morris said. “There are obviously thoughts constantly coming in and out, so just directing them in the right direction is really all it is. Just making myself present, focused, eliminating any doubts from my head.”

It’s a habit he developed years ago, and one that comes out on the golf course, too, so Morris says he’s barely cognizant that he’s doing it, and gives no thought at all to what it looks like.

But his teammates will attest — it’s unusual to watch a pitcher carry on a running conversation with himself. After awhile, though, they realize it’s just Morris being Morris.

“He’s always got a little internal dialogue going on out there. It’s fun to watch,” said Zebby Matthews, who was Morris’ teammate for three months at Class A Cedar Rapids and AA Wichita last summer. “It works for him, so I don’t think anyone wants him to stop.”

Indeed, the 23-year-old righthander has lived up to the expectations the Twins had when they drafted him in the fourth round three summers ago. Morris struck out 133 batters in 133 innings last year, walking only 32 and posting a 2.37 ERA at three levels. His fastball, around 92 mph when he entered the Twins’ system, routinely touches 95 or more now, and he allowed only six home runs in six months.

“His stuff is some of the best you’re going to find in the organization,” Matthews said. “He’s got five pitches, and he commands them well. He’s an any-pitch-any-count kind of guy.”

If his 2025 is similar, Morris could make his major league debut this summer. And Twins fans — and catchers — can wonder what he’s saying.

“I didn’t [understand] at first, but I’ve figured out he just lets some things out,” said catcher Jair Camargo. “Sometimes you think maybe he’s not comfortable with something, or that he’s talking to me. But you get used to it.”

And no, he’s not arguing with himself, Morris said, though sometimes his delivery, which finishes with a pronounced leg kick toward first base, can add to that impression.

“I’m really just analyzing the last pitch, moving on to the next pitch and what it should be,” Morris said. “Sometimes there are not-so-nice words involved, but it really is, ‘Trust it. Throw it to the mask.’ Other times, ’It’s good left side, how can we work off of that? What’s next, and then next?‘ There’s lots of things going through my head.”

A selection of baseball instruction manuals and essays from the 1980s and ’90s sits on a table in the Twins’ clubhouse this spring, and players sometimes leaf through them. One of them about pitching even bears the name of its owner in neat handwriting:

Pete M.

Ms. Porter

3rd Grade

But the books’ presence isn’t an exercise in spring cleaning, Twins pitching coach Pete Maki said. “We talk about so much in pitching that is new and modern,” Maki explained. “I want them to see that a lot about pitching has been the same forever.”

Chris Paddack reported to camp with a bit of a new look, one without the mustache that he has sported since being traded to the Twins in 2023. “I think it makes me look a little younger,” the 29-year-old Texan said. “I’m getting used to it.”

The new look might not last long, though, Paddack conceded, mainly because it was never … intentional.

“I got my hair cut last week, and the barber accidentally took a big chunk out of it,” Paddack said with a laugh. “He had to shave it off after that.”

Byron Buxton on showing head athletic trainer Nick Paparesta around tiny Baxley, Ga., during an offseason visit to check on his physical condition: “He saw everything. I showed him all three stoplights.”