Twins starting pitcher Pablo López followed Opening Day's two-hit, no-run performance with Wednesday's series-ending seven-inning, three-hit, one-run outing in a 5-2 loss at Miami.
Twins starter Pablo López 'as impressive as it gets' after two starts, Rocco Baldelli says
The manager called López's seven-inning effort the highlight of Wednesday's game.
April 6, 2023 at 1:02AM
You could almost see Twins manager Rocco Baldelli smile, if his team hadn't lost its second consecutive game to end a six-game road trip that started 4-0.
The score was tied 1-1 before Griffin Jax and then Caleb Thielbar came on in relief in the eighth and combined to give up four runs, including Jorge Soler's three-run home run.
"López putting us in that spot is the highlight of the day," Baldelli told reporters in Miami. "It's tough to have a highlight when you lose, but he really threw the ball well. That was great to see him go out and do that again for us. He pitched seven really strong innings."
Consider Baldelli impressed.
"He has been pitching just like a top of the rotation pitcher does," Baldelli said. "You talk about being a workhorse in your starts. The guy is a workhorse those other four or five days in between outings. He's as impressive as it gets."
López pitched for Venezuela last month in Miami in the same loanDepot Park during the World Baseball Classic. Then he pitched last Thursday's season opener in Kansas City before Wednesday's outing in Miami.
"He hasn't had very many calm, relaxed, normal outings," Baldelli said. "Almost every outing he makes has some significance to it. The more you know this guy, the more you feel he can handle anything that comes his way. I'm very confident about that."
Rich with righties
Baldelli remade his lineup card, loading it with righthanded bats because his team faced a starting lefthanded pitcher, Miami's Jesús Luzardo, for the first time season.
That put seven righthanded bats and a switch hitter on the card: Willi Castro in left field, Kyle Farmer at second and Donovan Solano at first. DH Byron Buxton was back in the lineup after he was given Tuesday off.
Buxton batted leadoff Wednesday with nicked-up Max Kepler, red-hot Joey Gallo and Nick Gordon on the bench. Gallo pinch hit in the eighth with the game tied 1-1 and struck out.
"It's a significantly different lineup," Baldelli said before the game. "Having Buck [Buxton] and [Carlos] Correa at the top is a pretty nice way to write a lineup out. But getting those other guys out there is a huge benefit for us. It's a good way to get the lefthanders off their feet for a day."
Work it out
Baldelli called pitcher Kenta Maeda just fatigued and not injured when he shook out his right arm Tuesday while making his first start in 591 days after Tommy John surgery. He pitched five innings and gave up one run.
Baldelli calls pitching a "heavy-duty aerobic workout" now that the sped-up pace of game often leaves little time in the dugout between innings. Tuesday's game was played in 1 hour, 57 minutes. Wednesday's was 2:10.
"You're tired, you're winded and there's no way around that when you're getting on the mound, making a pitch, getting on the mound, making a pitch," Baldelli said. "When you have to, it's rapid-fire rather than taking a deep breath and letting your heart rate go down."
Etc.
- Baldelli on Maeda's first start since 2021: "Everything lined up the way you hoped it would. He used spring training to get himself ready for this first start and we all saw what it turned into."
- The only lefthanded bat in Wednesday's lineup, right fielder Trevor Larnach, went 1-for-4 with an RBI single in the seventh that briefly tied the game 1-1. He has nine hits, six RBI and is batting .391.
The Star Tribune did not send the writer of this article to the game. This was written using a broadcast, interviews and other material.
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