FORT MYERS, FLA. — The Twins finished the exhibition season with a 9-10 record by dropping their Grapefruit League finale to the Red Sox 10-6 at JetBlue Stadium.
Twins finish exhibition season with 10-6 loss to Red Sox
Byron Buxton, Gio Urshela and Carlos Correa homered as the Twins closed out Grapefruit League play.
April 5, 2022 at 10:25PM
Byron Buxton, Carlos Correa and Gio Urshela homered for the Twins off Boston starter Michael Wacha before minor leaguers took over for both teams and Boston scored seven runs in the bottom of the sixth; six of the runs were charged to Griffin Jax, who gave up three hits and walked two in two-thirds of an inning.
Twins starter Josh Winder gave up a run and two hits in three innings.
The Twins broke camp and have scheduled a workout for Wednesday at Target Field in advance of Thursday's season opener against Seattle.
Sticky situation
The usual sticky-stuff inspection after Joe Smith pitched a scoreless inning Sunday stretched far longer than the customary 10 seconds. And it ended with the Twins' veteran reliever sending a text to the MLB Players Association, asking for clarification.
Umpire Brian Knight felt Smith's pitching hand to make sure there was no illegal substance on it. "Then he said, 'Oh man, your hand's dark.' I said, 'Is that a problem?'" Smith said of the fifth-inning conversation in front of the dugout. "I just want to make sure I'm not thrown out of a game because my hand is dirty."
The problem, Smith said, is that MLB is using new rosin bags this spring that are slightly tackier than in the past, in order to help pitchers legally get a better grip on the ball. And the new resin sticks to the mud that umpires use before games to take the gloss off the baseballs. "So I'm using the tools that y'all gave me, and if I have a long inning, my hand's going to turn the color of dirt," Smith said.
He added that righthander Sonny Gray had a similar conversation with an umpire when his fingers were darker than normal. So just in case, he alerted the players union, just to get assurances from MLB that they understand what's happening.
"It's one thing if your hand is sticky, that's what matters. I have no problem with them checking for that," Smith said. "I think we'll get it figured out. I just want to make sure dirt on my fingers isn't going to get me ejected."
Gordon on the mend
Nick Gordon left Monday's game after an outfield collision with teammate Max Kepler, and said he was doing well.
"It all just kind of happened so fast," Gordon said Tuesday. "I didn't know what really happened, [what] was really going on, but I'm glad it wasn't as bad as it looked. … My neck's a little sore, that's about it. Other than that, I feel good."
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Kepler said he had "a bruise or two" himself.
"I felt bad the whole rest of the game. I went in and checked on him … a scary moment."
Etc.
- No Twins openers have been rained out at Target Field since it opened in 2010. Two were postponed when the team played at Met Stadium – 1962 because of snow and 1972 because of cold and wet grounds.
The Tampa Bay Rays will play their 2025 home games at the New York Yankees’ nearby spring training ballpark amid uncertainty about the future of hurricane-damaged Tropicana Field, Rays executives told The Associated Press.
