FORT MYERS, FLA. – The Twins smacked back-to-back homers 12 times last season. Might as well practice that in spring training, too.
Twins hit back-to-back home runs before Philadelphia rallies to win 5-4
February 27, 2020 at 7:28AM
Nelson Cruz launched an opposite-field home run in the sixth inning, and last year's fourth-round pick, outfielder Seth Gray, followed with a blast onto the left field berm Wednesday. But Philadelphia rallied with three runs over the final two innings to hand the Twins their first loss of the spring, 5-4 in a split-squad game at Hammond Stadium.
In the split-squad loss, Jake Odorizzi allowed two hits and a run in his two-inning Grapefruit League debut, and Sergio Romo allowed a run on a two-out single by Jean Segura. But the Twins built a 4-2 lead thanks to Alex Kirilloff's RBI single and a force-play RBI by Jack Reinheimer in the fifth inning and the back-to-back homers an inning later.
The Phillies, though, rallied against Twins bullpen prospect Jake Reed, who allowed two singles and a triple, all with two outs, in the eighth inning. And in the ninth, Philadelphia infield prospect Arquimedes Gamboa lined a home run to center field off Class A righthander Brandon Koch, who once pitched for Twins pitching coach Wes Johnson at Dallas Baptist University.
Phil Miller
about the writer
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.
