Twins' Miguel Sano struggles early at the plate, but that's nothing new

Lots of players start slowly, and four games is a ridiculously small slice of a baseball season. Carlos Correa entered Monday's game batting .167, and Alex Kirilloff didn't have a hit.

So there's no reason for Miguel Sano to give much thought to his 0-for-13 start to the 2022 season. Except for the fact that he already has.

"I feel really good. I worked hard all winter and I'm ready for the start," Sano said last week in Fort Myers, Fla., where he closed training camp on a 7-for-19 streak that included three home runs. "I'm working on laying off bad pitches. I'm going to have a good season."

Perhaps he will. But Sano's opening weekend has been a frustrating one once again.

The 28-year-old slugger started all four games against the Mariners, and while he drew a walk in three of them, he has yet to record a base hit. Again, not a big deal after only four chilly days, except that Sano was acutely aware of how things snowball. In 2019, when he wound up crushing 34 home runs, Sano went 4-for-21 over the first 10 days. In 2020, it was 1-for-17 in the first two series. And last season, Sano's first week was only 2-for-23, which foreshadowed a three-month drought; he was batting only .195 with twice as many strikeouts as hits entering July.

One person who says he's not concerned about this early-season pattern: Sano's manager, Rocco Baldelli.

"We've had so few at-bats since the lockout ended that I'm not really judging this too much," Baldelli said. "Miggy's put some pretty decent swings on some balls and gotten to some pitches that make me pretty optimistic about what's going on."

Baldelli did move Sano down in the batting order against righthander Chris Flexen on Monday, batting the first baseman eighth, rather than fifth or sixth as he had in the first three games. But he said he sees no signs of Sano letting his hitless weekend bother him.

"Miggy does a pretty good job of staying focused. … I don't think it's going to get to Miggy in any way," Baldelli said. "He's been very consistent with everything leading up to these games with his work. He's going to continue to do that, and I think he'll be fine."

Starting this weekend, there will be three Gordons in the big leagues.

OK, Nick Gordon and his half-brother Dee Strange-Gordon of the Nationals are the only ones in uniform. But Tom Gordon, father to both, will make his debut as a radio analyst on Sunday, broadcasting the Twins-Red Sox game from Fenway Park on WEEI, the Red Sox' flagship station.

"I'm looking forward to being back in the game. With my [pitching] experience, I feel like I can add some things that fans might not know," said Gordon, who will work about 20 Boston games this year. "My plan is to be at the ballpark as much as I possibly can. I love it."

He was around Target Field all weekend, watching Nick open a season in the major leagues for the first time. It's a relief for a parent who watched his son battle gastrointestinal problems and then COVID for the past couple of years, worried that he might never get to the majors.

"You could see it on his face. It's tough for a parent to see," said Gordon, who pitched in 890 games in a 21-year major-league career. "He said, 'I don't know how this could take me away from something I love so much.' But things happen. So I had to keep motivating him."

It's motivating to see him in the stands, Nick Gordon said.

"He's been coming to my games since I was born. He's the reason I'm here," the younger Gordon said. "I'm glad he gets to watch me. He knows the game, so I'm definitely glad to have him here."

Correa was presented with both his Gold Glove, as the top defensive shortstop in the American League, and Platinum Glove, as the best overall fielder at any position, in a home-plate ceremony before Monday's game.