The Twins made a roster move before today's game against the Tigers, recalling righthander Jeff Manship from Class AAA Rochester and sending designating outfielder Erik Komatsu for release or assignment.
Twins promote Manship, cut Komatsu and hope for Walters to do it again
P.J. Walters was an unheralded pitcher for the Twins just two weeks ago, and now he's one of their best hopes.
May 27, 2012 at 4:13PM
Manship was 4-1 with a 3.08 ERA in 12 games for Rochester. He'll be in the Twins bullpen today. Once again, the Twins have 13 pitchers on their roster. The Twins have plenty of outfielders with Ben Revere getting regular playing time in right field, and Darin Mastroianni still on the bench.
Today's game
P.J. Walters has been a pleasant surprise for the Twins in his first three starts. Expectations have been low, and he's delivered good results, posting a 2.95 ERA in quality starts against the Blue Jays, Tigers and White Sox.
Last Tuesday in Chicago, Walters pitched Minnesota's only complete game of the season, but the Twins have lost four straight since then, so today the stakes are different. They need him to be the ... stopper (and I know Manager Ron Gardenhire hates that word). But the Tigers are looking for a sweep, and the Twins need to swing the pendulum back the other direction again.
Updates to come...
TIGERS (22-24)
1. Quintin Berry, CF
2. Andy Dirks, LF
3. Miguel Cabrera, 3B
4. Prince Fielder, 1B
5. Brennan Boesch, DH
6. Alex Avila, C
7. Jhonny Peralta, SS
8. Don Kelly, RF
9. Ryan Raburn, 2B
Starting pitcher: RH Rick Porcello (3-4, 5.29 ERA)
TWINS (15-31)
1. Denard Span, CF
2. Ben Revere, RF
3. Joe Mauer, C
4. Josh Willingham, LF
5. Justin Morneau, 1B
6. Ryan Doumit, DH
7. Trevor Plouffe, 3B
8. Alexi Casilla, 2B
9. Jamey Carroll, SS
Starting pitcher: RH P.J. Walters (2-1, 2.95 ERA)
Target Field. First pitch: 1:10 p.m. TV: FSN. Twins Radio Network
Follow along on Twitter: @JoeCStrib
After an incredible 25-year career that saw him become MLB's all-time stolen bases leader and the greatest leadoff hitter ever, Rickey Henderson died Friday at age 65.
