Spring Training Game 6: Devil Rays 1 vs. Twins 5—FINAL
Game Time: 2:07 —Attendance: 7,102
PROPS TO:
* Twins pitching - Silva, Nathan, Nitkowski, Guerrier, and Liriano pitched very well today, only giving up 6 hits, 0 earned runs (0.00 ERA), and the best part, no walks! I bet Rick Anderson was pleased as punch after the game. What a great job by all the Twins pitchers!
* Shannon Stewart - He just keeps doing his thing - 2 hits, drove in one and scored a run as well. I like the effect he has on this lineup.
* Jason Bartlett - Also contributed with 2 hits, one of them a double. If he can really get it going defensively, he’s got a good shot to win the shortstop job. He already is well-known for his bat, and it showed today.
* Michael Restovich - Another good day with the bat, going 2-3. He certainly is proving that he really wants to stay here and make this team. I would hate to see him go.
* Twins offense - Banged out 14 hits...not too shabby! Twins hitters went 14-37 in the game, which converts to a .378 batting average.
* Delmon Young - Dmitri Young’s younger brother goes 2-4, trying to do his part to help Tampa Bay’s offense. He was really their only standout in the box score.
FLOPS TO:
* Juan Castro - Despite going 1-1 offensively, he committed yet another error, giving him at least 4 errors. At least this is Spring Training, not the regular season, when all the games and stats actually count. I’m beginning to wonder about this guy’s defensive ability though.
* Mark Hendrickson & Rob Bell - 6 innings pitched, giving up 10 hits, 5 runs (4 earned). Not a good outing, but far from the worst outing anyway. They didn’t get any run support either.
* Devil Rays offense - Couldn’t help out their pitching by putting up no runs until the 9th inning...they went 6-33 as a team in the game, computing to a team average of .182. Ouch!
* Armando Rios - Arguing pitches a lot, and using unneccessary body language walking off the field. The Twins won't put up with that for long. I really hope Resto makes the club, knowing this about Rios. I'm not sure I'd want him on the team unless he can straighten himself out.