Alex Meyer had a 2-0 lead going into the third inning, but Jason Castro’s home run, Carlos Correa’s double and a wild pitch put the Houston Astros ahead and ultimately got him removed after 64 pitches in 2.2 innings.
“The first two innings I felt good,” Meyer told the Pioneer Press. “I proved to myself I could pitch up here. That’s really the first two good innings I’ve had in the major leagues. That was a positive thing for me. I think that’s something to remember.”
Reliever Tommy Milone, who was in the rotation to start the year, didn’t fare must better. He gave up three more runs in the fourth inning, including a balk that allowed former Twin Carlos Gomez to score and a two-run homer to George Springer, a player Minnesota drafted out of high school but did not sign.
“I was a little too excited coming in,” Milone told the Star Tribune. “I think I had a little too much Adrenalin going through my body. The pitcher that I am, I need to feel everything.”
Minnesota got off to a fast start, with Danny Santana homering in the first inning and Joe Mauer driving in a run in the third. They chipped away at the lead late, with Brian Dozier hitting an RBI single and Byung Ho Park hitting his seventh home run of the year in the sixth to cut the lead to 6-4.
But they would get no further.
“We got off to a good start, but we didn’t capitalize in that first inning and only got one,” Twins manager Paul Molitor told the Associated Press. “We did some good things but missed some chances. We couldn’t get back in the game.”
[Star Tribune, Pioneer Press, Associated Press]
