Greetings from Target Field, where it is 55 degrees and sunny. It should remain in the mid-60s throughout the game today.
Byron Buxton was down on the field with Torii Hunter, Paul Molitor and hitting coach James Rowson hitting off a tee about an hour ago. He was lifted for Jason Castro in the 9th inning yesterday and has a .109/.155/.145 line entering today.
It’s Kyle Gibson (R, 0-2, 6.91 ERA) vs. Michael Fulmer (R, 1-1, 3.00). Kennys Vargas and Buddy Boshers were called up to replace Adalberto Mejia, who was sent down to Rochester, and Justin Haley, who was placed on the 10-day DL.
Here is the Twins lineup:
And the Tigers:
Regarding that brawl yesterday…
Brandon did an excellent job breaking it down, but in case you missed it, Haley hit JaCoby Jones in the mouth with a 90 mph fastball in the 5th inning. Jones received nine stitches, but avoided serious injury. The pitch was not intended to hit him.
“That is not a place where you want to miss,” Haley told the Star Tribune.
“It’s no fun to get hit. It’s a whole ‘nother story to get hit in the face, with no protection,” said Tigers catcher James McCann told MLive.com. “You don’t like to see that happen to your teammates.
“It’s a man’s game and guys are going to respond differently to different things.”
In the bottom frame, Detroit starter Matt Boyd drilled Miguel Sano, causing Sano to point at him, McCann to get between him and his pitcher and the benches to clear.
https://youtu.be/vvRxHGSSQuU
Molitor initially didn’t take issue with what McCann did, but now says he has changed his tune on the Tigers catcher’s actions. “I thought it was a little bit more aggressive,” said Molitor. “Someone asked me about suspensions and Miggy’s potential, and I didn’t think McCann’s was over-the-top in what he was trying to do, but how he handled it will make Miggy’s case more defendable.”
He does not expect the bad blood to spill over into today’s game.
“I think it’s over. I don’t plan to have any carryover,” said Molitor. “No intent on our guy’s part, and sometimes clubs are gonna feel that someone gets hit in the face or the head or whatever, that regardless of intent that it’s a way to support that player. Some people just say, ‘Hey, there’s no intent, just turn the page.'”
As for if he prepared his team for an incident like this, he said he never had that discussion. “Right or wrong, I have not. Those things just work themselves out,” he said.
“I have not messaged that. I usually feel that sometimes when it happens, part of your job is to find a way to be someone that tries to help try and contain it from getting too out of hand. I don’t know if I did that very well yesterday.”
Vargas and Boshers called up
Two familiar faces were in the clubhouse today, Vargas and Boshers, who were called up from Triple-A.
“Buddy Boshers is back to kinda help us with a fresh arm in the bullpen, and Kenny Vargas is gonna cement our three-man bench and turn it into four,” said Molitor. “It’s the first time we’ve had to make a change here in the early stages of the season. It’s just something that we needed to do.”
Vargas was sent down after choosing to participate in the World Baseball Classic during Spring Training. Not only will he allow the Twins to have a four-man bench, but it will keep Sano at third base, where he has played well this year.
“It was good to get back into a regular playing rhythm and seeing pitches every day,” said Molitor. “He’s had some really good games, and some games where it hasn’t gone too well, which is true for most hitters. And I’ll look for the right time to plug him in there and give him a chance to start the game.”
Asked what he worked on in Rochester, Vargas said “Power!”
Boshers hasn’t had a lot of work yet, so he’s available today if need be. He could throw 40 pitches, Molitor said, or he could be used situationally depending on how the game goes.
“His splits through his career have been okay, where I’m not too fearful of having to get through a couple of innings facing lefties and righties,” said Molitor. “But I know that he can get a lefty out if I need it as well.”
That’s all for now. I’ll be doing postgame today.
