Minnesota Twins Daily Clips

Friday, June 5, 2015

Twins' Milone takes mound in series finale; Nolasco still in pain. Star Tribune (Miller) p. 1

Thursday's Twins-Boston game recap. Star Tribune (Miller) p. 2

Series preview: Milwaukee at Twins. Star Tribune (Miller) p. 2

Postgame: Milone OK, but unlucky, in return to Twins. Star Tribune (Miller) p. 3

Twins notes: Hunter joins elite home run club. Star Tribune (Miller) p. 4

Twins' winning ways have rekindled baseball interest. Star Tribune (Kaszuba) p. 5

Twins win blunder-filled game over Boston. Star Tribune (Miller) p. 6

Twins: Glen Perkins on impressive saves streak. Pioneer Press (Berardino) p. 7

Twins: Joe Mauer's misplayed bunt sparks victory. Pioneer Press (Berardino) p. 7

Twinsights: Ankle injury sends Ricky Nolasco to disabled list. Pioneer Press (Berardino) p. 8

Twinsights: Fenway brings back World Series memories for Paul Molitor. Pioneer Press (Berardino) p. 9

Postgame Twinsights: Knuckler doesn’t faze Torii Hunter. Pioneer Press (Berardino) p. 10

Brewers, Twins open series as managers reunite. MLB.com (McCalvy) p. 11

Ankle ailment sends Nolasco to DL. MLB.com (Shirkey) p. 11

Mauer surprised by bunt sign, but succeeds. MLB.com (Shirkey) p. 12

Torii's 200th HR with Twins keys rally. MLB.com (Shirkey) p. 12

Twins pounce on errors, storm past Red Sox. MLB.com (Shirkey & Leibowitz) p. 13

Right ankle injury means Nolasco headed to DL for 2nd time this season. 1500espn.com (Wetmore) p. 14

Wetmore’s 5 thoughts: Mauer’s bad bunt worked, Hunter’s milestone homer. 1500espn.com (Wetmore) p. 15

Mauer’s 9th-inning bunt works out as Twins win sloppy game. Associated Press p. 16

Comfortable, confident Plouffe flashing glove prowess at third. Fox Sports North (Mason) p. 18

Twins make roster moves, place Nolasco on DL. Fox Sports (Foltin) p. 19

The Minnesota Twins have some strange clubhouse chemistry. Fox Sports (Foltin) p. 19

What if the Twins are this year’s Orioles. Fangraphs (Laurila) p. 19

Wild ninth inning pushes Twins past Red Sox. Fox Sports North (Mason) p. 20

Twins’ Milone takes mound in series finale

Phil Miller | Star Tribune | June 4, 2015

BOSTON — Ricky Nolasco went to the bullpen at Fenway Park around noon Thursday, warmed up with some long toss in the outfield, then took the mound to test his sore right ankle.

“It didn’t last long,” manager Paul Molitor said.

Before Nolasco had thrown a dozen pitches, Molitor’s mind was made up: The veteran righthander is headed to the disabled list, his season interrupted for a second time by injury. And this one, they don’t know how much time it will cost him.

“I thought it was getting better. I can walk on it, but it’s just that certain angle in there [when he pushes off the rubber], that’s just shooting

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pain,” said Nolasco, sounding depressed over the lingering injury. “I threw 8-10 pitches and had to stop. It’s still killing me.”

Nolasco will undergo a CT scan in Minneapolis on Friday, he said, and doctors will determine whether further treatment, perhaps even surgery, is necessary. The injury is an impingement that occurs when he strides, with his ankle bone striking a small piece of bone that doctors believe may have been the result of a long-ago injury. “The only time I remember rolling my ankle was in high school,” Nolasco said. “Obviously, I must have had a little fragment in there at that time, but I’ve thrown a zillion pitches since then.”

With Nolasco’s status cleared up, so too are the Twins’ pitching plans. Tommy Milone was activated to take Nolasco’s roster spot; he’ll start today’s 3:05 p.m. CT game and presumably will remain in the rotation for awhile. Rookie righthander J.R. Graham will be available in the bullpen today, but if the Twins avoid overusing the bullpen, Molitor said Graham will probably start an all-bullpen game Saturday against Milwaukee in Target Field.

The Twins face a knuckleball pitcher — Red Sox righthander Steven Wright — for the first time this season today, as they try to split the four-game series in Fenway Park. They have already clinched the season series with Boston, four games to two, for the first time since 2006.

The Red Sox have scrambled their lineup a bit, moving rookie Mookie Betts down to seventh and hot-hitting shortstop Xander Bogaerts to fifth, with Hanley Ramirez up to second. Mindful that they played two games yesterday, Molitor has given Hunter a second straight day as designated hitter, with Eddie Rosario, on an eight-game hitting streak, batting fifth and playing right field.

Thursday’s Twins-Boston game recap

Phil Miller | Star Tribune | June 4, 2015

GAME RECAP

IMPACT PLAYER

Torii Hunter, Twins

He had three hits, including his 200th home run with the Twins, a three-run shot that cut a four-run deficit to one.

BY THE NUMBERS

5 Times on base by Kurt Suzuki, three of them on hits as he ended an 0-for-13 slump.

5 Red Sox infield hits the first two innings.

8 Hits by Dustin Pedroia in the four-game series, in 17 at-bats (.471).

Series preview: Milwaukee at Twins

Phil Miller | Star Tribune | June 4, 2015 THREE-GAME SERIES AT TARGET FIELD Friday, 7:10 p.m. • FSN, 96.3-FM RHP Kyle Gibson (4-3, 2.61 ERA) vs. RHP Kyle Lohse (3-6, 6.50) Saturday, 1:10 p.m. • FSN, 96.3-FM TBA vs. RHP Matt Garza (3-7, 5.52) Sunday, 1:10 p.m. • FSN, 96.3-FM RHP Mike Pelfrey (4-2, 2.59) vs. RHP Mike Fiers (2-5, 4.06) TWINS UPDATE The Twins are 19-7 at home, best in the AL, and have won five of their past six games at Target Field, and five consecutive series. … They are 220-211 all-time against the Brewers, 47-37 since Milwaukee joined the National League in 1998, and 6-2 the past two seasons. They are 8-5 at Target Field against the Brewers. … RF Torii Hunter has 66 career doubles and 46 career home runs in interleague games, and 10 of each, plus a .296 batting average, against Milwaukee. … RHP J.R. Graham, a starter in the minor leagues, is the leading candidate to start Saturday’s game. … Pelfrey is 1-2 with a 3.48 ERA in five career starts vs. the Brewers; Gibson has one career start, giving up four runs in six innings. … Hunter is 1-for-10, Joe Mauer is 1-for-7 and Kurt Suzuki is 1-for-6 against Milwaukee closer Francisco Rodriguez.

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BREWERS UPDATE They have lost nine of their past 11 games and own the worst record in the major leagues, the only team yet to win their 20th game. … They are 9-16 on the road and have lost four of their past five away games. … They fired manager Ron Roenicke on May 4 and replaced him with Craig Counsell, whom Twins manager Paul Molitor has known since Counsell was a child. Counsell is 11-18 since taking over. … They have allowed more runs than any team in MLB (266), and rank 27th in runs scored (198). … Lohse went 51-57 for the Twins from 2001-06, and Garza, the Twins’ first-round pick in 2005, went 8-13 in 2006-07. … Former Twins CF Carlos Gomez, a two-time All-Star, is batting .262 with five homers and five stolen bases. … OF Khris Davis (knee) and RHP Wily Peralta (oblique) are on the disabled list.

Postgame: Milone OK, but unlucky, in return to Twins

Phil Miller | Star Tribune | June 5, 2015

Before heading back to Minnesota, here are some leftovers from the Twins’ fifth win over the Red Sox this season:

— Thursday’s game was a heartening, albeit somewhat bizarre, return to the majors for Tommy Milone, who gave up a season-high nine hits over five innings, but could rightfully say he didn’t get hit very hard. Of the six hits the Red Sox collected in the first two innings, five stayed in the infield and the sixth was a bloop double that landed about 40 feet behind first base.

“It didn’t seem like things were going my way those first two innings, but I told myself, throw good pitches and they’ll be outs,” Milone said. “Infield singles, you can’t do anything about that. They just put them in a good spot. … I felt like I was making some good pitches.”

Not all of them were good. Milone also allowed a couple of long home runs over the left-field wall to Blake Swihart (the first of his career) and Dustin Pedroia (who went 8-for-17 in the series).

And after five dominating performances at Class AAA Rochester, where Milone struck out 47 batters and walked just three in 38 2/3 innings, he didn’t walk anyone Thursday, reflecting his newfound attention to the strike zone. For just the third time in his career, he didn’t strike anyone out, either.

— The Twins compounded Milone’s bad luck by committing a pair of errors, too, each of which led directly to an unearned run. In the second inning, with two outs and runners on first and second, Hanley Ramirez grounded a ball to Joe Mauer at first base. Nobody covered the bag, but it didn’t seem to matter when Mookie Betts rounded third base too far. Mauer whipped the ball to Plouffe — who dropped it, allowing Betts to score.

David Ortiz followed with a routine ground ball to short, but Eduardo Escobar allowed it to roll under his glove, scoring a second run.

“It wasn’t a pretty game for either team,” Twins manager Paul Molitor said. “That second inning, we just seemed to compound our problems by not executing. It’s going to happen.”

— The Red Sox weren’t exactly mistake-free, either, making a three errors themselves, two of which, both by Pedro Sandoval, cost them runs. But it was their baserunning adventures that really helped the Twins, from Xander Bogaerts getting picked off first base by Milone, to Hanley Ramirez heading for third base on a Mike Napoli grounder to third, making him an easy tag out for a startled Trevor Plouffe.

But the weirdest play came one batter after Ramirez’s seventh-inning gaffe. With Napoli running on a 3-2 pitch, Bogaerts lined a solid single to right-center off Casey Fien, sending slow-footed Napoli to third base. But Napoli rounded the bag, then sped up and headed for home, where Brian Dozier’s relay throw beat him by 20 feet.

Actually, the Twins said, they kind of admired the gamble.

“That’s a heck of a play, sending him, in my opinion,” Dozier said. “Tough part of the game, lot of shadows, [Third base coach Brian] Butterfield trying to be aggressive. I like it.”

Molitor said the Twins were ready for it, sort of.

“You try to prepare your guys, [tell them] that backdoor runs with two outs are things that teams try to do. The Red Sox, I know they’ve done that a couple of times this year already because we saw the video,” Molitor said. “They’re taking a chance on a juggle on the relay, or maybe an errant throw by the second baseman. It’s not a common throw for your second baseman, deep on the dirt and to make an accurate throw. Obviously a good throw’s going to get him but they decided to take a chance. … With two outs, it’s a pretty good gamble.”

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Twins notes: Hunter joins elite home run club

Phil Miller | Star Tribune | June 5, 2015

BOSTON – He has played all but five games this season, including all 18 innings Wednesday, and his 40th birthday is six weeks away. So Torii Hunter needed to conserve his energy Thursday, his manager told him.

“I told him in [batting practice] he was going to hit a couple [home runs] today,” Paul Molitor said after the Twins’ 8-4 victory over the Red Sox. “I told him, ‘Let’s take it easy on your legs. Hit a couple over the wall, maybe strike out or walk, something so you don’t have to run too much today. But he ended up having to run a lot.”

That’s what a three-hit day will do. And no hit was bigger than Hunter’s three-run home run in the fifth inning, a blow that cut a 4-0 deficit to 4-3 with one wayward knuckleball from Boston starter Steven Wright. “Torii’s blow was big to give us some hope,” Molitor said. “It got us back in the game.”

It also made him a member of a select club in Twins history. That blast onto a billboard atop the Green Monster was Hunter’s 200th in a Twins uniform, making him the seventh player ever to reach that milestone.

“It means a lot. Two hundred with the Twins, that’s longevity,” said Hunter, who hit another 105 with the Angels and 34 with the Tigers. “I’m honored. … One behind [Gary] Gaetti, that’s what they told me. ‘The Rat’ was a really good player here.”

So was Kirby Puckett, who had 207 homers during his Hall of Fame career. “Kirby Puckett, my hero. We’ll see what happens,” Hunter said. “All I really care about is wins. I don’t care about the individual goals. If they come, I have to celebrate them, but I really want to celebrate wins.”

Nolasco back on DL

Ricky Nolasco went to the bullpen around noon, warmed up with some long toss in the outfield, then took the mound to test his sore right ankle.

“It didn’t last long,” Molitor said.

Before Nolasco had thrown a dozen pitches, Molitor’s mind was made up: The righthander is headed to the disabled list for the second time this season. And this one, they don’t know how much time it will cost him.

“We tried to hold out some optimism,” Molitor said, and Nolasco underwent a barrage of treatment for three days, hoping to stay off the DL. “When he needed to push off the rubber, you could see him start to grimace a little bit. … The more he tried to do, the more obvious it became that he wasn’t ready.”

Nolasco sounded depressed over the lingering injury.

“I thought it was getting better. I can walk on it, but it’s just that certain angle in there [when he pushes off the rubber], that’s just shooting pain,” Nolasco said. “I threw eight, 10 pitches and had to stop. It’s still killing me.”

He will undergo a CT scan Friday. The injury is an impingement that occurs when he strides, with his ankle bone striking a small piece of bone that doctors believe might have been the result of a long-ago injury.

Etc.

• Tommy Milone, who pitched five innings vs. Boston and gave up four runs (two earned), will remain in the rotation for now. The Twins will also need a starter against the Brewers on Saturday, and Molitor said it’s likely to be righthanded reliever J.R. Graham, a converted starter who threw 60 pitches against Toronto on Sunday.

• Royals manager Ned Yost invited Molitor to be part of his AL coaching staff at next month’s All-Star Game in Cincinnati, but Molitor declined the honor to “recharge the brain a little bit,” he said.

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Twins’ winning ways have rekindled baseball interest

Mike Kaszuba | Star Tribune | June 5, 2015

The sun was out, the Twins were fighting for first place and Mona Mitchell came out of the gift shop at Target Field with a new team T-shirt. She had already bought tickets for two upcoming games, and she was flirting with buying more.

“I love it when you go to a game that matters,” she said. It has been four years since the Twins have played games that mattered, and the team’s unexpected surge to the top of the American League Central Division standings has rekindled baseball interest in the Twin Cities.

Fox Sports North reports that viewership was up 29 percent from April to May, and Mike Dimond, the cable outlet’s general manager, was already talking about the possibility of having the season on the line in the final weekend with the defending American League champion Kansas City Royals at Target Field.

“We’re not going to get ahead of ourselves,” he added, however. Then again ...

Kevin Tapani, the former Twins pitcher, is among many who like what they see in everything from Paul Molitor, the new manager, to Trevor Plouffe and Brian Dozier, the slick-fielding infielders who are leading the team in home runs. “They’re very fundamentally sound,” said Tapani, now a high school baseball coach at Providence Academy in Plymouth. “They run balls out. They do a lot of things right. [The] pitching is solid. They’re in every game.”

Alan Petri of Apple Valley said the turnaround has come just in time. “If I were the Pohlad [family, the team’s owners], I’d be a little nervous if this season hadn’t happened,” he said as he waited at Target Field for a friend to buy tickets. Target Field is five years old, explained Petri, and counting on fans to go to a game simply to see the stadium may not work anymore.

“Now — it’s just a stadium,” he said. “You need something to put in it that draws people. Stadium won’t do it by” itself.

Downward curve

The numbers support that view. After four consecutive 90-plus loss seasons, season-ticket holders had dropped from 17,500 last year to just 13,500 this year. For many fans, having the Twins play host to baseball’s All-Star Game was last season’s highlight — as opposed to actually watching the team stagger to another last-place finish, 20 games behind the division-winning Detroit Tigers.

Twins spokesman Kevin Smith said that, after 26 home games, the team is running about 2,000 fans below last year’s average game attendance but has been quickly closing the gap with single-game ticket sales. He said the Twins hoped that the arrival of three popular teams — the Milwaukee Brewers starting Friday, and the Chicago Cubs and St. Louis Cardinals later in June — would further boost attendance.

The Twins are so far averaging 23,935 fans this year, a decided dip from the 39,798 fans the team averaged during Target Field’s inaugural year in 2010.

This year’s average attendance is 10th in the American League, ahead of only Chicago, Cleveland, Houston, Oakland and Tampa Bay. But Smith, trying to be optimistic, said: “That’s pretty good. [So], OK, middle of the pack.”

Smith said the more significant change has come not from statistics, but from the sound within the ballpark. “Dozier gets a double, and that ‘sound’ is back — that ‘roar’ of the fans which has been kind of, maybe, lacking,” he said.

Interest rising

At Ticket King, the ticket brokerage near downtown Minneapolis, Michael Nowakowski said he too is feeling a surge. And so is Dermot Cowley, the owner of O’Donovan’s, an Irish bar near Target Field that now has a large “Welcome Baseball Fans” banner across its windows. Cowley said last year he had season tickets, and “I couldn’t give them away.”

Nowakowski likewise said that Ticket King’s tickets for games against the Cubs and Cardinals are going for as much as $250 each, and said “I don’t think there was a ticket that went for more than $200” all of last year.

But Smith and the Twins realize that if the team begins to slip, its window for recapturing local sports fans may be narrow. As Smith spoke Tuesday of the team’s early success, the Twins were already competing with the run-up to the start of training camp for the Vikings. All eyes — and TV cameras — that day were on star running back Adrian Peterson, who returned to the team for practice this week after his nine-month expulsion.

Jumping on the Twins’ bandwagon can be pricey. Tom Thomas bought three tickets to Saturday’s game against the Brewers, and paid $126. “It’s an ‘elite’ game, so they raise the prices,” Thomas said with a shrug.

J Schwartz, a social studies teacher from Cottage Grove, went to last Sunday’s game but balked when the cheapest tickets were $37 apiece. So he watched the game on a jumbo TV at a transit station next to Target Field. He had a partial season-ticket plan but dropped it after 2012. “It

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was tough to spend all that money when they weren’t winning,” he said.

Now he said things are different. “I like Dozier — I like the way he plays,” he said.

At the VFW in suburban Mendota, the TVs were all tuned to “Wheel of Fortune” on a rainy Wednesday even though the Twins were playing in Boston. “They’re usually in here watching the game,” said Ashley Moren, the bartender. “I am surprised they haven’t asked me to change it.”

From the end of the bar, a patron named Andy finally asked to turn on the game and quickly saw that the Twins were winning 2-0. “I can’t help it. I’m interested in what they’re doing,” he said, smiling.

Twins win blunder-filled game over Boston

Phil Miller | Star Tribune | June 5, 2015

BOSTON – Paul Molitor didn’t want to do it. Joe Mauer didn’t expect him to do it. The Red Sox wish he hadn’t done it.

But Molitor gave the bunt sign to the three-time batting champion in the ninth inning Thursday, and Mauer … well, he failed.

Fortunately.

Mauer’s bad bunt turned into an even worse error by the Red Sox, a run-scoring misplay that capped a day full of madcap misadventures, broke a tie and handed the Twins an 8-4 victory that earned them a split of the four-game series and extended, for at least one more day, their stay in first place in the AL Central.

“Nobody expected that one. That’s probably why everything just kind of went haywire,” said Torii Hunter, who helped dig the Twins out of a 4-0 hole by smashing a three-run homer against a billboard above Fenway Park’s Green Monster, his 200th career home run as a Twin. “Nobody in baseball thought Joe Mauer was going to bunt there, and he was actually causing havoc.”

Well, that’s one way to look at it. The ninth-inning bunt was an awful one, traveling only a foot or two in front of home plate and allowing catcher Blake Swihart to pounce on it before Mauer could even get out of the batter’s box. But Swihart’s throw to Pedro Sandoval, in an effort to force out Brian Dozier at third base, curled under Sandoval’s glove and into left field, enabling Dozier to come home and break a 4-4 tie.

“That’s awesome, Joe doing that,” Dozier said of the unexpected bunt by a guy who hasn’t sacrificed runners over since 2012. No outs, trying to get the winning run across, that’s how he is. Whatever it takes to get the win.”

This crazy, sloppy game took a lot — five errors, eight infield hits, some outfield misplays and at least four baserunning blunders. Both sides made mistakes that made fans wince in disbelief; the Twins handed Boston two unearned runs, the Red Sox gave the Twins three. But the Twins, a day after pulling off a squeeze for an important run, again utilized the element of surprise to force Boston into a mistake.

And the Twins took advantage. Plouffe followed with an RBI single off the Green Monster, Eduardo Escobar hit a run-scoring double over left fielder Hanley Ramirez’s reach and Shane Robinson made it a four-run ninth with a sacrifice fly.

“When you have a squeeze play, or when Joe Mauer, batting champion, he bunts, nobody expects it,” Hunter said. “You don’t know what to do. You’re not planned out. That’s what caused that error. [Swihart] just kind of panicked.”

Actually, the error was charged to Sandoval, but maybe Hunter’s right. In a crazy game, Dozier said, “we put a lot of pressure on them.”

Boston tried it, too, in the seventh inning, waving home Mike Napoli, who had been running from first on a 3-2 pitch, on a single to center. But Dozier foiled that play with a good throw, beating Napoli by 40 feet.

That kept the score tied, until Molitor called for the bunt after Dozier and Hunter led off with singles in the ninth.

“It’s not a very good feeling to put a sacrifice bunt on for that guy,” Molitor said of Mauer, but the manager was trying to avoid a double play. He waited until the count was 1-1, giving Mauer a chance to drive one. Then he flashed the sign that even caught Mauer by surprise.

“In that situation, you want to drive those guys in. But I looked down at the third base coach,” he said. “I saw the sign, and that’s what you’ve got to do.”

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Twins: Glen Perkins on impressive saves streak

Mike Berardino | Pioneer Press | June 4, 2015

BOSTON -- Twins closer Glen Perkins hasn't been perfect this season, but he remains flawless in save situations.

Entering Thursday's play, Perkins was 20 for 20, the longest streak to open a season in club history, and longest at any point for a Twins closer since Joe Nathan converted 20 straight in 2009.

This is the seventh time a Twins closer has converted at least 20 straight saves, but just the third time that has happened in the same season. Nathan holds the club record with 27 straight in 2004 (May 8 to Aug. 15).

Huston Street, then with the San Diego Padres, opened last season with 23 straight save conversions.

"Odds will tell you that sooner or later, something's not going to go his way," Twins manager Paul Molitor said recently about Perkins. "It's not very often when a closer can ride out a very long streak of saves, but I think he's pitching really well. He's confident, he's healthy."

Perkins, with a 1.80 earned-run average, took the loss on May 29 against Toronto after entering a tie game in the ninth inning. He also allowed the eventual winning run to score in the eighth inning at Kansas City on April 21.

Nathan's longest save streak to open a season with the Twins was 13 in 2008.

Eddie Guardado opened the 2003 season with 17 straight saves before blowing his first opportunity on June 6 at San Diego. Before Perkins recorded his 18th straight save on May 27 against the Boston Red Sox, that had been the longest season-opening conversion streak for a Twins closer since the save became an official statistic in 1969.

Twins: Joe Mauer’s misplayed bunt sparks victory

Mike Berardino | Pioneer Press | June 4, 2015

BOSTON -- There was no advance warning, no whispered suggestion as Joe Mauer made his way toward the on-deck circle and eventually into the batter's box in the ninth inning of a tie game Thursday afternoon.

With runners on first and second and nobody out, the three-time American League batting champion looked down at third-base coach Gene Glynn and had to blink a few times to make sure his eyes weren't deceiving him.

"You go into that situation, you look to drive those guys in," Mauer said after the Twins' 8-4 win over the Boston Red Sox. "I look down at the third-base coach every at-bat and make sure I don't miss a sign."

Sure enough, there it was, for the first time in the Paul Molitor Era and in anyone's memory around the Twins: the sacrifice bunt sign.

"It surprised me a little bit when I got it," Mauer said. "It was good timing, a good place in the game to give it a try. I'm glad it worked out."

At 32-21, the Twins moved back into first place in the American League Central by percentage points over the Kansas City Royals (30-20), who played Cleveland on Thursday night.

Molitor waited until the count reached 1-1 before giving the go-ahead. Mauer has bunted for a handful of base hits over the years, but he had dropped just one sacrifice bunt since the start of the 2009.

That came in 2012, and it remains his most recent one after Mauer dropped such a poor bunt that he wasn't credited with the sacrifice.

"It wasn't pretty but it got the job done," Mauer said.

"All in all it was a bad bunt, but it worked out well."

Rookie catcher Blake Swihart pounced and made a quick throw in an effort to get the lead runner, Brian Dozier. However, third baseman Pablo Sandoval failed to grab sinking throw and was charged with his second error of the game.

Dozier, who started the inning with a single off the Green Monster, raced around to score the go-ahead run that opened the floodgates in a four-run ninth.

Trevor Plouffe and Eduardo Escobar added run-scoring hits as the Twins completed their climb out of a 4-0 hole and beat closer Koji Uehara (2-3). Plouffe might have been walked had Mauer's bunt worked as planned, but Molitor was willing to live with that possibility, even with rookie Eddie Rosario in the No. 5 spot.

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"Joe's a good bunter, man," Molitor said. "He doesn't have to do it often. I wanted to stay out of the double play there as best I could."

Mauer, who went 1 for 13 in the series, came in hitting .404 with runners in scoring position. He has grounded into a league-high 10 double players, but he also has a .398 career on-base percentage that ranks third among active players.

"It's not a very good feeling putting a sacrifice bunt on for that guy," Molitor said. "I'm trying to win the game."

The element of surprise was a key factor as well.

"They might not be looking for it," Molitor said. "We're just trying to find a way."

For the second straight day, the Twins used a bunt to beat the Boston Red Sox. Wednesday night, the Twins claimed a 2-0 win that included a perfectly executed safety squeeze bunt by Danny Santana.

"He's trying to do what it takes to win," Mauer said. "That called for a bunt there, and we won the game."

Torii Hunter, whose three-run homer in the fifth jarred the Twins to life and marked his 200th with the franchise, went even further.

"The element of surprise ... just shocks everything," Hunter said. "Everything is not in order. When you have a squeeze or a Joe Mauer, batting champion, and he bunts, nobody expects that. I think that's what caused that error right there. (Swihart) just kind of panicked."

The teams combined to make five errors that led to five unearned runs.

The Red Sox grabbed a 2-0 lead on starter Tommy Milone with a pair of unearned runs in the second. Plouffe dropped a two-out throw from Mauer and Escobar booted a grounder by David Ortiz.

Milone, called up from Triple-A Rochester to replace the injured Ricky Nolasco, also gave up solo homers to Blake Swihart and Dustin Pedroia.

Facing a knuckleball pitcher for the first time in nearly a full calendar year, the Twins went meekly against Steven Wright until Hunter connected.

Slumping Kurt Suzuki, completing a 3-for-3 day off Wright, drove in Escobar with a two-out single in the sixth. Escobar had reached on Sandoval's two-base error.

Twinsights: Ankle injury sends Ricky Nolasco to disabled list

Mike Berardino | Pioneer Press | June 4, 2015

BOSTON — For the third time in the past 11 months, Twins right-hander Ricky Nolasco is headed to the disabled list.

Nolasco, who suffered an impingement in his right ankle in Sunday’s start, had to cut short Thursday’s bullpen session after just eight to 10 pitches as he continued to feel “shooting pain.”

Even though an MRI on Sunday showed no structural damage, Nolasco will undergo a CT scan on Friday back in the Twin Cities. Minor surgery cannot be ruled out at this point after three-plus days of aggressive therapy failed to improve the condition.

“It was still killing me,” Nolasco said. “I can’t risk throwing with no lower body. I just got my elbow right for the first time in a long time. I can’t go out there and risk blowing that out or something.”

Nolasco has made just 16 big-league starts in the past five baseball months, dating to early last July. His past two DL stints were related to elbow issues, including one he tried to pitch through for much of the first half last season.

Before signing a four-year, $49 million deal with the Twins in November 2013, Nolasco had averaged 190 innings over the previous six seasons (2008-13).

“I’m not going to do the team any favors by not being 100 percent,” Nolasco said. “Obviously I’ve learned that trying to pitch through some stuff. Nothing good can come out of it. It was tough to say no, but I think it’s the right thing to do. I don’t have any other choice.”

Taking Nolasco’s place in the rotation is left-hander Tommy Milone, who was activated in time to start Thursday’s series finale against the Boston Red Sox.

Since joining the Twins Nolasco has made 34 total starts, going 11-13 with a 5.40 earned run average. The Opening Day starter in 2014, he has worked a total of 191 2/3 innings since coming to the American League.

He won his first five starts in May, however, and there was a sense that Nolasco was finally settling in. Then came Sunday’s ankle injury, suffered when he threw a 1-1 slider to Edwin Encarnacion in the first inning against the Toronto Blue Jays.

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Nolasco was lifted after facing two batters in the second inning.

“I thought it was getting better,” Nolasco said. “I could walk on it. It’s just that certain angle, there’s something in there that’s just shooting pain and not allowing me to do what I need to do to throw the ball. I squat down there pretty good. It’s a big part of my delivery.”

Changing his delivery, even in the short term, is not an option as it can lead to even more serious arm issues.

“It’s just kind of a freak thing,” Nolasco said. “It’s obviously frustrating. Thought I was turning the corner there and I was feeling good. My arm was feeling really good, and then something like this happens.”

Milone, who opened the season in the Twins rotation, went 4-0 with a 0.70 ERA in five starts for Triple-A Rochester. He also struck out 47 while walking just three in 38 2/3 innings for the Red Wings.

Nolasco could only remember one other issue with his right ankle. That was back at Rialto (Calif.) High School, when he rolled his ankle during baseball practice.

“I must have had a little fracture in there at that time,” he said. “I’ve thrown a bazillion pitches since then.”

Twinsights: Fenway brings back World Series memories for Paul Molitor

Mike Berardino | Pioneer Press | June 4, 2015

BOSTON — Paul Molitor had to be reminded this week that Shane Robinson, then with the St. Louis Cardinals, played at Fenway Park in the 2013 World Series.

That matchup, however, between the Cardinals and Boston Red Sox will always be memorable to the Twins manager for another reason: It was the first time he attended a Fall Classic with his son Ben, now 8.

“We were sitting right up there where Fred Lynn was (Tuesday) night,” Molitor said, pointing to the suite level behind home plate. “We were with the big shots up there in Bud’s box.”

That’s “Bud” as in Bud Selig, former Major League Baseball commissioner and Molitor’s longtime boss in his former role as Milwaukee Brewers owner.

When the Red Sox won the pennant, Molitor conferred with his young son and hatched a last-minute plan.

“I thought it would be a lot of fun to spend time with your son going to a couple World Series games,” Molitor said. “I called Bud and asked if there was any way he could help me buy two tickets. He just said, ‘Mollie, you’re going to be my guest, so please come.’ “

Molitor and his son flew into Boston for the first two World Series games. Even though Molitor played in two World Series, splitting outcomes with the Brewers and Toronto Blue Jays in 1982 and 1993, he enjoyed seeing the pageantry from a different viewpoint.

“We got to stay where the commissioner and their party stayed and we had a police escort to and from the games and all the spoils that Bud enjoyed for many years,” Molitor said. “It was a great experience my son and I were able to share together.”

Newly retired New York Yankees closer Mariano Rivera attended one of the games and sat in the commissioner’s box. Molitor introduced the future hall of famer to his son and was impressed at how the great pitcher treated the young baseball fan.

“My son got a nice picture with him,” Molitor said, “and then at the end of the game, when Rivera was getting ready to go, he came over to say goodbye to Ben and he remembered him by name.”

Molitor shook his head and smiled.

“That was phenomenal,” Molitor said. “Just sort of the impressions that people make that kind of affirm the respect you have for those kinds of people.”

Molitor didn’t take his son on the field for pregame activities, but he proudly noted when it came time to go inside and have dinner in the private dining area of Red Sox owner John Henry, Ben had other ideas.

“Ben wouldn’t come in to eat,” Molitor said. “He wanted to stay out here and watch batting practice. He took it all in.”

As you might imagine, that experience launched Molitor’s son even deeper into a budding love affair with the game.

“Baseball has become a bigger part of his young life,” Molitor said. “It was just an experience to share with his dad.”

Thursday was another big day in Ben’s life. After suffering fractures on the back of his right hand during a recent trampoline accident, he was

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due to have his cast removed.

“The timing should be good,” Molitor noted. “First day of summer baseball is next Monday.”

Postgame Twinsights: Knuckler doesn’t faze Torii Hunter

Mike Berardino | Pioneer Press | June 4, 2015

BOSTON — Torii Hunter, serving as the designated hitter, had never faced Steven Wright, but he came in with a .337 career average in 98 at-bats against four prior knuckleballers.

That included a .405 average (and four homers) in 42 at-bats against former Red Sox knuckleballer Tim Wakefield, now doing analyst work on the team’s telecasts.

“I faced Wakefield a lot,” Hunter said after Thursday’s 8-4 win at Fenway Park. “I think I had practice in spring training, faced him a lot during the season. Tom Kelly would always tell us as a team, ‘If it’s high let it fly, if it’s low let it go.’ I kept saying that all day today. I was able to get one up and capitalize on it.”

After going 2 for 3 with a three-run homer off Wright, Hunter is now hitting .347 off five knuckleballers of his era: Wakefield, Wright, R.A. Dickey, Steve Sparks and Charlie Haeger.

“Today was a great game,” Hunter said. “We were down 4-0 and that knuckleball, you don’t know what you’re going to get. It’s like a box of chocolates. Either you’re going to be good or you’re gonna suck.”

–Hunter also made a baserunning mistake, getting tagged out between third and home on Trevor Plouffe’s tapper to the mound in the fourth.

“First and third, Torii will be the first to tell you the one thing you don’t go on is the swinging bunt play in front of the plate,” Twins manager Paul Molitor said. “We lost an opportunity to at least get one run there.”

Hunter came back with a homer in the fifth that Molitor termed “a huge lift.” The manager also said he called a longball for Hunter during batting practice.

“I told him in BP he was going to hit a couple today,” Molitor said. “I said, ‘Let’s take an easy day on your legs. Hit a couple over the wall, maybe a strikeout and a walk so you don’t have to run too much today.’ He ended having to do a lot of running actually, but we’ll take the homer.”

–In three career starts at Fenway Park, Tommy Milone has a 9.88 earned run average. He has allowed eight homers in 13 2/3 innings, but he also was victimized for five infield hits Thursday.

–The Twins, who swept the Red Sox in three games at Target Field last week, completed the season series with a 5-2 record against the team with baseball’s third-highest payroll ($187 million).

–Kansas City Royals manager Ned Yost called Molitor, his former Brewers teammate, to gauge his interest in being a coach on the American League all-star team next month in Cincinnati.

Molitor said he would rather spent the three-day break at home with his family, “recharging” his battery for the second half.

–Twins third baseman Trevor Plouffe, who grew up a Los Angeles Dodgers fan, made a point of chatting up hall of fame manager Tommy Lasorda on the field before Wednesday night’s game.

Plouffe had met Lasorda while he was at Crespi Carmelite High School in southern California as Lasorda’s godson was a teammate of Marshall Plouffe, older brother of the Twins third baseman.

“He’s a legend,” Plouffe said. “He was one of the faces of Dodger baseball when I was growing up.”

–The decision to start rookie Rule 5 pick J.R. Graham on Saturday against the Brewers appears all but official.

“It’s looking more like Graham is going to be that guy,” Molitor said. “That’s the most realistic possibility right now.”

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Brewers, Twins open series as managers reunite

Adam McCalvy | MLB.com | June 4, 2015

Old friends will reunite at Target Field beginning Friday, as Craig Counsell manages the Brewers in a three-game Interleague series against Paul Molitor and the upstart Twins. Counsell grew up around Milwaukee County Stadium because his dad worked in the Brewers' front office. Molitor, of course, was a star infielder for the team on his way to the Hall of Fame.

"I've known Craig since he was a toddler," Molitor said after Counsell was named Brewers manager on May 4. "I was excited for him. Watching him grow up, go through high school, he spent a lot of time at County Stadium back in the day.

"I don't know if you'd call Craig an overachiever in the game, because I don't know if he was the most talented guy, but he was a winner everywhere he went. I think the intelligence aspect he brought to the game and how he played enabled him to do what he did as a player. I think some people thought they might have been grooming him a little more front office-wise, but you can tell by his comments this is what he wanted to do. I'm happy for him."

Things to know about this game:

• The Brewers' slumping Opening Day starter, Kyle Lohse, will try again to get on track when he starts against his former team and right-hander Kyle Gibson. Lohse has delivered only three quality starts in 11 outings this season, and he allowed 12 earned runs in the last two.

• Torii Hunter, the Twins' leader in RBIs, owns a career .953 OPS in 44 career games against the Brewers. That's his fifth-highest OPS of any opponent, and the highest of any opponent against whom Hunter has more than 50 at-bats. Hunter hit his 200th homer in a Minnesota uniform in Thursday's 8-4 victory over the Red Sox at Fenway.

• The Brewers could open the series with a 23-man roster. Their RBI leader, Ryan Braun, underwent another cryotherapy procedure on his bothersome right thumb Wednesday, and his return is somewhat open-ended. Counsell said he expects Braun back in the lineup by Sunday at the latest. Meanwhile, reliever Will Smith expects to get word before Friday's game from Major League Baseball on his appeal of an eight-game suspension.

Ankle ailment sends Nolasco to DL

Alec Shirkey | MLB.com | June 4, 2015

BOSTON -- Though the Twins had hoped otherwise, Ricky Nolasco won't be able to avoid the disabled list after all.

On Thursday, the Twins placed the right-hander on the 15-day DL, retroactive to Monday with a right ankle impingement. As expected, lefty Tommy Milone was recalled from Triple-A Rochester to fill the vacant rotation spot and start Thursday against the Red Sox.

Nolasco suffered the injury Sunday, when he had to leave the game in the second inning against the Blue Jays. After receiving three days' worth of treatment, he tried to throw a bullpen session Thursday, but continuing pain in the ankle ended the session after about 10 pitches.

"It became apparent rather quickly when he started trying to load off his right side and get some torque created when he needed to push off the rubber, you could see him start to grimace a little bit," Twins manager Paul Molitor said. "The session didn't last very long. It's not healed enough to where he can pitch."

To help determine if Sunday's MRI missed any additional damage to the joint, the Twins have arranged for Nolasco to undergo a CAT scan Friday, which would give a better indication of whether he will have to miss more time.

This marks Nolasco's second stint on the DL this year after he was sidelined by right elbow inflammation in April. He said this is the first time the ankle has bothered him.

"I can't risk throwing with no lower body," Nolasco said. "I just got my elbow right for the first time in a long time. I can't go out there and risk blowing that out or something. I'm not going to do the team any favors by not being 100 percent. I've learned that trying to pitch through [injury]. Nothing good can come out of it.

"It was tough to say no, but I think it's the right thing to do."

Nolasco is 5-1 with a 5.51 ERA in seven games with the Twins. In his last start before hurting the ankle, he held the Red Sox to two runs in 7 2/3 innings, striking out five and walking none in perhaps his most complete outing of the season.

"I don't know how the hell it happened," Nolasco said. "It's just kind of a freak thing. Obviously frustrating. Thought I was turning the corner and feeling good. My arm was feeling really good. And then something like this happens."

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With Nolasco out of commission, the Twins need to determine who will pitch against Milwaukee on Saturday. Molitor indicated that long reliever J.R. Graham remains the most likely option, with other members of the bullpen assisting in the effort, but added that the decision is contingent on how long Milone's start lasts.

"More than likely, it's going to be one of those games where we're going to have to piece it together with the bullpen," Molitor said.

Graham was made available to pitch out of the bullpen Thursday.

Mauer surprised by bunt sign, but succeeds

Alec Shirkey | MLB.com | June 4, 2015

BOSTON -- For the second time in as many days, the Twins used a timely bunt to help secure victory, this time in Thursday's 8-4 win over the Red Sox. That the pivotal run scored after Joe Mauer laid one down in the ninth inning, however, surprised nearly everyone in attendance at Fenway Park.

You can count Mauer himself among them.

"I think that surprised me a little bit when I got [the sign]," Mauer said. "But it was good timing, a good place in the game to give it a try."

With the game tied and no outs, Mauer stepped into the batter's box with Torii Hunter on first and Brian Dozier on second. Twins manager Paul Molitor had every intention of moving both runners into scoring position to set up a scoring situation for hot-hitting third baseman Trevor Plouffe, who stood ready in the on-deck circle.

"[The Red Sox] might not be looking for it, but realistically when you're bunt defense, you're mostly looking to just get an out," Molitor said. "I felt good about Plouffe's matchup. If somehow we could get second and third there, they might have walked him."

Mauer's bunt turned out to be enough. Though the ball only rolled a few feet away from catcher Blake Swihart, the rookie's low throw sailed through the legs of third baseman Pablo Sandoval and allowed Dozier to score Minnesota's third unearned run of the day.

"I don't know if I'd have been safe if it was a good throw," Dozier said. "Once I realized I wasn't going to be safe, I tried to slide, guessed he was going to stretch out. I was trying to break up a double-play situation."

The Twins (32-21), who have pulled off 11 comeback victories, went on to plate three more runs before Glen Perkins worked a scoreless ninth to earn a series split. And after dropping the first two games in frustrating fashion, Molitor praised his team's ability to erase an early four-run deficit and rally for the win.

"Those who have seen us have seen how we've responded when we've either lost a game, or in this case two games," Molitor said. "They haven't had their confidence shaken by a game or a couple games. That's a good sign. Whether it's a good starting performance from your pitcher or an offensive outburst, we've found ways to rebound.

As for Mauer, he'll take the outcome regardless of his bunting prowess.

"It wasn't pretty, but it got the job done," Mauer said.

Torii’s 200th HR with Twins keys rally

Alec Shirkey | MLB.com | June 4, 2015

BOSTON -- As Torii Hunter stretched on the field before Thursday's game against the Red Sox, the 39-year-old outfielder joked with manager Paul Molitor that he was too young to be a designated hitter.

"After [the doubleheader Wednesday], I said, 'Let's take it easy on your legs and hit a couple over the wall,'" Molitor said after Thursday's 8-4 victory.

Hunter wound up having to settle for one home run, but his three-run blast in the fifth inning proved to be a game-changing spark in the Twins' win at Fenway Park.

With Minnesota trailing by four runs, Hunter belted an 0-1 knuckleball from Steven Wright into the Green Monster seats to give his team life. Wright had only allowed two hits to that point and gave every indication that the trend would continue.

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"That knuckleball, you don't know what you're going to get," Hunter said. "It's like a box of chocolates. Either you're going to be good, or you're going to [struggle]."

"The way the early part of the game went, with one swing get back to within a run, it was a huge lift," Molitor said. "Because we had missed some opportunities with runners in scoring position to get back in the game."

Hunter finished the game with three hits, his 11th multihit game of the season, and improved his batting average with runners in scoring position to .360 on the year.

Not only was Hunter's hit important within the scope of the series, which Minnesota split following the comeback victory, but it also marked an important milestone in his tenured career. It was home run No. 200 as a member of the Twins.

Hunter is one of just eight players in franchise history to reach that mark, and he sits one shy of tying Gary Gaetti for seventh on the team's all-time list.

To do that, the veteran said, would be special.

"Two hundred with the Twins, that's longevity. You got to play a long time to do that," Hunter said. "I'm happy about that, to go out there and have 200 home runs in this uniform. One behind Gaetti. And the Rat was a really good player with the Twins. Just to have a chance to pass him up or tie him would be awesome."

Twins pounce on errors, storm past Red Sox

Alec Shirkey and Aaron Leibowitz | MLB.com | June 4, 2015

BOSTON -- The Twins scored four runs in the ninth inning Thursday to earn an 8-4 victory over the Red Sox and a four-game series split at Fenway Park.

In a game that featured five errors and a litany of baserunning blunders, the go-ahead run scored when Red Sox third baseman Pablo Sandoval was unable to handle a low throw by catcher Blake Swihart on a Joe Mauer bunt.

"It's not a very good feeling putting a sacrifice bunt on for that guy," Twins manager Paul Molitor said. "But he squared and just didn't get it out there very far. Fortunately, they couldn't execute and get the lead runner [out], and we were able to build from there."

After that, the floodgates opened. Red Sox closer Koji Uehara faced four batters in the ninth and did not record an out, giving up four runs (two earned), and the Twins sent nine men to the plate in the frame.

The best way I can describe it is we made both physical and mental errors in this one, particularly in the second half of the game," said Red Sox manager John Farrell.

Solo homers by Swihart and Dustin Pedroia had helped Boston establish an early 4-0 advantage. But Torii Hunter hit a three-run shot for the Twins in the fifth, and Minnesota tied it in the sixth on Kurt Suzuki's RBI single, which followed a throwing error by Sandoval.

Lefty Tommy Milone allowed four runs (two earned) in five innings for Minnesota, while the bullpen combined to pitch four scoreless frames. The Twins have not dropped a series since May 12-14.

MOMENTS THAT MATTERED Torii's trio: Hunter sparked the Twins when they needed it most, cutting a four-run deficit to one with his decisive fifth-inning blast off Red Sox knuckleballer Steven Wright. The home run was his 200th as a member of the Twins, making him one of only eight players in club history to reach that plateau. The outfielder added singles in the fourth and ninth innings to finish the game 3-for-5 with two runs scored.

"That knuckleball, you don't know what you're going to get," Hunter said. "It's like a box of chocolates. Either you're going to be good, or you're going to [struggle]."

Poor Boston baserunning: In the seventh, the Red Sox had a runner thrown out at third and a runner thrown out at home on back-to-back plays. Hanley Ramirez ran into an out between second and third base on a grounder to the left side, and Mike Napoli was thrown out at home trying to score from first on a Xander Bogaerts single.

"It's lapse of concentration," Farrell said of the team's lackluster baserunning and defense. "That's the only thing I can explain right now. They're routine plays, plays that guys have made throughout their careers consistently. That was not a display of it today."

Minny's rough start: The Twins put themselves in an early hole after a pair of errors led to two unearned runs in the second inning. Trevor Plouffe committed the first mistake by dropping the throw to third on an infield single, allowing Mookie Betts to score. Another run came home when Eduardo Escobar misplayed a slow grounder to shortstop that rolled into the outfield.

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Swihart's first jack: In the third, Swihart hit his first Major League home run after going 75 at-bats without one. The 23-year-old deposited a 2-0 offering from left-hander Tommy Milone over the Green Monster to give the Sox a 3-0 lead. He became the youngest Red Sox catcher to hit a homer since Rich Gedman in 1982.

"It felt good. It has been a long time coming, I guess finally being able to do something on the offensive side to help the team out," Swihart said.

QUOTABLE "If you ask me, in 19 years, if I have had any second thoughts, I'd be lying if I said I haven't. But sometimes you've got to push the envelope. It didn't work today." -- Red Sox third-base coach Brian Butterfield, on his decision to send Napoli home in the seventh

"That's longevity. You got to play a long time to do that. I'm happy about that, to go out there and have 200 home runs in this uniform." -- Hunter, on his 200th Twins homer

SOUND SMART WITH YOUR FRIENDS Six of Pedroia's eight home runs and 16 of his 23 RBIs have come in day games. He has played in 18 day games and 36 night games.

Twins catcher Kurt Suzuki reached base a career-high five times on three singles, a walk and an intentional walk. His first hit ended an 0-for-13 stretch at the plate.

WHAT'S NEXT Twins: Right-hander Kyle Gibson (4-3, 2.61 ERA) takes the mound at 6:10 p.m. CT on Friday as Minnesota opens up a three-game series with the Brewers at Target Field. The Twins have won six of their last eight against Milwaukee.

Home team: The Red Sox begin a three-game series against the A's on Friday at 7:10 p.m. ET at Fenway Park. Left-hander Wade Miley (4-5, 4.97) gets the start for Boston.

Right ankle injury means Nolasco headed to DL for 2nd time this season

Derek Wetmore | 1500espn.com | June 4, 2015

The Twins on Thursday placed Ricky Nolasco on the 15-day disabled list, apparently not satisfied that his right ankle was healthy enough to pitch soon. He's been diagnosed with a right ankle impingement.

Nolasco was scheduled to throw a bullpen session before Thursday's game in Boston, as a test to see if his right ankle was OK.

Nolasco's DL stint is backdated to June 1, the day after his latest start. He was removed from that start in the second inning and had an MRI done on his ankle. This is his second stint on the disabled list already this season, and he spent time on the shelf last year as well.

Injuries and ineffectiveness have made Nolasco a big disappointment for the Twins since he signed a four-year, $49 million contract before the 2014 season. He had a better spring training this year, so there was hope a rebound was in store, but he had a 5.51 ERA this season before hitting the DL this time. He does have a 5-1 record, but that's more a product of run support than how he's pitched.

(For the stats-obsessed out there, Nolasco's FIP is much better than his ERA at 2.81, but he's almost always underperformed his FIP and his xFIP is a higher 3.96 this season.)

The roster move clears the way for Tommy Milone to be recalled from Triple-A Rochester. He will make Thursday's start.

Milone had a great month of May in Rochester after being demoted from the Major League rotation. He went 4-0 with 47 strikeouts and just three walks in 38 2/3 innings for the Red Wings.

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Michael Tonkin had been recalled Wednesday as part of an MLB rule that allows a 26th man on the roster for doubleheaders. By rule, he's been returned to Triple-A Rochester.

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Wetmore’s 5 thoughts: Mauer’s bad bunt worked, Hunter’s milestone homer

Derek Wetmore | 1500espn.com | June 4, 2015

The Twins managed to get out of Boston with a split after winning a sloppy game Thursday in the series finale. Minnesota came out on top in Tommy Milone's return to the big leagues with an 8-4 victory.

This column presents 5 thoughts from Thursday's game.

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1. The game turned in the Twins' favor for good on a sloppy play and a questionable decision. With runners on first and second base and nobody out in the ninth inning of a tie game, Joe Mauer tried to drop down a bunt.

It was a bad bunt, and the catcher fielded it just inches in front of the plate. In fact, he gathered it so quickly that he had a play at third base, and he fired down to third to try to nab the lead runner, Brian Dozier, at third base.

Dozier probably would have been out, but third baseman Pablo Sandoval couldn't catch the throw and it scooted into left field. Dozier got up from his slide and scored and Torii Hunter moved to third on the play. (And then the Twins added some insurance runs: Hunter would eventually score on Trevor Plouffe's line-drive single to left field; Mauer scored on Eduardo Escobar's double off the Green Monster; and Plouffe scored on Shane Robinson's sacrifice fly to center field.)

Sandoval's misplay was the story of the day for the Red Sox, who committed multiple errors in the field and took themselves out of the game.

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2. After a dominating month in the minors, Tommy Milone was recalled and gave up four runs (two earned) in 5 innings of work.

That's more runs than he allowed in his five minor league starts combined. He had allowed just three (earned) runs in his entire stint with the Rochester Red Wings, which lasted 38 2/3 innings.

Milone permitted two unearned runs in the second inning, which isn't overly concerning in terms of projecting his future contributions. They came mostly on errors in the field and soft-hit balls. But more concerning in that regard were the two home runs Milone allowed, one to Blake Swihart and one to Dustin Pedroia, both on fastballs.

It was unrealistic to expect Milone to continue to dominate in the Major Leagues the way he had the past month in the minors, but the long balls raise a question because Milone had served up five home runs in just 22 2/3 innings with the Twins before he was sent down. Milone has a long track record of being a decent pitcher in the Majors and he belongs in the rotation right now. But the home run trend is something to monitor going forward.

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3. Torii Hunter had the big hit for the Twins, a 3-run home run in the fifth inning that got them on the scoreboard and back in the game.

They had trailed 4-0 at the time and hadn't played a great overall game up to that point. Then Hunter sent a ball screaming into a billboard above the seats atop the Green Monster in left field and suddenly the Twins were right back in the game.

Kurt Suzuki and Brian Dozier had both singled, and Hunter came to the plate with two outs in the inning. His blast and casual bat flip brought the Twins within one run of Boston, and erased most of the shortcomings on the mound and in the field to that point.

That's his eighth home run this season. For all the talk focused on Hunter's leadership in the clubhouse, we might not be paying enough attention to Hunter's production on the field. He's been really effective at the plate in his age-39 season and it's been impressive.

That's Hunter's 200th home run as a member of the Twins. He has 338 total in his career, including 105 in 5 season with the Angels and 34 in his two years with the Tigers.

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4. The Red Sox made a decision in the seventh inning that surprised me and ended up working out.

With Aaron Hicks standing on second base and two outs in the inning, Red Sox manager John Farrell ordered right-handed reliever Junichi Tazawa to walk Joe Mauer to pitch to Trevor Plouffe. Plouffe struck out swinging at a 95 mph heater, but the thought process didn't make a lot of sense to me.

The game was tied, 4-4, at that point, so putting another runner on base seemed questionable unless Boston felt it was getting a significantly better matchup. And if it was any average left-handed hitter and any average right-handed hitter, the move could make sense, because facing a righty with a right-handed reliever would ordinarily give the platoon-split advantage to the pitcher.

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But in this case, Mauer's not having a typical Mauer season and Plouffe is one of the better hitters in the lineup.

Here are their respective numbers against right-handed pitchers this season:

Vs. RHP AVG OBP SLG

Mauer .246 .308 .305

Plouffe .256 .313 .444

The numbers are close except Plouffe is hitting for more extra bases. I must be missing something because on the surface the decision to put Mauer on base to face Plouffe doesn't make a lot of sense to me. Of course, Boston could be looking at their career numbers, which would give Mauer a significant edge and could justify the decision, but judging Mauer by his career numbers doesn't seem to be fair considering his perfromance past two seasons.

The decision worked out, and it's totally possible the Red Sox were looking at information much more detailed than I was scanning, like each player's ability to handle Tazawa's arsenal of pitches. I just thought it was interesting.

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4b. Whether or not that was the right call, it's only fair to call attention to how poorly that game was played in the field. The Twins made a pair of errors in the second inning that hurt them early in the game but ultimately didn't rob them of a win in Boston. The Red Sox, on the other hand, booted away a game they probably should have won.

The third base coach sent Mike Napoli home, attempting to score him from first base on a single to right field. Napoli was out by 15 feet.

One batter earlier, Hanley Ramirez ran into an out on the bases when he attempted to advance from second base on a ball hit to Trevor Plouffe at third base. Plouffe gathered the ball and ran down Ramirez to tag him out, avoiding the need for a rundown and cutting down the lead runner on his own.

Earlier, starting pitcher Steven Wright had fielding a ball hit by Joe Mauer and attempted to turn and throw to second base to get the lead runner, Torii Hunter. But the ball went into the outfield and Hunter rounded second and reached safely into third base. (Hunter was thrown out at home on a fielder's choice on the next batter, but it still represented an extra out the Red Sox gifted the Twins.)

The Twins didn't play a clean ballgame either, but they were better than the Red Sox.

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5. Kurt Suzuki went 3-for-3 with two walks and a run batted in after getting dropped to the seventh spot in the lineup. His RBI single in the sixth inning tied the game at 4-4 and set up the ninth-inning heroics.

Mauer’s 9th-inning bunt works out as Twins win sloppy game

Associated Press | June 4, 2015

BOSTON -- A surprising strategy by first-year manager Paul Molitor fit the way the Minnesota Twins have been playing so far this season.

Red Sox third baseman Pablo Sandoval mishandled a throw on a bunt by star Joe Mauer in the ninth inning, and the Twins broke away from Boston 8-4 Thursday for a four-game split.

The Twins trailed 4-0 going into the fifth. It was 4-all in the ninth when Minnesota put runners on first and second with no outs against Koji Uehara (2-3).

Mauer bunted and catcher Blake Swihart threw to third -- low, but catchable- and the ball went under Sandoval's glove, allowing Brian Dozier to score the go-ahead run.

"Nobody expected that one," Minnesota's Torii Hunter said. "I think that's why everything went kind of haywire. Rough throw right there and different things like that."

"I don't think anybody in baseball, or TV or anything thought Joe Mauer was going to bunt. He did and caused the havoc right there," he said.

Trevor Plouffe followed with an RBI single. Eduardo Escobar doubled home a run and Shane Robinson had a sacrifice fly off Craig Breslow.

Hunter hit his 200th home run in a Twins uniform and added two singles. Hunter's career 339th homer was a three-run shot.

Kurt Suzuki singled three times, helping Minnesota to its ninth win in 12 games that raised its surprising record to 11 games over .500.

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"They might not be looking for it," Molitor said of the bunt. "Realistically, the bunt defense is just trying to get an out."

Swihart hit his first major league homer and Dustin Pedroia also had a solo homer for Boston, which has lost eight of 11.

But it was a bunt that sent the sloppy Red Sox reeling.

"I tried to do everything I could to stop the ball," Sandoval said. "(It got) under my glove."

The Red Sox committed three errors and had at least three runners cut down by questionable baserunning.

"Absolutely," manager John Farrell said when asked if he takes mistakes personally. "That was a poor display of baseball today. Those situations are addressed individually, it's addressed collectively, and we will continue to do so."

Aaron Thompson (1-1) worked one scoreless inning for the victory.

Boston built its early lead on the homers by Swihart and Pedroia, and two unearned runs.

The Twins rallied in the fifth when Hunter homered off a billboard above the Green Monster seats.

In the sixth, Sandoval threw away a two-out grounder for a two-base error and Suzuki singled home the tying run.

Swihart hit his home run completely out of Fenway Park, clearing the Monster seats to make it 3-0 in the third. Pedroia led off the next inning with a drive to left.

Twins starter Tommy Milone, recalled from Triple-A before the game, gave up four runs -- two earned -- and nine hits in five innings.

Red Sox starter Steven Wright gave up six hits in six innings.

CLIMBING UP THE CHARTS

Hunter was thrilled to be moving up the Twins' all-time HR list.

"It means a lot," he said. "Two hundred with the Twins -- that's longevity. You've got to play a long time to do that. I'm happy to go out there and have 200 home runs in this uniform -- one by behind (Gary) Gaetti, that's what they told me today."

STOP THE MADNESS

Hanley Ramirez, on second with one out in the seventh, was tagged out by the third baseman on a groundball to third. Xander Bogaerts then singled to right-center and Mike Napoli was cut down easily trying to score all the way from first.

"It was an aggressive decision," Farrell said. "We're forcing the issue there a little bit. Unfortunately, it did not work out."

TRAINER'S ROOM

Twins: Put RHP Ricky Nolasco on the 15-day disabled list because of an injured right ankle he sustained in his previous start. He had a side session on Thursday before the club decided it was best to put him on the DL. "It became apparent rather quickly when he started trying to load off his right side and get some torque created when he needed to push off the rubber," Molitor said. "You could see him start to grimace a little bit. The session didn't last very long."

Red Sox: RHP Justin Masterson, on the 15-day DL with shoulder tendinitis, was scheduled to make his second rehab start Thursday, working for Double-A Portland.

UP NEXT

Twins: RHP Kyle Gibson (4-3, 2.61 ERA) is scheduled to go against Milwaukee RHP Kyle Lohse (3-6, 6.50) when the Twins open a six-game homestand.

Red Sox: LHP Wade Miley (4-5, 4.97 ERA) is slated to face Oakland LHP Scott Kazmir (2-3, 2.93) when the clubs start a three-game series on Friday at Fenway. Miley was tagged for six runs in four innings, taking the loss last Saturday at Texas.

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Comfortable, confident Plouffe flashing glove prowess at third

Tyler Mason | Fox Sports North | June 4, 2015

It's a good thing Trevor Plouffe can take a little ribbing from his teammates, because Mike Pelfrey likes to dish it out.

At the start of the year, Pelfrey joked that the Twins third baseman had a plastic glove -- a far cry from a gold one. As the season has gone on, though, Plouffe has continued to make the difficult plays at third base look routine. Because of that, his glove material is slowly progressing on the Pelfrey scale.

"I think I started at an aluminum glove or plastic, and then I've moved my way up," Plouffe said. "I've got a ways to go, but I'm improving, which is good."

The improvements Plouffe has made defensively in 2015 can be measured both by the naked eye and by defensive metrics. Everything Plouffe is doing at third passes the eye test. He simply looks like a more confident player, always sure of what needs to happen on any given play. His arm is much more accurate than in years past, too, and he's no longer throwing the ball several rows deep into the stands.

As far as the metrics go, they indicate that Plouffe's defense is indeed on the right track. Already in 2015 he has four defensive runs saved, compared to six in all of 2014. That number was zero in 2013 and -8 in 2012, when Plouffe was almost more of a liability than an asset at third base.

If his ability to play third base was ever in question, Plouffe has provided the answer.

"He struggled there some. All of a sudden, last year he started to show some progress, which was good -- enough where we were certainly willing to play it out," said Twins general manager Terry Ryan. "Now this year he looks like he's very comfortable over there. He's making plays. He's throwing the ball with some accuracy. He looks much more confident over there."

Throughout his minor-league career, Plouffe was almost exclusively a shortstop. The former first-round pick did play 81 minor-league games at third base over a six-year stretch, but it appeared early on as if his big league future was at shortstop.

That experiment came to an end after Plouffe's second year in the majors, during which he committed 11 errors in 45 games at shortstop in 2011. Minnesota moved him around the field the following year, including a stint as a right fielder. By 2013, Plouffe played 95 games in one season at third base. It was still a learning process, but the Twins were willing to be patient with him at that position.

The patience has paid off in the form of a third baseman who is now making a case for his first career All-Star Game.

"We lived through it. There were some growing pains, there's no doubt about that," Ryan said. "But we've done that a lot with young players around here, shown a lot of patience with many and ultimately it usually pays off. If the guy's got a work ethic and he never gives up on the fact that he wants to be a guy, which Plouffe, he's a good one. We don't have to beg him to work, that's for sure."

Aside from his markedly improved defense, Plouffe has continued to produce at the plate. He's currently batting .262 with 29 RBI, eight home runs and 10 doubles in 49 games. According to FanGraphs, Plouffe's WAR (Wins Above Replacement) of 1.3 is fifth-best among all American League third basemen.

Plouffe has also developed into a leader in the clubhouse. Now in his sixth year in the majors, Plouffe has more experience than most players in the Twins' locker room. He and second baseman Brian Dozier have joined veterans Torii Hunter and Joe Mauer as the experienced core of Minnesota's lineup -- one that has propelled the Twins to a 31-21 record.

Yet for as good of a year as Plouffe is having offensively, whatever he does at the plate might very well be overshadowed by what he does with his glove -- which is, according to Pelfrey, now bronze.

"I definitely feel confident over there," Plouffe said about third base. "For me, I think being prepared breeds that confidence. I know that I've put the work in, and then you put the work in and all you've got to do is play the game, so that's kind of how I feel right now."

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Minnesota Twins make roster moves, place Nolasco on DL

Lindsey Foltin | Fox Sports | June 4, 2015 The Minnesota Twins placed right-hander Ricky Nolasco on the 15-day disabled list for the second time this season on Thursday.

Nolasco suffered a right ankle impingement during his his last start on May 31 against Toronto.

Left-hander Tommy Milone has been recalled from Triple-A Rochester to replace Nolasco in the rotation.

Nolasco, who signed a four-year, $49 million deal with Minnesota as a free agent last offseason, has a 5.40 ERA in 34 total starts with the Twins. He has been on the DL twice in the past 11 months with elbow injuries.

Milone, who opened the season in the Twins rotation, went 4-0 with a 0.70 ERA in five starts for Triple-A Rochester. He also struck out 47 while walking just three in 38 2/3 innings for the Red Wings.

The Minnesota Twins have some strange clubhouse chemistry

Lindsey Foltin | Fox Sports | June 4, 2015

The Minnesota Twins are one of the hottest teams in baseball and are currently tied for first place in the AL Central.

While it's one of the more surprising stories in baseball this season, the team has credited much of their success to clubhouse chemistry. And the guy who seems to be the glue holding this team together is veteran outfielder Torii Hunter, who returned to Minnesota as a free agent this past offseason.

Not only has Hunter been great at the plate and on the field, but he's been been a big part of changing the team's culture and has done a tremendous job mentoring the young players.

However, we have to call attention to the weird chemistry between Hunter and fellow veteran Kurt Suzuki. The Twins catcher was spotted massaging Hunter's lower butt/upper thigh during the first game of a doubleheader in Boston on Wednesday.

Weird.

But hey, whatever they're doing seems to be working, as the Twins have gone 24-9 since April 24 (.727 winning percentage), which has been the best record in baseball over that stretch.

What if the Twins are this year’s Orioles?

David Laurila | Fangraphs | June 4, 2015

In recent weeks, Dave Cameron and Jeff Sullivan have written about why the Minnesota Twins are unlikely to be the first-place Minnesota Twins much longer. Paul Molitor‘s team is 31-21 (pending the outcome of Thursday's game), but for reasons outlined in the articles, a descent in the standings – possibly a steep one – is imminent.

Unless it isn’t. What if they continue to outperform their expectations and their peripherals? What if the Twins are this year’s Orioles?

There are similarities. Baltimore has made an art form out of winning close games and confounding skeptics, and that’s what Minnesota has been doing. Neither team is star-laden or in possession of an ace. Each has a manager whose attention to detail is borderline obsessive.

I brought up the Orioles comp to Molitor before Thursday's game, expecting him to pooh-pooh it. Instead, he lent credence to the idea that his team is somewhat akin to last season’s surprise AL East champs.

“I haven’t tried to compare how our club has been constructed, or how it’s playing, to other teams,” said Molitor. “But if I reflect on Baltimore last year, and the success they had, along with some really good players they match up well and aren’t a team that beats themselves. Buck is obviously one of the brighter managers in the game.”

Showalter shrewdly melds old-school and new-school, and Molitor is cut from the same cloth. The Twins skipper “believes in the gut now and then,” but stresses it is “foolish to ignore” analytic data. The team began shifting more last year when he joined the coaching stuff, and this season has seen an increase in both total shifts and effectiveness.

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As for the Twins having won 11 one-run games and six two-run games, both Molitor and his stat-geek closer see reasons that sustainability could be plausible.

“Part of it is giving yourself a chance to win by having the right people in the right place,” said Molitor. “That’s whether it’s defensive metrics or the right pitchers at the right time. There is also the intangible of the makeup of your players and them knowing how to respond when games are on the line.”

“I know that our numbers don’t match our record, but every season there is a team that does something out of the ordinary,” said Glen Perkins, who leads the AL with 20 saves. “An example is the Cardinals when they set the record for (batting average) with runners in scoring position. They were probably a 90-win team and ended up being close to a 100-win team because they got hits when they needed to get hits. The regression didn’t happen as fast as it maybe could have, should have, would have, whatever. Actually, they didn’t regress.”

The 2015 Twins? Yes, they are likely to regress. Until they do, they’re a little like the Orioles, with a splash of Cardinals thrown in, and a fan base that can’t help but dream.

Wild ninth inning pushes Twins past Red Sox

Tyler Mason | Fox Sports North | June 4, 2015

Just when it looked like Minnesota's miscues were going to cost the Twins a chance at a series split, they flipped the script.

With the game on the line, the Twins took advantage of mental mistakes and a key fielding error by the Boston Red Sox. That all added up to a big ninth inning for Minnesota, which took Thursday's series finale at Fenway Park by a score of 8-4. In doing so, the Twins return home to Target Field 11 games over .500.

If not for some help from Boston, though, that might not have been the case.

The Red Sox's most egregious mistake Thursday came in the top of the ninth inning. With runners on first and second and nobody out, Twins first baseman Joe Mauer attempted a bunt -- perhaps to move the runners, perhaps to get on base with a hit. Mauer's bunt barely got past home plate, though, and Boston catcher Blake Swihart quickly grabbed it and fired to third.

Swihart's throw was a bit low and got under the glove of third baseman Pablo Sandoval and rolled into left field. That allowed Brian Dozier to score from third as the Twins opened the flood gates.

"I think that was pretty much on his own," Dozier said of Mauer's bunt. "Joe's a guy that he's here, he wants to win. Whatever it takes to get that run across, whether it's sacrificing over, obviously we put pressure on them . . . to make a pretty good play down to Sandoval. Whatever we've got to do to win a game, all 25 guys are doing that, so that's a lot of fun."

Three more runs would score in the ninth inning, including an RBI single by Trevor Plouffe the very next at-bat. Eduardo Escobar later doubled to drive in Mauer, and Plouffe scored on a sacrifice fly by Shane Robinson.

The complexion of that ninth inning could have been much different had Boston recorded the out of Dozier at third. Instead, Minnesota took advantage to score four runs and earn the victory.

The Red Sox had a chance to regain the lead two innings earlier but hurt themselves on the base paths. Hanley Ramirez was caught in a rundown when Plouffe made a play on a grounder hit to third, and Mike Napoli was thrown out at home plate trying to score from first base on a single to the outfield by Xander Bogaerts.

Way back in the second inning, it was Boston capitalizing on a few Twins blunders. The Red Sox scored their first run of the game thanks to a Minnesota error when Plouffe couldn't handle a throw to third by Mauer. Plouffe dropped the ball, which allowed Mookie Betts to score the game's first run.

One batter later, Boston's David Ortiz hit what appeared to be a routine ground ball to shortstop. But the Twins' Eduardo Escobar let the ball roll under his glove to score another run. Just like that, Tommy Milone was the victim of two earned runs in his first start since being recalled from Triple-A Rochester.

"It wasn't a pretty game for either team," said Twins manager Paul Molitor. "Our second inning there, when we just compounded our problems by not executing, it's going to happen."

Milone did wind up surrendering a pair of solo homers as Minnesota fell behind 4-0. A Twins rally made it a 4-all game -- including the tying hit by catcher Kurt Suzuki -- before a few late-inning gaffes by Boston opened the door for Minnesota to steal the game and split the series.

Now the Twins head back to Minneapolis to host a Milwaukee Brewers team that currently has the worst record in baseball. And Minnesota

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does so with a good taste in its mouth after manufacturing a win at Fenway Park.

"That's what we have to do. We have to take it one at-bat at a time, keep grinding, do all the little things right," said Hunter, whose three-run homer earlier in the game was his 200th in a Twins uniform. "I had a base-running blunder earlier in the game and I tried to make up for it with the three-run home run. We just tried to stay in there."