Changing their name and look doesn’t seem to be working for Tampa Bay so far this season as they fell to the Twins 6-5. Unlike the last two games, tonight the Twins bullpen held up and it was the starter that struggled.
The team put together a good offensive effort, highlighted perhaps by Carlos Gomez, who is fast becoming an emerging threat on the basepaths. His two hits set the table for the two bases he stole off of Rays starter James Shields, one of which led to him scoring a run. Justin Morneau and Jason Kubel further victimized Shields by each hitting a double off of him. But Joe Mauer had a better preformance, going 3 for 4, scoring 2 runs and getting an RBI. The Twins were clutch with Mauer, Kubel and Brendan Harris each getting 2 out RBIs.
After solid outings to start the season, Livan Hernandez struggled giving up 5 runs, 3 earned, and 8 hits over 6 innings while walking 3 and striking out 2. Even more painful were the home runs he gave up to Carl Crawford, Eric Hinske and Shawn Riggans. Dennys Reyes, Juan Rincon and Joe Nathan combined to shut down the Rays the rest of the way, with Rincon getting the win and Nathan getting the save.
The obvious positive for the game was that the bullpen was actually able to hold a lead. Others are the offensive performances by the Twins hitters. However, Hernandez’s start is cause for concern. He is a solid pitcher, nothing more and no where near a staff ace. He can be maddeningly inconsistent and pitch poorly at the most crucial times. He will log a large load of innings, but the hitters better be ready to score alot of runs when he does.
