It’s a small sample size, but the Twins’ pitching staff has lived up to the hype through nine games this season.
Minnesota’s pitchers are 4th in the American League with a 3.11 ERA and 1st in all of MLB with an opponents batting average of just .197 – they’ve allowed an MLB low 58 hits so far (30 fewer than the world champion Astros in three fewer games).
More importantly, the starters have racked up seven quality starts in nine games. They had just 62 quality starts all of last season.
Left-handeds Zach Duke and Gabriel Moya have struggled a bit out of the bullpen, but the rest of the guys in the ‘pen – Ryan Pressly, Addison Reed, Taylor Rogers, Trevor Hildenberger and Fernando Rodney – have combined to allow just 5 earned runs in 24 2/3 innings for an elite 1.82 ERA.
Good news for Santana
Manager Paul Molitor has been working with a four-man rotation while 2017 All-Star right-hander Ervin Santana recovers from surgery on the middle finger of his pitching hand.
Santana met with his doctor on Tuesday and was approved to begin a throwing program beginning Wednesday, TwinsBaseball.com’s Rhett Bollinger reports.
Santana went 16-8 with a 3.28 ERA last season.
There’s no official timetable for his return to the starting rotation, but most suspect he’ll return some time in May.
