Newly signed free agent pitcher Anibal Sanchez followed his Twins scoreless spring debut with a dud on Sunday, eventually walking off the mound with both the blown save and the loss to the Pittsburgh Pirates.
The Pirates rallied from three runs down to beat the Twins 9-3.
All went well early in the game. Pitchers Jose Berrios, D.J. Baxendale and Fernando Rodney made scoreless appearances, followed by Addison Reed, who gave up one run on two hits. Sanchez followed Reed and the game completely fell apart. Sanchez was tagged for five hits and six earned runs in two innings. He also gave up a three-run home run and walked one batter. On the plus side, he struck out four of the 12 batters he faced.
Still, he exited Sunday’s game with an ERA of 13.50.
Extra innings…
-Manager Paul Molitor’s lineup on Sunday is likely to be one we see over and over again this season. Brian Dozier led off on Sunday, followed by Joe Mauer, Miguel Sano, Eddie Rosario, Logan Morrison, Byron Buxton, Max Kepler, Jorge Polanco and catcher Mitch Garver. Although Garver got the nod Sunday, insert Jason Castro and you likely have the 2018 Opening Day lineup. None of the veterans are hitting real well right now, but consider this lineup in the context of 2017. If they all perform like last season, this could be a potent offense.
Here are their numbers for 2017:
Brian Dozier: .271, 34HR, 93RBI
Joe Mauer: .305, 7HR, 71RBI
Miguel Sano: .264, 28HR, 77RBI
Eddie Rosario: .290, 27HR, 78RBI
Logan Morrison: .246, 38HR, 85RBI
Byron Buxton: .253, 19HR, 51RBI
Max Kepler: .243, 19HR, 69RBI
Jorge Polanco: .256, 13HR, 74RBI
Jason Castro: .242, 10HR, 47RBI