Joe Mauer, Delmon Young help Minnesota Twins defeat Pittsburgh Pirates 4-1 – MLB Update
Joe Mauer and Delmon Young put in a brilliant performance as the Minnesota Twins beat Pittsburgh Pirates 4-1 at McKechnie Field, Florida on March 21.
The Twins’ manager Ron Gardenhire said, “I told the guys in our dugout, 'Why do you guys come to spring training so early and swing so much? Just do what Joe and Delmon are doing, skip 10 or 12 games and just start hitting. They're right on line. Their swings
look great.’”
The Twins’ left hand pitcher Brian Duensing threw five innings, permitting just an unearned run with three strikes. He also ambled one run with two outs. Duensing faced difficulties with the workings in his last start, as he gave two runs and five strikes
in four innings over the New York Mets. In the fifth inning, the Twins had stolen the bases with no outs.
Mauer suffered a knee injury during the offseason but recovered soon for the rest games of the spring season. He made two singles, one walk and ending 2-for-3 in the sixth inning. On the other hand, Young went 1-for-2 against the lefty Paul Maholm after
recovering from a toe injury. Young and Mauer both overlooked many games of the spring season but whenever they played, the team did not suffer a defeat.
Gardenhire was pleased with Duensing and told that he pitched the ball in excellent line which was effective for the team. His position was terrific, as he changed the ball inside and outside by using both faces of the plate. Duensing had complete variety
in his pitching and can hit out the batter at any time.
Speaking to reporters, Duensing said, “I worked on some stuff the past few days, keeping my shoulder square to the plate. The ball came out a lot better. I felt like I had balance with my finish. That's been my biggest problem this spring, but today it was
really good.”
Paul Maholm, a starting pitcher for the Pirates, played six innings during this spring season which is considered to be a long tour for him. He offered only two runs, six strikes, two walks and hit out five batters.
Maholm was relieved after his convincing performance and commented that the Twins motivate the pitcher in the right way and they have high-quality batters as well. Maholm gave a couple of runs to Young and helped out of the push by permitting only one run.
In the end, the Twins managed to contain the Pirates’ offence and take a convincing victory to gain some much needed momentum before the regular season begins.
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