CHICAGO – A Twins pitching staff that has already seen extensive turnover this year appears headed for more.
Rookie lefty Kendry Rojas was a late scratch from a scheduled start Thursday due to what the club called “posterior elbow soreness” in his left arm. He returned to Minnesota and will undergo imaging and further evaluation on Friday.
Rojas reported discomfort when he arrived at Rate Field Thursday morning for a spot start. No estimate was available regarding how long he’ll be out. Simeon Woods Richardson started in his place and allowed five runs in 2 2/3 innings.
“After him talking to Nick [Paparesta, head athletic trainer] and Pete [Maki, pitching coach], we did not feel it was responsible at all to pitch him,” manager Derek Shelton said after Minnesota lost to the White Sox, 6-2.
Rojas, 23, had been slated to make a spot start in the series finale in order to give Taj Bradley an extra day of rest before his next start. He has mostly pitched in relief, but was extremely impressive in his first career start on May 18 against the Astros.
The Cuban-born lefty was acquired last summer in the deal that sent Louis Varland to the Blue Jays. He scuffled in his first season in the Twins’ system but has flashed immense potential in his first Major League season, with a 1.26 ERA and 14 strikeouts in 14 1/3 innings.
Woods Richardson suffered another tough outing in the emergency start, though Shelton acknowledged that the righty had been put in a difficult situation. He began the year in the Twins’ rotation but was bumped to the bullpen after an extended slump.
“He got put in a tough spot because it was about an hour before the game,” Shelton said. “It's challenging with where we were at, knowing we were running a bullpen game, the fact we thought [Rojas] had the most length. It's a challenging spot for [Woods Richardson] and I feel for him for that.”
Woods Richardson’s stuff looked sharp, with his velocity up over his year-to-date average and seven whiffs on 28 swings against him. But his location was inconsistent, and three walks proved costly. All five runs against him scored with two outs.
He acknowledged it was an unusual situation but declined to use the short notice as an excuse.
“I feel like anybody in that situation,” he said. “It doesn't really matter. It’s do whatever you’ve got to do to have to help the team, you know?”
The Twins are likely to make a move on Friday even if Rojas does not need to go on the injured list. Rojas and Woods Richardson were their two long-relief pitchers in the bullpen, and Travis Adams, the other pitcher who is best suited to pitching multiple innings, has pitched two days in a row. So they will likely feel some need to bring up someone to cover innings for them.
They don’t have a great deal of options on the 40-man roster, with only John Klein, Marco Raya and Kody Funderburk as healthy pitchers on the 40 who are not in the Major Leagues. They could also reinstate right-hander Cody Laweryson from his Minor League rehabilitation stint.