Worth noting

By Tom Singer

March 7, 2014

• Jason Grilli's long-awaited Grapefruit League debut turned out to be uneventful, meaning it went perfectly. Grilli retired the Twins in order in the third inning, with a strikeout of Jason Bartlett in the middle.

"We liked the shape of his pitches, definitely liked the fastball command -- to both sides of the plate," manager Clint Hurdle said. "We're on a good path to have him finish Spring Training strong and be ready for the season."

• Jeanmar Gomez added three scoreless innings -- allowing only a Wilkin Ramirez double -- before the Twins, aided by some loose defense by the Pirates' late-game squad, jumped four relievers for nine hits in the last three innings after having three the first six.

• There was a Polanco duel in the morning "B" game: Pirates center fielder Gregory vs. Twins second baseman Jorge.

Tom Singer is a reporter for MLB.com and writes an MLBlog Change for a Nickel. He can also be found on Twitter @Tom_Singer.