FORT MYERS, Fla. -- The competition for the Twins’ starting rotation gets underway Friday, and you can watch.
Grapefruit League games are still one day away, but on Friday evening, the Twins play the University of Minnesota at Lee Health Sports Complex, with first pitch scheduled for 5:05 p.m. CT. The game will be carried on Twins.TV, which is free throughout Spring Training, as well as a radio broadcast on MLB+, the Audacy app, WCCO 830 AM and The Wolf 102.9 FM.
Zebby Matthews will take the ball first for the Twins in the seven-inning game, kicking off what is likely to be a five-week battle for the final three spots in Minnesota's starting rotation. Matthews, Taj Bradley, Simeon Woods Richardson, David Festa and Mick Abel are all in contention for rotation jobs behind Joe Ryan and Bailey Ober.
Matthews, who had a brilliant spring last year but was inconsistent during the season, is looking to find more good days and fewer bad ones this year.
“A lot of it is execution-based,” Matthews said. “We like to make a big deal out of a lot of things, but I think if you focus on execution, I’ve got the stuff. I’ve got the pitches. Just trying to fine-tune and execute. If you look at some of the better starters in the league, you look at what they’re able to do -- locating their pitches, missing to their advantage, that sort of stuff. Big focus on that.”
The Twins’ first game against a Major League opponent is set for Saturday at 12:05 p.m. against the Red Sox. That is also a home game and will be carried on all of the same outlets.