ARLINGTON, Texas – As the Trade Deadline approaches, the Twins know what’s at stake. They need to win games and series. They need to gain ground in the standings, or at least tread water while they wait for key players to come back.
With a 12-2 thrashing of Kumar Rocker and the Rangers on Tuesday night, they did just that. Minnesota secured a second straight series win against a contending team, won for the fourth time in five games, and remained very much in the fight for an American League Wild Card spot.
And at the same time, about 850 miles north in St. Paul, one of those key players they’re awaiting took a big step toward getting back.
They jumped on Rocker from the get-go, as Trevor Larnach led off the game with a homer on the first pitch and Josh Bell poked an RBI single to make it 2-0 before Zebby Matthews took the mound. Kody Clemens added a three-run homer, his 30th since joining the Twins last April, to seize full control of the game in the third, and Matthews took it from there.
Matthews pitched exactly the way you should when you’re staked to a lead, throwing more than 70 percent of his pitches for strikes and not issuing a single walk. He needed only 93 pitches to get through seven innings, allowing two runs on eight hits with four strikeouts.
On top of all of that, rehabbing right-hander Mick Abel looked an awful lot like a pitcher who might make a start for the Major League club before this road trip is out. Abel tossed five strong innings for Triple-A St. Paul on a tidy 61 pitches, allowing two runs (one earned) on four hits, including one home run, while striking out five and not issuing a walk.
He was still hitting 96 miles per hour in his final inning, and while no pronouncement has been made, it would not be shocking to see him start either Sunday in Phoenix or Monday at home. Abel has been out since mid-April after suffering right elbow inflammation.