MINNEAPOLIS – As auditions go, it couldn’t have been much better.
Guaranteed only one game but making a case that he deserves more, Zebby Matthews turned in one of the best outings of his career in a spot start for the Twins on Thursday afternoon. Matthews tossed seven shutout innings, allowing four hits and one walk against five strikeouts in a 9-1 win against the Marlins.
He needed only 83 pitches to get those 21 outs, and looked for all the world like the frontline starter that he’s shown flashes of being at points over the past two seasons. Matthews’ gem sent Minnesota to its second straight series win.
Miami poked two singles against Matthews in the first inning, getting a runner into scoring position with one out, and then didn’t really threaten him again. He allowed a two-out double in the fourth, and a one-out single in the fifth that was immediately erased by a double play, but the right-hander was in total control for the vast majority of his outing.
Matthews threw more than 67 percent of his pitches for strikes, and averaged 94.8 miles per hour on his four-seam fastball. He mixed in a curveball, changeup, slider and cutter, and never so much as opened the door for Miami to threaten after the first.
Officially, Matthews was recalled from Triple-A St. Paul so that the Twins could give rookie Connor Prielipp an extra couple of days as Prielipp navigates his first season in the Major Leagues. Prielipp will start Saturday. Practically, it’s difficult to ignore the context of Matthews’ performance, coming 18 hours after yet another discouraging outing from Simeon Woods Richardson.
With Mick Abel and Taj Bradley both on the injured list, there are opportunities even if the Twins elect not to make a move with Woods Richardson. Only Joe Ryan and Bailey Ober are established, healthy, and pitching well, and it would be hard to justify not giving Matthews another start.