Minnesota Twins Daily Clips

Thursday, July 23, 2015

Twins can't figure out Angels, losing streak reaches four. Star Tribune (Neal) p. 1 Postgame: Losing streak goes to 4 for Twins. Star Tribune (Neal) p. 3 Twins notes: Scouting for missing pieces in the bullpen. Star Tribune (Neal) p. 3 Gibson vs. Hughes: Who gets call in hypothetical Wild Card game?. Star Tribune (Rand) p. 3 Minnesota Twins fall to Angels for fourth straight loss. Pioneer Press (Berardino) p. 4 Ryan O'Rourke is a Warrior rookie pitcher. Pioneer Press (Berardino) p. Postgame Twinsights: Bunts made sense, Paul Molitor says. Pioneer Press (Berardino) p. Postgame Twinsights: Paul Molitor perplexed by Joe West’s interference call. Pioneer Press (Berardino) p. Twinsights: Miguel Sano returns to Twins lineup. Pioneer Press (Berardino) p. Offense still trying to find groove after break. MLB.com (Bollinger) p. 5 Twins struggle to plate runs in 4th straight loss. MLB.com (Bollinger & Gonzalez) p. 5 Torii full of pride watching Trout's evolution. MLB.com (Spencer) p. 5 Walker extends Minor League home run lead. MLB.com (Smith) p. 5 Sano returns to Twins' lineup vs. Angels. MLB.com (Bollinger) p. 5 Santana faces former team in series finale. MLB.com (Adler) p. 5 Twins awarded competitive balance Draft pick. MLB.com (Bollinger) p. 5 Wetmore: Nearing the 1-year mark, Twins clear winners of Milone trade. 1500espn.com (Wetmore) p. 6 Twins once again awarded tradeable competitive balance draft pick. 1500espn.com (Wetmore) p. 6 Should the Twins trade for a catcher as deadline nears? 1500espn.com (Wetmore) p. 6 Angels stretch win streak to 7 games with win against Twin. 1500espn.com (Wetmore) p. 6

Twins can't figure out Angels, losing streak reaches four La Velle E. Neal III | Star Tribune | July 22, 2015

ANAHEIM, CALIF – And the search continues for the Twins. The search for a dominating start. The search for a key hit. The search for something that will stop their slide.

It didn’t happen for the majority of their game against the Angels on Wednesday, as they briefly remembered what it’s like to lead a game before handing it back one inning later. The Angels went on to beat the Twins 5-2.

The Twins made Angels lefthander C.J. Wilson work at times, and Brian Dozier’s two-run single in the second gave them a 2-1 lead. But poor defense and a couple bad pitches by Twins righthander Mike Pelfrey led them to a fourth consecutive loss.

The Angels, meanwhile, welcomed all-everything outfielder Mike Trout back to the lineup one day after sitting out because of a sore left heel, then closed out their sixth victory in a row since the All-Star break.

The teams wrap up their three-game series Wednesday with an afternoon game.

Pelfrey received the most rest of any Twins starter — 12 days — following the All-Star break. Considering his recent injury history, the Twins felt it was best to be mindful of his workload.

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Many times, Pelfrey will arrive at the park on the day he’s pitching with a smile on his face, chatting with teammates and even reporters. On Wednesday, Pelfrey was locked in concentration no matter where he was in the clubhouse — as if he knew how important a good start would be for his team.

Pelfrey didn’t show any signs of being too rested Wednesday as he kept the game close through the middle innings.

The Twins were in a hole early, though, as Chris Iannetta pounded a high changeup into the seats in left for a home run and a 1-0 lead in the second inning. It was Iannetta’s second home run in as many games. He entered the series batting .194 but has feasted on Twins pitching.

The Twins’ sputtering offense got a spark from the bottom of the order in their half of the second. Aaron Hicks, the No. 7 hitter, and Danny Santana, the No. 9 hitter, each singled then pulled off a double steal on a 1-0 breaking ball. Dozier, 0-for-5 in the series at the time, delivered a two-run single as the Twins grabbed the lead.

It didn’t last long.

Daniel Robertson led off the third with a single. Johnny Giavotella followed with a grounder to short. Santana had a chance to start a double play, but hurried to try to feed Dozier at second and dropped the ball for an error. Kole Calhoun promptly delivered an RBI single, and a second run scored as Trout grounded into a double play. The Angels took the lead back at 3-2.

Los Angeles added single runs in the fifth and seventh. Kole Calhoun drove in a run in the fifth with a single to right-center, then Albert Pujols doubled to center in the seventh to close out the scoring.

Postgame: Losing streak goes to 4 for Twins

La Velle E. Neal III | Star Tribune | July 22, 2015 And the streak goes on.

The Twins offense sputtered once again in a 5-2 loss to the Angels on Wednesday, and now they get staff ace Garrett Richards on Thursday afternoon as they try to avoid being swept in the three-game series. When Brian Dozier hit a two-run single in the second inning - giving the Twins a brief 2-1 lead - it appeared as if they were going to have a good day at the plate. Angels starter C.J. Wilson threw 105 pitches over five innings and was pulled, which should have been a good thing.

But the Twins were 1-for-9 with runners in scoring position on Wednesday and left 12 runners on base. So the Twins have now lost nine straight to Angels and have not won here since July 23, 2013.

And they get staff ace Garrett Richards on Thursday afternoon.

``You understand how things are going for them and there's a lot reasons,'' Twins manager Paul Molitor said. ``They've got the feel of winning. They have leaders in the field. They are pitching really well. The bullpen guys they are marching out there are doing the job. So we're trying to find a way to play better than we have over the last four or five days.''

Twins righthander Mike Pelfrey wasn't that bad, giving up two earned runs over six innings. He revealed after the game that he was sick with food poisoning on Tuesday but felt fine to pitch on Wednesday.

What he encountered on Wednesday was worse, a Angels team that knows how to get runners home. In anti-Twins fashion, the Angels got the leadoff batter on base in six innings, scoring in four of them. The Angels have won all six games since the All-Star break.

And they have staff ace Garrett Richards on Thursday afternoon.

And now here are Three Thoughts following the loss: PELFREY NOT BAD: Twins righthander Mike Pelfrey had 12 days off between starts, and sometimes that leads to a pitcher being too strong. Perhaps the food poisoning he battled on Tuesday cancelled that out. I feel bad now because I thought Pelfrey was locked in concentration as he walked around the clubhouse before the game (he's usually chatty). But he was just getting over his illness from the day before. He didn't have his best stuff on Wednesday, which made for some tough pitching as the Angels put the leadoff batter on base in the first three innings. He had pretty good command of his fastball and ended up using it a lot. His split-finger fastball, he said, was no so great. He hung one to Chris Ianetta in the second that became a home run. Just two earned runs over six innings, but not good enough. ``We're still confident,'' Pelfrey said. ``You know you go through some ups and downs through the

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year. We're not playing very well as a team right now. It's magnified when you are going up against a hot team too. We'll come back tomorrow and try to get one before we head back home.'' MORE INFIELD FOLLIES: Danny Santana is why Pelfrey gave up two unearned runs. With a runner on first in the third inning, Santana fielded Johnny Giovatella's grounder and tried to flip it Brian Dozier in hopes of starting a double play. But he fumbled the ball for an error. Los Angeles ended up scoring two runs in the inning. ``My take on it was that the better choice possibly would have been to take the out at first rather than awkwardly try to make a backwards flip,'' Twins manager Paul Molitor said. ``When you do that, you get a little ahead of yourself and you don't track the ball as well. You try to secure the ball before you make a play.'' That's three errors in Santana's last two starts. At least he had a walk and two singles on Wednesday. SANO'S RETURN: Miguel Sano returned to the lineup after missing two games with a sore right ankle. He struck out in the second, reached on a fielder's choice in the third, hit a ball hard but right to the centerfielder in the fifth and walked in his final two plate appearances. Sano saw 26 pitches over those five plate appearances. He already has walked 11 times in 14 games. That's more walks than Eduardo Escobar, Eduardo Nunez. Eddie Rosario, Shane Robinson and Danny Santana. And all those guys have played in many more games than Sano has.

Twins notes: Scouting for missing pieces in the bullpen

La Velle E. Neal III | Star Tribune | July 22, 2015 ANAHEIM, CALIF. – Despite having trouble getting production from the shortstop and catching positions, indications are that finding bullpen help remains the Twins’ top priority as the July 31 nonwaiver trade deadline approaches. Two pitchers the Twins are interested in are Athletics closer Tyler Clippard and Braves reliever Jim Johnson. The Twins have used righthanders Blaine Boyer and Casey Fien in late-inning setup roles and would like to add a third arm to build a bridge to closer Glen Perkins. The preference would be to add someone who can miss bats and match up with dangerous hitters late in games. Twins scouts have scattered throughout the league in recent weeks to evaluate potential trade targets, and there have been a series of conference calls between Ryan and his staff about players. He has a list of trade targets, based on his scouts’ recommendations.

The market for bullpen help should be a good one. Teams can aim high for top arms such as Padres closer Craig Kimbrel or Phillies closer Jonathan Papelbon, and the Reds might be willing to part with closer Aroldis Chapman. But there are several other relievers who could interest the Twins. San Diego has three in righthanders Brandon Maurer, Shawn Kelley and Joaquin Benoit. The Twins have gotten steady performances from lefthanders Brian Duensing and Ryan O’Rourke, but if they feel the need to upgrade there, the Brewers have two lefties in Neal Cotts and Will Smith, with Cotts believed to be more available than Smith. Miami righthander Steve Cishek, who was demoted to Class AA last month but has a 0.77 ERA since his return, could be another option. This is not an exhaustive list, as teams will make decisions over the next several days on whether they are buyers or sellers before the deadline.

With several enticing prospects in the minors, the Twins could put an attractive package together with little trouble. Indications are that they would prefer to hold on to prospects such as righthander Jose Berrios. Outfielder Oswaldo Arcia, recently on a tear at Class AAA Rochester, could be a bargaining chip to play in the right deal. Could the Twins land a shortstop? Twins manager Paul Molitor is jugglingDanny Santana, Eduardo Escobar and Eduardo Nunez at the position, according to matchups. Santana, the Opening Day starter at short, has struggled and the Twins are trying to keep his confidence up. “It is challenging right now,” Molitor said of his daily task of picking a shortstop.

It is not clear if the Twins are really interested in Colorado’s Troy Tulowitzki. And adding him — and the $98 million he’s guaranteed over the next five years — goes against how they have operated in the past. The Dodgers’ Jimmy Rollins and the Brewers’ Jean Segura could be available because both clubs have prospects at the position who are nearly ready. Molitor is not badgering Ryan about making a deal, preferring to sit back and let his general manager work.

“Terry was in here [Wednesday],” Molitor said. “We did not talk once about people on the outside.

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“For me, it’s a trust thing. He knows more about handling those things than I do. I’m not going to go out there and try to talk about things like that. We had a meeting before the All-Star break about personnel and evaluation and that’s about as far as we’ve gone.

“He’s keeping his eyes and ears open to see what is going on. Everyone is curious about teams that are going to be on the move one way or the other.”

Twins get extra pick The Twins landed the third pick in Competitive Balance Round B of the 2016 draft, following a lottery held Wednesday in New York.

It’s the second consecutive year the Twins have been awarded a pick in the competitive balance portion of the draft. They received the 73rd overall pick in this year’s draft, which was held in June. The 2016 draft order won’t be finalized until the end of the offseason.

The competitive balance rounds — which take place following the first and second rounds of the first-year player draft — are for the 10 smallest markets and 10 lowest revenue-generating teams each year. Any team that received revenue sharing also gets in the lottery for Round B, which is how the Twins qualified.

Gibson vs. Hughes: Who gets call in hypothetical Wild Card game?

Michael Rand | Star Tribune | July 22, 2015

This might be a weird question to ask after the Twins played one of their worst games of the season, a 7-0 loss to the Angels filled with fielding blunders and just two hits for Minnesota, but I’m going to ask it anyway because I’ve been thinking about it for a good 10 days (not nonstop … that would be weird … but still): If the Twins do manage to find their way into the playoffs as a Wild Card team, which figures to be their most likely path, who would you want on the mound for what is now a one-game, winner-take-all playoff between the two Wild Card teams?

Keep in mind, of course, that Ervin Santana — no matter how well he pitches down the stretch — is not an option because as part of the terms of his drug suspension this year he is ineligible for the postseason.

We can probably also rule out Mike Pelfrey, who has regressed after a great start … and Trevor May because he’s still developing … and Tommy Milone because for as well as he’s pitched at many times this year he’s a notch below the top of the rotation … and Ricky Nolasco, who even when healthy hasn’t shown that he belongs in the mix at the top.

That would leave us with Kyle Gibson and Phil Hughes. And that would be an interesting conversation if the Twins were able to line up their rotation in a way to make it a choice.

There are pluses and minuses with both. Hughes was easily the team’s best pitcher last season and, after a sluggish start this year, is 4-0 with a 2.85 ERA in his past six starts to boost his overall numbers into much better shape. His “bad” starts don’t tend to be blow up starts — more like 5 to 6 innings with 3 or 4 runs allowed, and he has worked at least six innings in all but three of his 19 starts this year. You pretty much know what you’re getting. It won’t always be dominant, but it’s usually at least decent.

Gibson, last night’s start notwithstanding (one in which he didn’t help himself at all with a poor fielding play in the blow-up sixth inning), has been the Twins’ best starter for most of the season. He has generally avoided the types of dreadful starts that plagued him a year ago while progressively bumping up his strikeouts as the year has gone on. Still, he would remain somewhat of an unknown in a big game while Hughes, with far more major league starts under his belt, offers a more known commodity.

I would probably tend to go with Hughes, but I’d be tempted to roll with Gibson. Your thoughts, please, in the comments.

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Minnesota Twins fall to Angels for fourth straight loss

Mike Berardino | Pioneer Press | July 22, 2015

ANAHEIM, Calif. -- Mike Pelfrey wasn't great, but the Twins right-hander didn't get very much help either.

Defensive breakdowns, combined with another library-quiet night from the Twins offense, sent the visitors to their fourth straight loss, 5-2 on Wednesday night at Angel Stadium.

Falling a season-high 7-1/2 games behind the division-leading Kansas City Royals in the American League Central, the Twins kept their scoring average at an even 2.0 runs in five games since the all-star break.

It took the Twins until Eddie Rosario's leadoff double in the eighth to produce their first extra-base hit of the series. They have gone 37 innings without holding a lead at the conclusion of an inning.

Starting on 12 days' rest in the revamped second-half rotation, Pelfrey fell behind in the second on catcher Chris Iannetta's second home run in as many nights.

After permitting just one homer in a span of 10 starts, Pelfrey has allowed four in his past seven outings.

Pelfrey (5-7) allowed the leadoff man to reach in four of his first five innings, but in the third shortstop Danny Santana booted a double-play ball by Johnny Giavotella. The error was Santana's 16th of the year and his third in a span of 10 innings.

Kole Calhoun followed with his first of his two run-scoring singles.

Pelfrey came back to get Mike Trout to hit into just his seventh double play, but the go-ahead run scored. It was the second double play turned behind Pelfrey on the night and the 22nd this year, tying him with sinkerballing teammate Kyle Gibson for the major league lead.

When working on six or more days of rest, Pelfrey entered 12-13 with a 4.88 earned-run average in 36 starts. He had allowed a nine-inning walk rate of 4.07.

On the normal rest of four days, Pelfrey is 30-38 with a 4.47 ERA in 97 starts with a 2.99 nine-inning walk rate.

More trouble came in the fifth, when Giavotella led off with a triple off the base of the wall. Center fielder Aaron Hicks was in hot pursuit, but his feet slipped out from under him on the warning track after he made a late decision to play the ball off the wall.

Calhoun ripped a first-pitch single to make it 4-2.

Pelfrey was credited with his first quality start in nearly a month (June 23 against the Chicago White Sox) because half the four runs he allowed were unearned. His only strikeout came on the 26th batter he faced.

On the other side, Angels left-hander C.J. Wilson (8-7) handed the Twins their second straight loss against a lefty starter, joining Oakland's Scott Kazmir on Saturday. The Twins were 19-12 in the first half when facing lefty starters, and their win total is tied with the Houston Astros (19-19) for the league lead.

Hicks and Santana both singled in the third, then pulled off a successful double steal on a 1-0 curve to Brian Dozier. The all-star second baseman followed with a two-run single to give the Twins their first lead since they were one strike away from beating the A's on Saturday.

Rookie slugger Miguel Sano returned to the lineup after missing two games with a sprained right ankle. He walked twice in five trips but is still looking for his first hit since the break. He is 0 for 9 with two walks, a sacrifice fly and five strikeouts since the restart.

Huston Street closed it out for his 25th save.

Ryan O'Rourke is a Warrior rookie pitcher

Mike Berardino | Pioneer Press | July 22, 2015

ANAHEIM, Calif. -- Last month, the bullpen crew at Triple-A Rochester dressed as their favorite wrestlers and acted out an elaborate skit in honor of Bret "The Hitman" Hart, who was in town to sign autographs at Frontier Field.

Alex Meyer was The Undertaker. Michael Tonkin was "Nature Boy" Ric Flair. Logan Darnell was Hulk Hogan.

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For rookie left-hander Ryan O'Rourke, there was never any doubt he would be The Ultimate Warrior, complete with elaborate face paint.

"I loved it," O'Rourke said. "Are you kidding me?"

Born and raised in Worcester, Mass., O'Rourke grew up watching WWF on television. He'd even dress up as The Ultimate Warrior back then.

"When I was growing up, I'd put the tassels on and everything," he said. "I did it up."

Now 27, O'Rourke was stunned when Hart approached him after the routine with a heartfelt appreciation. James Brian Hellwig, The Ultimate Warrior's alter ego, died in April 2014 at age 54.

"(Hart) came up to me after and was like, 'You were intense out there,' " O'Rourke recalled. "I said, 'That's kind of how I pitch.' "

Hart smiled and told O'Rourke that Hellwig "would have been really impressed" with his clubhouse tribute.

"You don't realize how much of a compliment that is," O'Rourke told Hart.

When O'Rourke's coach at Merrimack College in North Andover, Mass., came to see him last month at Pawtucket, they shared a laugh over the pitcher's wrestling tribute. As it turns out, Merrimack's nickname is the Warriors.

"It's kind of interesting how it all works out," said O'Rourke, who had reeled off five scoreless outings since his July 7 promotion.

He would like to point out, however, that the estimable website Baseball-Reference.com has it wrong when it comes to big leaguers from Merrimack. A 13th-round pick in 2010, O'Rourke is actually the first ex-Warrior to reach the majors, not the third.

Hall of fame outfielder Carl Yastrzemski played collegiately at Notre Dame but he never suited up for Merrimack, as the website suggests. Yaz, who lives in the area, merely finished up his degree at the school.

As for former big-league right-hander Dennis Tankersley, that mistake is harder to fathom.

"Someone asked me about Tankersley, and I didn't know who it was," O'Rourke said. "I looked through out records and couldn't find him."

There was a good reason for that. Tankersley, who pitched parts of three seasons for the San Diego Padres (2002-04), attended St. Louis Community College-Meramec in Missouri.

So O'Rourke's arrival two weeks ago carried even greater meaning than realized at the time.

"I'm the only one," he said with a smile.

The 6-foot-3, 230-pound O'Rourke also has no qualms about being known as a lefty one-out guy or LOOGY in modern sabermetric parlance. After another strong showing on Tuesday against the Los Angeles Angels, O'Rourke has held lefty batters to a .067 average (2 for 30) for the Red Wings and Twins combined.

Righties hit .357 off him in 30 trips at Rochester, but the breaking-ball artist who works at 88-92 mph with his fastball learned long ago not to be ashamed of his particular skill.

Former Angels lefty Gary Lucas, now working as a Midwest League pitching coach for the Milwaukee Brewers after the Twins did not renew his contract last fall, was O'Rourke's pitching coach for two seasons in Class A Beloit. He helped O'Rourke make the transition to the bullpen for good in 2012 after 24 so-so starts over his first three pro seasons.

"He'd tell me, 'If you're left-handed and you can get lefties out, you'll be in this game a long time,' " O'Rourke said.

"I don't think it really rings true until you get up to the upper minors and even now. That's when you realize it's a pretty important spot to get the lefties out. I wish I had listened a little better to him back then."

When O'Rourke got the surprise news of his first big-league promotion, he called Lucas to thank him.

"He was one of the calls I made that first night," O'Rourke said. "I kind of waited for the news to come out on Twitter and gave him a call. He's always been great to me. I have nothing but the utmost respect for him for what he did for me in my early career."

The pitcher knows for a fact he's not alone.

"I know there's a lot of lefties down there, still coming through, who still talk about a lot of the things he said," O'Rourke said. "He kept it really simple for us. He was awesome."

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Postgame Twinsights: Bunts made sense, Paul Molitor says Mike Berardino | Pioneer Press | July 22, 2015

ANAHEIM, Calif. — Twins manager Paul Molitor had no problem with a pair of poorly executed bunts by his Nos. 3 and 5 hitters.

The first one, by Joe Mauer with a man on first and one out in the fifth, came directly after just his fourth career hit in 30 at-bats against Los Angeles Angels lefty C.J. Wilson. It rolled foul with the Twins trailing by two.

The second, by Trevor Plouffe with Miguel Sano on first and the Twins trailing 5-2 in the ninth, ended the game when it rolled straight back to Angels closer Huston Street.

“Good spots, both times,” Molitor said. “We needed baserunners.”

Molitor pointed out when Mauer can draw in the third baseman, it leads to more ground singles the other way.

“It opens up a lot of room for him,” Molitor said. “I think it’s good when he takes advantage of that when there’s a guy on first and nobody out. Obviously with two outs it’s not going to be as appropriate as trying to drive the baseball.”

And Plouffe, who had a two-run double in his only previous career look at finesse-master Street?

“Trevor he asked me before he went up there, ‘If they’re playing way back, the tying run is on deck,’ ” Molitor said. “I said, ‘If you’re comfortable doing it, it’s a good play.’ You’re trying to extend the game by getting the tying run up there somehow. I have to watch the video to see mechanically what broke down.

“Bunting the ball back to the pitcher is the last thing you want to try to do. You want to try to make a good bunt or foul so it doesn’t kill you. Somehow he lost his angle, but I think the play is sound.”

–Twins starter Mike Pelfrey revealed after the game that he was sent home from Angel Stadium on Tuesday with a bout of food poisoning.

The culprit: A grouper sandwich.

“That might have been the reason I wasn’t as live maybe,” said Pelfrey, whose fastball was down a tick or two.

He didn’t lose much weight but made a point of trying to keep himself hydrated. When Twins head athletic trainer Dave Pruemer checked in on Wednesday morning to see if Pelfrey could start, the answer was yes.

“That was my whole mindset” If I’m able to take the ball, I’ll take the ball,” Pelfrey said. “I just didn’t feel good, but I was good enough to go out there. I thought I was able to compete and give the team a chance. People get like that all the time. Guys get sick. I got a job to do.”

He gave up four runs but half of them were unearned. Covering the first six innings on just 79 pitches, Pelfrey still managed to turn in his first quality start in nearly a full month (June 23 vs. the Chicago White Sox).

Informed of this, he offered a tired smile.

“I’d like to get some wins,” he said after putting the leadoff man on base five times in six innings.

Pelfrey, 5-7, has gone 0-5 in his past seven starts since beating the Milwaukee Brewers on June 7.

–Pelfrey hit his team-high eighth batter when he plunked Angels third baseman David Freese on the left hand with an 0-1 sinker in the fourth.

Freese, fourth on the team with 11 homers, had to leave the game and was placed on the disabled list afterward with a broken hand.

Light-hitting Tyler Featherston took his place.

–Winning their seventh straight, the Angels moved 14 games over .500.

It has been quite a turnaround for a team that started 11-15 through the season’s first month.

“You understand how things are going for them and there’s a lot of reasons,” Molitor said. “They’ve got the feel of winning. They have leaders on the field. They’re pitching really well. The bullpen guys, they march out there and they’re doing the job. … They’re very capitalistic right now, taking advantage of those (mistakes).”

–Twins video coordinator Sean Harlin had a big night.

First, the Twins mounted a successful challenge in the sixth that resulted in their second pitcher pickoff in as many nights.

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This time Pelfrey whirled and got Featherston on second for the first out of the inning. Danny Santana did a nice job of catching the throw on the move and still slapping down a tag.

One inning later, Harlin suggested the Twins challenge the call at home on Eddie Rosario’s throw to catcher Eric Fryer. Initially Kole Calhoun was called safe, but after review Fryer was rewarded for a lunging tag after retrieving Rosario’s home a few steps toward the mound.

–The Twins have dropped nine straight to the Angels.

They haven’t won here since July 23,2013 — aka the Joe Mauer Paternity Game.

That was the night Glen Perkins blew a save with a three-walk ninth but Chris Herrmann hit a grand slam in the 10th for a 10-3 win.

–Slumping shortstop Danny Santana was charged with one error in the third, when he booted a potential double-play grounder by Johnny Giavotella.

“My take on it was the better choice possibly would have been to take the out at first rather than awkwardly try to make the backwards flip (from behind the bag),” Molitor said. “When you do that you get a little ahead of yourself and you don’t track the ball as we ll. Like anything, that’s one of the first things you do is try to make sure you secure the ball before you make a play.”

Santana also threw wide of second on a Chris Iannetta grounder in the fourth. The Twins had to settle for just one out, and Pelfrey had to labor some more to escape the inning without further damage.

Postgame Twinsights: Paul Molitor perplexed by Joe West’s interference call Mike Berardino | Pioneer Press | July 22, 2015

ANAHEIM, Calif. –Eduardo Nunez was certain he was safe.

A wild throw had come from third baseman David Freese on his slow tapper, and the speedy Nunez arrived at first base at the same time the ball reached the glove of C.J. Cron.

“The ball was there,” Nunez said. “(Cron) hit my face. He came toward me, so I tried to move.”

The ball ended up on the ground and Nunez initially was called safe only to have plate umpire Joe West overrule with an interference call.

“I was in shock,” Nunez said. “I was like, ‘Are you serious?’ That’s an unbelievable call. I don’t even know how they can ever make that call. We’re learning something different every day. I’ve never seen that call in my life.”

Neither had Twins manager Paul Molitor, who went out to argue the play and soon found himself talking with West at very close range. Tempers never flared, however, so West never ejected Molitor the way he did so many times to his predecessor, Ron Gardenhire.

Afterward, Molitor calmly expressed his disregard for the call and the rule itself.

“(West) pretty much quoted me the rule literally,” Molitor said. “I told him I didn’t think it was the intent of the rule to protect a wild throw. It’s a more common call when there’s a throwing lane issue: the pitcher, the catcher to first base.”

He shook his head. Turns out as a young player he once took the time to sketch out a set of diagrams so then Milwaukee Brewers general manager Harry Dalton could lobby to have the rule changed at the annual GM meetings.

“I tried to get that rule changed 35 years ago when I talked to Harry Dalton in Milwaukee,” Molitor said. “I still don’t understand how a right-handed hitter is supposed to run from where he starts and get in that three-foot throwing lane as he approaches the base. It’s one of the perfect examples where it doesn’t make any sense.

“He was trying to get to the base. He wasn’t quite close enough for Joe to make a call that he came out of the lane. You’re allowed to come out of the lane as you approach the base but you have to exit the lane to do that, which doesn’t make any sense either because then you’re not running a straight line.”

We’re talking about Rule 6.05(k), which reads the batter-runner is out when:

“In running the last half of the distance from home base to first base, while the ball is being fielded to first base, (the batter-runner) runs outside (to the right of) the three-foot line, or inside (to the left of) the foul line, and in the umpire’s judgment in so doing interferes with the fielder

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taking the throw at first base, in which case the ball is dead; except that he may run outside (to the right of) the three foot line or inside (to the left of) the foul line to avoid a fielder attempting to field a batted ball.

“Rule 6.05(k) Comment: The lines marking the three-foot lane are a part of that lane and a batter- runner is required to have both feet within the three-foot lane or on the lines marking the lane. The batter-runner is permitted to exit the three-foot lane by means of a step, stride, reach or slide in the immediate vicinity of first base for the sole purpose of touching first base.”

Said Molitor: “Literally, if you read the rule, (West) has a point. If you interfere with a throw at first base and you’re on the left side of the foul line then you can be called for interference.”

I asked Molitor if he had ever seen that call when it didn’t involve a throw from the home-plate area of the first-base line.

“I tried to recall something that was similar,” he said, “but a throw from the opposite side of the field? I don’t think I’ve ever seen that before.”

–Nunez said he didn’t bring up the call with West during his two subsequent at-bats.

“You can’t even play with Joe West,” Nunez said.

West, however, got off a good line toward Nunez.

“He said, “Hey, Nunez, you’re the DH? You’re old,’ ” Nunez recalled with a laugh.

His reply?

“I said, ‘Thank you.’ “

–Brian Dozier struck out in first three trips against Angels starter Matt Shoemaker and tapped back to the mound on his fourth at-bat against Jose Alvarez.

Did Dozier, after his sixth three-strikeout game and his first since June, look tired to Molitor?

“I don’t know if he’s tired,” Molitor said. “I check in with him fairly regularly. Tonight it seems like their game plan was he wasn’t going to see a fastball in a fastball count, and if he did it was going to be on the outer third of the plate. He got a lot of offspeed when he got to two strikes.”

Typically, the first pitch of the game is almost always a fastball. Shoemaker’s first two pitches of the night to Dozier were sliders.

“That was an indication how they were going to protect against throwing fastballs against him,” Molitor said. “When people make adjustments to how you’re going, you have to retaliate with something different to maybe get them back to where you can do some damage.”

–The Twins have scored just eight runs through their first four games of the second half.

Half of those came with one swing by Trevor Plouffe in Friday’s 5-0 win. Since then, the Twins have managed just three runs in 31 innings and been outscored 23-1 since being one strike away from victory in Saturday’s ninth.

–Since being demoted back to Triple-A Rochester, Alex Meyer has posted a 10.13 ERA in his past nine innings of relief. Frustration is mounting as Meyer, who gave up a game-deciding two-run homer (on his spike curve) in Tuesday’s 5-3 loss, has now allowed runs in seven of his past nine outings. That includes a two-appearance stint in the majors (16.88 ERA).

Asked before Tuesday’s game at Angel Stadium which pitchers had been receiving high marks in organizational reports from Triple-A, Twins general manager Terry Ryan offered five names.

Michael Tonkin, A.J. Achter, Tyler Duffy, Pat Dean and Taylor Rogers.

In that order.

Asked about Jose Berrios, he allowed that the Twins top pitching prospect had done some good things since his promotion at the start of July.

Meyer’s name was never mentioned.

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Twinsights: Miguel Sano returns to Twins lineup Mike Berardino | Pioneer Press | July 22, 2015

ANAHEIM, Calif. — Rookie slugger Miguel Sano returned to the cleanup spot for the Twins on Wednesday after missing two games with a sprained right ankle.

He was cleared by the team’s training staff after a pregame workout.

“I was really happy for that,” Sano said. “It’s good to be back in the lineup. I’m ready to go and ready to play baseball.”

In 13 games with Sano in the lineup this month, the Twins have gone 9-4 and scored 4.69 runs per game. In their past 31 games without him, they have gone 11-20 and scored 3.39 runs.

That represents a scoring increase of 38.3 percent.

Sano, 22, was featured Wednesday in a sports cover story in USA Today.

“Sano Shows Off Major Maturity,” the headline read.

Rob Plummer, the player’s longtime agent, read the story and told him it was good. Sano glanced at it but did not even plan to keep a copy for his scrapbook.

“It’s something normal, something I see before in the Dominican, in Florida, in Chattanooga, New York,” Sano said. “I read newspapers every time there’s something about me, but I don’t feel like, ‘Oh, I’m the man now.’ I don’t care about that. I like more of the game (stories) when I do something good.”

The USA Today story included an anecdote from Sano about telling Joe Mauer and Justin Morneau he would someday hit between them in the Twins lineup.

“This was in 2009, when I signed my first contract with the Twins,” Sano, who was 16 at the time, said Wednesday. “It was in the Metrodome. I saw Mauer and Morneau.”

What was the reaction of the American League’s Most Valuable Player award winners for 2009 and 2006, respectively?

“They said, ‘Oh, you believe it?’ Sano recalled. “I said, ‘I believe.’ They said, ‘OK, we need to see.’ Now I’m here but Morneau is not here.”

Sano is hitting cleanup, right between Mauer and Trevor Plouffe.

Briefly

–For the second straight year the Twins were awarded an extra draft pick in the competitive balance lottery. Wednesday’s annual lottery left them with an extra 2016 pick in Competitive Round B between the second and third rounds. They also will have the No. 74 pick in next year’s draft after failing to sign Kentucky right-hander Kyle Cody with this year’s Round B competitive-balance pick. Competitive-balance picks may be traded immediately but only once in the year leading up to their usage.

–With his 45th appearance this season on Tuesday night, Twins right-hander Blaine Boyer triggered the third of his four $25,000 incentive bonuses. His final bonus comes at 50 appearances, which would push his total season salary to a still-modest $850,000.

–Class A Cedar Rapids shortstop Nick Gordon had a 17-game hitting streak snapped on Sunday. That 0-for-4 also marked the first time he had failed to reach base in a full month. Since June 16, a span of 25 games, he had lifted his batting average by 29 points and his combined on-base/slugging percentage by 75 points.

–Double-A outfielder Adam Brett Walker, meanwhile, has cooled considerably since an 11-homer June. Since hitting .316 with an OPS of 1.129 in June, he has hit just .206 with two homers and a .595 OPS in 68 July at-bats. His troublesome strikeout rate has climbed slightly: 39.8 percent in June to 43.8 percent in July.

–Outfielder Byron Buxton (sprained left thumb) returned to the Twin Cities following the death of his aunt and resumed his work with Twins rehab coordinator Lanning Tucker. “The pain has subsided and the flexibility has increased,” Twins general manager Terry Ryan said. “Hopefully we’ll be able to get to some baseball here soon.”

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Offense still trying to find groove after break

Rhett Bollinger | MLB.com | July 22, 2015

ANAHEIM -- After getting just two hits in Tuesday's 7-0 loss to the Angels, the Twins at least showed some signs of life offensively on Wednesday with nine hits and five walks to get 14 runners on base.

But this time it was a lack of success with runners in scoring position that did them in, as the Twins went 1-for-9 in those situations to strand 12 runners in a 5-2 loss to the Angels at Angel Stadium. It handed the Twins their fourth straight defeat, and they've scored a combined five runs over that span. They were able to knock Angels right-hander C.J. Wilson from the game after five innings, but couldn't score against the bullpen, as the offensive frustrations continued to mount for Minnesota. Brian Dozier had the lone hit with runners in scoring position with a two-run single in the third that gave the Twins a short-lived lead as the Angels retook the lead for good with two runs in the bottom of the third.

"We had baserunners throughout but we had just the one hit with runners in scoring position with Dozier bringing home a couple," Twins manager Paul Molitor said. "The at-bats were a little bit better overall. We had Wilson at 100 pitches through five and got to the bullpen. But we just couldn't find a way back in." It was hard to fault right-hander Mike Pelfrey for the loss, as he didn't have his best stuff and was coming off a bout with food poisoning on Tuesday, but was able to go six innings, allowing four runs (two earned) on nine hits and a walk. Defensive issues popped up for the Twins again, as shortstop Danny Santana made an error trying to flip the ball to second base, which led to two unearned runs scoring.

But Pelfrey, who hasn't picked up a win since June 7 to mark a span of seven straight winless starts, said he's not worried about Minnesota's struggles since coming out of the All-Star break.

"I don't think there's any panic," Pelfrey said. "To start the year off, we had a little struggle, but you're crazy to think that's the only time you're gonna struggle the whole year. There's going to be times like this. The one thing this team has always done is we've always been able to handle adversity and bounce back. We're in a little bit of a rut but we'll get out of it and come back a better team."

With the loss, the Twins dropped to 50-44, but they still are three games up in the American League Wild Card race. But Molitor said it's still way too early to talk about the standings at this point in the season.

"I think someone asked before the game about being three games ahead in the Wild Card and I wasn't even aware of that," Molitor said. "There's too many games. You just have to keep finding ways to keep playing. You can start worrying about those types of things hopefully later on." Twins struggle to plate runs in 4th straight loss

Rhett Bollinger & Alden Gonzalez | MLB.com | July 22, 2015

ANAHEIM -- Johnny Giavotella and Kole Calhoun combined for six hits, C.J. Wilsonescaped trouble over five innings and the Angels continued to roll in Southern California on Wednesday night, beating the Twins, 5-2, to increase their season-best winning streak to seven games. Huston Street finished it off by recording his 300th save, making him the 27th closer to reach the milestone.

The Angels, still two games ahead of the Astros in the American League West, are a season-high 14 games above .500 and have won 17 of their last 20, tying a franchise record for their best 20-game stretch. The Twins have dropped four in a row and are now 7 1/2 back of the Royals in the AL Central.

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Chris Iannetta hit a solo homer in the second -- his fourth in the last eight games -- and Calhoun contributed RBI singles in the third and fifth inning against Twins starter Mike Pelfrey. In the seventh, Albert Pujols came through with an RBI double, giving the Angels a three-run lead and tying him with Bobby Abreu and Charlie Gehringer for 21st place on the all-time doubles list, with 574. MOMENTS THAT MATTERED It starts at the top: Giavotella and Calhoun, the top-of-the-order hitters who bat directly in front of Mike Trout, each went 3-for-4. Giavotella hit a triple to straightaway center field in the fifth and scored three runs. Calhoun drove in two runs and is batting .339 (22-for-65) with six homers and 17 RBIs in July.

"Those guys, they got it going," Angels manager Mike Scioscia said. "We did well with runners in scoring position, we set the table well. We gave a couple outs up, but for the most part good clutch hitting by Johnny and Kole." Dozier drives in two: After singles from Aaron Hicks and Danny Santana, the Twins pulled off a double steal to set the stage for a two-run single from Brian Dozier. Wilson fell behind Dozier, who was able to to line a 3-1 changeup to center. But it was the lone hit for the Twins with runners in scoring position, as they went 1-for-9 in those situations.

"We had baserunners throughout but we had just the one hit with runners in scoring position with Dozier bringing home a couple," Twins manager Paul Molitor said. "The at-bats were a little bit better overall. We had Wilson at 100 pitches through five and got to the bullpen. But we just couldn't find a way back in." Trout-like: Daniel Robertson raced to the warning track in center field and caught a Trevor Plouffe liner just before smashing into the wall to start the fourth inning. Robertson suffered some soreness in his right trapezius muscle on the play, prompting him to be replaced by Trout, who started at designated hitter, three innings later. Robertson is day-to-day and doesn't expect the injury to be serious. Twins leave 'em loaded: Minnesota had a prime scoring opportunity in the fifth with the bases loaded and two outs, but Eddie Rosario grounded out to end the scoring threat. It was another failed chance for the Twins, who left 12 runners on base. QUOTABLE "The struggle tonight was kind of funny, because I had enough stuff to get ahead in the count, but I didn't have enough stuff to finish the guys." -- Wilson on his start, which saw him throw 105 pitches in five innings of two-run ball SOUND SMART WITH YOUR FRIENDS The Twins' two-run third inning -- a product of Dozier's two-run single -- marked the first time the Angels had trailed in a game in 11 days, a span of 57 innings with the All-Star break wedged in the middle. Their deficit lasted about 10 minutes; the Angels reclaimed the lead with two runs in the bottom half. MILESTONE WATCH Street's 25th save of the season gave him 300 for his career. The 31-year-old right-hander became the second-youngest pitcher to reach the milestone, trailing only former Angels closer Francisco Rodriguez. He reached the 300-saves mark with the fifth-fewest save opportunities ever (347). Street was making his first appearance since July 8, when he suffered a groin injury while recording save No. 299 in Colorado. More > REPLAY REVIEWS Taylor Featherston was ruled safe at second base by umpire D.J. Reyburn on a pickoff play by Pelfrey in the sixth inning, but the Twins challenged the play. After a review, Featherston was ruled out and it helped Pelfrey get out of the jam.

The Twins challenged another play in the sixth, and it saved them a run, as Calhoun was ruled safe at home by umpire Kerwin Danley on a sacrifice fly from Featherston with the bases loaded. But after the review, the call was overturned and Calhoun was ruled out to end the inning. INJURY REPORT Angels third baseman David Freese suffered a non-displaced fracture on the tip of his right index finger in the fourth inning, upon getting hit by Pelfrey's fastball. Freese suffered a similar injury to his right middle finger in early May of last year and missed 18 days. He'll hope for a similar timeline.

"I went into the X-ray thinking I broke my thumb," Freese said. "I hate talking timelines with injuries, but if it's about the same, it's positive."

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WHAT'S NEXT Twins: Right-hander Ervin Santana makes his return to Anaheim to start in the series finale on Thursday afternoon at 2:35 p.m. CT. Santana, who played with the Angels from 2005-12, has posted a 3.66 ERA in three starts this year after serving an 80-game suspension for the use of a performance-enhancing drug. Angels: Garrett Richards opposes Santana and looks to build on a shutout against the Red Sox on Saturday. The 27-year-old right-hander has a 2.17 ERA over his last seven starts, giving up just 13 runs (12 earned) in 49 2/3 innings. Richards gave up two runs in 7 1/3 innings in his only start against the Twins last year.

Torii full of pride watching Trout's evolution

Lyle Spencer | MLB.com | July 22, 2015

ANAHEIM -- Torii Hunter watches Mike Trout, like so many others he has mentored over the years, with the unabashed pride of a parent -- or an involved big brother who has done his job well.

"He's my guy," Hunter said of the reigning American League Most Valuable Player and two-time All-Star Game MVP. "Trout sat next to me [in the Angels' clubhouse] and asked me all the questions in the world. It feels good to see him put to good use things he learned when we were teammates here with the Angels.

"I've got to commend his family -- his mom and dad -- for raising him right and teaching him those things that build character. You need to seek wisdom and understanding, and he's doing it here in the real world."

Trout was a 19-year-old in 2011, figuring things out in a backup role. In 2012, Hunter's fifth and final season with the Angels, Trout broke out with a season for the ages. As the legend has grown, Trout emerging as the game's premier player, Hunter has moved moved from Detroit back to his original Minnesota home with a youthful Twins team benefitting from his vast experience and leadership.

Returning this week to Anaheim, Hunter was greeted by familiar chants from fans who admired his play on the field and work off the field as a man of the community.

"They appreciate that I came to play every day, ready to win," Hunter said. "They show me their love, every time I'm here. A piece of my heart's still here. They adopted me here when I left the Twins [in 2008], and I still love them."

Despite having parted as teammates, Trout and Hunter have remained in constant contact over the past three years. They talk about twice a week, Hunter said. "He knows everything out there -- I learned so much from Torii," Trout said of the nine-time Gold Glove Award-winning outfielder who moved from center to right in 2010 to accommodate Peter Bourjos and then Trout. "I still think about things he taught me, like visualizing a play before it happens.

"Before at-bats, we're talking in the outfield about things to look for, what a hitter might do with a certain pitch. That's one of the things I learned from Torii, who was always talking out there. He taught me to know which base I was going to throw to before the pitch.

"I still talk to Torii and shoot him a text now and then. He's always available."

Hunter turned 40 on Saturday when the Twins were in Oakland. He was totally surprised on Sunday night by a group of teammates and ex-teammates hosting a Spiderman theme party at a restaurant close to his former home in Newport Beach, Calif.. His wife led him there; Torii, as always, was the life of the party.

Hunter, by nature, holds nothing back and gives much more than he takes.

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The Matt Carpenter story -- how Torii embraced the Cardinals star when Carpenter was a raw high school kid in Texas and sponsored his attendance in skills-building baseball camps -- is endearing, but it's just the tip of an iceberg. Hunter has forged lasting relationships by extending wisdom and advice to dozens of players in both leagues.

"It's like being a big brother," Hunter said. "They can't receive anything until you build a relationship first. They can't take information if they don't know me. Spring Training is perfect for taking guys to dinner, talking about life. That's where it usually starts.

"That's what we all should do as men. After everything I've been through -- all the failures and mistakes -- I've made adjustments and learned from it. I call it 'heal pain.' I'm able to give it back now. Watching all these guys I've worked with and helped, seeing how they've grown, it's a great feeling." Hunter mentored Denard Span, his successor in center in Minnesota and now a Washington National, and now has under his wing Aaron Hicks, from Long Beach Wilson High School up Interstate 5 from Anaheim and the Urban Youth Baseball Academy in Compton.

"Torii's teaching me how to prepare better," said Hicks, a superb defender in center with developing offensive skills. "He's showing me how to have a game plan. He's a great guy and a great teammate." Byron Buxton, the supremely talented Twins prospect, is another Hunter protégé, finding his way as Trout did before him.

The gold standard now, not just in center field but in the sport, Trout, in a sense, is Torii's masterpiece. The bond endures.

"He's come a long way -- but it was always there, I knew that," Hunter said. "He was blessed with God-given ability and the desire to get better. When he does something most people don't know how to do, I'll think to myself, 'Man, I taught him that.' It's a feeling of joy."

Walker extends Minor League home run lead

Alex M. Spencer | MLB.com | July 22, 2015

Twins Double-A affiliate Chattanooga stole an 8-7 win from Tennessee on Wednesday by scoring seven runs in the seventh inning.

The Lookouts' impressive comeback featured big hits from No. 12 prospect Adam Brett Walker -- who hit his Minor League leading 26th home run -- and No. 14 prospect Max Kepler. Kepler helped start the home team's rally with a bases-loaded double that scored all three runners.

After Kepler came around to score on a Kennys Vargas single, Chattanooga was still down by a run. That's when Walker stepped to the plate and did what he does best.

He connected on a deep shot to left-center to make it 8-7 and the Lookouts held on for a memorable win. Walker finished 2-for-4 with three RBIs and has 82 RBIs on the year. Kepler finished 1-for-4, while Cubs No. 5 prospect (No. 92 overall) Billy McKinney and No. 19 prospect Jacob Hannemann both collected two hits.

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Sano returns to Twins' lineup vs. Angels

Rhett Bollinger | MLB.com | July 22, 2015

ANAHEIM -- Rookie designated hitter Miguel Sano returned to the lineup as the cleanup hitter for the Twins against the Angels on Wednesday after missing two games with a mild right ankle sprain. Sano went 0-for-3 with two walks, but saw a combined 26 pitches in his five plate appearances in Minnesota's 5-2 loss to the Angels.

Sano suffered the injury before Saturday's game in Oakland, as he stepped on a baseball while taking grounders at first base during batting practice. He was able to play on Saturday, going 0-for-3 with a sacrifice fly, but it worsened as the game went along, and he was held out of the lineup on Sunday and Tuesday.

But Sano tested out his ankle on Tuesday and Wednesday, and felt good enough to return as the club's designated hitter.

"It's good to be back in the lineup," Sano said. "I'm ready to go and ready to play baseball. Yesterday, I ran outside and hit in the cage and felt good."

The offense suffered without Sano, as the Twins combined to score just one run over the two games, which were both losses. Sano, 22, has been impressive since being called up on July 2, as he entered Wednesday hitting .326/.434/.558 with two homers, four doubles and nine RBIs in 13 games. Sano, ranked as the No. 8 overall prospect by MLB.com, said it was no fun watching from the bench knowing he wasn't able to contribute.

"When I'm on the bench and I can't play, it doesn't feel good," Sano said. "I don't like to be on the bench. It's different when I'm playing and in the game. But when I'm on the bench, you just watch and can't do nothing. So I like to be in the game and play." Santana faces former team in series finale

David Adler | MLB.com | July 22, 2015

Longtime Angel and current Twins right-hander Ervin Santana will return to the mound in Anaheim for the first time since he was traded in 2012 on Thursday, when the Angels and Twins wrap up their three-game series at Angel Stadium.

Santana pitched against the Angels once, as a member of the Royals in 2013, the season after the trade, but that was in Kansas City. He's never thrown a pitch at Angel Stadium in a road uniform.

His opponent will be Angels righty Garrett Richards, coming off his best start of the year, a two-hit shutout of the Red Sox in which he allowed just three baserunners. It was Richards' first complete game since Aug. 4 of last season, and he'll look to lead the Angels to their eighth straight win. Things to know about this game • The Angels' Mike Trout missed Tuesday's game with a sore left heel, and started at designated hitter on Wednesday as a precaution before taking over in center field in the seventh inning. He will likely start at center field for Thursday's series finale.

• Albert Pujols passed up a scheduled day off Tuesday with Trout out of the lineup and played first base on Wednesday. Manager Mike Scioscia said the team would evaluate whether Pujols needs Thursday off after Wednesday's game, but at the least Pujols will likely DH.

• Twins catcher Kurt Suzuki got a routine off-day on Wednesday, and he should return to the lineup for Thursday's game.

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Twins awarded competitive balance Draft pick

Rhett Bollinger | MLB.com | July 22, 2015

ANAHEIM -- The Twins are set to receive an extra pick in the 2016 Draft, as they were awarded the third pick of the Competitive Balance Round B on Wednesday.

The Competitive Balance Lottery, which was first held in 2013 after being created under the current Collective Bargaining Agreement, gives the teams with the 10 smallest markets or 10 smallest revenue pools chances at one of 12 extra Draft picks. The picks are divided into Rounds A and B, with six falling after the first round and six after the second round of the MLB Draft.

The Twins weren't eligible for Round A, but were eligible for Round B because they received revenue sharing. It marked the second straight year the Twins received a pick in Round B.

The pick is also tradeable, but can only be dealt during the regular season, up until 5 p.m. ET on the first day of the Draft. The pick can be traded only once and cash can't be involved in the transaction.

The Twins also have the No. 74 pick in next year's Draft by virtue of not signing University of Kentucky right-hander Kyle Cody. Coincidentally, Cody was drafted in Round B this year as the No. 73 overall pick.

Wetmore: Nearing the 1-year mark, Twins clear winners of Milone trade

Derek Wetmore | 1500espn.com | July 22, 2015

As we all discuss the merit of the Twins as buyers at the trade deadline for the first time in recent memory, most of the conversation seems to be about which prospects to trade for MLB-ready talent. But at last year's July 31 non-waiver trade deadline, the Twins made a move that's often been overlooked. They've already won the Sam Fuld-for-Tommy Milone trade.

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The A's, intent on taking a shot at the World Series, made a series of aggressive moves last year, trading for Jon Lester, Jeff Samardzija and Jason Hammel. Those three have since found different homes, but the trades at the time had Oakland looking like a team to reckon with in October. It didn't work out, but the grander point for this column is that the opportunistic Twins swooped in and got some value for a spare part.

The influx of starting pitching forced Tommy Milone -- a perfectly serviceable starter -- out of Oakland's rotation. The A's optioned him to the minor leagues, at which point he requested a trade.

"It wasn't like a 'Here, trade me type thing,'" Milone told Comcast Sportsnet Bay Area recently. "Obviously it wasn't something that was supposed to be (public). It's just one of those things that if they felt there wasn't a spot open up here, then I'd like to see if there's an opportunity elsewhere. And I guess it presented itself with Sam Fuld being available." Milone described it as bittersweet, leaving the Oakland team that had traded for him to seek an opportunity elsewhere. But for the Twins it was a good stroke.

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What the Twins gave up: Fuld, 33, appears to be a quintessential extra outfielder. In his career he's hit .232/.312/.331 in more than 1,400 plate appearances. The Twins got him without giving up anything when they claimed him off waivers from the Athletics. He hit a surprisingly strong .274/.370/.354 in 195 plate appearances in Minnesota.

Then, jumping at an opportunity, they flipped him back to the A's for Major League-ready starting pitcher. He was bad offensively for the A's the rest of the year, and this season in a part-time role he's again hitting just .207/.286/.315. Fuld was a great dude and unfortunately battled

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concussion issues after crashing into the center field wall while with the Twins, but from a production standpoint, it's unlikely they'll miss having him on the 25-man roster at any point.

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What they got in return: Milone gets overlooked a lot because he's a lefty whose fastball doesn't reach 90 mph. You might often here those pitchers described, sometimes derisively, as "crafty."

Regardless, Milone has gotten the job done in his MLB career. He didn't pitch well at the end of last season, but the premise of trading a spare outfielder for a starting pitcher under team control still made sense. He had a bad start in his return to Oakland over the weekend, but his body of work has been worth way more than Fuld. In about 560 innings in the big leagues, Milone has a 3.91 ERA and a strikeout-to-walk ratio you can live with, at 2.23 strikeouts per free pass.

Here's the best part for the Twins: despite getting an extra arbitration raise this year because of his service time, Milone will potentially be under team control through the 2018 season. With a wave of arms on the way and only five slots in the rotation, it remains to be seen how the Twins will treat their established starters.

Milone is making $2.775 million and might get more expensive in short order through arbitration raises each offseason. Still, it's fair to say that deciding whether or not to pay an effective starter is a more enviable decision than wondering whether or not to non-tender a fourth or fifth outfielder.

In any case, the point is that the Twins got a cost-effective starting pitcher for more than four seasons in exchange for an extra outfielder because they were opportunistic, dealing a Major League player at the deadline last year.

As the conversation focuses on prospects this time around, don't forget that there are multiple ways for an organization to upgrade at the deadline.

Twins once again awarded tradeable competitive balance draft pick

Derek Wetmore | 1500espn.com | July 22, 2015

The Twins on Wednesday got a bit of good news that had nothing to do with the Major League club. At least not the present version.

The Twins were awarded a competitive balance pick Wednesday for the second consecutive year. The pick, awarded each year as part of a new section of the 2011 Collective Bargaining Agreement, is in 'Round B,' which is immediately after the second round of the first-year player draft.

A lottery to select the picks was held Wednesday, and Major League Baseball announced the following selections:

Comp Round A (between rounds 1 and 2):

Reds A's Rockies Diamondbacks Marlins Pirates

Comp Round B (between rounds 2 and 3):

Padres Indians Twins Brewers Orioles Rays

There were also three teams -- the Cardinals, Royals and Mariners -- that were eligible for a pick but did not receive one this year. Eligibility is determined by market size or revenue. The bottom 10 teams in each category are eligible for the lottery.

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The picks are valuable commodities for teams, in part because they add money to the allotted pool for signing draft picks. According to MLB.com, the average Comp Round B pick last year added roughly $840,000 to each team's bonus pool.

Additionally, these picks can be traded, so they offer teams more flexibility than under the old draft rules.

This pick has value for the Twins. They'll also have the No. 74 overall pick as compensation for failing to sign Kentucky hurler Kyle Cody from this year's draft class.

Should the Twins trade for a catcher as deadline nears?

Derek Wetmore | 1500espn.com | July 22, 2015

It seems to be somewhat of a consensus among fans that for the Twins to contend for a wild-card spot, they'll need to make a few upgrades. Specifically, those upgrades should be in the bullpen, at shortstop and behind the plate.

I think that's the order of need but that much is up for debate. The Twins have been linked to multiple relievers in trade rumors and reports this month, and there's no doubt been other conversations about bullpen arms that haven't been reported. They may have a shortstop on the roster capable of taking over for Danny Santana, who has struggled mightily in his second season in the big leagues.

And while I don't personally see catcher as a need in the same breath as those other two necessary upgrades, it's definitely an intriguing possibility.

The Twins have Kurt Suzuki signed for another season after this one. The contract is relatively inexpensive though, at $6 million per year, so his presence shouldn't prevent any necessary additions. And while I gave Suzuki a 'D+' on my midseason report card, I also wrote that there are valid reasons to expect a bit of a bounceback after the break from Suzuki. Still, if the Twins can get an above-average backstop for the right price, it could make sense. Josmil Pinto has basically had his season washed away by a concussion suffered in spring training, which is an unfortunate bad break for Pinto and for the Twins. Fixing the present situation at catcher could be costly, and one would imagine improving it over the long haul would cost a lot more in terms of prospects. Apparently the Twins are monitoring several catchers on other teams who might become available, accordingto a report from Mike Berardino in the Pioneer Press. What follows is a look at each of the catchers named in that report, in order of appeal, without regard to the cost. The writing in this column mostly concerns offensive production, but defensive considerations haven't been ignored:

Jonathan Lucroy Lucroy has been fantastic. From 2012-14, he was an offensive force at a position that rarely produces good offensive numbers. Lucroy also has a reputation as one of the best catchers behind the plate. This year his numbers have tailed off considerably at age 29, although admittedly I haven't studied the Brewers closely enough to know if that's age-related or merely a down season.

In 2014 the catcher hit .301/.373/.465 in 655 plate appearances and was one of the 10 most valuable position players on the planet, according to both popular versions of WAR, from Fangraphs and from Baseball Reference.

This year he's hitting just .237/.301/.329, which is better than what Suzuki has produced this year but is slightly below what an average catcher has accomplished. Still, if a team thinks this year is merely a down season, Lucroy is a very affordable option under contract for next season at $4 million with a $5.25 million team option in 2017.

The Brewers reportedly turned down a long-term contract extension proposed by the Lucroy camp before the season began. --

Derek Norris The Padres took a big swing this offseason and it hasn't worked out. I wouldn't exactly classify them as out of luck, because they have several assets that could prove intriguing to contending teams. General Manager A.J. Preller took some big risks this offseason, but it's not as if he left himself without options in the event they became sellers at this year's deadline.

Based on their record and their division, it appears they'd be in that boat.

Norris has hit .229/.278/.398 as San Diego's primary catcher, which is a low batting average but some nice power in Petco Park. He'll be due his first of three arbitration raises this winter, which means he could be under team control through the 2018 season.

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He's been a real good offensive catcher the past two seasons in a part-time role for the Oakland A's. Now he's walking less often, which has hurt his overall numbers, but at age 26 he's still an intriguing long-term candidate.

The Padres could use, among other things, a shortstop to rely on long-term, and the Twins have several of those on the Major League roster.

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A.J. Pierzynski The Twins made Pierzynski an offer last offseason, but when he chose the Boston Red Sox instead, Minnesota turned its attention elsewhere and ultimately signed Suzuki to a one-year pact. That decision worked out well for them, as Suzuki was an all-star and Pierzynski was designated for assignment in July. Now the former Twins catcher is back to producing at the plate, this year with the Braves, a team that appears poised to sell off its assets at the trade deadline. Unlike Lucroy, Pierzynski would probably be a half-season rental catcher, because he'll turn 39 years old this offseason and is playing on a one-year contract. He's had remarkable longevity in his career, but it's hard to bank on much in the future from catchers when they get into their mid-to-late-30s.

The Braves catcher is hitting .280/.316/.432, which is a good batting line for a catcher and would be a sizable upgrade from what Suzuki has produced to date this year. He began the year splitting time with Christian Bethancourt, but Pierzynski basically has held the starter's role since the middle of June.

There might still be enough life left in his bat to make a trade a fairly low-risk gamble if the price is right.

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Alex Avila Avila will be a free agent this offseason and has a unique batting line. The seventh-year Tigers catcher is hitting .196/.344/.294, which is a pretty remarkable on-base percentage considering he's not even batting .200. He owes that fine mark to the fact that he's drawing walks in a whopping 18.3 percent of his plate appearances.

James McCann has been the primary catcher for Detroit this season. If they become sellers, it'd be interesting to see if they'd give the Twins a catcher as Minnesota narrows its focus on chasing down the Royals in the A.L. Central, a division the Tigers have won each of the past four seasons.

Angels stretch win streak to 7 games with win against Twin

Associated Press | July 22, 2015

ANAHEIM, Calif. -- Huston Street earned his 300th save, Kole Calhoun had three hits and drove in two runs, and the Los Angeles Angels beat the Minnesota Twins 5-2 on Wednesday night for their seventh straight victory.

Chris Iannetta homered and Albert Pujols had an RBI double for the Angels (54-40), who have won 13 of 15 while streaking to the top of the AL West.

Johnny Giavotella had three hits and scored three runs for the Angels, who briefly trailed for the first time during their streak in the third inning. They reclaimed the lead later in the inning on the way to their 17th win in their last 20 games.

Brian Dozier had an early two-run single for the Twins, who have lost four straight. Street is the 27th pitcher to record 300 career saves, and the 31-year-old is the second-youngest to do it behind former Angels closer Francisco Rodriguez.

Street hadn't earned a save since July 8 due to a combination of the All-Star break and his Angels' overall excellence, but he allowed just one walk in the ninth while picking up his 25th save of the season.

C.J. Wilson (8-7) yielded six hits and two walks while persevering through five innings. After Minnesota left seven runners on base in a frustrating three-inning stretch against Wilson, four Angels relievers finished up.

Mike Pelfrey (5-7) pitched six innings of nine-hit ball for the Twins in his fifth consecutive loss, extending a seven-start winless skid since June 7. David Freese of the Angels left in the fourth after apparently getting hit on the right arm by an inside pitch.

Mike Trout went 0 for 4, starting as the Angels' designated hitter before taking over in center field for the seventh. The AL MVP sat out his first game of the season Tuesday with a sore left heel.

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The Angels have outscored their opponents 44-9 during their seven-game streak.

The Angels trailed for the first time in 56 consecutive innings since July 11 when Dozier drove in two runs in the third inning, but Calhoun's run-scoring single erased the deficit in the bottom half of the third for the Angels.

Iannetta hit his second homer in two games in the second inning, lifting his average above .200 for the first time since April 6 in a dismal contract year.

Wilson escaped a bases-loaded jam with his 105th pitch in the fifth inning, getting Eddie Rosario on a grounder.

TRAINER'S ROOM

Twins: Rookie DH Miguel Sano went 0 for 3 with two walks in his return from a two-game absence with a sprained right ankle.

Angels: RHP Jered Weaver isn't quite ready to return from an injured left hip that has kept him out since June 21. He plans to throw another simulated game or make a minor-league start first.

UP NEXT

Twins: Ervin Santana (1-0, 3.66 ERA) faces his longtime Angels teammates in just his fourth start of the season.

Angels: Garrett Richards (10-6, 3.24 ERA) has ramped up to last season's near-unhittable form, capped by a shutout of Boston in his last start.