Latest news with #BrockStewart
New York Times
27-05-2025
- Sport
- New York Times
There were Twins' highlights, but sloppy play leads to 7-2 loss vs. Tampa Bay
TAMPA, Fla. — One poorly executed pitch made all the difference on Monday night. Along with a Twins offense that struggled to hit again. And a rough defensive inning from Trevor Larnach. The combination of the three events, which were set off when Brock Stewart hung a slider to Jonathan Aranda, led to a 7-2 Twins loss to the Tampa Bay Rays at Steinbrenner Field. Stewart yielded a three-run home run to break a scoreless tie in the sixth inning and Kody Funderburk allowed another round-tripper during a four-run, eighth-inning rally Tampa Bay used to pull away. Advertisement Carlos Correa's two-run home run and another strong showing from Chris Paddack were the only highlights of the Twins' sloppiest game in more than three weeks. 'Just terribly executed,' said Stewart. 'That's usually what happens when you leave it there. … That was the difference in the game.' Stewart's hanging 1-2 sweeper to Aranda certainly marked the turning point in Monday's contest. AranDUHHH — Tampa Bay Rays (@RaysBaseball) May 27, 2025 But it was hardly the only Twins misfire of the evening. Aside from Correa's blast, the Twins' bats were quiet. An offense hoping to get Byron Buxton and Matt Wallner back from injury during this 10-game trip scored three runs or fewer for the fourth time in six games. Batting with runners on the corners and one out in the third, Ryan Jeffers grounded into an inning-ending double play, and ex-Twins pitcher Zack Littell used it as fuel to propel him into the seventh inning. Littell surrendered some hard contact, but each of the Twins' three hardest-hit balls, all of which carried a .550 or better expected batting average, found gloves. Beyond those, the Twins generated minimal energy against Littell, who sat down the side in order in four of his six full innings pitched. 'Not our best offensive effort,' Twins manager Rocco Baldelli said. 'We need to do more than what we did. … Playing a tight ballgame, when you grab that lead, two or three runs at that point, it tilts the game in one direction. Those are important moments. They grabbed the game with a big swing, and the game went from there.' The poor showing left Paddack in a spot where one mistake could swing the game. Still, he was outstanding and efficient once again. Paddack retired nine straight batters between the first and fourth innings. He limited the Rays to three singles and kept the contest scoreless into the sixth. Advertisement Tampa Bay finally chased Paddack in the sixth with a one-out single by Brandon Lowe and a double from Junior Caminero, ahead of Stewart surrendering the homer. Correa appeared to rejuvenate the Twins in the seventh. Trailing by three runs, Correa ripped a 1-0 fastball from Garrett Cleavinger for a two-run homer. Carlos Correa – Minnesota Twins (4) — MLB HR Videos (@MLBHRVideos) May 27, 2025 But the Twins got no closer, and then the bottom fell out. Reliever Kody Funderburk entered with one out in the eighth inning and surrendered two singles. Funderburk then recorded a second out and appeared to escape the jam when José Caballero hit another, albeit deeper, drive to left. Larnach looked as if he had a read on the play, but said his initial jump off the bat left him out of sorts. As he approached the left-field fence, Larnach jumped and whiffed on Caballero's fly ball, which fell in for a crushing two-run double. Danny Jansen followed with a two-run homer off Funderburk to put the contest out of reach. 'On the initial hit, I (took) the wrong jump, and then I had to reroute myself,' Larnach said. 'You're not necessarily carrying to the ball. Instead of being there, you're drifting. And then when I hear the track, I gave myself a few steps and I jumped. I think the combination of those two things didn't put me in a good spot. And I completely own that. But it's baseball, man. It happens. You obviously don't want it to happen. That's on me, that entire inning.' What the Cab? What the Cabby? What the Caballero? — Tampa Bay Rays (@RaysBaseball) May 27, 2025 Between Larnach and Funderburk, the Twins produced an inning unlike most they've recently played. When the team's 13-game winning streak ended in Milwaukee on May 18, Baldelli described the two weeks as one of the best he'd witnessed in more than 20 seasons in professional baseball. While the Twins lost twice more in five games at home in the week since, they didn't stray much from their successful formula. From outstanding starting pitching to stout relief efforts and timely hitting, the Twins continued to play good, tight games. But for the first time since a disastrous eighth inning in Boston on May 2, the Twins collapsed on Monday. 'I don't think we were that far off, but we needed a little more,' Baldelli said. (Photo of Chris Paddack: Nathan Ray Seebeck / Imagn Images)
Associated Press
17-05-2025
- Sport
- Associated Press
Joe Ryan pitches Twins to 12th straight win, 3-0 over Brewers
MILWAUKEE (AP) — Joe Ryan allowed two hits and struck out nine in six innings, and the Minnesota Twins extended their streak of holding opponents scoreless to 24 innings while winning their 12th straight game, 3-0 over the Milwaukee Brewers on Friday night. Ryan (4-2) walked one in a 99-pitch outing for the Twins, who haven't allowed a run since giving up six in the third inning of an 8-6 win at Baltimore on Wednesday. They blanked the Orioles 4-0 on Thursday. Minnesota (25-20) was seven games under .500 when it began its winning streak. The Twins, who also won 12 in a row last season, became the first team to win a dozen straight in back-to-back years since Cleveland in 2016 and '17. Minnesota's longest winning streak is 15 in a row by the 1991 team that went on to win the World Series. Brock Stewart, Griffin Jax and Cole Sands closed it out — with Sands getting his second save — as the Brewers were shut out for the third time in four games. Ty France and Kody Clemens had RBI singles in the first inning against Chad Patrick (2-4). The Twins added a run in the second on a double-play grounder. Patrick allowed three runs in six innings. Key moment Staked to a 3-0 lead, Ryan struck out the side in order in the second and again in the third. Key stat Ryan has allowed two runs on 12 hits with 35 strikeouts and three walks over 25 innings in his last four starts. Up next RHP Pablo López (3-2, 2.77 ERA) starts Saturday for the Twins against Brewers RHP Tobias Myers (1-0, 3.86). ___ AP MLB:
Yahoo
20-04-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Talented Twins Reliever Starts Up Latest Return Attempt
Jesse Johnson-Imagn Images Jesse Johnson-Imagn Images To say that the Minnesota Twins have started the season on the wrong foot would be putting it mildly. 17 games in, they have won just five games. The 5-12 record has them fourth in the American League Central Division, and 5.5 games behind the Detroit Tigers. Advertisement Rocco Baldelli's butt has to be on fire with the amount of heat his chair is producing. He needs his players to show up and get the job done. Lackluster pitching that took place during the rotation's first turn has all but subsided. It's now on the lineup to get things going. Minnesota's bullpen has provided a shuttle service to the last pitcher among the group as they have already designated three relievers for assignment. The hope was that Brock Stewart would be back by now, but at least that process is taking place. Related Headlines Brock Stewart kicks off rehab assignment for Minnesota Twins The MN Twins knew that Brock Stewart was always going to be a bit behind this spring. He was coming off a season-ending shoulder surgery and has struggled to stay healthy. Then he suffered a hamstring injury which removed any possibility of making the Opening Day roster. He recently suffered another setback to the hamstring, but the severity must have been minor because he'll be in the bullpen for Single-A Fort Myers on Tuesday. It has been exactly one month since Stewart last appeared in a game. He threw for the Twins during Grapefruit League action against the Atlanta Braves on March 15 and recorded just two outs. With just three innings across four games, Stewart will need a significant amount of time to ramp back up. Advertisement Last year Stewart posted a 5.17 ERA for Minnesota across 15 2/3 innings. He recorded 20 strikeouts but allowed eight walks and 15 hits. It's the 2023 version that the Twins are certainly dreaming on. In his first year with Minnesota Stewart compiled a 0.65 ERA across 27 2/3 innings in 28 appearances. He posted a 39/11 K/BB and gave up just two runs. When right, Stewart has looked like one of the best relievers in baseball. He wasn't completely healthy either of the past two seasons, and has had an injury-plagued career to that point as well. However, Stewart averaged 97.3 mph on his fastball in 2023 and returned with a 97.0 mph average in 2024. The fact that the injuries haven't resulted in diminished velocity for the Twins reliever is part of the reason why it is so imperative he returns. Stewart provides another high-leverage arm to pair with Griffin Jax and Jhoan Duran at the back end of Rocco Baldelli's bullpen. Advertisement Related: Minnesota Twins Sign Another Depth Reliever to Minor League Deal It should be expected that Stewart makes a couple of appearances with the Mighty Mussels, then transfers his rehab to Triple-A St. Paul next week. He's not a candidate to go multiple innings, and likely not back-to-back days at any point this season. Minnesota Twins bullpen would love a boost Projection systems that considered the MN Twins bullpen to be among the best in baseball definitely included Stewart amongst that group. While his availability will always be a question, his talent has never been much of one. Despite the Twins record and a couple of blowups from the bullpen, the relief corps currently owns the 10th best ERA in baseball (3.38). Their 2.95 walks per nine innings also rank amongst the top ten in the sport (6th). To do that while having a revolving door of mop-up arms coming in is impressive. Advertisement Related: MN Twins Manager Rocco Baldelli Sitting on Top of Hot Seat List A return of Stewart would quickly remove the need for arms like Randy Dobnak, Darren McCaughan, Scott Blewett, or Kody Funderburk to be forced into action. He also allows for all of the middle relief types to take a step back from forced leverage spots. It's going to be an uphill battle for Minnesota to stop taking on water in their sinking ship, but more high-level talent returning isn't going to hurt them. Related Headlines
NBC Sports
24-03-2025
- Sport
- NBC Sports
Twins infielder Brooks Lee, right-handed pitcher Brock Stewart to begin season on injured list
FORT MYERS, Fla. (AP) — Minnesota Twins infielder Brooks Lee and right-handed pitcher Brock Stewart will begin the season on the injured list. The moves were announced Sunday by the club. Lee, the No. 8 overall pick by Minnesota in the 2022 draft out of Cal Poly, had been dealing with lower back tightness during spring training and was sidelined for the first two months of the 2024 season with a herniated disk in his back. Once promoted from Triple-A last summer, the rookie batted .221 with three home runs and 27 RBIs in 50 games for the Twins. Stewart sustained a left hamstring injury but also underwent season-ending arthroscopic surgery on his pitching shoulder last August. The Twins already were without third baseman Royce Lewis for opening day because of a strained left hamstring. Minnesota won the AL Central in 2023 then finished in fourth last season.
Washington Post
24-03-2025
- Sport
- Washington Post
Twins infielder Brooks Lee, right-handed pitcher Brock Stewart to begin season on injured list
FORT MYERS, Fla. — Minnesota Twins infielder Brooks Lee and right-handed pitcher Brock Stewart will begin the season on the injured list. The moves were announced Sunday by the club. Lee, the No. 8 overall pick by Minnesota in the 2022 draft out of Cal Poly, had been dealing with lower back tightness during spring training and was sidelined for the first two months of the 2024 season with a herniated disk in his back. Once promoted from Triple-A last summer, the rookie batted .221 with three home runs and 27 RBIs in 50 games for the Twins. Stewart sustained a left hamstring injury but also underwent season-ending arthroscopic surgery on his pitching shoulder last August. The Twins already were without third baseman Royce Lewis for opening day because of a strained left hamstring. Minnesota won the AL Central in 2023 then finished in fourth last season. ___ AP MLB:
