FORT MYERS, Fla- On Saturday afternoon the Twins Opening Day starter; Jake Odorizzi pitched on the backfields of the Twins complex against the AAA Pawtucket Red Sox. The first inning for Odorizzi was rough giving up 1 homerun that was hit by Cole Sturgeon and after that, he struck out the side. Of course, Jake did settle down for the rest of the game and threw 10 strikeouts in the 5.2 innings he pitched while only walking one. He gave up 5 hits; one being the homerun, a double, and the rest singles.

After Jake got done pitching I got to ask him a question

Me: How does it feel to be named the Opening Day starter for the Twins?

Jake: Its a cool thing, but the way I look at it always is you make an opening day whatever day you pitch the opening season anyways so, it’s just going to be the first one.

Jake was drafted out of high school in the 2008 Draft by the Milwaukee Brewers and threw a 3.68 ERA and a 9-9 record with in the Brewers minor league system. He then was traded to the Kansas City Royals about 2 years later and did very well with them by being named the 69th overall prospect in baseball and selected to play in the all star futures game. The Royals then traded him to the Tampa Bay Rays where he spent a half a year with the Durham Bulls and then got called up. Jake pitched for 4 seasons with the Rays.

Then on February, 17 the Minnesota Twins traded Jermaine Palacios to the Rays in exchange for Odorizzi. This spring, Jake has been lights out for the Twins with a 0.87 ERA and a 2-0 record. If he keeps that momentum going into the 2018 season, there could possibly be a postseason visit for the Twins in September.