Report From The Fort: Gibson Starts, Vogelsong Departs

Gibson Steady

Twins starting pitcher Kyle Gibson was efficient, which is sometimes code for “not overpowering”, but I mean it in a good way. He was not overpowering, but he mostly controlled the at-bats frequently dictating the counts to the batters. He faced a little adversity in the first inning when, with no outs and a runner on first base, Max Kepler had a pair of gaffes on a single play that added a runner to second base. But a strikeout helped Gibson get out of that jam and coast through the next two innings on just 18 pitches.

The middle of the Phillies order made him work a bit more in the fourth inning, but a double play brought that inning to a merciful end. He pretty clearly tired in the fifth, but Jorge Polanco ranging for a ground ball deep into the hole and making a strong enough throw to first base got him through his planned innings and pitches.

Not bad for a guy who is trying to rework his delivery to better improve his health. “It’s getting there,” he said after the game. “I’m still doing stuff in between starts and and before I play catch to try and keep ingraining it in my mind a little bit, but it’s getting there.”

A five inning outing in spring training with includes two strikeouts is hardly the stuff of which dreams are made, but it helps quell some of the nightmares of last season. And with three other members of the rotation still not back from the WBC, it demonstrates a little stability in an evolving situation.

Polanco’s Throw

The play by Jorge Polanco was nice to see. Unlike Buxton’s catch yesterday, this was not a “I can’t believe my eyes” moment. Rather, it was a play that stretches an average shortstop, and potentially stretches a shortstop with Polanco’s arm too far. It didn’t, and just barely. He ranged far to his right, gloved the ball in the hole and relied on a quick release and a one-hop catch by Joe Mauer to beat the runner to the bag.

It showed Polanco’s strengths - his range and quickness - as well as his biggest weakness: his average arm strength. It also likely showed us the edge of what we can expect, but that border looked far enough, provided the consistency is there.

Kepler’s Defense

On the other hand, that first inning misplay by Max Kepler was reminiscent of some of the baffling miscues we saw in Target Field last year. Kepler came up short on a shallow fly ball, but the runner on first base didn’t recognize that there was going to be an issue, so a force out at second base was still available. But Kepler panicked and rushed a bad throw to second base that pulled Polanco off the bag, so everyone was safe.

Yesterday Molitor talked a little about how he has been treating the infield as a unit so they get used to each other defensively. It’s worth noting that it appears he has been doing the same with Byron Buxton and Kepler. Since March 4th, they’ve started 10 games together and in the other seven games, neither has played without the other. While it’s certainly less important for outfielders to work together defensively than infielders, it appears the Twins are trying to proactively smooth over some of last year’s gaffes.

Roster Moves

After a discussion with the Twins this morning, Ryan Vogelsong asked for his release and the Twins are going to grant it. “I can’t say enough about what he brought to the camp,” said Twins Manager Paul Molitor. “I’ve had multiple players come in here and tell me that being around him and [Matt] Belisle for some of those people made their camp. He did a lot of good things here. We felt that right now we had a few people in front of him in terms of that rotation situation.”

Vogelsong had an opt-out in his contract which he could exercise later in camp, but with players returning from the WBC, the Twins weren’t going to be able to provide him any more opportunities to start this spring. Leaving the team now, everyone hopes, gives him a better chance to catch on with a another club as a pitcher.

The Twins also sent Raul Fernandez and Jake Reed down to the minor league camp.

Tomorrow’s Game

If you’re a Twins fan in West Palm Beach and excited to see your team tomorrow, you might want to adjust expectations a bit. The Twins are in the midst of a stretch that includes three of their longest road trips of the spring crammed into four days. As such, a lot of the starting position players are staying behind to practice in Fort Myers, though Phil Hughes will be making the three-hour bus trip to get in his scheduled start.