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Blackburn goes the distance for first time

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Nick Blackburn got 17 of his 27 outs on grounds balls and established himself as the Twins toughest pitcher.

By LA VELLE E. NEAL III, Star Tribune

Last update: June 19, 2009 - 7:24 AM

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TWINS 5, PITTSBURGH 1

Up next: vs. Houston • 7:10 tonight • Metrodome • TV: FSN (1500-AM)

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It's good timing that the Twins are moving outdoors to Target Field next season. The grass there can grow back.

Not in the Metrodome, where the FieldTurf can be worn out by the groundball madness that takes place when Nick Blackburn is on his game -- as he was Thursday during the Twins' 5-1 victory over Pittsburgh.

The righthander's sinker dropped faster than the housing market. Pirates hitters hit grounder after grounder. Blackburn teamed with catcher Mike Redmond to roll to his first career complete game -- and the first by a Twins pitcher since Kevin Slowey on July 28, 2008, against the White Sox.

The shutout bid ended with two outs in the ninth when Eric Hinske doubled and scored on Adam LaRoche's single. By then, Blackburn had left a few pitches up that led to fly balls. But 15 of the first 18 outs -- and 17 of 27 overall -- came off groundballs.

"Hinske was talking to Redmond after his hit," Twins infielder Brendan Harris said. "He said, 'That's the first pitch I've gotten to hit all day.' "

Thanks to Target Field, the Metropolitan Sports Facilities Commission won't have to call an emergency budget meeting to discuss what Blackburn's evolution means to the lifespan of the Dome's FieldTurf. The focus can remain on what Blackburn means to the Twins' chances in the AL Central.

"He's at the front of our rotation as far as being consistent and throwing strikes and how much he's improved," Redmond said.

"He's basically been a stabilizer," Twins pitching coach Rick Anderson said.

Blackburn has not lost in his past eight starts. Over his past six, he is 4-0 with a 1.43 ERA. He has pitched at least eight innings in his past two starts. Overall, he's 6-2 with a 3.09 ERA.

Blackburn said his pitches were all over the place during warmups but were down in the strike zone, which meant they sank well. He got his first six outs via the grounder. And, thanks to two double plays turned by the Twins, he faced only 32 batters as he scattered six hits in a game that lasted 2 hours, 6 minutes.

Blackburn and Redmond went at Pittsburgh batters with plenty of sinking fastballs early.

"We waited until the fourth or fifth inning, when we started throwing curveballs," Blackburn said. "We stuck to sinkers and sliders. We didn't have to go to anything else. We didn't throw a single changeup. They weren't getting good swings on my sinker and were beating it into the ground."

Michael Cuddyer and Brian Buscher homered for the Twins, who have won six of their past nine games. But they were 1-for-11 with runners in scoring position, and manager Ron Gardenhire pointed out that they needed Blackburn's near-shutout effort, saying, "He picked us up today."

The announced crowd of 30,670 rose with applause when Blackburn got the final out of the eighth and took the mound for the ninth. Fans were on their feet with two outs in the ninth, but Hinske and LaRoche ended the shutout bid. Blackburn got Andy LaRoche to ground out to second to end the game.

Was he bummed about losing the shutout?

"A little bit," Blackburn said. "There can't be too much. You're still out there, doing your job."

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