twins/mlb
Phil Miller covered three seasons of Twins baseball, but that was at a different ballpark for a different newspaper. Now Miller returns to the baseball beat after joining the Star Tribune as the Gopher football writer in 2010, and he won't miss the dingy dome for a minute. In addition to the Twins and Gophers, Miller covered the Utah Jazz and the NBA for six years at The Salt Lake Tribune.
Twins have experience bouncing back from a huge blown lead
Posted by: Phil Miller under Twins game coverage Updated: July 3, 2011 - 6:47 AM
Wow, what a crushing loss for the Twins, and you have to wonder about potential carryover effects after a 7-0 lead turns into an 8-7 loss.
When they blew a 5-0 lead in a 6-5 loss to the Angels on May 27, they came back the next night and almost saw history. Making a spot start, Anthony Swarzak didn't give up a hit until Peter Bourjos doubled with one out in the eighth, and the Twins won that game 1-0.
But tonight was even more gut-wrenching. It was their biggest blown lead in a loss since July 20, 2009, when they led 12-2 after 2½ innings in Oakland, but Nick Blackburn struggled to go five innings before the Twins bullpen collapsed in a 14-13 loss to the Athletics. (Corrected)
The Twins came back the next day to win 3-2 in 10 innings – getting a strong start from Swarzak.
"We still have a chance to win a series tomorrow," Manager Ron Gardenhire said. "Day game tomorrow, so we have to rebound quickly. That’s all you can do. You have to turn the page because it’s frustrating and disappointing."
Matt Capps, who is now 13-for-19 in save opportunities, can't wait to get another chance.
"I’m going to be itching for the ball tomorrow, I know that," Capps said. "After days like this, it stinks. You don’t want to leave this taste in everybody’s mouth, especially your own. I certainly know I’m better than that."
It'll be Blackburn vs. Zack Greinke in the series finale with first pitch at 1:10 p.m. Check back here in the morning for the starting lineups and the announcement on which Twin gets selected for the All-Star Game.
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