FORT MYERS, Fla. — Edouard Julien homered twice and Willi Castro once, and the Twins held on for a 10-7 Grapefruit League victory over the Braves on Tuesday at Hammond Stadium.
Julien, one of the Twins' top infield prospects who departs next week to play for Team Canada in the World Baseball Classic, drove Braves starter Ian Anderson's second pitch into the seats in right-center field, his first home run of the spring. Two innings later, he burned reliever Kyle Wilcox, smacking an 0-1 fastball to the concession stand behind the right-field seats, capping a five-run inning for the Twins.
Castro, a former Tiger hoping to earn a job with the Twins or Class AAA St. Paul, followed two first-inning walks by Anderson with a three-run blast onto the grass berm in left field.
Tyler Mahle's first start of the spring was a success, though he allowed a pair of singles before finishing off his one-inning stint without a run. Jovani Moran pitched an inning as well, recording all three outs on strikeouts. The Braves rallied, however, with three runs off Aaron Sanchez and two more off Jose De Leon, but never overcame the Twins' home-run onslaught.
- Jose Miranda served as designated hitter on Tuesday, while he rests his sore right shoulder. "It was holding him back from cutting loose [when throwing], so we wanted to pull him back a little bit," Twins manager Rocco Baldelli said.
- Carlos Correa will make his 2023 spring debut on Wednesday when the Twins host Philadelphia at Hammond Stadium.
