HOUSTON — Jhoan Duran had faced 39 batters in May, entering the final day of the month, after pitching to 41 in April (and one game in March). But the months were notably different in one important way: The Twins' best reliever appeared in 12 games in the first month, and just eight in May.
That's not because he was any less effective. Matter of fact, the 25-year-old righthander recorded 32 outs in each month. But Duran, who never appeared in any inning but the ninth in April, had three two-inning appearances in the month just concluded.
Which, reading between the lines a little bit, makes manager Rocco Baldelli a little nervous.
"We're not going to leave him out there to throw an exorbitant amount of pitches. So he has to be efficient enough, and be feeling good and rested enough, and in the right game situation," Baldelli said. "When that plays out, we'll be open to it. But the vast majority of the time, I would prefer not to."
He knows just how valuable that 103-mph rocket launcher is, in other words. It's not worth risking an injury unless a victory is at stake.
That's what happened on Monday, when Duran pitched the bottom of the ninth in a tie game. After sending the game to extra innings, Baldelli and pitching coach Pete Maki decided that if the Twins scored in the 10th — and they did, on Ryan Jeffers' two-run homer — Duran would be asked to close out the win.
"One of the great things about Duran, on top of his performance, [is] he's really good about just simplifying what he has to do. He's not going to get in his own head, worrying about all kinds of things," Baldelli said. "If we check with him and he's good, he says 'I'm good.' And then we say, 'OK, we'll send you back out there.' And he goes, 'OK.' "
Still, it was a close call. Duran needed 17 pitches to get through the ninth, and the Twins haven't let him throw 30 in one game since last July.