The Twins have several quality options in the bullpen, but they lack a well-defined closer. The beauty of that flexibility was on display Sunday, when the Twins used four of their best relievers to get the final seven outs of a 6-4 win over Detroit.
Trevor May recorded the final out of the seventh inning, but he quickly found trouble in the eighth. Instead of being locked into sink-or-swim mode with May, the Twins turned to Taylor Rogers to minimize the damage.
Then in the ninth, with Blake Parker struggling, Trevor Hildenberger was summoned to get the final two outs with the bases loaded. He delivered two strikeouts.
If Minnesota had a traditional closer, Parker might have been left to get out of his own jam — even when he was clearly struggling.
The setup isn't perfect, and it will stress the Twins as off days become more scarce. But flexibility appears to be a good thing.
Read Michael Rand's blog at startribune.com/randball. michael.rand@startribune.com.
