Twins General Manager Terry Ryan, speaking before the Twins played host to Boston on Thursday, said hadn't seen Nick Burdi pitch much since they drafted him in the second round last June.
"If he gets in the game I'll be anxious to see how he responds," Ryan said of Burdi, who has hit 100 miles per hour with his fastball.
Burdi faced two batters Thursday. His first pitch hit 96 mph but was hit an estimated 425 feet to left field by Mike Napoli for a two-run homer.
That Napoli blast was part of a seven-run six inning for the Red Sox, who cruised to an 8-5 victory at Hammond Stadium. Righthander J.R. Graham hit 95 on the gun several times but rarely threw a breaking ball and was charged with six runs in one-third of an inning.
Twins righthander Ervin Santana gave up one hit over five shutout innings. He fell behind several batters and battled into deep counts. That changed in the fourth. He fell behind 2-0 to Mookie Betts, then had a conversation with catcher Kurt Suzuki. Santana became a strike-throwing machine after that, getting his last six outs much easier than his first nine.
"It was pretty dominant, I thought, how he handled those guys tonight," Twins manager Paul Molitor said.
La VELLE E. NEAL III
