CLEVELAND – If the season is on the line Sunday against the Royals, the Twins' most reliable starter wants the ball.
Righthander Kyle Gibson has raised his hand for the assignment, and made a case to be the choice Wednesday by pitching six shutout innings in Game 1 of the doubleheader. He gave up four hits, walked two and tied a career high with nine strikeouts. His only problem was that rookie Francisco Lindor was 3-for-3 against him and stole two bases.
Gibson threw 104 pitches, 62 of them strikes. As a sinkerballer, he is the type of pitcher who can come back on short rest not experience a large drop-off. And Twins manager Paul Molitor is leaning toward Gibson if the game is meaningful.
"We have mentioned it and I'm open to it,'' said Gibson, who is 11-11 with a 3.84 ERA and team-high 194 ⅔ innings pitched. "All he has to do is tell me I'm starting on Sunday and I'll be ready.''
Gibson said he pitched on short rest while at the University of Missouri and several times while in high school. He probably would eschew his normal between-starts bullpen session for a shorter one Saturday, then take the ball Sunday.
"I'll be honest with you,'' Gibson said. "With how I'm feeling, I'm pretty excited about it.''
Milone to start Saturday
After a solid emergency outing, lefthander Tommy Milone is getting another chance.
The Twins named Milone the starter for Saturday's game against Kansas City at Target Field. The assignment comes after Milone, filling in for an ill Phil Hughes on Monday, gave up two runs over 5 ⅔ innings in a 4-2 Twins victory.