Bench coach Derek Shelton was looking for someone willing to pitch the eighth inning on Monday. Logan Morrison was interested. But then Mitch Garver mentioned to Shelton that he pitched until he reached college.
So Garver was sent out for the eight and pitched and pitched a scoreless frame, giving up a single to Francisco Lindor.
"I pitched ever since I started playing the game basically and all the way through high school," he said. "Stopped in college. No college appearances that I remember.
Garver hit 68 to 81 on the gun, which was surprising because he probably throws 85-90 when he's trying to throw basestealers out. He did get Lindor to swing and miss at one of his offerings.
"I was just trying to go out there and find some part of the barrel my fielders could catch," he said.
These interviews can be tricky, because they come after a blowout loss. But Garver, Twins manager Paul Molitor and Kyle Gibson were fine talking about it. And position players pitching is no longer a rarity. It's become a strategical tool to save a reliever from usage.
"I was sitting in here watching," Gibson said. "Good form. Good mechanics. Executed a lot of pitches down in the zone. I don't know that he ever left the rubber. I think that's a balk most of the time. I'm sure he had fun out of there and tried to make light of it as much you can. It's a tough situation to be in. You want to enjoy yourself but every time you look at the scoreboard there's not much to smile at."
I asked Garver if he planned to call Chris Gimenez - the king of pitching position players - and tell him of his night.
