SPRING TRAINING GAME NO. 21 - Twins vs Pirates
Storylines to watch
+ Hicks v Benson. It appeared that Aaron Hicks had the starting spring training job wrapped up after this three-homer game against Philadelphia. Hicks remains the favorite to open the season with the major league team, but Joe Benson is starting to show his stuff, lifting his batting average in recent games and playing well in the field.
+ Brian Dozier. He's putting together a decent spring. His .213 batting average isn't sparkling but, at times, his defense has been sparking. And he's forming a good partnership with shortstop Pedro Florimon.
+ Dozier said that both Florimon and Eduardo Escobar have worked on their English since the end of last season, but he knows a little Spanish himself and uses it with his Latin American teammates on the field.
+ Cole De Vries can continue his excellent spring with another strong outing today. He's making it hard for the team to not take him north. Liam Hendriks, on the other hand, is not helping his case.
NEWS
Outfielder Oswaldo Arcia was optioned to Class AAA Rochester this morning, bringing the Twins camp roster down to 49 players. Arcia batted .188 in five games, but his spring was delayed until last week because of a intercostal strain on his left side. Still, the young man's swing is a thing of beauty, and it shouldn't take long for him to get locked in at Rochester. The only concern from the club was that he reported to camp 10-15 pounds heavy this spring.
