News

Apr 14, 2023

Twins place Jorge Polanco lands on injured list with hamstring strain

ANAHEIM, Calif. — The Twins hadn’t received the results of Jorge Polanco’s

ANAHEIM, Calif. — The Twins hadn't received the results of Jorge Polanco's magnetic resonance imaging by Saturday afternoon, but they knew even without the test results that the second baseman would need a stint on the injured list.

The Twins believe Polanco has a mild left hamstring strain, which he suffered running the bases on Wednesday against the Dodgers in Los Angeles, and placed him on the 10-day injured list on Saturday retroactive to May 18.

"If Polo was able to come back in the next few days and we felt confident he would be back and able to play without risk of any real issue, we would have just left him active," manager Rocco Baldelli said. "We would have waited it out for a couple days and then we would have brought him back."

They’re well-equipped to handle his absence, though, calling up Edouard Julien, one of the organization's top prospects, to fill his spot on the roster. Julien, a lefty who was not in the starting lineup against lefty Patrick Sandoval, was briefly up in April before Polanco returned from the injured list — the veteran started the year on the IL with a knee injury.

Baldelli said he liked what he saw from Julien during his brief trip in the majors and said he thought the rookie "handled everything very well." Julien is known for his on-base ability, and Baldelli said they’ve articulated to him the defensive areas of improvement they are looking for and he's responded well.

"I wouldn't say playing here changed some process in my head or just changed a routine that I had," Julien said. "I just kept the same thing. Every day, I just tried to strive to be better. One percent better every day."

When Pablo López takes the mound Sunday afternoon, the Twins starter is likely to face two of the game's brightest stars — Mike Trout and Shohei Ohtani — in the first inning. It's a tall task for any pitcher, and an even bigger test for a starter who in particular has struggled in the first inning this season.

"It needs to be better than that," he said after his last start, in which he allowed three first-inning runs to the Dodgers. "Flat out. I need to be better in that first inning setting up the tone and making sure to let the offense and bullpen know that I’m going to set the right tone."

López has a 9.00 earned-run average in the first inning, giving up nine runs in that frame this season. He's allowed 15 first-inning hits, including three home runs, and batters are hitting .395 against him. Opponents have a 1.152 OPS against him in the first inning.

It's his worst ERA of any inning and stands in stark contrast to the second inning, for example, where López has a 2.00 ERA and opponents are hitting just .161 against him.

"Obviously I’ve tried searching for things, tried searching for the right reason behind it," he said. "I haven't been able to find it, but I think it's about time to turn the cover when it comes to the first inning. The first inning is very important because it's an inning that you use to set the tone of the game, and it's my responsibility to try and set a good tone and I think it's time for me to really put a stop to that."

Jorge Alcala's MRI results revealed a radial stress fracture in his right forearm. Head athletic trainer Nick Paparesta said it was a fairly rare injury for a pitcher and there's not a lot of case history to look at. The reliever will be shut down until he no longer is exhibiting symptoms. For now, the Twins plan to re-evaluate him in 10-14 days, after which they might have a better sense of his return timeline.

Starter Kenta Maeda, who is on the injured list with a triceps strain, threw a 20-25-pitch bullpen of fastballs and changeups on Saturday in Anaheim. That went well, and the next step is to get him stretched out a little further Tuesday in another bullpen during which he will throw all his pitches.

Back in Minnesota, Caleb Thielbar (oblique) has been playing catch and Paparesta said they would get him throwing off the mound next week, and Max Kepler (hamstring) started running on the ground at around 70 percent. He reported feeling good with no issues or discomfort.

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