Festa rejoins Twins on short notice, to start Thursday
This browser does not support the video element.
WEST SACRAMENTO -- David Festa woke up to 45 missed calls on Wednesday morning.
Well, more accurately, he woke up to the sound of Twins farm director Drew MacPhail knocking on his door.
Festa had a flight to catch in three hours, even if he didn’t realize it yet. By late afternoon, the second-year right-hander was in California, and a day later, Festa will start Thursday's finale against the A's after the club placed Pablo López on the 15-day injured list due to a muscle strain in his right shoulder.
This browser does not support the video element.
First, though, Festa had to get from Minnesota to California.
“I woke up to 45 missed calls,” Festa said. “I didn't even wake up to a phone call, I woke up to our head of player development banging on my apartment door. I was a little confused. It was about 8 a.m. and he told me the news and that I had a flight at 11. I went back and checked my phone after I heard the knocking and saw a few people were trying to get in touch with me. I was supposed to start [Wednesday for Triple-A St. Paul] so I wasn't really on my phone and the timing was a little funny.”
With the Twins playing on the West Coast, it was almost midnight in Minnesota when López was removed from Tuesday night’s game after five innings. So Festa missed the news until the next morning.
This browser does not support the video element.
By starting Festa Thursday rather than waiting until López’s originally scheduled turn on Sunday in Minneapolis, the Twins would give most of their starters an extra day of rest.
Festa pitched effectively -- though not always efficiently – in a two-week stretch with the Twins in April when López spent two weeks on the IL with a strained right hamstring. Since he was sent back to Triple-A, he’s averaged fewer than 13 pitches per inning, as he’s relied more on a developing sinker.
He missed two starts in mid-May due to some inflammation near his biceps, but has turned in two strong starts since returning from that.
“It wasn't something I wanted to do, but I knew it was the smarter way to go about it just so it didn't become a longer issue,” he said. “The training staff did a great job down there of getting me back as soon as possible. My last two outings I've felt good.”