BALTIMORE -- Some unexpected yet not wholly surprising news for the Twins prior to their series finale vs. the Orioles on Thursday: Lefty reliever Kody Funderburk, recalled Wednesday as the 27th man for Minnesota’s doubleheader, was kept on the 26-man roster and righty starter Simeon Woods Richardson was optioned to Triple-A St. Paul.
The Twins felt the move was necessary to give their bullpen a bit of a boost. After each of their relievers contributed in Wednesday’s doubleheader, with the ‘pen throwing nine combined scoreless innings, the boost provided by Funderburk is indelible.
“It's extremely tough, because Sim’s thrown some big innings and big games for us,” acting manager Jayce Tingler said pregame. "I think more of, it's a product of playing 18 innings yesterday, using everybody in our bullpen."
Minnesota also hopes to see Woods Richardson get at least a start or two in at Triple-A as a sort of reset after his tough start to the season.
“It gives Sim a chance to kind of reset,” Tingler said, “maybe get an outing, or a couple outings there at Triple-A, get a reset. And equally important, [adding Funderburk] gives us a chance for these next three games, one here -- I should say four games -- and then Milwaukee before we get back home.”
Woods Richardson’s 4.86 ERA as a starter (seven starts) is the worst among the Twins’ starters (minimum five starts) and he has yet to complete more than 5 2/3 innings this season, with four of his seven starts ending before the final out of the fifth inning.
In his past three starts, Woods Richardson has compiled a 6.75 ERA, allowing 10 runs over 13 1/3 frames, all without completing that elusive fifth inning. There have been bright spots, though, like his scoreless fourth inning in Game 2 on Wednesday after giving up six runs in a rough third frame. That extra inning of work helped alleviate the stress on the bullpen.
“I don't think people realize how big that was,” Tingler said. “Not only did he go back out, [but] he put up a zero, and he also put us in the position -- we seriously debated sending him back out for one more. And then when Willi [Castro] hit the home run to cut it within one run, that's when we went to [Jorge] Alcala.
“So if Sim doesn't do that, I feel very confident we're running short on pitching. And so, you know, for him to continue to compete, continue to make pitches, that was critical yesterday.”
Funderburk spent a few games up in the Majors in mid-April when Minnesota needed an extra arm in the ‘pen while Brock Stewart was finishing his rehab assignment and prepping to come off the IL. It also gives the Twins a second left-hander in their relief corps, which is always a good thing in the Majors.
On Wednesday, Funderburk delivered 1 1/3 scoreless frames in Game 2, giving the offense a chance to rally for the comeback win. In those three big league appearances this year, Funderburk has posted a 3.38 ERA over 5 1/3 innings.
Per MLB rules, Woods Richardson will need to spend at least 15 days in the Minors before he can be recalled, unless there is an injury. This means the Twins will likely need to find a spot starter -- or an opener -- for Sunday’s rivalry weekend finale in Milwaukee, which would have been Woods Richardson’s next turn.