BALTIMORE — Gunnar Henderson grounded the third pitch of the game just past a diving Edouard Julien into the outfield. The knock was struck at 108.0 miles per hour off the bat, an early sign of what was to come against Chris Paddack.
Paddack was bashed around by the Orioles on Tuesday night, giving up all kinds of hard contact in a start that was one of his worst ever. The Twins starter allowed 10 balls hit at 100 mph or higher and gave up nine runs, tying a career worst, in the Twins’ 11-3 loss to the Orioles.
Things unraveled early for Paddack and the Twins, beginning in the second inning when the starter gave up three runs, all with a pair of outs. Two came on a Henderson home run. Four more runners touched home in the third inning — two on another two-run blast — and the Orioles tacked on another run in the fourth and one more in the sixth, the last an inherited runner after Paddack had departed.
The nine-run outburst bloated Paddack’s earned-run average to 8.36 on the season — he has now given up 13 earned runs in 14 innings pitched. It’s certainly not the start that Paddack or the Twins were looking for from the 28-year-old, who returned to the rotation this year after spending much of last rehabbing from his second Tommy John surgery.
His day came after the prolific Orioles offense hung six runs on Louie Varland a day earlier in a game that had a more or less similar feel.
The Twins’ offense was led in part by Ryan Jeffers, who had another two hits on the day. Jeffers scored one of the Twins’ runs, coming home to score on an Alex Kirilloff single. Byron Buxton drove in Kirilloff for the team’s first run of the day with a triple in the fourth inning.
On an otherwise unremarkable night for the Twins, 24-year-old catcher Jair Camargo pinch hit in the ninth inning, drawing a walk in his first major league plate appearance in front of a crowd that included enthusiastic family members in town from his native Colombia. He would later come around to score on a Jose Miranda single.
Baltimore Orioles’ Gunnar Henderson (2) and James McCann (27) drink from the team’s Homer Hydration Station after scoring on Henderson’s home run against the Minnesota Twins during the second inning of a baseball game Tuesday, April 16, 2024, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Jess Rapfogel)
Minnesota Twins starting pitcher Chris Paddack throws to a Baltimore Orioles batter during the first inning of a baseball game Tuesday, April 16, 2024, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Jess Rapfogel)
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