WEST SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Jhoan Duran did something no Twins pitcher had done since 2009, and the closer didn’t even realize it until his wife, Aida, let him know.
Duran was named the American League Reliever of the Month for May on Tuesday, joining Joe Nathan as the only relievers in Twins history to win the award. Nathan did it three times, the last coming in June 2009.
“I’ve never had anything like that,” Duran said. “It’s good for the team, too. I know it’s a long time.”
Duran earned the recognition after a month in which he went 4-1 with a 0.60 earned-run average. He gave up one run in 15 innings and converted seven of the eight save opportunities he was given. The right-hander struck out 20 in his 15 appearances and walked five.
But was it the best month of his career or just the first time he’d been honored? That’s up for debate.
“It’s the first time I’ve won that, so maybe it’s the best month I’ve (ever) had,” he said. “I don’t know. I don’t see my numbers.”If he did, he would recognize just how good they are.
The impressive month was a continuation of a dominant season for Duran who, entering Tuesday night’s play, had a 0.99 ERA across 27 1/3 innings.
“He has been awesome. He has been pitching great. He has been doing his job just at a very high level all year long,” manager Rocco Baldelli said. “When you can get a reliever in this league to get recognized for something, cause they get almost no recognition, they’re a huge part of any winning environment. … He never really is looking for recognition, but it’s great that he’s getting it.”
Buxton ‘s back
Byron Buxton was putting together a pretty good month of May himself before he collided with teammate Carlos Correa in Baltimore on May 15. At the point of his concussion, Buxton was hitting .313 with a 1.018 OPS and four home runs and 10 runs batted in 13 over games in May.
He ended up missing two weeks, but now that he’s back and hitting well, he’s willing to admit that he was a little nervous that it might take some time to get his feel back at the plate.
The sample size is small, but it doesn’t seem to have.
In his first three games since returning from the injured list, Buxton has six hits. Monday, he drove in five runs in the Twins’ win over the Athletics.
“Might not show it, but just having that thought of (it) taking a couple games to get your swing back,” Buxton said. “That’s kind of the thought when you miss 11 games, 12 games. Then you start getting the creeps (of) do I need to go on a rehab assignment, see pitching? And so it was more about trusting who I am and knowing I did everything I was supposed to do to prepare myself for returning.”
Briefly
Zebby Matthews will take the ball on Wednesday. Matthews is coming off the longest start of his career in which he threw seven innings, the last six of which were dominant after giving up four runs in the first inning.
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