KANSAS CITY -- A challenging start to the season got tougher for the Twins on Tuesday night when starter Pablo López had to be removed in the fifth inning due to right hamstring tightness.
It made a painful 2-1 loss to the Royals even tougher to take, though both L¨®pez and manager Rocco Baldelli expressed hope that the down time for L¨®pez might be minimal.
¡°It's a mild right hamstring strain,¡± Baldelli said. ¡°He's going to get an MRI [Wednesday] to get it checked out, because that's what we always do in these circumstances. As of now, when I say mild, we think it's very mild. We're going to keep him on course. We're not going to have any sort of change of plans of any kind right now. We're just going to assess it and see what tomorrow shows us, and then we'll know.¡±
After L¨®pez walked Jonathan India with two outs, pitching coach Pete Maki came out to confer with him regarding the next hitter, superstar Bobby Witt Jr. Maki returned to the dugout, but shortstop Carlos Correa had noticed L¨®pez reaching for the back of his leg and called for Baldelli and head athletic trainer Nick Paparesta.
The decision was quickly made to remove L¨®pez from the game.
¡°He picked up on the fact I was touching it or messing around with it,¡± L¨®pez said. ¡°He¡¯s like, ¡®Are you all right?¡¯ and I¡¯m like, ¡®Well, no.¡¯ In my inner monologue, I was pondering, what do I do? I¡¯ve always thought to myself you have to kill me to get me off the mound in the middle of an outing. A lot of things went through my head.¡±
Though Twins starting pitching has struggled to provide length on the young season, L¨®pez had been the exception thus far. He turned in the team¡¯s only start of six innings or more in his last outing and seemed to be well on his way to another one on Tuesday, holding the Royals to an unearned run on three hits in a duel with Kansas City ace Cole Ragans.
Instead, the bullpen had to eat up another 3 1/3 innings. It fared admirably before ultimately taking the loss on an unearned run that resulted from right-hander Griffin Jax¡¯s throwing error.
¡°There were a lot of factors,¡± L¨®pez said. ¡°It was a 1-1 game against their best guy in that situation. Obviously, I knew and had in mind where the bullpen stood. I was having that struggle. ¡®Should I do it?¡¯ I know how the bullpen has been taxed lately. Again, it was about not digging us into a deeper hole where the game stood and also health wise for me.¡±
L¨®pez, the Twins¡¯ Opening Day starter, has been one of the most durable pitchers in the game, making 32 starts in each of the past three seasons. He has not missed a start as a member of the Twins since they acquired him in a trade with the Marlins in January of 2023.
If they do elect to shelve L¨®pez, the Twins have viable options in their Minor League system. Right-handers David Festa and Zebby Matthews both showed flashes of ability in 2024 and are in the rotation at Triple-A St. Paul. Matthews may have been the best pitcher in camp this spring, and would be on turn to make a start in five days if needed.
The injury is the latest frustration in what has been an exceptionally difficult first two weeks. Starter Bailey Ober was one of a few players who suffered from a virus, and it contributed to a rough first start for the right-hander. The team took a gut-punch extra-inning loss on Sunday after letting a 7-1 lead get away. And on Tuesday, they were in position to take a lead and steal a win before losing.
¡°We're being tested right now,¡± Baldelli said. ¡°We have to be exceptionally strong. When things don't go well, that's not when you start to question everything and start to tear certain things down or premises that you believe in. You have to be even stronger mentally. You have to continue to work hard just as you've been working the entire time and you trust that the players and their ability are going to go out there and get the job done like they've done so many times for us. That's what's going to happen.¡±