FORT MYERS, Fla. - The Twins put the tying run on base against left-hander Troy Patton in the bottom of the ninth, but Oscar Villarreal replaced him with one out and retired Luke Hughes and J.R. Towles on ground balls to secure the Orioles' 3-1 victory.
Manager Showalter addressed the following topics:
On Chris Tillman:
"Tilly's stuff has been good. He's had a problem in the past of not carrying what he's capable of early in a ballgame, but that hasn't happened down here. I've been impressed. He's been very crisp with his stuff from the first pitch. Tilly doesn't get missed in the shuffle for me. He's a guy with a big upside. He's got a little different look about him, his maturity level, and he's starting to put some things together. I feel good about where he is. His arm is a lot further along than it was last year at this time."
On Dana Eveland:
"I thought Eveland threw the ball well, too."
On whether Eveland could fill a long relief role if he doesn't make the rotation:
"There's multiple things we're looking at with everybody, including him, but it was Tilly's turn to start today. It seemed like he was a little more at ease. All pitchers when they're new to organizations get some anxiety out the first couple times out, and I think we saw a more relaxed guy doing what he's capable of doing."
On Robert Andino's power display:
"It isn't the first time he's centered a ball up and it won't be the last. He's a strong guy."
On defensive lapses:
"I'm a little more concerned about some of the defensive things we've got to clean up a little bit. We gave them a lot of extra outs today. We had two or three double plays we should have turned, but we missed the transfer."
On Scott Beerer:
"Scott Beerer's had some big hits for us down here. He's swung the bat well."
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