After being returned to St. Paul in late April, Festa pitched twice for the Saints, then was given a little more than two weeks off to allow some shoulder inflammation to subside.
“I felt it for a few outings. Every time I’d throw, it would feel good and then the recovery would be a little bit harder,” Festa said. “The last outing before I spoke up, I pitched well, but it just didn’t feel right. Between innings, it was super achy. I was waking up with some achiness, so I knew I had to say something instead of making it worse.”
Once healed, Festa pitched like the Twins’ top pitching prospect once again. In two starts, he allowed only five hits over 8 ⅔ innings and just one run — charged to him after a ball lost in the sun dropped for a double.
He has begun using his sinker more since being sent down. “The last month or so, I’ve been really working on that, and now it’s one of my competent pitches to both sides of the plate,” he said. “I think it’s helped with my overall results.”
Carlos Correa was scratched from the Twins’ lineup before Wednesday night’s game after reporting some tightness in his lower back. The Twins had no further details before the game, but it’s possible Correa has been affected by the hard dirt infield in Sacramento.
Correa complained that the molded spikes on his usual shoes are not effective enough here, and he tried metal spikes, too. But mostly, he said Tuesday, he’s having trouble feeling comfortable on this infield and especially in the dirt around the batter’s boxes and home plate.
