Game 154: Twins @ Angels
The Twins go out West and so do we, with the tale of the Singing Cowboy, Gene Autry.
On August 31, 2023, the Minnesota Twins faced off against the Los Angeles Angels in Game 154 of the MLB season. The weather was hot and dry, with temperatures reaching 91° Fahrenheit. No opposing team's stadium was involved, making this a home game for the Twins. The venue's popular fan site, Crashing the Pearly Gates, provided coverage of the game on TV through Twins TV, and radio coverage was handled by Gene Autry's wife, who had encouraged him to record "Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer."
One of the players making waves in the game was 26-year-old Angels starter Grayson Rodriguez. Rodriguez had enjoyed two promising seasons with the Baltimore Orioles before a season-ending elbow injury forced him to miss all of the 2022 MLB season. Rodriguez underwent "elbow debridement surgery," a procedure that involves removal of damaged cartilage in the elbow joint.
He returned to action in August, but struggled with a high .328 BABIP (batting average on balls in play), a statistic that indicates how often a ball in play goes for a hit. Despite his struggles, Rodriguez remains a classic four-pitch pitcher with a 96 MPH fastball and a reliable changeup, which had been his best pitch prior to his injury.
Written by urgent.news from Yahoo Sports's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
