--LF Delmon Young lined a home run barely inside the foul pole against the Pirates on March 18, but what he did in his four other at-bats was even more notable. Young grounded into four double plays, which -- had the game occurred during the regular season -- would have made him only the second player in major league history to do so. Joe Torre, then a third baseman for the Mets, set the record in a game against Houston in 1975.
--3B Joe Crede broke out of a 2-for-24 spring slump with three hits, including a home run, against Florida on March 16. Manager Ron Gardenhire said Crede's problem was in overcompensating for the back injury that cost him the last two months of the 2008 season. "He's been out of whack because he got in some bad habits because of the injury," Gardenhire said. "Now that he's feeling good again, he's trying to break those habits." --OF Denard Span was batting .095 for the spring, but back-to-back two-hit games convinced him he is about to get hot again. "It's kind of a relief," Span said after hitting a home run against Boston on March 17. "I made some adjustments in my swing last year and it's taken some time to pick them up again. But I'm feeling good again."
--RHP Kevin Mulvey, one of three pitchers obtained by the Twins in the Johan Santana trade a year ago, pitched well in five spring outings, allowing only three runs over seven innings. But the Twins assigned him to Class AAA Rochester on March 20, mostly because he needs more work than they could give him. "He's a guy who needs to be getting a lot of innings right now," manager Ron Gardenhire said. "We like him, but it doesn't do him any good to sit around here."
--LHP Francisco Liriano walked four batters in three innings during a March 18 start against Pittsburgh, and pitching coach Rick Anderson said the problem is a recurring one: Liriano tinkers with his mechanics while on the mound. "We tell him, work on mechanics in the bullpen, but just pitch when you're in the game," Anderson said. "He starts thinking too much out there."
BY THE NUMBERS: 6 -- Home runs allowed by Opening Night starter Scott Baker in his last two Grapefruit League starts.
QUOTE TO NOTE: "I don't feel good about anybody taking my place, I'll say that. But Mike (Redmond) is starting to swing the bat." -- C Joe Mauer, on the likelihood he will open the season on the disabled list.
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