Twinsportal.com | Minnesota Twins News, twins Scores, Game Recaps & Commentary - <div>Jose Morales will take one more bruise, one more reminder of a catcher's life, with him to Rochester. </div>The backup catcher was optioned to the Class AAA Red Wings after the Twins' 7-5 loss to the Kansas City Royals on Sunday, but only after surviving a jarring collision at the plate with Mark Teahen in the eighth inning. Morales held onto Nick Punto's relay, however, and Teahen was out. Now Morales is too, despite a month-long major league audition that displayed his ability as a hitter -- at .340, he's the Twins' leading hitter this season aside from Joe Mauer -- and a few shortcomings to work on with the Red Wings. "I'll go down, work harder to get better and get back up here," the 26-year-old said. "I feel good (about my performance), but I definitely wanted to stay here." The Twins needed his roster spot, however, to restore Jesse Crain to the active roster. The team considered placing Mike Redmond on the disabled list, but the veteran demonstrated his throwing arm for coaches before Sunday's game, proving that a cortisone shot has dissipated the pain in his shoulder. Crain, who pitched a bullpen session Sunday with no pain in his throwing shoulder, was activated after the game. No no-no: The bobblehead-day Metrodome crowd knew Scott Baker had a no-hitter alive Sunday, accounting for the great roar, and mass exhale, when Michael Cuddyer roamed 150 feet to the wall in right-center for a running catch of Mitch Maier's fly ball. But Cuddyer himself? No clue. "To be honest, I didn't know," Cuddyer said. "When (Willie) Bloomquist got that first hit and there was that big ovation, I sort of went, 'Oh, wow.' " The Royals were far more cognizant of their own hitlessness. After all, Baker took a perfect game into the ninth inning against them two years ago, so they knew what he was capable of. "We were trying every way possible on the bench to jinx him," Bloomquist said. "Every inning from the fourth on, we kept saying, 'This guy has a no-hitter going.' But we kept not getting any hits until the seventh." Gil Meche, who earned the victory by pitching six innings and allowing four runs, theorized that his own mistakes might have played a part in Baker's undoing. "I told (catcher John) Buck on the bench that I'm almost glad I gave up those two runs in the sixth because, just maybe, it made Baker relax too much. I don't know, whatever happened, it worked out perfect." Casilla benched: Alexi Casilla was given Sunday off, though not until he had a meeting with manager Ron Gardenhire to discuss his mental mistakes on the field. Casilla didn't cover second base on a stolen-base attempt on Friday, then booted a ground ball that allowed Kansas City to score a critical eighth-inning run in Saturday's loss. The problem, Gardenhire said, is that Casilla is too obsessed with his 12-for-75 (.160) start at the plate. "It's too much worry about one side of the game," Gardenhire said. "The other side, he can't let that go. Not being there on a steal, things like that, we can't afford that." But Gardenhire rejected any suggestion that Casilla should be shuffled to the bottom of the batting order or benched in favor of Brendan Harris or even demoted to Rochester. It's too early in the season to make such drastic moves, he said. "We have to get Lexi to play better, not just ship him to somebody else because he's not," Gardenhire said. "My job is to get him back into the game a little more." Briefly: Luis Ayala entered a game Sunday for the third time this season, and second in two days, with a lead of less than six runs. He has allowed the tying or go-ahead runs to score in all three cases. Joe Mauer didn't start Sunday's game after catching all 11 innings Saturday night, but he pinch-hit for Harris in the ninth inning and stroked a run-scoring single. Mauer is 7 for 10 with a home run, two doubles and three runs batted in since rejoining the Twins on Friday. Denard Span stole second base in the first inning Sunday, making him 7 for 7 in steals this season. Justin Morneau had two doubles and an RBI in five at-bats, and he has hit in 10 of his past 13 games. Pitching matchups for the two-game series at Detroit's Comerica Park: Francisco Liriano (0-4) vs. Edwin Jackson (1-1) tonight, and Nick Blackburn (2-1) vs. rookie Rick Porcello (1-3) on Tuesday. Both games are scheduled to start at 6 p.m.

Jose Morales will take one more bruise, one more reminder of a catcher's life, with him to Rochester.

The backup catcher was optioned to the Class AAA Red Wings after the Twins' 7-5 loss to the Kansas City Royals on Sunday, but only after surviving a jarring collision at the plate with Mark Teahen in the eighth inning. Morales held onto Nick Punto's relay, however, and Teahen was out.

Now Morales is too, despite a month-long major league audition that displayed his ability as a hitter -- at .340, he's the Twins' leading hitter this season aside from Joe Mauer -- and a few shortcomings to work on with the Red Wings.

"I'll go down, work harder to get better and get back up here," the 26-year-old said. "I feel good (about my performance), but I definitely wanted to stay here."

The Twins needed his roster spot, however, to restore Jesse Crain to the active roster. The team considered placing Mike Redmond on the disabled list, but the veteran demonstrated his throwing arm for coaches before Sunday's game, proving that a cortisone shot has dissipated the pain in his shoulder.

Crain, who pitched a bullpen session Sunday with no pain in his throwing shoulder, was activated after the game.

No no-no: The bobblehead-day Metrodome crowd knew Scott Baker had a no-hitter alive Sunday, accounting for the great roar, and mass exhale, when Michael Cuddyer roamed 150 feet to the wall in right-center for a running catch of Mitch Maier's fly ball.

But Cuddyer himself? No clue.

"To be honest, I didn't know," Cuddyer said. "When (Willie) Bloomquist got that first hit and there was that big ovation, I sort of went, 'Oh, wow.' "

The Royals were far more cognizant of their own hitlessness. After all, Baker took a perfect game into the ninth inning against them two years ago, so they knew what he was capable of.

"We were trying every way possible on the bench to jinx him," Bloomquist said. "Every inning from the fourth on, we kept saying, 'This guy has a no-hitter going.' But we kept not getting any hits until the seventh."

Gil Meche, who earned the victory by pitching six innings and allowing four runs, theorized that his own mistakes might have played a part in Baker's undoing. "I told (catcher John) Buck on the bench that I'm almost glad I gave up those two runs in the sixth because, just maybe, it made Baker relax too much. I don't know, whatever happened, it worked out perfect."

Casilla benched: Alexi Casilla was given Sunday off, though not until he had a meeting with manager Ron Gardenhire to discuss his mental mistakes on the field. Casilla didn't cover second base on a stolen-base attempt on Friday, then booted a ground ball that allowed Kansas City to score a critical eighth-inning run in Saturday's loss.

The problem, Gardenhire said, is that Casilla is too obsessed with his 12-for-75 (.160) start at the plate.

"It's too much worry about one side of the game," Gardenhire said. "The other side, he can't let that go. Not being there on a steal, things like that, we can't afford that."

But Gardenhire rejected any suggestion that Casilla should be shuffled to the bottom of the batting order or benched in favor of Brendan Harris or even demoted to Rochester. It's too early in the season to make such drastic moves, he said.

"We have to get Lexi to play better, not just ship him to somebody else because he's not," Gardenhire said. "My job is to get him back into the game a little more."

Briefly: Luis Ayala entered a game Sunday for the third time this season, and second in two days, with a lead of less than six runs. He has allowed the tying or go-ahead runs to score in all three cases.

Joe Mauer didn't start Sunday's game after catching all 11 innings Saturday night, but he pinch-hit for Harris in the ninth inning and stroked a run-scoring single. Mauer is 7 for 10 with a home run, two doubles and three runs batted in since rejoining the Twins on Friday.

Denard Span stole second base in the first inning Sunday, making him 7 for 7 in steals this season.

Justin Morneau had two doubles and an RBI in five at-bats, and he has hit in 10 of his past 13 games.

Pitching matchups for the two-game series at Detroit's Comerica Park: Francisco Liriano (0-4) vs. Edwin Jackson (1-1) tonight, and Nick Blackburn (2-1) vs. rookie Rick Porcello (1-3) on Tuesday. Both games are scheduled to start at 6 p.m.