Ervin sharp for Twins; Mancini HR forces tie
FORT MYERS, Fla. -- Trey Mancini hit a three-run homer and Chris Johnson hit a solo shot to help the Orioles mount a late comeback and force a 5-5 tie with the Twins on Friday night at Hammond Stadium.
Mancini tied the game with a three-run homer in the seventh off reliever Drew Rucinski. It came after Johnson hit a solo homer off right-hander Michael Tonkin in the sixth.
Twins right-hander Ervin Santana, all but assured to be Minnesota's starter on Opening Day for a second straight year, allowed an unearned run on four hits with six strikeouts over four strong innings. It was Santana's first start since Saturday, when he pitched in the World Baseball Classic for the Dominican Republic against Team USA.
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"Everything was good," Santana said. "I was happy with the performance. I kept the ball down for the most part."
Orioles second baseman Ryan Flaherty, returning to the lineup from a shoulder injury, led off the game with a double and scored on a throwing error from third baseman Miguel Sano.
Baltimore right-hander Mike Wright, competing for the fifth spot in the rotation, struggled, surrendering five runs on seven hits over two innings. His ERA is now at 8.38 this spring.
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"I didn't feel like my sinker was as good as it has been the past three or four games, but I still feel like I did a decent job locating," he said. "That's obviously not going to be the case when I go back and look at film, but it felt good."
Kennys Vargas, in his first game since returning from the Classic, opened the scoring for the Twins with an RBI groundout before James Dozier plated a run with a single to right. Max Kepler and Byron Buxton both smacked RBI doubles before Joe Mauer scored Buxton with a single. Vargas later left the game with a left foot contusion after fouling a ball off the foot in the third.
Twins left fielder Eddie Rosario made an impressive defensive play in the fourth, when he threw out Chance Sisco at home as he tried to score from second on a single from Rule 5 Draft pick Aneury Tavarez.
WHAT'S NEXT
Orioles:Gabriel Ynoa will get the start Saturday night (6:05 ET) looking to make a strong impression. In the mix for the fifth starter's spot, Ynoa has allowed three earned runs over 8 2/3 spring innings. He will face the Twins at Ed Smith Stadium in Sarasota.
Twins: The Twins have another night game against the Orioles on Saturday at 5:05 p.m. CT, and left-hander Hector Santiago will make his first start since joining the team after his stint in the Classic with Team Puerto Rico. Santiago threw 63 pitches in relief on Monday, and the plan is to stretch him out to 75 pitches. Tyler Duffey and Adalberto Mejia are pitching in Minor League games to stay stretched out.
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