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Scott Baker made a rehab start for the Fort Myers Miracle last night, in the hopes of rejoining the Twins in the next couple weeks. It now appears that this time frame is incredibly optimistic, and that Liam Hendriks is now a very critical part of the Twins' early-season plans.
Baker threw all of 11 pitches Thursday night, giving up a single and a double before getting pulled.
Quote from Terry Ryan, courtesy Joe C.:
"Baker just didn't feel right tonight," Twins GM Terry Ryan said in an e-mail. "He couldn't seem to get loose on the mound and instead of pushing the envelope, we decided we would go get him out of the game. We will evaluate him again [Friday]."
Quote from Miracle manager Jake Mauer Chevrolet, courtesy David Dorsey:
"He couldn't get loose," Miracle manager Jake Mauer said. "I don't know if it's the elbow, the body or what.
The radar guns were 80 to 84 or whatever the heck it was. He wasn't comfortable at all"
And that's all we know right now. The most optimistic scenarios for this Twins team are predicated on a healthy and productive Scott Baker (in addition to Mauer, Morneau, Liriano, et. al.). This is unhelpful at best. More info as it becomes available.