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Marc Topkin's takeaways from Saturday's Rays-Twins game

 
Published May 28, 2017

RHP Jake Odorizzi had to battle without his best stuff again, which is becoming a more common occurrence, leading to long at-bats — including 13 pitches to Kennys Vargas in the fifth — and running up his pitch count to 118 without finishing the sixth.

OF/DH Colby Rasmus seems to run hot and cold, but he came off the bench Saturday to make what at the time was a game-saving running catch in the seventh, then in the ninth launched a massive 431-foot homer, his sixth in 67 at-bats.

Rookie LHP Jose Alvarado came into another big situation and came out pretty good, facing dangerous veteran Joe Mauer with two on in the sixth and getting him to fly out, though he did make the mistake of a leadoff walk in the seventh.