Twins’ Baldelli Gets Creative with Lineup, Batting Jeffers Leadoff

Twins manager Rocco Baldelli has been experimenting with his lineup due to injuries, and on Wednesday, he inserted catcher Ryan Jeffers as the leadoff hitter. Jeffers, who is known for his power, was making his first career start at the top of the order. Baldelli explained that the move was made to get his best right-handed hitters, Jeffers and Byron Buxton, as many at-bats as possible against Chicago White Sox left-handed starter Garrett Crochet. Jeffers said he wasn’t surprised by the decision and that he has been working on his speed around the bases. Despite the lineup changes, Buxton is starting to heat up after a slow start to the season. He had a game-tying home run in the ninth inning of Tuesday’s win and is 7 for 16 with three doubles and a home run in the homestand.

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