CLEVELAND — Set to throw a Class AAA game in St. Paul on Saturday, Twins starter Andrew Albers went from Wednesday's bullpen session at CHS Field to starting Thursday's 4-1 big-league loss to Cleveland at Progressive Field on 23 hours' notice and only four days' rest.
He learned after the Saints' 17-3 victory over Omaha on Wednesday afternoon that Twins scheduled starter Randy Dobnak aggravated a strained middle finger on his throwing hand and wouldn't start the following day.
By evening, Albers was on a flight east. By midnight he was in Cleveland, reporting for duty not long after he allowed nine runs in three innings in his last Twins outing, an 11-4 loss Saturday at Tampa Bay.
Who knew he'd be back in the major leagues so soon after something like that?
"Certainly not the way I planned it," Albers said. "You hope to go down and earn your way back. You never want to see anyone go on the injured list. In baseball, you never know what's going to happen. You've got to find a way to prepare yourself for anything."
He went four innings, walked four, struck out two and allowed three runs this time around. He also surrendered two homers on a night when four homers — three by Cleveland, one a second-inning solo shot by the Twins' Miguel Sano — scored all five runs.
Twins pitchers now trail Baltimore's 214 homers by one for most allowed in the majors.
When it was over, Twins acting manager Bill Evers had the only blemish on a eight-game substitute MLB managerial record. Manager Rocco Baldelli is due back from paternity leave Friday.
And both teams had moved on from a sixth-inning kerfuffle involving Sano and Cleveland starter Cal Quantrill, who pitched into the eighth inning and gave up only one run.
Albers lamented his lack of control, but was pleased with how he competed in a game that Cleveland led 3-1 when he left. Albers threw 98 pitches (57 strikes) and pitched from the stretch in his final inning seeking better efficiency.
"I can't tell you the last time I walked four guys in a game," said Albers, 35, who has pitched everywhere from Quebec to the Japan Pacific League the last 11 years. "It has been a long time."
He struck out the final batter with runners on base in the second and third innings and left trailing 3-1. That's some improvement from those nine runs he allowed Saturday in a performance that left "pretty much everything" for improvement.
BOXSCORE: Cleveland 4, Twins 1
"He did the best he could," Evers said. "He threw a lot of pitches in a short amount of innings."
Albers was gone by the time Quantrill and Sano exchanged words that left the umpire crew huddling and positioning themselves for more that never came.
Evers said Quantrill objected to Josh Donaldson swinging at a 3-0 pitch in a 3-1 game.
"I just think Quantrill had a lot to say," Evers said. "He should be happy he's getting guys out rather than mouthing off to them. That's my personal opinion."
Evers, at 67, will retire after a life in baseball at season's end. He's now 7-1 as a big-league manager subbing for Tampa's Joe Maddon in 2006 and Baldelli this season.
He used words such as "ecstatic," "awesome" and great to describe the experience. His four victories go on Baldelli's record, who now is one shy of 200 career wins.
"It was good to get back in the seat," he said. "Not having done it in so long, it was a lot fun for me and the players played hard and I was happy with the result … I'm looking forward to seeing Rocco with the big smile on his face with the newborn. It'll be good to have him back."
Asked about Thursday's blemish on his otherwise perfect record, Evers said, "Those kinds of things happen when you play a lot of games, you know? All was good."
