Milwaukee Brewers general manager Doug Melvin held a closed-door meeting with the Twins players and staff before batting practice Tuesday to explain why Miller Park isn't quite as comfortable as usual during their visit this year.
Floodwaters as high as 3 feet in some areas inundated the lowest level of the stadium early Friday morning following a 5-inch rainstorm. The water, in a part of the park fans don't see, inundated both clubhouses, the facility's kitchen, batting cages and the groundskeepers' storage area, among other places. Crews worked all weekend to tear out drywall and carpet, sop up the water and make the stadium usable again.
But the Twins were asked not to arrive before 3 p.m. Tuesday, canceling their usual early batting practice. And the cages aren't available yet, so there's no warming up with a few swings during the game.
Melvin wanted to explain all that to the Twins and tell them that inspectors had certified the building clean. Beyond all the gaping holes at the bottom of most walls, they shouldn't be too inconvenienced.
"He wanted to assure us that we're not going to get sick from being here," Twins manager Ron Gardenhire said. "They've done a super job of trying to get this place ready for us."
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Just numbers
Bobby Keppel admits he had his doubts during spring training. Working the seventh inning every third day or so didn't seem like a direct route to the big leagues.
But then a hopeful thing happened: He got sent down
to Class AAA Rochester. No, that wasn't the positive sign -- but what the Twins told him was.
"They did a real good job when they sent me down of saying, 'Hey, you're one of our guys; it's (a matter of) numbers right now, but we'll be watching you in Rochester. And they were," said the 27-year-old right-hander. "They seemed very genuine about it. It kind of excited me, gave me confidence."
It showed. Working out of the Red Wings' bullpen, Keppel posted a 2.43 ERA, giving him hope that he either would be in Minnesota soon or could find a job somewhere if he exercised his opt-out clause on July 1.
"I showed I can do this," said Keppel, who assumes Luis Ayala's bullpen role. "I definitely would have said 'Let's talk about my future' if this hadn't happened."
Briefly
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Jason Kubel came off the field during batting practice feeling ill, and wasn't in the lineup Tuesday. It's believed to be just a mild flu.
--Justin Morneau returned to action after missing Sunday's game, his first day off in two seasons. He's not injured, Morneau said, just sore after playing every day. "I learned a lot last year, what you can play through, what benefits the team to go out there and when you can hurt the team," he said. "There's times when you need to go out there no matter how you feel, the team needs you out there. And there's times when you can afford to take a day off."
--Denard Span, on a rehab assignment as he returns from an inner-ear infection, doubled and walked in five trips to the plate Monday for Class AAA Rochester, but was hit by a pitch during his third at-bat Tuesday. He was diagnosed with a bruised hand, but he will rejoin the Twins today and likely be activated for Thursday's game.
--Second baseman Nick Punto left Tuesday's game with cramps in his rib cage, but Gardenhire said it doesn't appear to be anything more serious.
-- Copyright (c) 2009, Pioneer Press, St. Paul, Minn./Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services
