Minnesota Twins: What You Need to Know About the Sam Deduno Injury

Minnesota Twins pitcher Sam Deduno (6-5, 4.54 ERA) could potentially crack the rotation next season.

When he has control of his pitches, he has filthy stuff that leaves the opposing batter (and his own catchers) wondering where the ball is going.

He left his Sept. 15 outing against the Chicago White Sox frustrated, however, and he hasn’t been the same pitcher since.

He only went 2.1 innings against the Tigers in Detroit on Sept. 22 and left Wednesday’s contest against the New York Yankees with “left eye irritation.”

This is what you should know about the injury.

What Happened in the Game

Deduno was in the middle of the second inning and just picked off Curtis Granderson at first base.

Then:

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An extended discussion on the mound between Gardy, trainer Dave Pruemer and Samuel Deduno.

— Phil Mackey (@PMac21) September 26, 2012

 

The conversation dragged on:

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This is an abnormally long conversation... possibly because Alexi Casilla is translating. But this is bizarre.

— Phil Mackey (@PMac21) September 26, 2012

 

 

And then he was pulled:

 

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Brian Duensing is in. Deduno out with some sort of an injury.

— Phil Mackey (@PMac21) September 26, 2012

 

 

The initial report was “eye irritation.”

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The Twins Noticed Problems from the Dugout

“We were all watching it and they were throwing the ball back to him from first base and from the catcher and it was looking like he was dodging away from the ball,” said manager Ron Gardenhire.

“[It] was looking like he was dodging away from the ball so we went out.”

This would be atypical, of course, as problems on the diamond tend to merit mound visits.

Deduno Did Not Want to Leave the Game

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Deduno doesn't want to leave. But he's beeing removed from the game. Duensing on his way in. We'll see what injury Deduno has.

— LaVelle E. Neal III (@LaVelleNeal) September 26, 2012

 

 

“He did not want to come out of the game as we could all see,” said the manager.

“I couldn’t get his glove open to get the ball even.”

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And He Insists That He’s Fine

Deduno was not available for comment after the 8-2 loss, as he was undergoing an MRI, but Gardenhire says he could not get him out of the game.

“He kept saying he was fine,” said Gardenhire, “but if you watch with your eyes there and you see that he’s kinda flinching from balls and that’s not good enough.

“I will never leave a player out there [in] that situation.”

Deduno started the year in the minors and is battling for a spot in the rotation, of course, and hasn’t played as well as usual in his recent outings.

The Injury Is Something That They Were Aware of Before This Contest

Deduno was checked out earlier in the week for eye irritation, but was cleared to play and said that he was good to go.

“Before the game he was fine,” said Gardenhire, “he was having no problems and that’s what the kid was telling us and that’s all we can go by.”

Gardenhire went on to say that honesty was paramount in this process. He does not want to be deceived by his players.

He May Get Another Start

“We’re just going to get him checked out and make sure before we put him back out there that we know for sure,” said the skipper, “the player says one thing, but we need to know for sure.”

Another start would allow Deduno to go out on a positive note, something that may help his chances to be on the team on Opening Day next season.

All quotes were obtained first-hand.

Tom Schreier writes a weekly column for TheFanManifesto.com.

Follow @tschreier3