Minnesota Twins’ Denard Span to get more rest in 2011 Major League Baseball campaign
The Minnesota Twins are actively working out their roles for the regular league season in 2011. The Major League Baseball tenure is going to kick off in April and before things get started officially, management will work out various strategies, designed
to maintain the stars in their prime condition.
With Joe Mauer and Justin Morneau out on the sidelines, risks to player fitness, is something manager, Ron Gardenhire, is not willing to afford. Denard Span, who will star in the outfield, will be rested for more games this season.
The decision comes from Gardenhire, who believes Denard was pushed to his limits, last season. After making appearances out on the field, day after day, for the Twins, last season, there isn’t much the player would want than a bit more rest than usual.
The outfield task could not be delegated to any other player and that forced Span into an awkward situation. Span had gotten tired as his batting average of .264 fell behind 47 points during the season.
"He wore down at the end of the season", Gardenhire said. "He had a lot of at-bats. He takes a lot of pitches. He does a lot of things for his teammates. He puts himself in the hole so his teammates can see pitches. He does his job. Now it's my job to make
sure we rest him a little bit more and give him the breaks he needs to get the best out of him".
Fourth choice, Jason Repko, is now in the mix and he will be featured in the line this year, following his signing from Triple A. Though the player played a role last season, his last two months saw him tear a ligament in his left thumb. He was unable to
produce more runs.
However now he’s fit and ready.
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