MINNEAPOLIS -- Ubaldo Jimenez struck out a season-high 10 o

[blueberryjerry]

MINNEAPOLIS -- Ubaldo Jimenez struck out a season-high 10 over seven-plus scoreless innings for his first win with Baltimore, and Nelson Cruz hit a two-run home run to pad his lead for the Orioles in a 3-0 victory on Friday over the Minnesota Twins. . Jimenez (1-4) allowed only three hits while taking a significant step forward from five rough starts to begin his $50 million, four-year contract with the Orioles. Jimenez dropped his ERA from 6.59 to 5.19, after leaving with one out in the eighth following Eduardo Escobars double. Zach Britton stranded the runner with a groundout and a called third strike on Joe Mauer, and Tommy Hunter picked up his eighth save in nine tries by pitching the ninth. Trevor Plouffe led off with a double, but Hunter struck out the next two and ended the game on a groundout. Ricky Nolasco (2-3) gave the Twins a complete game, giving up nine hits and one walk while striking out six for his eighth career nine-inning appearance. Cruz doubled in the fourth, scoring on a double by Matt Wieters, before his soaring drive into the third deck above left field followed a leadoff single by Manny Machado in the sixth inning. Cruz, who entered the night tied for fourth in the league in homers, has gone deep eight times already with his new team. The sign that this would be Jimenezs night came in the third inning, when the first two Twins he faced reached base. The 30-year-old right-hander with the herky-jerky delivery dug in and struck out the side after that: Brian Dozier, Mauer and Plouffe. From the third into the eighth, Jimenez retired 16 of 17 batters, with the only outlier a fielding error by second baseman Jonathan Schoop that put Escobar on with two outs in the fifth. Jimenez, who threw a season-high 118 pitches, had issued 17 walks in 27 1-3 innings over those prior five starts. Three runs allowed was his lowest total. Nolasco, who received the richest deal the Twins have ever given a free agent from another team, likewise has had a rocky start to the $49 million, four-year contract he signed with the club. But only on the road, where the right-hander has taken the mound four times. In two turns at Target Field, Nolasco has allowed just four runs on 14 hits and two walks in 17 innings. These were two tired teams taking the field, each forced into a doubleheader the day before by wet weather prior to that. The Orioles swept the Pittsburgh Pirates in Baltimore on Thursday and arrived in Minneapolis around 5:30 a.m. The Twins had the benefit of being at home, but after a Wednesday night game that lasted 3:38 they were swept by the Los Angeles Dodgers on Thursday in games that took 3:01 and 5:11. The last one, the longest game in five seasons at Target Field, took 12 innings. NOTES: The Orioles will send LH Wei-Yin Chen (3-1, 4.34 ERA) to the mound on Saturday afternoon, and RH Kevin Correia (0-3, 7.33 ERA) will pitch for the Twins. Chen has won both of his road starts this year. Correia gave up eight runs in only 2 1-3 innings in his last turn. ... Correia went down to the bullpen as the emergency pitcher in case the game kept going the night before. Was he warming up, Twins manager Ron Gardenhire was asked? "No, he was freezing," Gardenhire quipped. ... Prized Orioles prospect Kevin Gausman, the fourth overall pick in the 2012 amateur draft, was diagnosed with a form of pneumonia, Showalter said, but the RHP should be able to resume pitching for Triple-A Norfolk as soon as hes feeling well again. ... The Twins announced their rained-out game against Detroit last Sunday will be made up as part of a day-night doubleheader on Aug. 23 when the Tigers make their next weekend trip to Target Field. . Less than 24 hours later, in the same arena, he tried to recreate the magic of his all-time favourite player. Hilliard scored a career-high 26 points and No. . Its been two seasons in one for both parties and neither will look back on the first 18 games fondly. "I think I took the fall for a lot of things," said Gay, reflecting on his short time in Toronto ahead of Wednesdays game against his former club. . "I never commented to anyone that I wanted out," he explained. "My heart is with this group and making the playoffs." Kesler added that the rumours are "completely false" that he asked to be traded - recently or ever.Got a question on rule clarification, comments on rule enforcements or some memorable NHL stories? Kerry wants to answer your emails at cmonref@tsn.ca. Hey Kerry, Thanks for your insight on some great situations! I dont always agree with your assessment but I appreciate it. My simple question is this; since when did goalie interference become a reviewable thing? During the Hawks-Kings game 1, Toews was driving the net, got a bounce off the skate of a d-man and the pucks goes in the net. As the puck is crossing the line, Toews gets a gentle nudge from said d-man falling onto Quick, even though he did everything but levitate to avoid him. Goal called good on-ice, Toronto calls no goal for goalie interference. While it didnt matter in the end, Id still love to understand better. Thanks! JasonHouston, TX ----- Hi Kerry, I would just like to have some clarification on this disallowed goal in the Los Angeles versus Chicago Western conference game #1. The call originally was called a goal. Then when reviewed they said that there was goalie interference. Isnt the rule you cant review goalie interference? And if they called it off because of goalie interference why was there not a penalty? Thanks,Jordan Pearson ----- Kerry, Can you tell me why Jonathan Toews spectacular goal on Jonathan Quick was disallowed in second period today? Theres no doubt there was contact, but Toews received a slight push in the back on the drive to the net. Even if there was a goal disallowed by contact, I thought that call had to be made by the on ice officials. It looked from the lengthy headset conference that the call was made by Toronto. What gives? Mike Kedzierski Jason, Jordan and Mike, I can understand your confusion once referee Marc Joannettes initial decision to allow Jonathan Toews goal was reversed following discussion with the other members of the officiating crew and then a rather lengthy teleconference with the Situation Room personnel in Toronto. The correct protocol was implemented by the on-ice officials to determine that Toews goal would be disallowed based on incidental contact with Jonathan Quick in the goal crease. The officials quickly gathered for a conference just 10 seconds after Joannette pointed into the net to signal the scoring of Toews goal. The conference (protocol) became necessary because the other officials had important information to share with Joannette on how and why the puck entered the net illegally from their perspective. This play was a classic case of incidental contact with the goalkeeper that should result in no goal and no penalty under Rule 69. Toews received a lead pass through a seam that required his abrupt hard left turn toward the crease for the Hawks captain to make a scoring attempt. Slava Voynov followed close behind in pursuit and used an active stick to separate Toews from the puck a split second before Quick, positioned fully within his blue paint, pushed his paddle toward the puck and made contact with Toews skates at the edge of the crease. In spite of the contact to his skates by Quicks goal stickk, Toews was in too close and going too hard (momentum) to effectively stop or avoid contact with the goalkeeper, regardless of any effort to "levitate", Jason. . Voynov placed his glove on the pants of Toews after the Hawk was in flight from contacting the goal stick with his skate. Toews made significant contact with Quick inside the crease, causing the goalkeeper to be knocked laterally and allowed the puck to enter the net off the skate of Voynov. Referee Joannette was unable to observe these developments and render an initial decision on the goalkeeper interference, based on his position deep behind the goal line and against the end boards on the opposite side of the goal as Toews was attacking the net. By the time the referee had curled to the other side, the contact had long since taken place and the puck was in the net. Both linesmen rushed to the referee following his point toward the net and as Toews got up off the ice to celebrate. I am firmly convinced the goal was disallowed in the subsequent conference of officials, held at the timekeepers bench, based on the accurate information provided by the other members of the crew to referee Joannette! The system then broke down and needless confusion was created when the referee picked up the headset and engaged in a lengthy conversation with the Situation Room personnel in Toronto that lasted over a minute; even though interference on the goalkeeper is not reviewable. Beyond protocol, it is mandatory that the referee take the call when the headset is passed through the hole in the glass at the timekeepers bench and when a disputed goal has been scored. All goals are reviewed and Hockey Operations does need to be kept informed, since they have to answer questions from irate general managers (and on occasion owners). That part is reasonable and should be expected. This unusual delay however gave Blackhawks coach Joel Quenneville, game broadcasters, members of the media and you (the fans) an impression that the call was reversed through video review. That impression is understandable because none of you have ever been on the other end of that headset nor have you had the direct line ring in the officials dressing room between periods. Toronto wants to know every detail and control the process where they can. If they could referee the game from mission control, Im convinced they would. Since that is not yet an option the phone line is their best source to exert and maintain control. The nature of this particular conversation however, should have been very brief and controlled by the referee. Joannette should have informed the caller on the other end of the line that, "following a conference of the four officials, it was determined that incidental contact with goalkeeper Quick by Toews took place prior to the puck entering the net. We have NO GOAL and NO PENALTY on the play!" The ref should have then handed the headset through the hole in the glass, moved back from the side boards to his broadcast position, clicked on his microphone and made the exact same announcement to the hockey world that was waiting patiently for the referees decision. ' ' '

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