BRADENTON, Fla. — The first spring training game as Pittsburgh Pirates manager was a different feeling for Derek Shelton, a first that was humbling and humorous.
That the Pirates’ Grapefruit League opener ended in a 2-1 loss to the Minnesota Twins at LECOM Park did little to dampen a day of firsts for Shelton, who spent the past two seasons as Twins bench coach before being hired to replace Clint Hurdle.
After working in various roles in Tampa Bay, Toronto and Minnesota, Shelton admitted to being nervous to make out his first official starting lineup — even for a spring training game.
“I still think it’s a different feeling to walk out,” Shelton said. “You double- and triple-check everything to make sure it’s right because I definitely didn’t want to screw something up in front of (Twins manager) Rocco (Baldelli), you know. I didn’t want to have the lineup out of order, the DH in the wrong spot.
“Any time you check off firsts at any point in your life, it’s a different feeling. It’s a very cool feeling.”
It was an incredible two years with @roccodbaldelli and the @Twins. These guys will always be my family.
Excited for what’s to come in Pittsburgh! pic.twitter.com/i3tQ3kAepF
— Derek Shelton (@derekshelton) February 23, 2020
The coolest feeling came when Twins legends Rod Carew and Tony Oliva made a touching gesture by showing up to see Shelton. They even posed for a photo with Shelton and Pirates greats Bill Mazeroski and Manny Sanguillen. Shelton couldn’t help but laugh about Baldelli, a close friend, lightening the mood by bringing a sign from Major League Baseball media day.
“It was a tad humbling when Rod Carew and Tony Oliva show up,” Shelton said, noting neither of the Twins special assistants typically travels for spring games. “That kind of took me back a little bit. They both told me they made the trip to come down and see me. That means a lot to me because I spent a lot of time with those guys in spring training last year. The fact that they got on a bus and came here was a validation of our friendship, anytime you have two guys of that stature do that.”
“For the first time to get out there and compete, it was nice to see,” Shelton said. “I know there was some nerves for him: New manager, new pitching coach, go out and pitch in front of them for the first time, but I thought the ball came out of his hand pretty well.”
For Keller, it was a marked improvement from his performance last spring, when he allowed 10 runs in four outings and finished with a 22.50 ERA. The 23-year-old right-hander is competing for a spot in the starting rotation, so it was a good showing.
“Every time out there is an audition for me, really, and I’ve got to bring it every time,” said Keller, who allowed two hits. “Last year, I struggled, I think, every single game I pitched up here. It’s just a different attitude, more confidence going out there.”
The game didn’t go as well as Shelton wanted. Pirates pitcher James Marvel gave up a pair of runs in the third inning before getting out of a bases-loaded jam. Ke’Bryan Hayes doubled off the right-field wall but was thrown out at home plate trying to score the tying run in the seventh. And the Pirates had runners on first and second in the ninth when Jake Elmore grounded into a game-ending double play.
It also marked the debut of the Pirates’ new protective netting system at LECOM Park, which extends down the first- and third-base lines to the foul poles. That made it a bit of an adventure for fans to get autographs before the game.
Ken Gibson and John Sabo, a pair of Homestead natives who reside in Florida, are spring-training regulars. They were sitting in their usual end-row seats in Section 14, just past the home dugout down the first-base line. They laughed when Pirates second baseman Adam Frazier lobbed a ball over the high netting, only to see it hit the wire across the top and bounce into a fan’s hands. But the two noticed the netting makes for a different atmosphere.
“It seems like it takes something away,” said Gibson, who lives in Tavares, Fla. “You can’t get near them. That used to always be one of the best things about spring training, how close you were to the players. But the other side is, you can eat your hot dog without fear of getting beaned.”
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