Rocco Baldelli comments on Simeon Woods Richardson's dominating day vs. Tigers

It turns out that the third time was the charm for Simeon Woods Richardson.

After getting called up to pitch part of a doubleheader on Saturday, Woods Richardson showed the Minnesota Twins everything they were hoping to see out of him after trading for him back in 2021. He'd made two appearances already but the last one left a sour taste in everyone's mouth.

That wasn't the case on Saturday.

Woods Richardson finished his day with five strikeouts and only one run on two hits in six full innings of work. He ground Detroit's hitters to dust in just 80 pitches, 53 of which were strikes and left the impression he was hoping to leave the first few times he appeared for the Twins.

Simeon Woods Richardson might have pitched himself into a bigger role with Twins

After the game, manager Rocco Baldelli not only gave his stamp of approval to Woods Richardson but he hinted that it might lead to more work in the future.

"It gives you a lot of confidence in him and therefore gives you a lot of confidence in the state of what we have to work with," Baldelli said. "It’s a 6-month regular season. I’m virtually certain we’re going to need Sim again, if not for a long stretch, at some point this year."

It's impossible to overstate just how incredible this start was for Woods Richardson. The last time we saw him on the mound he was getting lit up by the Washington Nationals for five runs on seven hits in 4.2 innings. His last start in St. Paul was just as bad, giving up seven runs on 10 hits in a loss for the Saints.

To follow that up with the performance he had against Detroit is about as big of a confidence builder as it gets. We still need to see more out of him, as this is just one game, but it's a massive step in the right direction.

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