Thome pushes Twins past Bucs
FORT MYERS, Fla. — Justin Morneau and Jim Thome returned to the lineup for the Minnesota Twins, each following four days of rest.
Thome didn't take long to shake off the rust.
He went 2 for 2 with his first home run in a Twins uniform and Minnesota defeated the Pittsburgh Pirates 5-4 on Thursday.
Morneau, who like Thome was resting a sore back, went 0 for 3 with a strikeout, while Joe Mauer went 0 for 3, lowering his spring training batting average to .462.
Delwyn Young further solidified his chances at a bench role for the Pirates, hitting his fourth home run in five games with a two-run shot off Twins reliever Clay Condrey in the sixth inning.
Condrey, whose spring ERA inflated to 10.80, also gave up a solo homer to Jeff Clement in the sixth. Jason Jaramillo added a solo shot off Twins starter Carl Pavano in the third inning for Pittsburgh.
Pirates starter Ross Ohlendorf gave up two runs, including Thome's homer, in four innings. He struck out two and walked none, giving up four hits.
