Inside The Twins

Joe Ryan sharp in return, but Twins offense held quiet in loss to Cardinals

Ryan pitched five innings of one-run ball but didn't get much run support on Saturday.

Nolan O'Hara

Minnesota Twins starting pitcher Joe Ryan pitches against the St. Louis Cardinals during the second inning at Busch Stadium in St. Louis on March 29, 2025.
Minnesota Twins starting pitcher Joe Ryan pitches against the St. Louis Cardinals during the second inning at Busch Stadium in St. Louis on March 29, 2025. / Jeff Curry-Imagn Images
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Joe Ryan was having a stellar 2024 season until it came to a premature end due to a shoulder injury, an outcome as disappointing as the Minnesota Twins' finish to the year. Now in 2025, it looks like Ryan picked up right where he left off.

Ryan was sharp in his return to the mound on Saturday, pitching five innings of one-run ball, but the Twins couldn't generate much offense on the starter opposing him in a 5-1 loss to the St. Louis Cardinals at Busch Stadium in St. Louis.

The Cardinals (2-0) didn't break open a 1-1 game until the sixth inning when Ryan's day was done. Nolan Arenado hit a liner that deflected off Jorge Alcala's shoulder for a double in the first at-bat before things snowballed. Alcala walked Alec Burleson the next at-bat and then gave up a go-ahead RBI single to Ivan Herrera. That's when Alcala's day came to an end.

Louie Varland was tasked with getting the Twins (0-2) out of the jam, but walked Jordan Walker to load the bases, though he did follow up with back-to-back strikeouts. Lars Nootbar, however, continued to be a thorn in Minnesota's side, hitting a two-run single for a 4-1 St. Louis lead. Nootbar is 4 for 7 with a homer and four RBIs in the two games against the Twins.

Ryan recovered from a somewhat shaky start to deliver an excellent outing on Saturday. He gave up three hits in the first inning, including an RBI single to Arenado, however, he proceeded to pitch four shutout frames, including a 1-2-3 fifth inning. Ryan gave up just five hits and the one run — he hit a pair of batters — across the five innings, totaling 81 pitches.

It was certainly a winning effort from Ryan, but the Twins couldn't do much of anything against Cardinals starter Erick Fedde, who gave up just two hits and one run while fanning a pair across six innings. Fedde's lone blemish came in the second inning when Willi Castro hit an RBI double to right that brought home Trevor Larnach, who led off with a single.

That was the only opportunity of four chances the Twins scored with runners in scoring position. They left two on base and had just three hits.

Jhoan Duran made his season debut in the eighth inning and struggled with command, giving up an infield single to Victor Scott II before issuing a pair of walks. He struck out Willson Contreras before manager Rocco Baldelli replaced him with Justin Topa after 24 pitches. Brendan Donovan hit a sac fly for the final margin while Topa got the final outs of the frame.

The Twins and Cardinals meet for the finale of their three-game series at 1:15 p.m. on Sunday in St. Louis.

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Nolan O'Hara
NOLAN O'HARA

Nolan O'Hara covers all things Minnesota sports, primarily the Timberwolves, for Bring Me The News and Sports Illustrated's On SI network. He previously worked as a copy editor at the St. Paul Pioneer Press and is a graduate of the University of Minnesota's Hubbard School of Journalism. His work has appeared in the Pioneer Press, Ratchet & Wrench magazine, the Minnesota Daily and a number of local newspapers in Minnesota, among other publications.

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