Joe Nathan might not go more than one inning
Nathan didn't pitch more than one inning last season for Minnesota, his first year back after missing 2010 due to Tommy John surgery. The last time Nathan pitched at least two innings was 2009, when he threw 53 pitches August 21 in a 5-4 win over Kansas City.
Washington said Nathan isn't limited in what he can do because he's fully recovered from surgery.
It's just a personal preference.
"I don't intend on him doing that very often," Washington said regarding going beyond Nathan's one-inning limit. "I don't have a formula on it but I don't plan on him throwing two innings, that's for sure. There may be a time he may have to get me extra outs, but that's not something planned."
Washington said there will be no difference between how he uses Nathan and how he used last season's younger closer, Neftali Feliz. He says the depth of his bullpen as another reason why Nathan should be one-and-done.
"We should have enough guys so he shouldn't have to go two innings," Washington said. "We got Mike Adams, Koji [Uehara], [Alexi] Ogando, [Scott] Feldman. He shouldn't have to go two innings."
Calvin Watkins
ESPNDallas.com
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Richard Durrett joined ESPNDallas.com in September 2009. He writes about colleges, the Dallas Stars and the Texas Rangers. Richard spent nine years at The Dallas Morning News covering the Rangers, Stars, colleges, motorsports and high schools.
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Tim MacMahon joined ESPNDallas.com in September 2009. Tim covers the Cowboys and Mavericks. He has covered the local sports scene from high schools to colleges to pros during his six-year tenure at The Dallas Morning News. MacMahon is a graduate of UNT.
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UPCOMING GAMES
| W-L | HM | AW | STK | L10 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DET | 23-18 | 13-7 | 10-11 | L1 | |
| TEX | 28-15 | 13-5 | 15-10 | W1 |
| W-L | HM | AW | STK | L10 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DET | 23-18 | 13-7 | 10-11 | L1 | |
| TEX | 28-15 | 13-5 | 15-10 | W1 |
| W-L | HM | AW | STK | L10 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| OAK | 21-22 | 11-10 | 10-12 | W1 | |
| TEX | 28-15 | 13-5 | 15-10 | W1 |
TEAM LEADERS
| WINS LEADER | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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Yu Darvish
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| OTHER LEADERS | ||||||||||||
| BA | I. Kinsler | .302 | ||||||||||
| HR | N. Cruz | 11 | ||||||||||
| RBI | N. Cruz | 33 | ||||||||||
| R | E. Andrus | 27 | ||||||||||
| OPS | M. Moreland | .921 | ||||||||||
| ERA | D. Holland | 2.93 | ||||||||||
| SO | Y. Darvish | 86 | ||||||||||
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