"More than once, television cameras caught the Twins' grumbling, captured their scowling, their eye rolls and the choice words peppered among the raindrops on a chilly, damp New England night. There was Nick Punto, on his hands and knees in slack-jawed disbelief after being called out on Clay Buchholz's third throw to first base — replays appeared to show Punto was safe — ending the third inning of Minnesota's 3-2 loss to the Red Sox on Wednesday night. There was Justin Morneau, not hiding his anger after a couple of called strikes in the fourth inning, walking away slowly as he directed disapproving sentiments toward home plate umpire Mike Winters. And there was even Jim Thome, the most polite man in baseball, with that ah-come-on look during a called strikeout in the eighth. Buchholz beat the Twins. He pitched into the ninth inning, gave up just two runs and only five hits, but the measured responses, the careful, diplomatic answers in the visitors' clubhouse after the game suggested that Winters and the umpire crew had a hand in this loss as well. "Each game you have to make adjustments," Morneau said. "(Buchholz) threw the ball well. He executed, he hit his spots, and we didn't adjust to it, and he pitched into the ninth inning and that's it." But that wasn't really it. Twins manager Ron Gardenhire, asked about the scouting report on Buchholz before the game, subtly pointed out that the right-hander had been issuing "a few" walks recently. In his two starts prior to Wednesday, Buchholz walked 10 batters in 11 1/3 innings. Wednesday, he walked only one. The Twins' postgame reactions were purposefully understated, steering clear of fines and possible repercussions in tonight's game. Their in-game reactions, though, were undeniable. Asked specifically about his reaction after his second called strikeout of the game in the fourth inning, one that came with Joe Mauer on third and one out, Morneau said: "I can't say anything because if I say anything then I get in trouble. I don't know, it's one of those things, you have to be ready to hit. In that situation you just have to be ready, a runner on third, I'm just trying to get him in. I have to foul them off or do whatever I can to keep the at-bat alive and obviously you have to be able to make adjustments." With an unpredictable strike zone working in his favor, Buchholz breezed through the Twins' lineup, facing the minimum number of hitters in six of his eight innings while tying his season high for innings pitched. He gave up two runs on just five hits and erased three of his base runners on two double plays and that Punto pickoff. He pitched to one hitter in the ninth, but after Denard Span, who had two of Minnesota's six hits, singled to start the final inning, Buchholz's night was over. " http://www.twincities.com/twins/ci_15121181
