MINNEAPOLIS _ The circus came and the circus left, and now it's a question of whether it deserves an encore.
Bartolo Colon, the oldest starting pitcher in Twins history and the object of national curiosity, pitched three shutout innings Tuesday, which probably exceeded his new team's expectations. He cracked in the fourth, though, giving up a run, and crumbled in the fifth, surrendering three more on increasingly hard-hit balls. Colon's Minnesota debut ended with him taking the loss, 6-3.
Colon was picked up last week by the Twins after Atlanta released him and his 8.14 ERA, and he was promised a promotion to the major leagues even after a mediocre tune-up start for Class AAA Rochester. That ERA actually increased to 8.19 by the end of his first night with his 10th major league team, thanks to a Yankees lineup that eventually zeroed in on Colon's repertoire of fastballs ranging from 85-89 mph.
Colon received a warm round of applause as he took the mound in the first inning, and it grew to a roar by the time he struck out star rookie Aaron Judge on an 86-mph fastball that curled into the top of the strike zone. That nine-pitch debut inning was followed by two more easy frames, with only a single in each inning. But two infield hits in the fourth inning _ with a diving Max Kepler catch of Matt Holliday's line drive between them _ set up Chase Headley's two-out single that hinted at the damage to come.
Sure enough, Ronald Torreyes led off the fifth with a single, and Brett Gardner and Gary Sanchez followed with hard-hit doubles into the left-field corner, the second one scoring two runs, tying the score 3-3 and ending Colon's night. Ryan Pressly allowed the last of Colon's four runs on a single by Judge, then two more of his own on a long home run to right-center by Didi Gregorius, the seventh homer allowed by the reliever in 30 innings this season.
The Twins tried to support their new teammate with a couple of early runs, the first scored without benefit of a hit. Yankees starter Luis Cessa loaded the bases with two walks and a hit batter, then walked Robbie Grossman to force in a run.
Two innings later, Miguel Sano connected on a 420-foot home run into the New York bullpen, his first since losing last week's Home Run Derby in Miami to Judge. The Twins also scored in the fourth on a double by Jason Castro and triple by Brian Dozier, but the latter was stranded at third base. In fact, the Twins left runners at third base in four of the first five innings.
The Twins must make a decision on Colon's future with the team, and the circumstances don't get easier if they keep him. Colon's next start would be scheduled for Monday in Dodger Stadium, though with three off days coming up before July ends, they could also choose to use four starting pitchers for much of the next two weeks.
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