HOUSTON -- The Twins had trouble in the first inning again in their second time employing the "opener" strategy, but after Trevor May's struggles in the first, Houston native Kohl Stewart turned in the best outing of his young career in his role as the primary pitcher.
May, starting for the first time since Aug. 14, 2015, gave up four runs in the opening frame and the Twins couldn't recover despite five scoreless innings from Stewart in a 5-2 loss to the Astros on Tuesday night at Minute Maid Park. Minnesota will continue to use the strategy with its young pitchers this month, but Stewart could pitch his way into a more traditional starting role.