A Call To Arms: Bullpen Game Turns Into 6-4 Win For Saints

ST. PAUL, MN (April 11, 2025) - David Festa was scheduled to start for the St. Paul Saints on Friday night at CHS Field. Until he wasn’t and instead was called up to start for the Minnesota Twins. That forced the Saints into a bullpen by committee game against the Omaha Storm Chasers. The Saints used every available arm, as five pitchers did the job in a 6-4 win in front of 3,516.

Ryan Jensen got the spot start for the Saints and tossed 1.2 scoreless innings, but hit his pitch count before departing.

The Saints got off to a promising start in the first inning by loading the bases with nobody out on back-to-back singles to right by Luke Keaschall and Brooks Lee. Mike Ford then walked to load the bases. The Saints, however, would get just one run on a double play groundout by Yunior Severino making it 1-0.

Keaschall came through in the third hitting a solo homer to left, his first Triple-A home run, giving the Saints a 2-0 lead.

Gabriel Yanez, who was called up from High-A because the Saints were short on arms, made his Triple-A debut. He retired the first four batters he faced, but ran into trouble in the fourth. Nick Loftin led off with a single to center and Brian O’Keefe walked. Yanez then got the next two hitters before walking three hitters in a row to force in a run and balking in a run tying the game at two. He departed with the bases loaded and two outs for Alex Speas. John Rave lined a two-run single into right putting the Storm Chasers up 4-2.

The Saints didn’t trail for long, tying the game in the bottom of the inning. With one out Jair Camargo lined a single into left-center. He stole second, and then Carson McCusker walked. Anthony Prato made it 4-3 with an RBI single to left-center as McCusker took third. A sacrifice fly from Keaschall tied the game at four. Keaschall went 2-2 wit ha home run, two RBI, and two runs scored.

Speas was absolutely electric. Outside of the single in the fourth, he retired six batters in a row, five on strikeouts, tying a career-high. He went 2.1 shutout innings allowing one hit and striking out five.

Another long ball gave the Saints the lead in the sixth. Armando Alvarez led off with a single to right and with one out McCusker blasted a two-run homer to left, his second of the season, putting the Saints up 6-4.

Richard Lovelady, whom the Twins signed on April 8, made his Saints debut and gave up back-to-back singles with one out in the seventh. He got out of the jam with a double play to end the inning.

The lone reliever left in the Saints bullpen was Kyle Bischoff. After striking out the first batter he faced in the eighth, he walked the next two hitters putting the tying runs on. Bischoff then struck out the next two hitters, ending the inning.

In the ninth, Bischoff struck out the first two hitters and was nearing his pitch count as Rave stepped to the plate. Manager Toby Gardenhire allowed Bischoff to face him, but if Rave reached then Gardenhire would have been forced to put in a position player. Bischoff made that a moot point by getting Rave to fly out to end the game. Bischoff went 2.0 hitless, scoreless innings while walking two and struck out five. He threw a career-high 43 pitches.

The same two teams meet in game five of a six-game series on Saturday afternoon at CHS Field at 2:07 p.m. The Saints send RHP Randy Dobnak (0-0, 0.00) to the mound against Storm Chasers RHP Luinder Avila (0-0, 2.31). The game can be heard on the Saints Broadcast Network, cable access channels in and around the Twins Cities area, MLB.TV, MiLB.TV, and the Bally Live app, and heard on KFAN Plus, 96.7 FM.