Twins hammer Thomas Harrington in 2nd, hand Pirates 5th consecutive loss in spring finale

The Pittsburgh Pirates gave Thomas Harrington the final start of spring training, even though they had decided that the 23-year-old right-hander wasn’t going to make their Opening Day roster.

Harrington made quick work of the Minnesota Twins in an 11-pitch first inning, sandwiching strikeouts of Matt Wallner and Byron Buxton around a Carlos Correa fly out.

The Twins punched back in a four-run second inning on their way to a 5-1 win over the Pirates in the Grapefruit League finale Monday afternoon at Hammond Stadium in Fort Myers, Fla.

The Pirates were outscored 18-5 in losing their final five games to finish Grapefruit League play with a 14-15 record. They open the regular season Thursday at the Miami Marlins.

Harrington gave up four consecutive hits in the second. Ryan Jeffers hit a one-out single to center, and Jose Miranda doubled to left before Edouard Julien sent a 1-0 fastball over the left-field fence for a three-run homer. Ty France followed with a double to right, prompting the Pirates to pull Harrington.

Jack Carey got Harrison Bader to fly out but hit Matt Wallner with a pitch, then gave up an RBI single to Correa that scored France for a 4-0 Twins lead.

The Pirates answered in the top of the third, as Ji Hwan Bae drew a one-out walk then advanced to second and third on a pair of wild pitches by Twins right-hander Bailey Ober. Bryan Reynolds, who went 2 for 2 with a double, hit a two-out RBI single to right to score Bae to cut the score to 4-1. Bae finished the spring batting .381 (16 for 42).

Harrington returned for the third and allowed four runs on five hits without a walk and two strikeouts, throwing 32 of 49 pitches for strikes in three innings.

In the fifth, Buxton hit David Bednar’s first-pitch 94.7-mph elevated fastball to left-center for a solo home run to give the Twins a 5-1 lead.

Note: The Pirates reassigned right-­handed pitchers Harrington, Carson Fulmer, Burch Smith and Tanner Rainey and outfielder/first baseman DJ Stewart to minor league camp.