Waldrop and Hendricks will make their Twins debuts

MINNEAPOLIS Twins pitcher Liam Hendriks will have one day and two games to soak up his surroundings before making his major league debut Tuesday. Unfortunately for Hendriks, it was a bit of a short notice for his family to get to Target Field from Australia to watch his debut. Hendriks, from Perth, Australia, found out a few days ago that he would be a September call-up for Minnesota. He'll get the start Tuesday night against the Chicago White Sox after spending the season with Double-A New Britain and Triple-A Rochester. "It's amazing. Finding out a couple days ago, it was awesome," Hendriks said Monday. "I had just packed all my stuff on the bus. We had a seven-hour bus trip to Rochester. I had to pull my stuff off the bus, which was kind of nice. I found out I was coming up, so I was pretty excited." Hendriks, a 22-year-old right-hander, was signed by Minnesota as an undrafted free agent in 2007. He pitched in 16 games 15 starts for the Rock Cats this season before getting promoted to Rochester. While pitching for the Red Wings, Hendriks was 4-4 with a 4.56 ERA in nine starts. He tallied 30 strikeouts and just three walks in 49 13 innings pitched. "I just like to throw strikes," Hendriks said. "When you get ahead in the count, you get ahead of the hitters and you get a better chance of getting them out. Just try to get ahead in the count and make them put the ball in play. Hopefully the defense can do their job behind me." With the addition of Hendriks, Minnesota now has two Aussies in the clubhouse, as he joins fellow Perth native and current Twins infielder Luke Hughes. Hendriks said the two knew each other from back home and played both with and against each other in Australia. "I'm from the same area as Luke, so it's definitely nice to have a friendly face on the team," Hendriks said. "That definitely helps. It'll make things a little bit easier, I hope." With Hendriks on the hill Tuesday, the Twins will face veteran right-hander Jake Peavy. Hendriks said he hasn't done much scouting of the Chicago hitters yet, but will have a front-row view from the Minnesota dugout during Monday's doubleheader. "The good thing is he's got a day here, two ball games to watch and kind of make himself a little comfortable, see what goes on on the field and enjoy the scenery and then prepare himself for tomorrow," Twins manager Ron Gardenhire said. "He's done very well through the minor league system here, had a good year this year. See if he can bring it up here and put it out there on the table when he gets out there on the field." Joining Hendriks among the Twins' September call-ups were infielderoutfielder Brian Dinkelman and pitcher Kyle Waldrop. Dinkelman spent part of the 2011 season with the Twins, playing in six games in June. He was in Minnesota's lineup for the first game of Monday's double-header, batting seventh and playing second base. Waldrop, meanwhile, was called up to the majors for the first time in his career. He was Minnesota's first-round pick (25th overall) in the 2004 draft. The 2011 season was his second with Triple-A Rochester, and he was 5-5 with a 3.87 ERA in 56 relief appearances. "He's a big kid with an angle," Gardenhire said of the 6-foot-5 Waldrop. "He's not an overpowering pitcher, but he's got a hard ball, a heavy ball, as they say, sinker and a breaking ball." "That's what I try to do," said Waldrop. "I don't try to blow hitters away. I just try to go out there and compete, attack hitters and just let the movement of the fastball do work." The Twins liked Waldrop out of spring training, but he ended up with Rochester for the entire season. Now, he'll have a chance to showcase his talent at the major league level in September. "I thought that I was able to make an impact here. But the way things were going, I was struggling," Waldrop said. "It was frustrating, but I believe in myself. I never lost faith that I could make it. I knew the opportunity was going to have to be right and I would have to earn it. I just want to go out there and give myself an opportunity."