Chris Paddack joined an unfortunate club in Twins' blowout loss Friday

It's been a weird season for Twins starting pitcher Chris Paddack. He allowed nine earned runs in his season debut against the White Sox at the end of March, had a sparkling 2.51 ERA over his next 12 starts, and then allowed nine more runs (eight of them earned) in Friday night's loss to the Astros. The sum result is a subpar 4.30 ERA for the season so far.

In surrendering at least nine runs for the second time this season, Paddack joined an unfortunate club, as noted by The Athletic's Aaron Gleeman. He's just the sixth Twins pitcher ever to get tagged for 9+ runs multiple times in one season, joining Steve Carlton (1987), Kevin Tapani (1993), Eric Milton (2002), Matt Shoemaker (2021), and J.A. Happ (2021). No Twins pitcher has ever given up nine or more runs three times in one season.

Paddack ran into immediate trouble in Friday's series opener in Houston. He gave up hits to the first two batters he faced and then gave up a pair of two-out singles as the Astros went up 3-0. Houston tacked on two more runs (one unearned) in the second on a two-run double from Jose Altuve, then added three more on a two-run triple and a sacrifice fly in the third. Paddack allowed a ninth run on a leadoff Altuve homer in the fourth. He finished his day having given up 12 hits and a walk in just four innings. The Twins lost 10-3.

Minnesota's entire starting rotation has been a mess lately. Bailey Ober's season mirrors Paddack's; he was shelled in his 2025 debut, had a 2.43 ERA over his next 11 starts, and has now given up 12 earned runs in 11.2 innings in his two most recent outings. Joe Ryan and Pablo Lopez have been excellent, but Lopez went on the IL after his start on June 3 and is expected to be out until at least mid-August. Young starters Zebby Matthews (currently also on the IL), David Festa, and Simeon Woods Richardson have mostly struggled.

Since Lopez hit the IL, Twins starting pitchers have an 8.02 ERA in a nine-game stretch where the team has gone 3-6, allowing double-digit runs in four of those losses. The next-worst team by SP ERA during that span is the Rockies, who are at 5.77.

The Twins hope Ryan, their currently healthy ace, can stop the bleeding in Saturday afternoon's game against the Astros (3:10 p.m. CT).