Pablo López flashed his strikeout stuff, displayed some rust and navigated a scare during his first Minor League rehab start on Thursday.
Making his way back from a muscle strain in his right shoulder , López allowed four hits and one run in 1 2/3 innings for Triple-A St. Paul. He walked one and struck out two.
López, who last pitched June 3 against the Athletics, was slated to throw three innings or 45 pitches Thursday, whichever came first. That turned out to be the pitch count: After throwing 32 pitches in the first inning, López was pulled after allowing a two-out single in the second on his 45th pitch of the night.
The right-hander averaged 94.1 mph on 22 four-seamers and sinkers, right in line with his 94.4 mph average fastball velocity in the Major Leagues. He struck out the