FORT MYERS, Fla. — Right-hander Jarred Cosart, competing for a spot in the Marlins rotation, went two scoreless innings and Twins newcomer Byung Ho Park hit his third home run of the spring as Miami beat Minnesota 6-5 on Friday.

Cosart gave up one hit and one walk with one strikeout.

“He was good,” said Marlins manager Don Mattingly. “He threw a good two innings. Just about getting his process going. Get him out there. I know they’ve been working with him on keeping that front side flying open on his delivery, so he did a good job with that.”

Right-hander Kyle Gibson, projected as the Twins’ No. 3 starter, went two innings, giving up two runs on four hits and three walks with a strikeout.

“Gibson was OK for me,” said Twins manager Paul Molitor. “He got a lot of balls on the ground. … Lot of just-misses and probably too many 1-0 counts for him. But everything else was fine as far as using his pitches, changeup, slider. Just got his pitch count up there fairly rapidly with the base runners and deep counts.”

Right fielder Miguel Sano was on base three times with a single, a run-scoring double and a walk.

Park, who is expected to be the Twins primary DH, played first base in this game and led off the fourth with a home run.

Dee Gordon went 2 for 3 with a walk, a run scored, and an RBI for the Marlins.

 

Starting time

This was Cosart’s first start of the spring. In his only other Grapefruit League appearance, he pitched an inning of relief on March 4 against the Washington Nationals, recording three strikeouts with a hit and a walk.

“I had a lot more adrenaline than I thought I would for a spring training game,” Cosart said. “It’s not a huge park but the crowd kind of is on top of you. So it felt pretty close to a real game. It was good to just get back into the swing of things and get my feet back wet.”

Gibson struggled with fastball command but was satisfied with his outing as he worked to incorporate more off-speed pitches.

“The curveball has actually been a pleasant surprise for me,” he said. “If there’s anything to take away from it, my curveball, changeup and slider were all pretty good today. So if I can get that curveball there, it’ll be a pitch I can use this year.”

 

Trainer’s room

Marlins: Right fielder Giancarlo Stanton, who has not played since March 5 because of a sore right knee, is expected to return to Grapefruit League action Sunday against the Mets.

Third baseman Chris Johnson was a late scratch from Friday’s lineup because of back spasms. He is expected to play Saturday when the Marlins visit the Red Sox.

 

Up next

Left-hander Chris Narveson is scheduled to start Saturday when the Marlins visit the Red Sox in Fort Myers. He will be opposed by left-hander Henry Owens.

Right-hander Phil Hughes gets the start when the Twins travel to Sarasota to face the Orioles. Right-hander Ubaldo Jimenez is scheduled to start for Baltimore.