Twins unimpressed with Orioles rookie Sisco bunting while down 7-0

A phenomenal performance from Minnesota Twins starter Jose Berrios is being overshadowed by Baltimore Orioles rookie catcher Chance Sisco's decision to lay down a bunt with his team down 7-0 late.

"I don't care if he's bunting," Berrios told Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com postgame. "I just know it's not good for baseball in that situation. That's it."

Berrios entered the ninth inning with a chance to throw a Maddux (a complete-game shutout in fewer than 100 pitches). That was until he ran into Sisco, who, after reading the strong defensive shift, opted to bunt toward the left side of the field, earning himself a hit. It appeared to throw Berrios off his game, if only briefly, as the right-hander would walk Chris Davis and give up a single to Manny Machado. He would escape the jam, but not before eclipsing the 100-pitch mark.

Sisco defended the bunt, insisting that if a team is going to play the shift, a hitter should be able to take advantage of the opportunity.

"They were playing the shift right there, so they kind of gave it to me," Sisco told Jon Meoli of The Baltimore Sun. "If they're going to shift, I have to take it right there in that spot. We got bases loaded right after that. We're a couple home runs away from tying the game - bases loaded, (Adam Jones) or (Jonathan Schoop) hits a home run right there? We're a couple runs away from being back in that game."

Twins second baseman Brian Dozier and outfielder Eddie Rosario, however, echoed Berrios' sentiments.

"Obviously, we're not a fan of it. He's a young kid. I could've said something at second base, but they have tremendous veteran leadership over there with Chris Davis, Adam Jones, and those guys," Dozier said. "I'm sure they'll address it and move forward. It's all about learning up here."

The Twins aren't the first team to recently chastise an opposing player for bunting. Late in 2017, New York Yankees veteran CC Sabathia ripped Boston Red Sox utility man Eduardo Nunez for bunting for a hit in the first inning, saying he gets "(mad) when people bunt, period" and that "if my son bunts on me, I'm going to cuss him out."

Nunez maintained that as a small-ball player, he'll do what's needed to find success.

"I don't hit 40 homers," he said at the time. "I don't know what he expects me to do. Next time, he'll have to be ready, because I want to keep bunting. He'll have to work on bunting. If he doesn't like it, he'll have to work on it. Do early work."

The Twins and Orioles will meet again in a four-game series starting July 5.