YOU CAN SEE HIGHLIGHTS HERE Since the Highlight Package isn’t Ready, Yet!
The Twins have won four games in a row! Can they make it 5?
The Minnesota Twins celebrated & honored the life of Mike Bell tonight at Target Field. Their bench coach lost his battle with cancer in late March. His brother is Reds manager David Bell.
The #MNTwins will then try to make it 5 in a row as they start a 6-game homestand with a 2-game series against the Cincinnati Reds at 7:10pm on @ballysportsnorth!!!
The @Twins will send LHP J.A. Happ (3-3, 6.12 ERA, 1.44 WHIP) to the mound for his 13th start of the season. He’s been hit hard in June (9.00 ERA, 2.00 WHIP) so hopefully, he can pitch better tonight.
He’ll be opposed by RHP Tyler Mahle (7-2, 3.39 ERA, 1.09 WHIP) who has pitched very well in the month of June (3-0, 3.32 ERA, 0.89 WHIP) so we’ll see if the Twins can keep their offense going tonight!
Minnesota Twins Lineup:
Cincinnati Reds Lineup:
Game Recap
Well, it started out pretty rocky for Twins starter J.A. Happ as he allowed a single to the first batter, Jonathan India, but he got Jesse Winker to line out to center field for the 1st out. India then stole 2nd (5) but Happ then got a ground out off the bat of Nick Castellanos & a lineout from Tyler Stephenson to get out of the inning with no damage done. He did need 21 pitches to get through the first, though.
The Twins went down 1-2-3 in the bottom of the 1st on a Luis Arraez flyout, a Byron Buxton groundout and a Trevor Larnach strikeout.
Happ then started the 2nd by allowing a Joey Votto single then walking Eugenio Suarez but he struck out Aristides Aquino, got a flyout from Kyle Farmer then struck out Scott Heineman to get out of the 2nd with no damage, too. This time, it took 25 pitches.
Minnesota Twins DH Nelson Cruz then led off the bottom of the 2nd with his 16th HR of the season, a line drive that left the bat at 117mph and traveled 424 feet at a launch angle of 17º so it went out quick off the Boomstick! Max Kepler then walked and advanced to 3rd on a Jorge Polanco single to right field and scored on an Alex Kirilloff line-drive RBI-single to left center field. A mound visit followed to see if the Reds could settle down their pitcher but he walked Ryan Jeffers. Andrelton Simmons struck out swinging at some high heat but Luis Arraez hit a sacrifice fly to left field to score Polanco. Byron Buxton singled on a ground ball to 3rd to load the bases but Trevor Larnach struck out to end the inning. 3-0 Twins
The top of the 3rd started with the leadoff batter reaching on a walk but it was followed by a 4-6-3 double play and Happ then struck out Nick Castellanos to end the inning and it took only 13 pitches. Nelson Cruz walked to leadoff the bottom of the 3rd but Tyler Mahle struck out the side, getting Kepler, Polanco & Kirilloff all to strike out swinging.
The 4th inning began with another leadoff walk, this time to Tyler Stephenson who then advanced to 2nd on a wild pitch. Happ got Joey Votto to strike out swinging but Eugenio Suarez homered (15) to get the Reds within 1 and then Aquino tied the game with a homer (4) of his own to tie the game at 3.
Kyle Farmer then walked so Minnesota Twins pitching coach Wes Johnson went out to the mound to visit with his pitcher while RHP Luke Farrell started to warm up in the Twins bullpen. The Wes Effect worked as Happ got Heineman to pop out to 3rd and India to ground out to short to end the inning with the game still tied at 3. 3-3 Tie
Reds starter Tyler Mahle started the bottom of the 4th at 73 pitches. He then got a favorable call from the ump to get Ryan Jeffers looking at ball four.
Andrelton Simmons followed with a soft liner to right field to turn the lineup over to Luis Arraez and he lined out to center field then Byron Buxton was hit by a pitch on the top of his left hand but he stayed in the game. Trevor Larnach then struck out to end the inning.
J.A. Happ came out to start the 5th and he got Jesse Winker to ground out to 2nd on a great defensive play by Jorge Polanco. Castellanos then flew out to right field for the 2nd out. Tyler Stephenson walked for the 2nd time & Joey Votto singled to left field so Rocco Baldelli brought in RHP Luke Farrell to face Eugenio Suarez and he got him to line out to right center field to end the inning and keep the game tied.
Nelson Cruz grounded out to 3rd to leadoff the bottom of the 5th then Max Kepler singled on a ground ball to short right field that was dropped by India as he tried to make the exchange to his throwing hand. It’s currently scored as a single but Polanco & Kirilloff grounded out to end the 5th.
Byron Buxton was taken out of the game as Nick Gordon came in to play center field and take over the 2nd spot in the lineup. Hopefully, this is just precautionary & Bux will be back out there tomorrow afternoon.
Farrell came out to start the 6th and he got Aquino to fly out to left field then got Kyle Farmer to strike out swinging. He then struck out Heineman with a nasty yacker!!!
In the bottom of the 6th, Jeffers lined out to right field. Simmons was called out on a borderline pitch but it looked like it barely hit the edge of the zone. Luis Arraez got a 2-out single to right field but Nick Gordon grounded out to short to end the inning. Still Tied at 3
Farrell came out to start the 7th and allowed a leadoff base hit to left field to Jonathan India and he was then pulled for LHP Caleb Thielbar. He got Winker to fly out to right and Castellanos to fly out to left then he picked off India at 1st as he left too early & Kirilloff chased him down to end the top of the 7th so everyone could stretch for the final…hopefully, 2 innings so the Twins don’t have to hit in the 9th.
Trevor Larnach led off the bottom of the 7th with a pop out to left field. A pitching change to RHP Brad Brach was then made to face Nelson Cruz. He got Cruz to hit a grounder up the middle but they got him by a step. Max Kepler then walked and stole 2nd but the Twins needed a challenge to overturn the out call so Polanco came back up to the plate and he flew out to left to end the 7th. DOH!
Caleb Thielbar came out to start the 8th and he got Tyler Stephenson to ground out to short and then struck out Joey Votto looking and Rocco brought in RHP Alex Colomé and he gave up a single to Eugenio Suarez but got Tyler Naquin to ground out to short but it was a shifted short and it was a great defensive play by Andrelton Simmons as he had to run in and make a quick throw while he was lunging to get the ball.
RHP Art Warren replaced Brad Brach to start the bottom of the 8th and Alex Kirilloff got a leadoff single just over the head of the shifted shortstop and, on the play, nobody called time and Minnesota Twins 1st base coach Tommy Watkins noticed so Alex Kirilloff stole 2nd (1). There was a conference between the umpires but since nobody called time, the play stood.
Ryan Jeffers then walked then Andrelton Simmons sacrifice bunted the runners to 2nd & 3rd which made Reds manager David Bell bring in LHP Amir Garrett to face Luis Arraez and Garrett got him looking on a pitch that was off target but in the zone. Josh Donaldson then pinch-hit for Nick Gordon but he was intentionally walked the pinch-run for by Miguel Sanó and Trevor Larnach was up with runners in scoring position & the bases loaded once again. This time he hit a comebacker that went off of Garrett but he was able to get to it & make the throw to 1st to end the inning to keep the game tied. DOH, AGAIN!
Max Kepler moved from right field to center field. Alex Kirilloff moved from 1st base to right field & Miguel Sanó stayed in the game playing 1st base and batting 2nd.
Colomé came out to start the top of the 9th and he got Kyle Farmer to ground out to 3rd. Shogo Akiyama pinch-hit for Scott Heineman so Rocco Baldelli brought in LHP Taylor Rogers and he allowed back-to-back singles to Akiyama with a single to left field and Jonathan India with a single to right field. Akiyama advanced to 3rd but India was thrown out trying to advance to 2nd.* Then Rogers struck out Jesse Winker to end the inning and send it to the Bottom of the 9th!
The Reds brought in RHP Lucas Sims to face Nelson Cruz, Max Kepler & Jorge Polanco. Cruz grounded out to 3rd. Max Kepler singled on a blooper to center field and Polanco singled on a line-drive to right field. Kepler advanced to 3rd on the play and that brought up Alex Kirilloff and a Visit to the Mound which resulted in an intentional walk to Kirilloff so up came Ryan Jeffers and in came the Cincinnati infield with one of the outfielders also coming in. Jeffers walked in his previous plate appearance and he worked the count full but he was called out looking on a borderline pitch that Jeffers wasn’t happy with but it hit the corner on the live feed.**
So…it was up to Simmons with the bases loaded…and he grounded out to 2nd to send it to extras. DOH!!!
RHP Jorge Alcala replaced Taylor Rogers and, of course, there’s a runner at 2nd due to the extra-inning rules and that runner is Mike Freeman who pinch-ran for Jesse Winker. Nick Castellanos then hit an RBI-single to right center field to put the Reds up 4-3. Tyler Stephenson then singled on a soft liner to right center field. Castellanos advanced to 3rd but Alcala got Votto to strike out swinging and then Suarez hit a sacrifice fly to right field to double the Reds lead to 5-3. Tyler Naquin then flew out to center to end the top of the 10th.
The good news is the Twins also started the 10th inning with a runner on 2nd base (Simmons) so with one swing of the bat, they could tie the game. They had Luis Arraez, Miguel Sanó and Trevor Larnach coming to the plate & they had to do it against Reds LHP Sean Doolittle.
Arraez doubled (4) to the left center field wall to get the Twins within one at 5-4. Miguel Sanó made his 1st plate appearance and he swung through 2 heaters but he stayed alive by fouling off 3 pitches and ended up hitting a single on a grounder through the left side to advance Arraez to 3rd. Up to the plate came Trevor Larnach who had already left 8 runners on base so was it redemption time? Sort of! He hit a sacrifice fly to left field to tie the game and bring up Nelson Cruz but not before the Reds made a pitching change to RHP Ryan Hendrix (3-1, 6.30 ERA, 1.60 WHIP). Hendrix had 23 strikeouts but he also had 13 walks and he’d given up 4 home runs.
Nelson Cruz struck out looking at a high inside slider. Max Kepler then came to the plate and he popped out to 2nd to send it to the 11th. DOOOOH!!!
RHP Matt Shoemaker replaced Jorge Alcala to pitch the 11th for the Twins. How will Matty do in this situation?*** He got Kyle Farmer to ground out to short for the 1st out. Akiyama grounded out to 3rd and threw a little up the line but Miguel Sanó made a diving catch to stay on the bag for the 2nd out. India then struck out looking on a low fastball for a nice inning from The ShoemaKer!!!
Hendrix has NOT left the building. He came in to start the 11th for Cincinnati. Max Kepler started at 2nd to start the bottom of the 11th. Polanco popped up to short for the 1st out. Kirilloff was intentionally walked for the 2nd time of the game. Ryan Jeffers was literally about an inch away from winning the game with a…uhh…Walk-Off (Walk-Off Walk? How ‘bout WOW?) but it was called a strike and here we are. What did he do this time? He struck out on a low & away heater for the 2nd out. That brought Simmons back to the plate and he hit a deep fly ball to center field but it was caught to send it to the 12th.
Shoemaker came back out there for the 12th. India started the inning at 2nd base. Mike Freeman grounded out to 1st. India advanced to 3rd. The Twins then brought the infield in to try to prevent the run from scoring then intentionally walked Castellanos to face Tyler Stephenson so they moved back to double-play depth. ShoemaKKer then struck him out on a nasty inside splitter. Joey Votto was up next and he walked on 7 pitches to bring up Eugenio Suarez with the bases loaded. Suarez struck out swinging.
ShoemaKKKer!!!
RHP Heath Hembree replaced Hendrix so Hendrix left the game but probably not the building! Simmons started the inning at 2nd base. Arraez, Sanó & Larnach were due at the plate. Arraez grounded out up the middle, advancing Simmons to 3rd. The Reds brought the infield & 1 outfielder in again (Castellanos) as David Bell brought in a glove for him, too. Sanó WALKED IT OFF with his 14th HR of the season out to left center field and…
THAT…
IS…
FIVE…
IN…
A…
ROW!!!!!
Final
Cincinnati Reds 5, Minnesota Twins 5
W-Shoemaker (3-8) L-Hembree-(1-3)
Pitching:
Happ: 4.2IP 5H 3R/ER 5BB 4K 2HR
Bullpen:
7.2IP 6H 2R 1ER 2BB 8K
RHP Luke Farrell: 1.1IP 1H 2K
LHP Caleb Thielbar: 1.2IP 1K (Kaleb)
RHP Alex Colomé: 0.2IP 1H 1K
LHP Taylor Rogers: 0.2IP 2H 1K
RHP Jorge Alcala: 1IP 2H 2R 1ER 1K
RHP Matt Shoemaker: 2IP 0H 0R/ER 2BB 3K 1 WIN!!!
Hitting:
HR: Cruz (16) Sanó (14)
2B: Arraez (4)
SB: Kepler (6) Kirilloff (1-1st MLB Stolen Base)
Arraez: 2-for-6-2B(4)-2 RBI-R (Game-Tying Run)
Larnach: 0-for-5-8 LOB, Game-Tying Sac Fly in 10th
Cruz-HR (16) BB
Kirilloff-2-for-4-2 IBB, 1st Career SB (Sneaky SB)
Kepler-2-for-4-2BB, R
Polanco-2-for-6-R
Jeffers-0-for-4-2BB
Simmons-1-for-5-2R
Byron Buxton-1-for-2-IF 1B, HBP in left hand (termed a boxer’s fracture so he’ll be out for a while – from Rocco)****
Game Notes
*India overslid 2nd base but that’s just a huge mistake! And/or just a GREAT play by Andrelton Simmons to stay with the play and see if he stayed on the bag! India should probably see that he was going to be pretty easily safe there, right?
**Really…what is a hitter to do there? All hitters, and likely pitchers (& fans as well), want is some kind of consistency, right? So…either both of those are strikes or both of them are balls but it can’t be one of each. We’d love to hear an umpires thoughts on this. As much as we complain about the calls because there are way too many bad ones, we do realize that it isn’t an easy job. So…is there a way to make it easier? Is that robo-umps? We might not know until we get robo-umps.
***A lot of Twins fans will complain that Matt Shoemaker is even still on the roster for the Minnesota Twins but you don’t just give up on a guy. You keep trying to find a spot for him because he has good stuff and maybe he just needs to find the right spot to have success. Nothing’s to say that can’t even be a starter, again. Maybe it’s not in Minnesota but you work to develop players not to give up on them. It takes pitchers time to adjust to a relief role from a starting role. They need time to figure out they can go all out for one inning as a reliever.
It’s crazy to me how quickly fans give up on players and/or managers.
****Man, you gotta feel for Byron Buxton! He took a pitch on the top of his left hand and it’s a Boxer’s Fracture so he’ll be out for a while. What does the guy have to do? Come On, Baseball Gods! You’re doing a disservice to the game not keeping this guy healthy!
Byron Buxton has a boxer's fracture and will miss time.
Rocco Baldelli: "No one should have to deal with what Buck is going through right now...He's the most upstanding, hard working, wonderful teammate and baseball player that you could find." pic.twitter.com/mEvhfwDdHe
— Bally Sports North (@BallySportsNOR) June 22, 2021
Minor-League Scores
NO MINOR-LEAGUE ACTION TONIGHT!
Is that by design? It seems crazy that all 4 Twins Minor-League Affiliates are off on the same day. Well, I checked and none of them have played on Monday this year so it must be by design then, huh?
Thank You for reading our TwinsTakes! We’d love to hear your TwinsTakes!
So, hit us up on Twitter, Instagram and/or Facebook!!!
That’s why it’s…
