Minnesota Twins Recap at Cleveland – 8-26-2020

Posted on August 26, 2020 by Robb

The Minnesota Twins sent RHP Jose Berrios to the mound after his 1-hit, scoreless start the last time out. He tried to keep that momentum going to help the Twins win the series in the Rubber Game tonight. Did he lower his 4.75 ERA (Earned Run Average) and 1.38 WHIP (Walks + Hits per Inning Pitched)?

The Cleveland Indians sent RHP Mike Clevinger to the mound to make his first start since being sent to their Alternate Training Site for breaking COVID-19 team protocols along with RHP Zach Plesac. He actually hasn’t made a start since August 5th.

Here’s how they line up:
Twins Lineup:
RF Max Kepler
SS Jorge Polanco
DH Nelson Cruz
LF Eddie Rosario
3B Marwin Gonzalez
2B Luis Arraez
1B Miguel Sano
CF LaMonte Wade, Jr.
C Alex Avila

Royals lineup:
2B Cesar Hernandez
3B Jose Ramirez
SS Francisco Lindor
1B Carlos Santana
DH Franmil Reyes
RF Tyler Naquin
LF Greg Allen
C Roberto Perez
CF Deline DeShields

The red-hot Chicago White Sox, who are 9-1 in their last 10 games, are now just 1 game behind the Twins for the lead in the American League Central with a record of 19-12. Cleveland is just a half-game back at 18-12 before tonight’s game so this is a pretty big game & I guess we have to say we’re in the stretch run since we’re down to 29 games remaining in this short 60-game season.

The Twins scored 4 runs on 6 hits (including 2 HRs) in 4 innings on July 31st in their last matchup against Clevinger. He also walked 5 batters while striking out 5 as well.

Max Kepler led off the game by hitting an 0-2 pitch right down the middle out to right center field to put the Twins up 1-0 in the 1st. Polanco walked but Nelson Cruz grounded into a 5-4-3 double play. Rosario & Marwin singled but on Marwin’s single, Rosario jogged into 2nd then tried to get to 3rd when the right fielder lobbed a soft throw into 2nd but he was thrown out at 3rd to end the inning! 1-0 Twins

Twins starter RHP Jose Berrios walked leadoff hitter Cesar Hernandez on 4 pitches then got Ramirez to pop out to short. He then picked off Hernandez at 1st base for the 2nd out, walked Carlos Santana. Franmil Reyes then sent a fly ball to the wall in right field but Max Kepler leaped and caught the ball right before it hit the wall. Max gave the Twins a 1-0 lead then protected that 1-0 lead. Nice inning, Max!

In the top of the 2nd, Luis Arraez lined out to left to lead off the inning then Miguel Sano hit his 11th double of the season to left center field. Sano’s double was his 17th XBH over 23 hits in 28 games and 11 of those 17 (9 doubles, 2 HRs) have come in the last 10 games. LaMonte Wade, Jr hit a broken-bat single to score Sano from 2nd and double the Twins lead. Alex Avila then struck out swinging for the 2nd out and while Max Kepler was at the plate, Wade was picked off at 1st base to end the top of the 2nd. 2-0 Twins

During Kepler’s at-bat, he was hit on the top of the foot and it was bad enough for him to have to come out of the game so Jake Cave came into the game to replace him and play center field which then moved Wade from center field to right field. Berrios then set Cleveland down 1-2-3 on 3 fly ball outs to right field and center field (2).

Cave then led off the top of the 3rd reached on a fielding error by Jose Ramirez on a hard liner that he looked to have but it came out of his glove. Polanco grounded into a force out back to the pitcher. Cave out at 2nd. Cruz struck out swinging and Rosie flew out to left center field to 3nd the top of the 3rd.

Berrios started the 3rd with 30 pitches thrown and 17 strikes. DeShields led off the inning with a single past the shortstop into left field. He then stole 2nd even though he was called out and Cleveland had to challenge the call. Hernandez walked and then Jose Ramirez hit his 6th HR of the season just fair & just out down the right field line. Berrios then sat the next 3 batters down on 2 groundouts and a strikeout. 3-2 Cleveland

In the 4th, the Twins got a 1-out single from Luis Arraez in the 4th but did nothing with it. Berrios then allowed a leadoff single but struck out the side swinging on a different pitch on each one of them (curveball, changeup & fastball.).

In the 5th, same thing as the 4th but Cave instead of Arraez. Berrios allowed a 2-out double to Lindor and threw a wild pitch but got Santana to strike out swinging to end the 5th. Still 3-2 Cleveland

In the 6th, it was a 2-out single from Arraez that was followed by nothing. Berrios began the 6th and allowed a leadoff single but induced a 4-6-3 double play to empty the bases. Greg Allen hit a double & Perez walked so Rocco Baldelli brought in RHP Tyler Clippard, who took a comebacker off the right elbow on Sunday but ended up getting the Win, took over and struck out Delino DeShields to end the 6th.

In the top of the 7th, Twins UTIL Ehire Adrianza pinch-hit (PH) for LaMonte Wade, Jr and doubled (2) on the 1st pitch he saw off the left center field wall. He advanced to 3rd on an Alex Avila flyout to right field then scored to tie the game on a Jake Cave bloop RBI-single. Cleveland made a pitching change to RHP Phil Maton and he got Polanco to line into a 5-4-3 double play to end the top of the 7th. 3-3 Tie

Adrianza stayed in the game, playing 3B so Marwin Gonzalez moved to RF to take over for Wade. RHP Tyler Duffey took over for Clippard and he set down the top of the Cleveland order with a Hernandez popout to 3rd (on a great catch running back on the ball by Adrianza), a swinging strikeout of Jose Ramirez and a strikeout of Francisco Lindor on a foul tip.

The Twins went down 1-2-3 on a Cruz flyout to left field, a Eddie Rosario swinging strikeout on 3 pitches and a Marwin Gonzalez flyout to right field. Opponent’s Enemy #1, RHP Sergio Romo came in to pitch the 8th for the Twins and he gave up a leadoff single to Carlos Santana then walked Franmil Reyes to put 2 on in a big spot. Rocco came out for a Mound Visit to likely talk about the chance for a bunt from Naquin but he doubled (5) on a line drive down the left field line to scores Santana and advance Reyes to 3rd. Greg Allen then hit a sacrifice fly to score Reyes from 3rd and Rocco made a Pitching Change to LHP Danny Coulombe. He got DeShields to flyout for the 2nd out but he gave up an RBI-single to Cesar Hernandez and a Jose Ramirez walk before getting Lindor to strikeout to end the 8th but…DAMAGE DONE! 6-3 Cleveland

Cleveland closer LHP Brad Hand came in and set the Twins down in order to end the game. Arraez flew out to deep left center field. Sano popped out to short & Adrianza lined out to center.

The Good: Jose Berrios seemed to get some confidence back after giving up the 3-Run HR that changed the game from 2-0 Twins to 3-2 Cleveland. After that hit, he went 3.2 innings allowing no runs on just 3 hits & 2 walks while striking out 6. We’ll see what this means for his next start. He also had to be taken out with 2 outs in the 6th.

The Bad: The bullpen lost the game for the 2nd consecutive game. Sergio Romo didn’t have it tonight but that’s going to happen to every reliever.

The Ugly: Max Kepler was injured and had to leave the game after fouling a ball off the top of his foot in the top of the 2nd. Another injury. UGHH-ly! We’ll see how big of a deal this is by tomorrow.

The Twins will now head to Detroit for the 1st of 10 games in the last 28 games, starting with a 4-game series in Detroit before they come to MN next week for 4.

The Twins will send RHP Randy Dobnak (5-1, 1.78 ERA, 1.02 WHIP) to the mound against the Detroit Tigers LHP Matthew Boyd (0-4, 8.78 ERA, 1.74 WHIP) at 6:10pm on Fox Sports North.

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Minnesota Twins Recap at Cleveland – 8-24-2020

Posted on August 24, 2020 by Robb

The Minnesota Twins sent RHP Kenta Maeda to the Ma-ound-a once again tonight. He’s coming off 8 innings of no-hit, scoreless ball against the Brewers in his last start so it should be interesting to see how he does tonight since he did throw 115 pitches last time out. Will he be on a lower limit because of that?

Cleveland sent RHP Aaron Civale to the mound with his 3-2 record, a 2.91 ERA (Earned Run Average) and a 0.97 WHIP (Walks + Hits per Inning Pitched)

In some good news on the injury front from Twins beat reporter, Do Hyoung Park:
“Rocco said that Tyler Clippard showed up today in “about as good of shape, and I think spirits as well, as we could have ever asked.” Clippard told staff he thinks he could pitch “in the very near future.”No IL move yet. Rocco said they’ll evaluate today/tmrw then make a call.”

Here’s how they lined up:
Twins Lineup:
RF Max Kepler
SS Jorge Polanco
DH Nelson Cruz
LF Eddie Rosario
1B Miguel Sano
CF Jake Cave
3B Marwin Gonzalez
2B Luis Arraez
C Alex Avila

Cleveland lineup:
2B Cesar Hernandez
3B Jose Ramirez
SS Francisco Lindor
1B Carlos Santana
DH Franmil Reyes
RF Tyler Naquin
LF Mike Freeman
C Roberto Perez
CF Greg Allen

If you’re playing Cleveland, it seems almost any game can turn into a pitching duel and this one ended 3-2 so it was mostly about pitching. All but 1 run was scored on a home run, too.

Max Kepler hit the first pitch of the game to left field for a single and Jorge Polanco hit the first pitch he saw, too, but his ball landed in the glove of center fielder Greg Allen for the 1st out. Nelson Cruz struck out swinging for the 2nd out then Eddie Rosario hit a blooper to short left field and LF Mike Freeman called for it then dropped it so Max Kepler advanced to 3rd but Rosario was only at first after the play. He ended up stealing 2nd base but Miguel Sano struck out swinging to end the half-inning.

Cleveland 2B Cesar Hernandez led off the bottom of the 1st with his 2nd HR of the season and the Indians led 1-0. Maeda got a couple of groundouts & a strikeout while allowing another hit (1B to Santana) to get out of the 1st. 1-0 Cleveland

The Twins went down 1-2-3 in the 2nd. Cleveland got a leadoff single then a strikeout, a caught stealing and a popout ended the 2nd inning. The Twins went down 1-2-3 in the 3rd, too. Cleveland got a Hernandez 1-out double and a Francisco Lindor 2-out walk wrapped around a groundout and 2 strikeouts from Maeda.

In the top of the 4th, Nelson Cruz lead off the inning with his 11th HR of the season, a solo shot to right-center field as he continues to amaze. Rosario walked afterward but Sano grounded into a fielder’s choice. Jake Cave lined out and Marwin Gonzalez struck out swinging. Cleveland got a 2-out single & a batter reaching on an error by Polanco after Maeda struck out the 1st 2 batters but Maeda got Greg Allen to ground out to end the 4th. 1-1 Tie

Home Run Number 11 for Nelson Cruz! Amazing!

Luis Arraez led off the top of the 5th with a single and Jorge Polanco hit a 2-out double(4) that took a perfect relay play to cut down Arraez at home plate to end the top of the 5th. Kenta Maeda then had his 1st 1-2-3 inning in the 5th to finish his night: 5IP 5H 1R/ER 1BB 7K. That’s a pretty impressive start. He threw just 83 pitches which gets him back on that 100-pitch per game pace you almost always expect for starting pitchers.

In the top of the 6th, Rosario hit a 1-out double (4) then Miguel Sano stayed hot by hitting his 6th HR of the season to put the Twins up 3-1. 

Sanome Run! It’s Sanoing in Cleveland!

That’s an extra-base hit in 8 consecutive games for Miguel Sano. That ties him for 3rd for the longest XBH streak in Minnesota Twins history. Stat courtesy of Matthew Taylor on Twitter:

LHP Caleb Thielbar came in to pitch the 6th for the Twins and he allowed a leadoff single to Carlos Santana then struck out both Franmil Reyes & Tyler Naquin swinging. He allowed another single to pinch-hitter Jordan Luplow but struck out Roberto Perez swinging to end the 6th inning. 3-1 Twins

The Twins had one hit in the last 3 innings, a 1-out Max Kepler single in the 7th which was erased by a double play. Cleveland hit 3 singles of Twins RHP Trevor May in the bottom of the 7th to get within one run but May got Franmil Reyes to strike out swinging on a nasty slider on a full count with runners on 1st & 3rd. 3-2 Twins

RHP Sergio Romo came in to pitch the 8th for the Twins and he allowed a leadoff double to Tyler Naquin but got a groundout to short that forced Naquin to stay at 2nd base then got a flyout to left field that also kept Naquin at 2nd base and ended the inning with a strikeout on a low inside slider that Greg Allen swung over and after the strikeout, Romo looked at the Cleveland bench and chirps back at them after they apparently chirped him when he went to backup 3rd after the double or on the flyout to left field. 3-2 Twins

As Minnesota Twins fans saw last season when they acquired Sergio, he is a player who shows his emotions and enthusiasm for the game. I don’t remember that being an issue last season. Is that because he can now hear all the trash-talking because there are no fans in the ballparks or because this season’s limited schedule has teams playing fewer opponents in a shorter amount of time that’s causing him to talk back to them. The same thing happened in the last week or two against the Kansas City Royals.

RHP Taylor Rogers came in to pitch the 9th for the Minnesota Twins and some fans wonder why Rocco keeps going to him. The easy answer is that he trusts him. He’s his closer and he still believes he’s their best pitcher in closing situations. Just because a pitcher struggles doesn’t mean he’s not doing well. There have been a lot of weakly hit singles against Taylor Rogers so far this season. It’s also a lot different being the Man who closes out a game than being a setup man who pitches in the 7th or 8th. It’s a mental toughness that keeps a pitcher going. That’s why when a pitcher blows a save, the thing they want the most is to get right back out there in that same situation.

So…Rogers threw 4 straight fastballs to Cesar Hernandez before he threw that nasty inside slider to get him to strikeout swinging. He then got Jose Ramirez to pop out to 2nd for the 2nd out. Francisco Lindor singled on one of those just-make-contact, end-of-the-bat hits we talked about above but Taylor got Carlos Santana to flyout to right field to end the game for Rogers 7th save of the season.

Rocco on his bullpen usage as he’s needed to use RHPs Jorge Alcala & Sean Poppen & LHP Caleb Thielbar in some big spots in the last handful of games.

#MNTwins 3, #OurTribe2 | F
W-Maeda(4-0) L-Civale(3-3) S-Rogers(7)
H-Thielbar(1) May(6) Romo(8)

Maeda: 5IP 5H 1R/ER 1BB 7K 1HR 1 WIN

#MNBP: 4IP 7H 1R/ER 0BB 7K 1 Save 3 Holds
Thielbar:1IP 2H 3K
May:1IP 3H 1R/ER 2K
Romo/Rogers:1IP 1H 1K

HR:
MN:Cruz(11) Sano(6); CLE:Hernandez(2)

2B:
MN:Rosario(4) Polanco(4); CLE:Hernandez(11) Naquin(3)

Sano: 2-R HR in top of 6
Cruz: HR in top of 4
Rosie: 2B(4), R, BB
Polanco: 2B(4)
Kepler: 2 H
Cave/Arraez: H

Same Teams, Same Time tomorrow:
LHP Rich Hill (1-1, 4.70 ERA, 1.30 WHIP)

vs

RHP Shane Bieber (5-0, 1.11 ERA, 0.76 WHIP)

Game Time: 6:10pm on Fox Sports North

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Minnesota Twins Recap at Royals – 8-23-2020

Posted on August 23, 2020 by Robb

The Minnesota Twins used RHP Matt Wisler (0-1, 1.50 ERA) as an “opener” with the Twins trying to win the rubber game of the series and even the season series at 7 apiece in this final game between the two teams in the 2020 regular season.

Kansas City Roayls LHP Kris Bubic (0-3, 5.12 ERA) will make his 6th start of the season & also his 3rd consecutive start against the Twins.

Here’s how they lined up:
Twins Lineup:
SS Jorge Polanco
RF Max Kepler
DH Nelson Cruz
1B Miguel Sano
LF Eddie Rosario
3B Marwin Gonzalez
2B Ildemaro Vargas
CF Jake Cave
C Alex Avila

Royals lineup:
RF Whit Merrifield
2B Nicky Lopez
1B Hunter Dozier
DH Jorge Soler
3B Maikel Franco
LF Alex Gordon
SS Alberto Mondesi
CF Bubba Starling
C Meibrys Viloria

The Twins jumped out in front in the 1st inning again today. Max Kepler was walked with 1 out and Miguel Sano knocked him in with a 2-out double to left center field, his 9th double of the season and his 7th in his last 7 games. Eddie Rosario then hit and RBI-single to score Sano before Marwin lined out to left field to end the top of the 1st. 1-0 Twins

RHP Matt Wisler allowed a leadoff single to Whit Merrifield before getting Lopez to pop out to 2nd for the 1st out. Merrifield then stole 2nd base and Wisler walked Hunter Dozier but got Jorge Soler to fly out to center field and Maikel Franco to strike out looking to end the 1st.

The Twins got back-to-back 1-out singles from Jake Cave & Ryan Jeffers but Polanco lined out & Kepler grounded out to end the threat in the top of the 2nd. The Royals were then set down 1-2-3 on a popout, a flyout and swinging strike to end Wisler’s outing. Wisle while you work, Matt.

4 consecutive Twins hits that culminated with 2 runs on a Marwin Gonzalez double down the left field line double the Twins lead to 4-0. LHP Devin Smeltzer then took the ball for the Twins for the 3rd inning and he hit the 1st batter he faced then got Merrifield to line out and Lopez to pop out but gave up back-to-back RBI-doubles to Dozier & Soler before getting Franco to strike out looking to end the 3rd inning. 4-2 Twins

A 4th-inning leadoff double from Polanco & a 1-out intentional walk to Nelson Cruz ends with Miguel Sano grounding into an inning-ending 5-4-3 double play. Smeltzer pitched the 4th and Alberto Mondesi reached on an 1-out error when a popup behind 1st was “caught” by Ildemaro Vargas but he bumped into Sano and the ball fell to the ground turning it from a catch to an error. 

Here’s the catch rule if you didn’t know it:

Thoughts on this Rule? I don’t like it.

I can understand this rule before replay but to me, if you watch the play, you clearly see Vargas caught the ball. He turns his glove over with the ball in it then bumps into Sano and the ball falls out. Should Major League Baseball amend this rule especially since they have replay now?

Smeltzer got Bubba Starling to ground out for the 2nd out then gave up a single to Viloria so Wes Johnson made a Mound Visit and that helped Devin Smeltzer got Merrifield to ground into a fielder’s choice to end the inning.

The Twins got back-to-back singles to leadoff the 5th but Vargas grounded into a 6-4-3 double play and Cave struck out swinging to leave them on base. RHP Trevor May took over for the Twins on the mound for the 5th. He struck out Lopez swinging, allowed a Dozier single to left field then got a popout, walked Franco but got Gordon to ground out to short to end the 5th.

Twins RHP Sean Poppen came into the game to begin the 6th and he went 1-2-3 on 10 pitches so he was asked to keep pitching in the 7th after the Twins left 2 more baserunners on in the top of the 7th. Poppen got Merrifield to line out to right field then struck out Lopez looking but gave up a line-drive single to right field to Dozier so Rocco went to RHP Sergio Romo to get the Twins out of the 7th. He began by walking Soler then gave up an RBI-single to Franco that deflected off the top of Marwin Gonzalez’ glove. Franco stole 2nd base and Andrew Gordon walked to bring up Alberto Mondesi and he struck out swinging on 3 straight low sliders to end the 7th inning. 4-3 Twins

The Twins went down 1-2-3 in the top of the 8th and Twins RHP Tyler Clippard was brought in to pitch the 8th. He had to face 2 pinch-hitters, Brett Phillips, who struck out looking, and Ryan McBroom, who struck out swinging. He then got Whit Merrifield to line out on a comebacker that deflected off Clippard’s right elbow over towards 1st where 1B Miguel Sano picked it up and tagged Merrifield to end the 8th. Clippard walked off in considerable pain.

Royals RHP Trevor Rosenthal entered the game to pitch the 9th and he struck out Kepler looking to lead off the top of the 9th. That brought up DH Nelson Cruz and he hit a 1-2 99.7mph fastball on the outer middle of the zone deep to center field for his 10th HR of the season and it gave the Twins their 2-run lead back.

Cruz Missile Launched to Center Field! BOOM!

Sano then hit his 2nd double of the game (10th of the season) and Marwin earned a 2-out walk but they were both left on base. 5-3 Twins

LHP Taylor Rogers was brought in to close out the game and Ehire Adrianza came in to replace Sano and to play 3B so Marwin moved from 3B to 1B. Rogers got Lopez to strike out swinging for the 1st out but then gave up a double to Hunter Dozier, his 2nd of the game and the season, to bring the tying run to the plate. Soler grounded out to 3rd for the 2nd out then Maikel Franco hit an RBI-single to cut their 2-run deficit in half. Another Mound Visit from Wes Johnson may have helped Rogers get Andrew Gordon to fly out to left field to end the game.

Stats below:
#MNTwins 5, #AlwaysRoyal 4 | F
W-Clippard(1-0) L-Bubic(0-4) S-Rogers(6)
H-May(5) Poppen(1) Romo(7)

HR:
MN:Cruz(10)
2B:
MN:Sano 2(9,10) Marwin(2) Polanco(3) KC:Dozier 2(1,2) Soler(6)

Wisler: 2IP 1H 0R/ER 1BB 2K
Smeltzer: 2IP 3H 2R/ER 0BB 1K

#MNBP 4IP 5H 1R/ER 3BB 7K
May:1IP 1H 0R/ER 1BB 1K
Poppen:1.2IP 1H 1R/ER 0BB 2K
Romo:0.1IP 1H 0R/ER 2BB 1K
Clippard:1IP 0H 0R/ER 0BB 2K-comebacker off right elbow: injury TBD 
Rogers:1IP 2H 1R/ER 0BB 1K
Cruz:2-3-HR(10) 2BB 2R RBI
Sano:3-4-2 2B(9,10) BB 2R RBI
Rosie:3-5-RBI
Marwin:2H 2B(2) 2RBI BB
Polanco:2B(3)
Kepler:BB, R
Cave/Jeffers:H

The #MNTwins will now fly to CLE for a 3-game series that starts tomorrow:
8/24:
RHP Maeda(3-0,2.27 ERA,0.63 WHIP)

vs

RHP Civale(3-2,2.91 ERA,0.97 WHIP)

at 6:10pm on Fox Sports North & MLB Network!

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Minnesota Twins Recap at Royals – 8-22-2020

Posted on August 23, 2020 by Robb

The Minnesota Twins sent RHP Randy Dobnak to the mound and considering the struggles the Twins have had trying to beat the Kansas City Royals in KC and how well Randy Dobnak has been pitching, maybe he’s the guy to get them over the hump.

The Royals counter with RHP Brady Singer who, as a 24-year-old who had yet to reach AAA ball before this season, might not be pitching in the majors if not for this strange season. He was 1-3 in 5 starts with a 4.56 ERA (Earned Run Average) and a 1.349 WHIP (Walks + Hits per Inning Pitched) but his only win came in a nice start against the Twins back on August 9th when he pitched 5 innings and allowed just 5 hits & 2 runs while walking 2 & striking out 4. This is his 3rd consecutive start against the Twins so it will be interesting to see how it goes and how he pitches for the rest of the season, too.

The Twins made a few #Twinsactions before the game, too:
– RHP Jake Odorizzi to 10-day IL (chest contusion)
– RHP Zack Littell to 10-day IL (right elbow inflammation)
– RHP Homer Bailey transferred to 45-day IL (right biceps tendinitis)
– RHP Sean Poppen recalled
– LHP Danny Coulombe selected

Here’s how they lined up:
Twins Lineup:
RF Max Kepler
SS Jorge Polanco
DH Eddie Rosario
3B Marwin Gonzalez
CF Jake Cave
1B Miguel Sano
2B Luis Arraez
LF LaMonte Wade, Jr.
C Alex Avila

Royals lineup:
CF Whit Merrifield
2B Nicky Lopez
RF Hunter Dozier
DH Jorge Soler
1B Ryan McBroom
3B Maikel Franco
LF Alex Gordon
SS Alberto Mondesi
C Cam Gallagher

The Twins led off the game with 3 straight hits, a double from Max Kepler, a single from Jorge Polanco and then Eddie Rosario, being the Designated Hitter for the day to give Nelson Cruz a day off, took the first pitch he saw out to right center field and, just like that, it was 3-0 Twins.

Randy Dobnak allowed a 1-out single in the 1st but erased it quickly by getting Hunter Dozier to ground into a 6-4-3 inning-ending double play.

In the top of the 2nd, LF LaMonte Wade, Jr led off with a soft liner over the 3B for his 1st double of the season but he was left stranded there after Alex Avila was called out on strikes, Kepler flew out and Polanco grounded out. The Royals got a leadoff walk in the bottom of the 2nd but McBroom lined out and Dobnak once again induced a ground ball for another inning-ending double play, this one went 5-4-3. 3-0 Twins

The Twins went down 1-2-3 in the 3rd and the Royals got back-to-back singles from Andrew Gordon (line-drive to CF) and Alberto Mondesi (bunt) but a popout, a swinging strikeout and a groundout got the Twins out of the inning with no damage done.

In the 4th, Miguel Sano led off with a blast that went 458 feet and hit the Royals Hall of Fame in left field. It had an exit velocity of 115.8mph and a launch angle of 37º! Sano is looking very good since he hit that double to the opposite field on August 17th. In those 6 games, he’s hitting .409/.480/.818 (Average/On-Base%/Slugging%) going 9-22 with 6 doubles & the 1 HR with 4 RBI with 3 walks and 10 strikeouts. 4-0 Twins

In the bottom of the 4th, KC’s Jorge Soler reached on Catcher’s Interference when Soler’s swing hit Alex Avila’s glove with 1 out in the inning already but Dobnak got another inning-ending double play, this one of the 4-3 variety off the bat of Ryan McBroom.

In the 5th, Rosario singled for the only hit from the Twins but the Royals got on the scoreboard when Andrew Gordon took a low changeup out to center field for his 3rd HR of the season. The Royals scored again after back-to-back singles put 2 on and 2B Nicky Lopez doubled to left field. A line-drive comebacker was stabbed by Randy Dobnak to end the inning. 4-2 Twins

A Luis Arraez 2-out single didn’t turn into anything in the 6th but the Royals got 2 baserunners to lead off the bottom of the inning on another Catcher’s Interference with Jorge Soler at the plate & a McBroom single so Minnesota Twins Manager Rocco Baldelli went to his bullpen to bring in RHP Tyler Duffey and he worked his relief magic to get out of the inning with no damage done. He got Maikel Franco to pop out to left field then hit Andrew Gordon with a pitch to load the bases but struck out both Alberto Mondesi & pinch-hitter Ryan O’Hearn swinging with the latter one coming on a check swing that the 3rd base ump called a strike to the dismay of O’Hearn and we never saw a replay for some reason but it looked close live. 4-2 Twins

The Royals brought in RHP Ian Kennedy to pitch the 7th and Twins C Alex Avila led off with a walk and Max Kepler followed him onto the basepaths by taking a pitch to the right foot. Jorge Polanco then laid down a sacrifice bunt to advance both runners after Avila was lifted for pinch-runner Ehire Adrianza. Eddie Rosario was intentionally walked to get to Marwin Gonzalez & he ended up earning a 7-pitch walk to score Adrianza from 3rd. Jake Cave grounded into a force out. Max Kepler out at home for the 2nd out and that brought up the Big Man, Miguel Sano, and he singled up the middle on an 0-2 fastball that he smashed with an exit velocity of 107mph to score both Rosario & Gonzalez. Arraez grounded out to end the half-inning. 7-2 Twins

Rookie C Ryan Jeffers replaced Ehire Adrianza in a defensive substitution & RHP Tyler Clippard took over on the mound for the Twins. CF Whit Merrifield singled to center field but Clippard struck out Lopez, got a groundout from Dozier then struck out Soler to end the inning.

The Twins got a leadoff single from Wade, Jr and a 1-out walk from Kepler but an inning-ending 4-6-3 double play took care of that. Just selected by the Twins after the injuries to Odorizzi & Littell, LHP Danny Coulombe was brought in to pitch the 8th. He struck out McBroom swinging to begin his outing then walked Franco but got a lineout and a fielder’s choice to end the 8th. 7-2 Twins

After the Twins got only a 1-out walk from Marwin in the top of the 9th, Coulombe stayed in to pitch the 9th, too. He allowed a leadoff single to Royals C Meibrys Viloria then got Merrifield to line out and struck out Lopez on a foul tip. Dozier walked so pitching coach Wes Johnson went out to talk to his pitcher and Coulombe got Soler to ground out to end the game.

Nice win from the Twins:
RHP Randy Dobnak: 5IP 8H 2R/ER 1BB 2K 1HR 1 WIN 3 DPs now 5-1 with a 1.78 ERA & a 1.02 WHIP in 2020.

Minnesota Twins Bullpen:
RHP Tyler Duffey: 1IP 0H 0R/ER 0BB 2K 1HBP 1 Hold (8)
RHP Tyler Clippard: 1IP 1H 0R/ER 0BB 2K
LHP Danny Coulombe: 2IP 1H 0R/ER 2BB 2K

HR:
MN: Rosario (7), Sano (5); KC: Gordon (3)
2B:
MN: Kepler (5) Wade (1); KC: Lopez (4)

DH Eddie Rosario: 2-4, 3-R HR(7), 2 R, 1 BB
1B Miguel Sano: 2-5, solo HR(5), 2-R 1B in 7th
3B Marwin Gonzalez: RBI, 2BBs, R
LF LaMonte Wade, Jr.: 2B, 2H
RF Max Kepler: 2B, R, BB, HBP
SS Jorge Polanco: H, R
CF Jake Cave/2B Luis Arraez: H
C Avila: BB
PR Ehire Adrianza: R

On to the rubber game today:
RHP Matt Wisler (0-1, 1.50 ERA) will “open” the game against Royals LHP Kris Bubic (0-3, 5.12) at 1:05pm on Fox Sports North.

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Minnesota Twins Recap at Royals – 8-21-2020

Posted on August 21, 2020 by Robb
RHP Jake Odorizzi made his 3rd start of the season & his 3rd straight start against the Kansas City Royals

The Minnesota Twins sent RHP Jake Odorizzi to the mound for his 3rd start of the season and his 3rd start against the Kansas City Royals, too. That’s pretty crazy, huh? Jake has pitched better in every game as he gets more comfortable and ramps up from starting the season on the Injured List (IL) with a right intercostal strain.

The Royals sent LHP Danny Duffy to the mound and this is his 3rd straight start against Minnesota, too. It is his 6th start of the season, though.

Here’s how they lineup:
Twins Lineup:
3B Marwin Gonzalez
CF Jake Cave
DH Nelson Cruz
1B Miguel Sano
LF Eddie Rosario
2B Ildemaro Vargas
SS Ehire Adrianza
RF Max Kepler
C Ryan Jeffers

Royals lineup:
CF Whit Merrifield
2B Nicky Lopez
RF Hunter Dozier
DH Jorge Soler
1B Ryan O’Hearn
3B Maikel Franco
LF Alex Gordon
SS Alberto Mondesi
C Cam Gallagher

Both pitchers began the game allowing a hit to the first batter. The difference being the Twins got a single from Marwin then Jake Cave struck out and Nelson Cruz hit into an inning-ending 4-6-3 double play. The Royals got a double from Whit Merrifield then Nicky Lopez hit a groundball single past a diving Ildemaro Vargas. Odo got Hunter Dozier to pop up but it was almost directly behind 1st base so Miguel Sano had trouble finding it and Vargas looked like he was there but either didn’t call for it and/or didn’t want to run into the Big Man so the ball fell and Merrifield scored from 3rd. The next batter, Jorge Soler, homered to left field for his 6th HR of the season to make it 4-0 with no outs. Jake got the next 3 batters out to get out of the first but the Twins now had some work to do against Duffy. 4-0 Royals

In the top of the 2nd, Miguel Sano walked to lead it off. Rosario grounded into a force out, beating the throw to 1st and he eventually scored after he advanced to 3rd on an Ildemaro Vargas single to right field then scored on Adrianza’s RBI-groundout to 3rd. 4-1 Royals

Odorizzi started to pitch pretty well after that terrible 1st inning. He allowed a 1-out single that was another fly ball that should’ve been caught but got out of it with a popout and a groundout. The Twins got back-to-back 2-out singles from Jake Cave & Nelson Cruz in the 3rd but Sano struck out to end the inning.

The Royals were set down 1-2-3 via a groundout, a swinging strikeout and a flyout. The Twins got a 2-out walk but nothing else in the 4th. The Royals got a leadoff single from Maikel Franco then Alex Gordon hit a comebacker that hit Jake Odorizzi in the back of his right leg. He tried to stay in the game but ended up leaving the game and RHP Jorge Alcala was brought in to try to get out of trouble. Mondesi bunted past Alcala to load the bases. He got Gallagher to pop up to 2nd for the 1st out but then walked Merrifield to walk in a run but he struck out Lopez & Dozier to limit the damage to just the 1 run.  5-1 Royals

The Twins went down 1-2-3 with another Jeffers strikeout, a Marwin lineout and a Cave flyout. Alcala then cruised through the 5th. He struck out the first 2 batters on 3 pitches each, 1 looking and 1 swinging, then got Franco to pop out to 2nd for a 7-pitch inning.

Top of the 6th…
Sano earned a 1-out walk and Rosario hit a gapper to right center field but it was caught by a diving Hunter Dozier. Vargas then singled off the pitcher’s right leg but Adrianza flew out to left field to end the half-inning.

Alcala struck out Gordon swinging, struck out Mondesi swinging then got a good defensive recovery play by Marwin who had the ball bounce away from him but he quickly got to it, barehanded it and threw out the catcher Gallagher to end the 6th inning. He needed just 12 pitches in that inning.

Top of the 7th…
Kepler lined out to left center. Jeffers struck out swinging for his 3rd strikeout of the game.

We may have seen the worst called pitch of the season in the Jeffers at-bat, though:

We may have seen the worst called pitch of the season in this Ryan Jeffers at-bat, though!
Look at that 4th pitch, the green dot & green means ball! Most of that ball is in the middle of the strike zone! It was a 100mph fastball from Royals RHP Josh Staumont so maybe the ump didn’t see it?

Marwin walked but Cave struck out swinging for the 3rd out to end the top of the 7th.

RHP Zack Littell replaced Jorge Alcala who did his job very well tonight. He pitched 3 innings, allowing just 1 hit & 1 walk while striking out 6. Unfortunately, the 1 walk scored a run. It was an inherited runner so it doesn’t affect his ERA but he’s likely still not happy about it. Littell allowed a Merrifield single then got Lopez to ground into a force out at 2nd but gave up a 2-run HR to first-pitch hitting Hunter Dozier (3) to make it 7-1. Littell then hits Jorge Soler with a pitch and he kind of looked at his right arm after the pitch and he ended up having to leave the game due to an injury.

LHP Caleb Thielbar was brought in to replace Littell and Caleb has been a fun pitcher to watch this season for the Twins. He struck out 1 in ⅔ of an inning. 7-1 Royals

The Twins got a Nelson Cruz walk and another double from Miguel Sano, his 8th of the season and 6th in his last 5 games but Rosario struck out on a weird almost self-defense type swing for the 1st out. Vargas lined out to 1st for the 2nd out. A wild pitch scored Cruz from 3rd and allowed Sano to advance to 3rd but Adrianza struck out swinging on the 9th pitch of his at-bat. 7-2 Royals

RPH Trevor May took care of the 8th on 8 pitches going lineout, popout and groundout and that brought in Royals RHP Scott Barlow to try to close out the game.

Kepler grounded out to 2nd. LaMonte Wade, Jr pinch-hit for Ryan Jeffers and he struck out looking for the 2nd out and Marwin lined out to short to end the game.

#MNTwins 2, #AlwaysRoyal 7 | F
L-Odorizzi (0-1) W-Duffy (2-2)

The Royals are now 4-0 at Kaufman stadium against the Twins and the Twins need to win the next 2 to split the season series.

Randy Dobnak vs Brady Singer tomorrow at 6:05pm

&

TBD vs Kris Bubic on Sunday at 1:05pm

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