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2023 – The Twins beat the Cubs at Target Field by a score of 11-1 after a 1 hour and 21 minute rain delay. Joe Ryan (6-1) was the starter and winner, pitching 6 shutout innings with four hits allowed, one walk and 10 strikeouts. The 10 strikeouts matched a season-high and fell one short of his career high of 11, done on September 22, 2021 at Wrigley Field. The bats were hot as they pounded away for 13 hits, eight going for extra bases (5 home runs and 3 doubles). The home runs were from Joey Gallo (8), Alex Kirilloff (1, 2), Carlos Correa (6) and Jorge Polanco (3). Through the two Cubs games, the Twins have drawn 62,307 for an average of 31,153. With the 11-1 victory, the Twins have now won two Interleague games in one season by at least 10 runs for the first time, the other was also an 11-1 victory on April 3 at Miami. Cubs starter Hayden Wesneski (2-2) took the loss. Twins starters have thrown an MLB-best 227.1 innings pitched, they have averaged 5.7 innings-per-outing, up from 4.8 in 2022 and have combined to go 15-9, 3.01 ERA (227.1 IP, 76 ER) with 56 walks, 259 strikeouts and a .220 opponent batting average. Box Score
2022 – Friday the 13th turned out to be a good day as the Twins beat the Guardians at Target Field by a score of 12-8, snapping their season-long three-game losing streak. Sonny Gray was the starter but did not factor into the decision, allowing two runs on four hits in 4.1 innings pitched with a season high eight strikeouts. Griffin Jax (3-0) picked up the win in spite of giving up four earned runs over 2.1 innings on 4 hits and 3 walks. The offense recorded 13 hits, including three from Max Kepler. The Twins hit four home runs, one apiece from Byron Buxton (10), Jorge Polanco (4), Gary Sánchez (2) and Royce Lewis (1). Lewis’ homer was a grand slam as he became the second player in club history (since 1961) to hit a grand slam as his first major league home run; the other was Danny Valencia on July 26, 2010 at Kansas City. Byron Buxton hit his seventh career leadoff home run, tying him with Shannon Stewart for sixth-most leadoff homers in club history, he needs four to tie Dan Gladden (12) for fifth. Box Score
2021 – The Twins lost to the White Sox by a score of 4-2, suffering the three-game series sweep, their second of the season. Michael Pineda (2-2) was the starter and loser, allowing three runs on four hits in 5.1 pitched with a season-high seven strikeouts. The White Sox committed three errors, but the Twins offense recorded just five hits, walked five times and struck out 13 times. Max Kepler hit his third home run of the season in the eighth inning. In the three-game series, the Twins totaled 27 hits and struck out 30 times. The Twins went 1-4 in five games on their road trip, going 1-1 in Detroit and 0-3 in Chicago. The Twins now head home to begin a six-game home stand with three versus the A’s this weekend and three versus the White Sox from Monday-Wednesday. The Twins are 6-11 at home this season and 6-12 on the road. Box Score
The Twins also announced Target Field capacity increases, with tickets for remainder of 2021 regular season on-sale beginning Thursday, May 20. Twins to operate Target Field at up to 60 percent capacity for remainder of May and 80 percent in June, before opening to full, 100 percent capacity beginning July 5.
2020 – The Twins are on the road in the Motor City and playing a four-game series with the Detroit Tigers. But as we all know it did not happen. So far all games this season have been postponed/canceled due to COVID-19. We have now missed 43 games.
2019 – The Los Angeles Angels show up at Target Field and beat the Twins 5-4 . The Angels are the first team I have seen since this “shift” business began a few years back that actually try to hit the ball where the fielders are not and it worked. Twins starter Jose Berrios (6-2) didn’t have hit best stuff allowing 12 hits and 3 walks in 5.2 innings and gave up 5 runs and threw 101 pitches earning him his second loss of 2019. The Twins power bats continued hitting the ball out of the park as Jorge Polanco and Marwin Gonzalez each hit one and accounted for two RBI each. The fact that the Twins were 0 for 10 with runners in scoring position didn’t help one bit. Box Score
2018 – Angels starter Shohei Ohtani didn’t come away with the win, but his 11-strikeout effort didn’t go for naught, as Zack Cozart delivered a walk-off single of Twins reliever Zach Duke to lift the Angels to a 2-1 win over the Twins in the afternoon series finale at Angel Stadium. The Twins walk-off loss was their major league-leading sixth walk-off defeat of the season. Fernando Romero was the Twins starter but did not figure into the decision, allowing one run (the first of his major league career) on four hits in five innings pitched. The Twins completed their 10-game 11-day road trip with a 7-3 record. Box Score
2011 – Hall of Famer and legendary Twins slugger Harmon Killebrew, who was diagnosed with esophageal cancer late last year, has decided to enter hospice care. Killebrew said that “I have spent the past decade of my life promoting hospice care and educating people on its benefits. I am very comfortable taking this next step and experiencing the compassionate care that hospice provides. I am comforted by the fact that I am surrounded by my family and friends. I thank you for the outpouring of concern, prayers and encouragement that you have shown me. I look forward to spending my final days in comfort and peace with Nita by my side.”
Friday the 13th was a tough day in Twins Territory all around as the Twins were beaten at Target Field by the Toronto Blue Jays 2-0 but the game of baseball wasn’t as important on the day that the Twins legend announced he was entering hospice care. It was a pitchers duel between Twins pitcher Carl Pavano and Blue Jays starter Ricky Romero but the Blue broke through for a run in the seventh off reliever Alex Burnett and held on for the 2-0 win. Box Score
2010 – No game today, scheduled day off.
1998 – Brad Radke and the Twins beat the Red Sox at the Dome by a score of 7-4 with both teams getting 9 hits apiece. Todd Walker and Terry Steinbach each hit a home run off Bret Saberhagen and pin the first loss of the season on Saberhagen. Box Score
Some off the field action too as St. Paul Saint owner Mike Veeck, already part of an ownership group that wants to buy the Minnesota Twins, will meet with team officials to see if he can strike a deal on his own. Veeck said he wants to know if he can buy a share of the team or all of it. He was to meet with Twins financial advisor Bob Starkey today. Veeck’s late father, Bill Veeck, was one of baseball’s more colorful owners when he had the Chicago White Sox and Cleveland Indians. Twins owner Carl Pohlad has been negotiating a sale of the team to North Carolina business man Don Beaver for months, but prospects for that deal suffered last week when two counties in North Carolina rejected a tax for a new stadium.
1989 – Kirby Puckett of the Minnesota Twins hits four doubles against the Blue Jays at the Metrodome in a 10-8 Twins win and sets a Twins individual game record. Puckett scores once and knocks in three. He became the 35th player to hit four doubles in a game, the first since Toronto’s Damaso Garcia in 1986. Shortstop Greg Gagne hitting ninth had a nice game with his stick going 3 for 4 with a double, 3 RBI and scored twice. Box Score
1980 – With a possible strike looming the Twins jumped on Boston Red Sox rookie lefty Bruce Hurst for four runs in the second inning in sent him to the showers after just 1.1 innings in which he allowed 5 hits, 4 runs and a walk at Fenway Park. The Twins had a 4-1 lead after two innings but the Red Sox tied it up in the third and took the lead for good in the fourth and and ended up winning 10-5. Red Sox outfielder Fred Lynn had a huge day hitting for the cycle going 4 for 5 with 4 RBI and 2 runs scored. Lynn is only the second Twins opponent to hit for the cycle. Freddie Patek of the Kansas City Royals was the first to to do so on July 9, 1971. Albert Williams started for Minnesota but John Verhoeven took his first loss in a Twins uniform. Ron Jackson, Pete Mackanin and John Castino each had two hits for the Twins. Castino left the game with a sprained ankle and will be out for some time. With the loss the Twins are 13-18 and in sixth place. Box Score
With possible strike looming, Boston’s Fred Lynn hits for the cycle by Mike Huber
1976 – No game today, scheduled day off.
1971 – No game today, scheduled day off.
1969 – The AL East first place Baltimore Orioles come to town to take on the first place AL West Minnesota Twins. Dave Boswell faces off against Mike Cuellar and the game is interesting to be sure. In the end the Twins were 4-2 winners. I have included the actual game write-ups from the Star Tribune versus going into all gory details between the umpires and the two teams. The Twins break up a pitchers duel when they score three-time in the bottom of the eighth with two runs coming on a inside-the-park home run by Rod Carew. Boswell went 8.2 innings before walking Mark Belanger and then Billy Martin called for Ron Perranoski to get the final out and he did for his 7th save. Carew had one-third of the Twins nine hits, scored twice and had two RBI. With the win the Twins remain tied for first with a 19-9 record. Box Score
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1968 – No game today, scheduled day off.
1961 – The Twins blow a 3-0 lead and a 6-3 lead allowing the Angels to knot the score at 6-6 in the top of the seventh inning before finally taking a 7-6 lead on Harmon Killebrew’s eight home run of the season in the bottom of the inning and then score six more in the eighth inning to beat the expansion Angels 13-6 at Met Stadium. Recent acquisition Ed Palmquist made his first appearance in a Twins uniform pitching the final 2.2 innings for the Twins and gave up the tying run in the seventh but still got the win. It turns out that this would be his only win as a Minnesota Twin and his final win in the big leagues. In addition to Killebrew’s home run, Dan Dobbek also hit one and Bob Allison had two home runs giving Allison 5 RBI on the day. Box Score
