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2023 – The Twins four game winning streak came to and end when they lost to the Mariners at Target Field by a score of 9-7. The Twins had a 6-2 lead entering the eighth inning but the Twins bullpen couldn’t hold it. Pablo López was the starter but did not factor into the decision, allowing two runs on six hits in 7 innings pitched, with one walk and eight strikeouts. Jovani Moran, Emilio Pagán and Oliver Ortega combined to allow seven runs in 2.0 innings of relief, losing a four-run lead. The offense recorded eight hits, walked five times and struck out a season-high 18 times – their most since June 27, 2019 vs. Tampa Bay, when they struck out 22 times in 18 innings; their most strikeouts in a 9-inning game since fanning 19 times on August 17, 2017 vs. Cleveland (Game 1). Matt Wallner (2) and Michael A. Taylor (12) each hit home runs for Minnesota. This is the fifth time the Twins have lost when they scored at least six runs. Box Score
The Minnesota Twins announced today the signing of their 2023 first round pick, outfielder Walker Jenkins from South Brunswick High School (NC), whom they selected fifth overall in the 2023 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft and signed for $7,144,200 right at the deadline. He was the last first-rounder to sign this year.
2022 – No Twins game today, scheduled day off.
There will be no international draft and the qualifying offer remains in place. Major League Baseball and the Players Association could not reach a deal today, a deadline the sides set in March to determine whether the sport would institute an international draft for the first time. A key trade-off for players would have been the elimination of the qualifying offer, which often negatively affects the markets of the best players.
2021 – THE LUIS ARRAEZ GAME: The Twins beat the Indians at Target Field by a score of 8-7, evening the series at one game apiece. Danny Coulombe was the Opener, allowing three runs (1 earned) on two hits in 1.2 innings pitched. Griffin Jax (1-0) earned his first career win, allowing three runs on three hits in 4.1 innings pitched. Hansel Robles earned his seventh save. The offense recorded 11 hits, three from Luis Arraez, who tripled twice (3, 4) and doubled (5). Arraez became the fourth player in Twins history with two triples and a double in a game, joining Carlos Gómez (September 25, 2008 vs. Chicago-AL), Chuck Knoblauch (June 29, 1996 at Kansas City) and Rod Carew (May 8, 1977 at Toronto). Arraez also became the first Twins hitter to accumulate at least eight total bases in a game without hitting a home run since Joe Mauer (single, 2 doubles, triple) on August 3, 2016 at Cleveland. Box Score
2020 – Twins free agent acquisition Rich Hill was scheduled to start today against the White Sox but was scratched and Randy Dobnak stepped in. Yesterday the Twins scored 10 runs and today it was apparently the White Sox turn as they beat up on the Twins by a score of 10-3 as White Sox starter Dallas Keuchel kept the Twins scoreless until Ehire Adrianza and Mitch Garver singled in the sixth inning. Steve Cishek replaced Keuchel with two on and one out and retired Josh Donaldson but Twins DH Nelson Cruz followed with a 3-run home run to make the score 5-3 but that was all the Twins were going to score on this day and the White Sox added five more runs. Dobnak went four innings and took the loss allowing one run on 3 hits and 2 walks while striking out 3. Leury Garcia was the Sox hitting star with 3 hits including 2 home runs and 4 RBI. Australian native outfielder Aaron Whitefield made his major league debut today as a pinch-runner in the ninth inning today. Box Score
2019 – After a long homestand the Twins go to Chicago and slug their way into the record books with a 10-3 victory over the White Sox, becoming the first team in Major League Baseball history to hit at least five home runs in nine different games in a single season. Nelson Cruz enjoyed his first career three-homer game, the 11th such effort in Twins history, while Max Kepler (26) and Miguel Sanó (17) also went deep. Cruz has now homered in four-straight games (6 total). At age 39, Cruz is the oldest player in MLB history to hit six-plus homers in a four-game span, surpassing Barry Bonds, who hit seven in a four-game span in 2001 at age 36. Starter José Berríos (9-5) was the beneficiary, snapping a seven-start winless streak (in which he had received only nine runs of support) after allowing three runs (two earned) on six hits over 7 innings, with one walk and eight strikeouts. Who are those people back there on our tail? The Indians are still just 2 games back. Box Score
2018 – Twins win a wild one in Toronto for a three game sweep at Rogers Centre by a 12-6 score in 11 innings, scoring six runs in the top of the 11th. Twins starter Ervin Santana made his season debut after being on the Disabled List while recovering from off-season surgery on a problematic finger on his pitching hand. Santana threw 97 pitches over five innings while allowing three runs, 7 hits and striking out 5. The Twins held a 6-3 lead in the eighth, but Trevor Hildenberger surrendered three runs and the lead, at least partly due to some bad luck. With the bases loaded and two outs in the 11th inning, Max Kepler took a Jake Petricka slider off his left shin, forcing in the go-ahead run and sparking a sudden landslide of offense. The result was an 12-6 victory over the Blue Jays, completing the Twins’ first sweep in Rogers Centre in 15 years. The suddenly hot catcher Mitch Garver set career-highs in hits (4) and RBI (5), including his fifth home run of the season. Joe Mauer was 3 for 7 with 2 doubles and 3 RBI and Eddie Rosario also had 3 hits. The recently reacquired Matt Belisle got this first win of the season for Minnesota. The Twins now move on to Boston to take on the Red Sox who have the best record in baseball. Box Score
2016 – No game today, scheduled day off.
2015 – Another one of those games against the Yankees. The Twins take a 5-4 lead into the ninth and bring in closer Glen Perkins and the first batter he faces is Alex Rodriguez who hits his third home run of the game which ties the score. John Ryan Murphy follows with a three-run game-winning shot and the Twins lose 8-5. Perkins can’t get out of the inning and Ryan O’Rourke gets the final out. Perkins line score was 2/3 of an inning pitched with five hits and four runs and a blown save and a loss. John Ryan Murphy was traded to the Twins after the 2015 season. Box Score.
2011 – The temperature in Arlington, Texas at game time was 102 degrees but that was nothing compared to how hot the Texas Rangers bats were on this day when the Rangers pounded the six Twins pitchers for 27 hits and 20 runs in a 20-6 blow-out. The 27 hits was a Twins record for hits allowed in a game.The Rangers also drew 4 walks and the Twins chipped in 3 errors. Twins starter Nick Blackburn lasted just 2 2/3 innings and gave up 11 hits and 9 runs (6 earned). The game was the third in Twins history that they have given up 20 or more runs. The Rangers also became only the third team in American League history to have seven different players with three or more hits in a nine-inning game. The others were the 1939 Yankees and 1955 White Sox, who each coincidentally did so against the Athletics. Things were so bad that Twins manager Gardenhire brought in outfielder Michael Cuddyer to pitch the 8th inning and he gave up two hits and a walk but kept the Rangers from scoring. Cuddyer was the first Twins position player to pitch since outfielder John Moses did so against the California Angels on July 31, 1990. Cuddyer has now played every position in the big leagues except shortstop and catcher and oddly enough, Michael was drafted as a shortstop. Box Score
2009 – The Twins allowed nine runs on 10 hits to the Angels in the fourth inning yesterday in a 11-5 road loss. It marked the first time in Twins history that they allowed at least nine runs and 10 hits in the same inning. Nick Blackburn was the starter and loser. Jason Kubel did his best with a 3 for 4 including a home run, double, 2 runs scored and 3 RBI but it would not be enough. Box Score
2005 – No game today, scheduled day off.
1981 – MLB on strike.
1977 – Coming off a double-header sweep (with the 2nd game going 12 innings) of the A’s the day before, the Twins are again going up against the boys from Oakland at Met Stadium. The game goes 11 innings before the Twins prevail 2-1 on a bases loaded walk-off single by Larry Hisle. But, the real story of the game is Twins starter Dave Goltz who pitches all 11 innings throwing 180 pitches. Goltz improves his record to 12-6 as he faces 41 batters giving up 8 hits and walking 1 while striking out 14 Oakland A’s. In spite of all of this, the game is over in 2 hours and 39 minutes. Rick Langford also pitched a complete game for the A’s and suffered the defeat. Box Score
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1973 – No game today, All-Star break.
1972 – No game today. The 43rd All-Star game between the NL and the AL was played in Atlanta Stadium and the NL came away with a 4–3 win in 10 innings. The only Twins player selected for the game was Rod Carew and he was a starter. Box Score
1970 – Hall beats Hall as the Baltimore Orioles reliever Dick Hall tops the Twins and reliever Tommy Hall, 6 – 5 at Met Stadium. Dick Hall singles in the 8th for his first hit of the year and Don Buford follows with a game-winning home run. Tony Oliva was 3 for 4 with a home run. Box Score
1968 – No Game Today. However; the Twins travel to Denver to play their AAA Denver team in a exhibition game and win 8-2.
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1967 – Tie Game. At Yankee Stadium, American League home run leader Harmon Killebrew gives the Twins a 1 – 0 lead with a 1st inning homer (number 29) off Al Downing. Jim Kaat holds the last place 40-53 New York Yankees scoreless until two outs in the 9th inning when Mickey Mantle clocks a ball over the 457-foot mark to tie the score. The game is rained out with the score 1 – 1, declared a tie game with all stats counting and will be replayed on August 18th as part of a DH. Box Score.
1966 – No game today. The Minnesota Twins play their third ISEG of the year when for the first time ever MLB has selected the Twins to be one of the teams playing in the Hall of Fame induction day game at Cooperstown. The Twins played the St. Louis Cardinals and got beat 7-5. Casey Stengel and Ted Williams were inducted into the HOF as the 103rd and 104th members. In the paper below Dick Cullum even makes his comments about the Billy Martin and Howie Fox fight.
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1964 – The Twins have a 3-2 lead at White Sox Park going into the bottom of the ninth inning but White Sox shortstop Ron Hansen sends a Jim Perry pitch out of the park to tie the game at 3 runs each. The 10th and 11th innings are scoreless but the Twins score in the 12th when Zoilo Versalles hits a home run off knuckle-baller Hoyt Wilhelm and the Twins are up 4-3. However, the White Sox come back with one of their own on a walk, a wild pitch and a single by Bill Skowron off Johnny Klippstein and it is tied at four. The Twins score again in the 13th on a Jerry Zimmerman single that scores Jimmie Hall and the Twins are again in the driver’s seat by a 5-4 score. The Sox don’t give up and get a walk, a sacrifice, another walk, a wild pitch, another walk and then the telling blow, a two-run single by Mike Hershberger scores two and the Twins get walked off 6-5 in the 13th inning. The Twins tie an AL record by using 9 pitchers in a 13-inning game. Jerry Fosnow is the loser; Don Mossi the 5th Chicago pitcher–is the winner. Four hours and 28 minutes of back and forth baseball. Jimmie Hall was 4 for 6 in the game. The Twins had 16 hits to the Sox 8 and the Sox had 2 errors to the Twins 1 but the White Sox found a way to put up one more run on the board than the Twins did. Box Score
1961 – According to the Star Tribune the next day here is how Tom Briere described Senators starter Dick Donovan’s pitching at Met Stadium.
“The 30-year-old tall and proper New England right-handed pitcher was nothing short of masterful in winning his fourth straight to end the Senators’ three-game losing streak.”
Donovan pitched a complete game five-hitter allowing one walk and just one run while striking out only two batters. The Senators scored both their runs in the top of the third inning and the first run was scored by Donovan himself when he homered deep to right field off Twins starter Jack Kralick. Two singles and a ground out later and the Senators scored again to take a 2-0 lead. The Twins scored their lone run in the bottom of the fourth when Zoilo Versalles who was playing in his first game back since he left the team after the July 4 double-header led off the inning with a double (extending his hitting streak to 12 games) but tried to stretch it and was thrown out at third base for the first out of the inning, Lenny Green followed with a walk, Harmon Killebrew was retired on a flyball for the second out before Bob Allison hit a pop fly to left that bounced off the glove of the left fielder allowing Green to score all the way from first and Allison ended up with a double. That was all the Twins would get in this inning and the final score ended up as 2-1 for Washington. Allison had the Twins only RBI and had 2 (3B and a 2B) of the teams five hits. Kralick (9-6) took the loss but he deserved better going 8 innings and allowing two runs on 7 hits, no walks, and six KO’s. Box Score
