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2023 – The Twins got back in the win column by beating the Angels by a score of 6-2. Louie Varland (2-0) was the starter and winner, allowing two runs on six hits in 5 innings pitched with one walk and four strikeouts. The bullpen which has struggled of late combined for 4 scoreless innings with two hits allowed, no walks and six strikeouts. The sputtering Twins offense recorded 12 hits, three from Kyle Farmer, who drove in one run and scored twice. Joey Gallo hit his team-leading 11th home run in the sixth inning. Box Score
2022 – The Twins beat the Kansas City Royals at Kauffman Stadium by a score of 6-4, improving to 11-7 in May. Devin Smeltzer (1-0) was the starter and winner, allowing one run on five hits in 5.1 innings pitched, with one walk and no strikeouts. Emilio Pagán recorded his sixth save in seven chances. Smeltzer is the fifth Twins starter in the last decade to start and win a game with zero strikeouts. Allan Anderson is the Twins all-time leader with five of these kinds of games. The offense recorded seven hits, two apiece from their number eight and nine batters, Jose Miranda (ended an 0 for 20 streak) and Gilberto Celestino. Box Score
2021 – The Twins arrive for a one day stop in Anaheim to play a make-up double-header from games in mid-April that were not played due to COVID. The Twins split the doubleheader against the Angels, losing game one by a score of 1-7. Lewis Thorpe (0-2) was the game one starter and loser, allowing four runs (1 earned) on five hits in 4 innings pitched. Tyler Duffey relieved Thorpe and wasn’t particularly effective giving up 3 runs on 4 hits over 1 inning. The Twins had just four hits and scored their only run on a sac fly by Rob Refsnyder. Box Score game one
José Berríos (4-2) was the game two starter, allowing three runs on three hits in 5 innings pitched. The Twins got 4 quick runs on the board in the first inning with a Miguel Sano grand slam home run and hung on for a 6-3 win. Taylor Rogers and Hansel Robles pitched the final two scoreless innings as DH’s this year continue to be seven inning games. The game two win marked their first victory in a doubleheader this season (1-5). Mitch Garver and Trevor Larnach also homered, with Larnach’s the first of his MLB career. Hopefully the first of many. The Twins now 15-28, fly to Cleveland to face the Indians. Box Score
In off the field news the Twins announced today.
Delivering their fans an affordable way to come together and enjoy summer fun at Target Field, the Minnesota Twins today announced a limited-time offer to purchase $5 tickets for each of the club’s final 58 home games from May 24 through the end of the regular season**. All Twins tickets at any price point, including the select $5 seats, are available for purchase, without fees, between noon and 11:59 p.m. CT today (Thursday, May 20) via twinsbaseball.com or the MLB Ballpark app; the $5 offer will remain on select seats, but with applicable fees, through 10:00 p.m. CT on Monday, May 24. **
2020 – The Twins are at Target Field to take on the Baltimore Orioles. 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 50 games. 50! I can’t help but wonder what kind of exciting things we missed and will never get to see.
2019 – The Twins next stop on the road trip is Angel Stadium of Anaheim and the Twins find it to their liking when beat the home-town Angels 3-1 in another close game. Jake Odorizzi was pulled after 5 innings in a game that he was ahead 1-0 and had given up just 3 hits but he also threw 90 pitches to get to that point so it fell on the bullpen to take over. Ryne Harper in his second inning of relief work gave up a single and was replaced by Taylor Rogers who allowed the run to score and tie up the ball game at 1-1 in the bottom of the seventh. In the top of the eighth Astudillo grounded out to first and Eddie Rosario singled bringing up the hitless on the day Miguel Sano who hit a home run to give the Twins a 3-1 lead. Rogers pitched a clean bottom of the eighth inning for the win (1-0) and Blake Parker got his eighth save in as many chances. The Angels used an opener again in this game and followed with Felix Pena. The Twins hitting attack was led by 3 hits from recent call-up Luis Arraez and 2 hits from Max Kepler. Box Score
2018 – The Twins beat the Brewers at Target Field by a score of 3-1 preventing a three-game sweep by the visitors from Badger land. Jake Odorizzi was the starter and pitched 5.2 innings striking out 10 but got no decision for his work. The game was tied 1-1 when Logan Morrison hit a booming two-run single in the eighth inning off the right-field wall (missing a home run by about 5 feet) with the bases loaded that scored two runs and the Twins finally beat Milwaukee 3-1. Addison Reed notched the win and Fernando Rodney got his ninth save. Twins pitchers struck out 17 Brewer batters. Max Kepler had the other Twins RBI. Box Score
2017 – No Game Today
2012 – A tough day for the Twins at Miller Park when they get trounced 16-4 and their 2012 record drops to 14-27. Joe Mauer is 4 for 5 with a double but it is not nearly enough. Twins starter Jason Marquis last just 1.2 innings and gives up 8 earned runs and reliever Jeff Gray gives up 5 more and can’t retire a single batter. Zach Greinke is credited with the win. Things got so bad that skipper Gardenhire brought in catcher Drew Butera to pitch the 8th inning. Butera became the sixth position player in Twins history to take the mound although this was actually the ninth time this situation has occurred for the Minnesota Twins as outfielder Dan Gladden pitched twice for the Twins and outfielder John Moses did it three times. Butera did not allow a hit or a run and walked one batter while striking out one batter (former Twin Carlos Gomez). Butera threw 17 pitches and several were over 90 MPH and one pitch hit 94 on the radar gun. Drew and his father Sal, become the first father-son position player combo to pitch in a major league game. Sal Butera, also a former Twins catcher pitched a scoreless inning for Montreal in 1985 and again for Cincinnati in 1986. Box Score
2011 – The funeral for Harmon Killebrew was held at Christ’s Church of the Valley in Peoria, Arizona. Several hundred mourners, including past and present members of the Minnesota Twins, attended the service on a gorgeous sunny morning. The Twins just happened to be in town because they were scheduled to play the Arizona Diamondbacks in their first inter-league play of 2011. Current Twins Joe Nathan, Michael Cuddyer, and Justin Morneau, as well as manager Ron Gardenhire, were pallbearers, along with ex-Twin Paul Molitor and Killebrew’s former teammates Rod Carew, Tony Oliva and Frank Quilici. Bert Blyleven, now a Twins broadcaster, was the only non-family member other than the pastor to speak at the service. A private burial is planned for Monday, May 23 in Killebrew’s hometown of Payette, Idaho.
On the field the Twins lost to Arizona 8-7 at Chase Field after a gallant come-back with two runs in the 8th inning and three more in the ninth but they came up short. Trevor Plouffe, Michael Cuddyer and Danny Valencia all hit home runs and Brian Duensing was the Twins starting and losing pitcher. Box Score
2005 – In an amazing pitching performance, Carlos Silva beats the Brewers 7-1 at the Metrodome with a 74 pitch (54 strikes) complete game win in a game that lasted 2 hours and 27 minutes. The Twins hot hitter that day was Nick Punto who was 4 for 4 with a double, RBI, and run scored and shortstop Juan Castro chips in a home run. Box Score
1995 – Minnesota Twins outfielder Marty Cordova ties a rookie home run record by hitting home runs in five consecutive games including this 10-6 loss to Seattle at the Dome. Future Hall of Fame Mariners pitcher Randy Johnson ends his home run streak the next day. Box Score
1994 – The Twins are hot having won 9 out of their last 10 games and are beating the Boston Red Sox 10 to 1 after 4 1/2 innings at the Metrodome. Then in the bottom of the fifth the Twins send up 16 batters, get 10 hits (8 singles, 1 double, and 1 home run), 2 walks, a hit batter, score 11 runs and leave 2 on base against three Red Sox pitchers and take a 21 – 1 lead and they hold on for a 21-2 victory. Now that is a fun inning if you are a Twins fan. Kirby Puckett was 3 for 3 with 7 RBI and Carlos Pulido was the winning pitcher. Thirteen Twins position players had at least one hit in this game, a Twins/Seantors franchise record. Fourteen Twins batters had at least two PA’s and the only player to not get a hit was future Hall of Famer Dave Winfield who was 0 for 3 as the teams DH. Only three of the 14 batters failed to cross the plate at least once. Pitcher Dave Stevens made his major league debut in this game pitching a hitless/scoreless inning while striking out one and 20,766 were at the ballpark to watch this game. Box Score
Twins set franchise record with 21 runs against Red Sox by Brent Heutmaker
1989 – Danny Gladden ties a major league record when get gets 7 official at bats against the Texas Rangers in a 9 inning game. Randy Bush ties a Twins record with 8 RBI’s when he goes 3 for 4 with two home runs and Al Newman goes 2 for 3 with three walks and scores four times in a 19-3 win at Arlington Stadium. Twins starter Roy Smith gets the win. Box Score
1988 – No game today. The game against the Rangers in Texas will be made up on May 22 as part of a double-header.
1986 – The Twins acquire pitcher Keith Atherton from the Oakland A’s for a PTBNL that turns out to be pitcher Eric Broersma.
1984 – Boston’s Roger Clemens strikes out 7 batters in 7 innings en route to his first ML victory, 5-4 over the Twins at the Metrodome. This was the second big league game for Clemens, he had started against the Indians five days earlier and had no decision. Clemens gave up 363 career home runs, Tom Brunansky hit the very first one in this game. Twins center fielder Darrell Brown had a good game going 3 for 4 with a double, scored twice, and stole a base. John Butcher took the defeat. Box Score
1970 – Second baseman Rod Carew becomes the first Twins player to hit for the cycle when he accomplishes that rare feat by hitting a triple in his final at bat in a 10-5 win over the Royals in Kansas City. Dave Boswell got the win and Tommy Hall got the 3 inning save. In addition to Carew’s homer, Rich Reese, Leo Cardenas and Paul Ratliff also contributed home runs to the win. The win was their seventh in a row and upped their record to 25-10. Box Score
1969 – In a rematch of a pitcher’s duel about a week earlier at the Met, Dave McNally and Jim Kaat faced off once again, this time at Memorial Stadium in Baltimore. The Twins scored first on the fourth inning home run by Harmon Killebrew to put the Twins up 1-0. The O’s tied it up when they pushed across a run in the bottom of the seventh when pinch-hitter Curt Motton delivers a single for an unearned run off Kaat. The game remained tied 1-1 through 12 innings with Twins starter Jim Kaat still on the mound. In the 13th inning Ted Uhlaender hit a RBI single after Frank Quilici and Graig Nettles had singled before him. Kaat then hit a sacrifice fly to score the third run and the Twins had a 3-1 lead with Kaat still on the mound to start the 13th inning. Paul Blair led off the 13th with a home run off Kaat to make it a one run ball game and Billy Martin decided to bring in Ron Perranoski to face Frank Robinson, Boog Powell and Marv Rettenmund and Perranoski retired them in order for the save. The Twins had just six hits with no one getting more than one. McNally went seven innings for the O’s but got a ND for his days work. Kaat got the win for his 12+ innings of work in which he threw 176 pitches (according to the Star Tribune) and lost 12 pounds on this hot humid evening. With the win the Twins are a half game behind the Oakland A’s and break their four-game losing streak. Box Score
1965 – No game today, scheduled day off.
1962 – The Twins split a double-header at Yankee Stadium losing the first game 4-3 and winning the second game 4-2. In game one the Twins trailed 3-2 going into the ninth inning but tied it up on a sac fly by George Banks after a Bernie Allen triple. The Yankees however; came back in the bottom of the inning with a Clete Boyer single, Yogi Berra walked, Bobby Richardson got an infield single and that brought up Tom Tresh who hit a walk-off single and Ray Moore and the Twins lost the game 4-3. Box Score
In the nite cap Jim Kaat and Rollie Sheldon hooked up in an honest to goodness pitching duel and the game was tied 1-1 at the end of regulation play. The Twins scored one in the tenth but so did the Yankees and the game went on. In the top of the 13th the Twins scored two runs and the Twins brought in Dick Stigman who earned the save and the win went to the loser of the early game Ray Moore. Lenny Green and Zoilo Versalles each had three hits in the game. Box Score And that ladies and gentlemen is how Twins reliever Ray Moore became the first Twins pitcher to lose and win a game in the same day.
1961 – The Twins beat the visiting Kansas City Athletics 2-0 as Camilo Pascual (4-3) pitched his second complete game shutout in a row. Pascual, who is considered by many as the best right-hander in the American league allowed just five hits while striking out nine giving him a league-leading 50 and has allowed no walks in his last two starts. Harmon Killebrew supported the cause with his ninth long ball of the season. Former Reds starter Joe Nuxhall (1-1) took the defeat for the A’s though he went seven strong innings allowing just one run. The second place Twins are now just four games out of first and have an 18-14 record. Box Score
