Twins 10, Red Sox 4: Bats Come to Life, Twins Get a Dominant Win

[Thiéres Rabelo]

The slow-running Twins' offense has been the topic of many discussions over the past few weeks. Tonight, though, the bats were simply unstoppable against the Red Sox, and Minnesota has evened the series at Fenway Park.

Image courtesy of Bob DeChiara-USA TODAY Sports

Box Score
Starting Pitcher: Joe Ryan, 6.0 IP, 6 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 1 BB, 3 K (100 pitches, 70 strikes, 70.0%)
Home Runs: Édouard Julien (2), Joey Gallo (4), Trevor Larnach (2)
Top 3 WPA: Édouard Julien (.176), Joe Ryan (.112), Joey Gallo (.111)
Win Probability Chart (via FanGraphs)

An offensive blitz puts the game out of reach early
Three struggling Twins hitters – which isn’t a very exclusive club at the moment – helped Minnesota to a large, early lead. Despite hitting an important home run on Tuesday night, Max Kepler came into this game slashing a very poor .120/.185/.360. He did, however, reach safely in his first two trips to the plate, including a leadoff walk in the top of the first. Then, Byron Buxton snapped an 0-for-15 funk with a one-out double to the gap in center field, sending Kepler to third.

Trevor Larnach drove in the game’s first run with a groundout that brought Kepler home. Before Boston’s Corey Kluber could get out of the jam, Édouard Julien snapped an 0-for-14 skid of his own by blasting a two-out, two-run bomb to right for his second big-league dinger, making it 3-0 Minnesota. Are we sure this kid will be going back to Saint Paul soon? Are we sure he’s even a rookie?

The offense went quietly in the second, but after Joe Ryan delivered two perfect innings, the bats ambushed Kluber once more in the third. The former Cy Young Award winner struggled with his command, giving up a walk to Larnach and hitting Julien. After a mound visit, José Miranda slapped a ground ball up the middle to bring Larnach home from second, scoring the Twins’ fourth run.

They weren’t done. After being activated from the 10-day injured list earlier on the day, Joey Gallo returned to the lineup with a leadoff single during the scoreless second. Then with Julien and Miranda on base in the third, he clobbered a three-run shot to break the game open, making it 7-0 Twins. With that homer, Gallo momentarily jumped to the team lead in home runs (4) and batting average (.350), seemingly picking up exactly where he left off before being placed on the injured list.

Ryan escapes a couple of jams, gets more run support, and a quality start
After breezing through the first two innings with ease, Ryan found himself in a jam in the third. Also having some issues with his command, he gave up a leadoff walk before eventually loading the bases with only one out. The Red Sox got on the board with a Raimel Tapia groundout to score Triston Casas. With two men in scoring position, Ryan got a huge help from the defense behind him: Carlos Correa ended the inning with a great play at short.

After a solid, scoreless fourth, Boston threatened Ryan once again in the fifth, with the first two batters reaching on a single and a double. But the defense was brilliant again, turning in a double play on an Alex Verdugo groundout. The runner on third scored Boston’s second run of the night, but Ryan finished off the inning by retiring Tapia.

As if seven runs weren’t enough, the offense gave Ryan even more run support in the top of the sixth. Reliever Ryan Brasier replaced Kluber, but the offense jumped all over him as well. Kepler reached for the third time in the evening with a one-out double, then Buxton drew a two-out walk. Larnach then obliterated a Brasier four-seamer for a monster 423-feet, three-run bomb to make it 10-2 Minnesota. That ball left his bat at nearly 110 mph.

Ryan completed his quality start despite allowing another run in the bottom of the sixth. After getting two quick outs on six pitches, he gave up a solo shot to Kiké Hernández that cut the lead down to seven. Next, the Red Sox got a double from Reese McGuire, prompting a mound visit, but Ryan was able to get the final out.

Lefty Brent Headrick, who was recalled from St. Paul on Sunday, made his big-league debut, and his stuff looked impeccable at first. He pitched two perfect frames on 25 pitches, with 76% strikes and topping out at 94.2 mph. He struck out three of the six batters he faced while inducing 50% whiffs (six in twelve swings). However, he came back for the ninth looking considerably less sharp: he lost each of his first three batters to load the bases with nobody out. Boston got one run back on a Jarren Duran sac fly, but Headrick managed to retire the next two batters to pick up a save.

What’s Next?
Both teams close out the series on Thursday afternoon (4/20) for the rubber game, with the first pitch scheduled for 12:35 pm CDT. After ten days, Kenta Maeda (0-2, 4.09 ERA) takes the mound for Minnesota to make his third start of the year, while righty Tanner Houck (2-0, 4.50 ERA) toes the rubber for Boston.

Bullpen Usage Spreadsheet

	SAT	SUN	MON	TUE	WED	TOT
Morán	26	0	0	26	0	52
Headrick	0	0	0	0	47	47
Alcalá	44	0	0	0	0	44
Jax	0	13	0	26	0	39
Durán	0	0	0	19	0	19
Thielbar	0	0	0	17	0	17
Pagán	0	15	0	0	0	15
López	0	0	0	10	0	10

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[GNess]

There was some fire power on display without Correa or Buxton doing much damage.

[SwainZag]

Wins are so much more fun than losses 

[jmlease1]

Exactly the kind of game the Twins wanted to have. Really good offensive output, quality start from Ryan, and Headrick let the rest of the bullpen take the night off. Sets them up nicely for the rubber match tomorrow.

Be great to steal the afternoon tilt on getaway day and finish the road trip with a series win and positive win total for the whole trip.

Gallo sure seems to be determined to prove the doubters (like me) wrong. I hope he makes me look like the biggest damn fool of all time. :P

[Franchise Adams]

Nice win! If we can win 2 of 3 at Fenway where in the loss Sale was good, Gray was shaky, and innings 8-10 were super fluky, it's definitely a successful series. (Even if the Tuesday loss was/is pretty frustrating.) 

[darwin22]

Glad to see the bats come alive tonight! 

I must admit I didn't watch as I needed a serious "mental health break" after watching every minute of the last 3 games.  

Will be interesting to see how long Headrick stays up considering the recent command issues that Moran has suffered.

[DocBauer]

A great game. Ryan did what we hoped for. Headrick looked far better than I had hoped for, despite a little trouble in his 3rd IP. Where did that velocity come from? His stuff looked pretty legit. 

The offense took advantage. 

Correa remains a stud at SS.

Larnach broke out of a brief slump. Anyone ready to demote him?

Gallo is looking like his previous MVP runner up self.

How dangerous might this team be with more stable offensive production?

[McGregor]

Been a lurker on the forums for years. I played basketball with Brent in high-school, and my cousin caught for him on the baseball team. He was about 50 pounds lighter back then and yes; he was dunking on people. I was raised as a Twins fan in the Chicago suburbs. (father from Northern Minnesota) You never expect to see your high-school teammate pitching for your favorite baseball team one day. It was so surreal seeing him out there today with some of the guys that got drafted when I was still in high school. Now for some stuff Twins fans might want to know:

-kid was a class act on and off the court/field, very dedicated to his craft

-he has absolutely gigantic hands; I would be willing to bet he has some of the biggest hands in all of baseball; this is why his fastball and slider have so much movement and how he was able to baffle some of those Red Sox hitters today

-his fastball has been clocked as high as 96

So excited to see how he continues to develop. I hope we get a chance to see him again soon with the way Moran is pitching.

[SwainZag]

2 minutes ago, McGregor said:

Been a lurker on the forums for years. I played basketball with Brent in high-school, and my cousin caught for him on the baseball team. He was about 50 pounds lighter back then and yes; he was dunking on people. I was raised as a Twins fan in the Chicago suburbs. (father from Northern Minnesota) You never expect to see your high-school teammate pitching for your favorite baseball team one day. It was so surreal seeing him out there today with some of the guys that got drafted when I was still in high school. Now for some stuff Twins fans might want to know:

-kid was a class act on and off the court/field, very dedicated to his craft

-he has absolutely gigantic hands; I would be willing to bet he has some of the biggest hands in all of baseball; this is why his fastball and slider have so much movement and how he was able to baffle some of those Red Sox hitters today

-his fastball has been clocked as high as 96

So excited to see how he continues to develop. I hope we get a chance to see him again soon with the way Moran is pitching.

Welcome to TD! 

I will always be jealous of those who were blessed with large hands.  Basketball, baseball, football.......all sports which big hands help tremendously. 

[stringer bell]

The Twins have completed 1/9 of the regular season, so multiply all the counting numbers by nine. Gallo is on track for 36 homers, Larnach is on track for over 100 RBI, of course Miranda is on track for zero homers, and Lopez, and Mahle are on track for nine wins each, while Joe Ryan is on track for 36 victories.

More relevant is that the team is on track for 99 wins, that's a great number especially considering many thought the April schedule would bury the team. 

[stringer bell]

I do believe tomorrow's matinee is important for the psyche of the club. A second winning road trip, this time against New York and Boston really bodes well for the future. The club is getting healthier and the pitching continues to be outstanding. 

[SwainZag]

2 minutes ago, stringer bell said:

The Twins have completed 1/9 of the regular season, so multiply all the counting numbers by nine. Gallo is on track for 36 homers, Larnach is on track for over 100 RBI, of course Miranda is on track for zero homers, and Lopez, and Mahle are on track for nine wins each, while Joe Ryan is on track for 36 victories.

More relevant is that the team is on track for 99 wins, that's a great number especially considering many thought the April schedule would bury the team. 

Not to mention the Twins have played more than half their games against the White Sox, Astros, Yankees and Red Sox.

[Richie the Rally Goat]

1 hour ago, jmlease1 said:

Exactly the kind of game the Twins wanted to have. Really good offensive output, quality start from Ryan, and Headrick let the rest of the bullpen take the night off. Sets them up nicely for the rubber match tomorrow.

Be great to steal the afternoon tilt on getaway day and finish the road trip with a series win and positive win total for the whole trip.

Gallo sure seems to be determined to prove the doubters (like me) wrong. I hope he makes me look like the biggest damn fool of all time. :P

Me too

[Blyleven2011]

The bat's put it away early and congrats to headrik  on his debut ...

Weather at home not looking to good , last week we were teased by mother nature and this week will have colder temperatures. ....

[I wish the twins were good]

2 hours ago, stringer bell said:

The Twins have completed 1/9 of the regular season, so multiply all the counting numbers by nine. Gallo is on track for 36 homers, Larnach is on track for over 100 RBI, of course Miranda is on track for zero homers, and Lopez, and Mahle are on track for nine wins each, while Joe Ryan is on track for 36 victories.

More relevant is that the team is on track for 99 wins, that's a great number especially considering many thought the April schedule would bury the team. 

And that's with abysmal offense outside of 3-4 games.

[I wish the twins were good]

2 hours ago, McGregor said:

Been a lurker on the forums for years. I played basketball with Brent in high-school, and my cousin caught for him on the baseball team. He was about 50 pounds lighter back then and yes; he was dunking on people. I was raised as a Twins fan in the Chicago suburbs. (father from Northern Minnesota) You never expect to see your high-school teammate pitching for your favorite baseball team one day. It was so surreal seeing him out there today with some of the guys that got drafted when I was still in high school. Now for some stuff Twins fans might want to know:

-kid was a class act on and off the court/field, very dedicated to his craft

-he has absolutely gigantic hands; I would be willing to bet he has some of the biggest hands in all of baseball; this is why his fastball and slider have so much movement and how he was able to baffle some of those Red Sox hitters today

-his fastball has been clocked as high as 96

So excited to see how he continues to develop. I hope we get a chance to see him again soon with the way Moran is pitching.

I am in the Chicago area. I noticed them mention he was from Joliet on the broadcast...and they mentioned the hands thing. Could be the new market inefficiency in pitching. Massive-handed Chicago boys!

[Mark G]

3 hours ago, darwin22 said:

Glad to see the bats come alive tonight! 

I must admit I didn't watch as I needed a serious "mental health break" after watching every minute of the last 3 games.  

Will be interesting to see how long Headrick stays up considering the recent command issues that Moran has suffered.

Their recent history has been sending down guys after pitch counts and innings prevent them from being available the next few days, so I wonder if Headrick will be sent down and someone else called up solely for that reason.  

[glunn]

4 hours ago, McGregor said:

Been a lurker on the forums for years. I played basketball with Brent in high-school, and my cousin caught for him on the baseball team. He was about 50 pounds lighter back then and yes; he was dunking on people. I was raised as a Twins fan in the Chicago suburbs. (father from Northern Minnesota) You never expect to see your high-school teammate pitching for your favorite baseball team one day. It was so surreal seeing him out there today with some of the guys that got drafted when I was still in high school. Now for some stuff Twins fans might want to know:

-kid was a class act on and off the court/field, very dedicated to his craft

-he has absolutely gigantic hands; I would be willing to bet he has some of the biggest hands in all of baseball; this is why his fastball and slider have so much movement and how he was able to baffle some of those Red Sox hitters today

-his fastball has been clocked as high as 96

So excited to see how he continues to develop. I hope we get a chance to see him again soon with the way Moran is pitching.

Welcome to TD.  Great second post.

[PopRiveter]

2 hours ago, I wish the twins were good said:

And that's with abysmal offense outside of 3-4 games.

I’m admittedly pretty out-of-touch so far this season, but every bit of coverage I see seems to match the record. It has all been positive.

The twins are 11th (of 15 AL teams) in both ops and runs-per-game.

I am choking on this lousy offense. My kingdom for someone who can make contact. 

[Taildragger8791]

1 hour ago, Mark G said:

Their recent history has been sending down guys after pitch counts and innings prevent them from being available the next few days, so I wonder if Headrick will be sent down and someone else called up solely for that reason.  

Almost the entire bullpen has only pitched once all week. I’d hope they can get by for a few days without pulling his parachute. But I get the AAA shuttle is basically a free roster spot.

[bighat]

Great write up @Thiéres Rabelo.

Weird, we hear so much about all of our pitching prospects: Woods Richardson, Prielipp.....remember Jordan Balazovic? Then some guy we've never heard of comes up and has a very solid debut in Fenway Park. Huh. Good on him. 

Nice to see the bats wake up, really loved watching the highlights, can't beat homers from Larnach, Eddie J, and Gallo.

Gotta mention they were going against Corey Kluber, who's "bien cocido". I don't see how that guy's going to stick with Boston. Red Sox are 0-4 in Kluber's four starts, losing 10-9, 4-1, 9-3 and 10-4. 

Tanner Houck pitches today for the BoSox and has also been hittable. 

[Riverbrian]

7 hours ago, McGregor said:

Been a lurker on the forums for years. I played basketball with Brent in high-school, and my cousin caught for him on the baseball team. He was about 50 pounds lighter back then and yes; he was dunking on people. I was raised as a Twins fan in the Chicago suburbs. (father from Northern Minnesota) You never expect to see your high-school teammate pitching for your favorite baseball team one day. It was so surreal seeing him out there today with some of the guys that got drafted when I was still in high school. Now for some stuff Twins fans might want to know:

-kid was a class act on and off the court/field, very dedicated to his craft

-he has absolutely gigantic hands; I would be willing to bet he has some of the biggest hands in all of baseball; this is why his fastball and slider have so much movement and how he was able to baffle some of those Red Sox hitters today

-his fastball has been clocked as high as 96

So excited to see how he continues to develop. I hope we get a chance to see him again soon with the way Moran is pitching.

It's been a long time since I've read a post as fantastic as this one. 

[Doctor Gast]

It's great to see our offense back in sync after being broken by the Germa'n incident. Ryan pitched a very good game and congratulations to Headrick on his debut & Baldelli for figuring out how to use long relief, hopefully he won't relapse again. But I expect him to.

[Peter]

Huge win with the home runs last night as it was difference in winning-great to see 3 inning save! Much needed win!!! Need to win today to have winning road trip! Twins get win to finish 4-2

8-5 against white sox/Astros/Yankees and Red Sox!

[VivaBomboRivera!]

10 hours ago, SwainZag said:

Wins are so much more fun than losses 

It's time to work on your interviews. 😎

That 3-6-1 double play was pretty sweet.

[mikelink45]

Okay Gallo - way to prove me wrong - so far.  I have one of the old baseball superstitions - if things are going well don't change them.  So for now I still don't like Gallo (keep hitting Joey).  Since someone mentioned we are 1/9th of the way through the season - 11% I thought it would be fun to look at where players are right now:

Vasquez, Solano, Gallo are the three highest BA on the team.  Anyone betting they will be there at the end of the season?

Taylor and Larnach are next at 242.   While Buxton 226 and Kepler 143 are way behind.

Who to send down or cut - Gordon at 095 is not looking good and Castro at 158 is not running away with his production. 

FOX sports lists these stats:

• Batting Average. .224. AVG. T 26TH OVERALL.
• Home Runs. HR. T 20TH OVERALL.
• Stolen Bases. SB. 30TH OVERALL.
• Runs Created. 59.86. RC.
• Isolated Power. .138. ISO.
• Wins. W. T 9TH OVERALL.
• Earned Run Average. 2.61. ERA. 1ST OVERALL.

[roger]

Didn't know much about Headrick before last night.  After two remarkable innings, thought he got a bit excited in the 9th.  In any case, I like him better as our long relief guy than Sands.  If his control the first two innings is for real, gotta think he could be a replacement for Moran.  Trust we will see him a lot over the coming months and he just might be one answer to improving the back end of the pen.

[Whitey333]

Like a poster said, it's way too early to be projecting stats to extravagant unrealistic season totals.  To do that one would also have to extrapolate the dismal stats of Correa and Buxton which would lead to disastorous results.  It's funny how they are always exempt from criticism here on TD.  Anyway it was a great win.  Bottom line is their offense, while great yesterday, is still bad.  I am expecting a win on Thursday.  Hoping Maeda pitches well.  Go Twins!!

[stringer bell]

5 minutes ago, Whitey333 said:

Like a poster said, it's way too early to be projecting stats to extravagant unrealistic season totals.  To do that one would also have to extrapolate the dismal stats of Correa and Buxton which would lead to disastorous results.  It's funny how they are always exempt from criticism here on TD.  Anyway it was a great win.  Bottom line is their offense, while great yesterday, is still bad.  I am expecting a win on Thursday.  Hoping Maeda pitches well.  Go Twins!!

I don't think Buxton and Correa are exempt from criticism here on TD. However, particularly with Correa, I think there is confidence that the production will be there. 

[stringer bell]

29 minutes ago, roger said:

Didn't know much about Headrick before last night.  After two remarkable innings, thought he got a bit excited in the 9th.  In any case, I like him better as our long relief guy than Sands.  If his control the first two innings is for real, gotta think he could be a replacement for Moran.  Trust we will see him a lot over the coming months and he just might be one answer to improving the back end of the pen.

I think "long reliever" is a different track from the other seven spots. Headrick is in the long reliever track and Moran is with the rest of the bullpen. If the Twins want a bullpen arm to replace Moran, I don't think it will be Headrick.