Tigers 6, Twins 0: Twins Winning Streak Snaps Against Tigers and Rodriguez

[Steven Trefz]

Eduardo Rodriguez is still a left-handed starting pitcher for the Detroit Tigers, and the Minnesota Twins wish that he was in Dodger blue. Rodriguez controlled the game from start to finish, and the Tigers pieced together hit after hit to end the Twins' winning streak at five games.

Image courtesy of Rick Osentoski, USA Today

 

Box Score
SP: Sonny Gray, 6 IP, 7 H, 2 ER, 0 BB, 10 K (90 pitches, 65 strikes (72% strikes))
Home Runs: None
Bottom 3 WPA: Gray (-.097), Willi Castro (-.115), Jordan Luplow (-.074)

Win Probability Chart

That's Not How to Support Your Starter
Miguel Cabrera ranks at the top of the list for "no need to rush your throw to get him out at first base." Unfortunately, Jorge Polanco did anyway in the bottom of the first inning. Cabrera hit a harmless chopper up the middle with two outs and Riley Greene at second base. Polanco slung it on the run, wide of Donovan Solano at first base, and Greene never stopped running until it was 1-0 Tigers.

Eduardo Rodriguez is a Different Kind of Left-Handed Starter
Fresh off of their seven-run outburst against left-handed starter Joey Wentz, the Twins experienced a reality check against Rodriguez and his 1.05 WHIP. They managed to clutter the bases with two outs in the first inning and again in the third inning, with Carlos Correa's singles accounting for both run-scoring opportunities. A Willi Castro groundout and a leaping catch by Javier Baez on a Jordan Luplow liner ended the threats.

Tigers Go Station to Station Against Gray
The Twins' failure to cash in on runners in scoring position became more troubling when Gray imploded in the bottom of the fourth. The inning started with a phantom pitch clock violation against Gray, and four straight hits later, the score was 3-1, with runners on the corners with nobody out. Christian Vazquez took care of the first out by throwing out Zach McKinstry at second on an attempted steal. Gray struck out Nick Maton and got Jake Rogers to ground out to second to end the threat.

The Twins Outfield Keeps the Score Close
Castro and Matt Wallner made sliding, diving, beautiful catches to end threats in the third and fifth innings, or else this game could have been a mirror image of last night's lopsided affair. Gray racked up ten strikeouts through the first six innings and provided a quality start, but the offense remained ice-cold against Rodriguez through the middle innings. The streaky Twins offense only accumulated four singles over the first seven innings against the dominant lefty.

To the Bullpens We Go
Josh Winder came in to pitch the bottom of the seventh inning since Gray had gone 90 pitches. All went well, except for the 2-2 fastball that Rogers parked into the left field bleachers to make the score 4-0.

If the Twins were going to stage a late-inning rally, they picked an excellent team to be facing. The studs of the Tiger bullpen all have ERAs over 4.00, and they rank 18th overall in the MLB at giving up home runs. Polanco got a double in the eighth, but Correa and pinch-hitting Edouard Julien could not bring him home.

The bottom of the eighth saw Winder begin to unwind as he filled the bases with only one out. He almost got out of the jam, but Zack Short delivered with two outs, plating two more runs with a single, making it 6-0 Tigers.

The only drama left in the game was whether or not the Twins would get shut out. Polanco stroked a double to the gap in right in the bottom of the ninth, but he became the eighth Twins runner left on base, and Vazquez became the seventh batter to get out with runners in scoring position. The illusions of having success against left-handed pitching evaporated tonight, and it will be interesting to see how the Twins respond in their next opportunity to break the stigma.

Other Notes
Solano left the game after singling in the bottom of the third inning when he stumbled awkwardly back to first base after making a wide turn. He beat the throw back but had to be replaced by Joey Gallo. If Solano is to miss more time, Gallo becomes the primary first base option unless a call-up arises.

Cabrera continues to collect milestones and standing ovations on his farewell tour, and with two more hits tonight, he reached 3142, passing Tony Gwynn and tying Robin Yount for 20th on the all-time hits list.

What's Next? 
The Twins send RHP Bailey Ober (6-5, 3.21 ERA) to the mound to face Tigers RHP Alex Faedo (2-4, 5.80 ERA). While this looks like a signed, sealed, and delivered win, Faedo recently went six scoreless against the Padres on July 23. First pitch is scheduled for 5:40pm CDT.

Postgame Interview 

Bullpen Usage Spreadsheet

 

	FRI	SAT	SUN	MON	TUE	TOT
Winder	0	0	0	0	42	42
Headrick	0	0	0	41	0	41
Floro	19	0	20	0	0	39
Thielbar	12	0	17	0	0	29
Pagán	11	0	18	0	0	29
Jax	0	0	27	0	0	27
Balazovic	0	26	0	0	0	26
Durán	19	0	0	0	0	19

 

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[BH67]

Lenny Faedo pitches tomorrow?

[mikelink45]

The BP is still a weakness. First Headrick and now Winder. The pitchers we thought would blossom after the minors aren't doing it. Are we failing in our development?  

[Steven Trefz]

34 minutes ago, BH67 said:

Lenny Faedo pitches tomorrow?

[hitterscount]

50 minutes ago, mikelink45 said:

The BP is still a weakness. First Headrick and now Winder. The pitchers we thought would blossom after the minors aren't doing it. Are we failing in our development?  

IMHO, the biggest flaw is the weakness this lineup continues to display against left handed starting pitching … can’t even wto the BP against them in most games.

[jorgenswest]

Uncle Lenny

[Parfigliano]

2 hours ago, BH67 said:

Lenny Faedo pitches tomorrow?

Wasnt much with a bat so why not try pitching

[Nashvilletwin]

Gallo making himself indispensable as our now starting 1B through injuries (first Kiriloff and now Solano). Next thing we know, those two will come back and then Kepler and Wallner will go down and he will again be a starting outfielder.  Sheesh - Gallo has more lives than a cat….

[JoshDungan1]

On the downside, the winning streak comes to an end. On the minor upside, Jhoan Duran has pitched just twice in the last week. He's needed that kind of break. Also, it's been really nice that we've been able to finish out both of the last two games relying on just one relief pitcher in each game.

[Doctor Wu]

Not even a close game, so I won't grind my teeth too much about this one. Eduardo Rodriguez is having a very good season, so it's just unfortunate we had to face him. Now the team just needs to regroup, focus harder, and get a lot more hits tomorrow. 

[Mortimerkenny21]

9 hours ago, jorgenswest said:

Uncle Lenny

Tio Lenny

[stringer bell]

11 hours ago, mikelink45 said:

The BP is still a weakness. First Headrick and now Winder. The pitchers we thought would blossom after the minors aren't doing it. Are we failing in our development?  

These are the last two guys in the bullpen who could be easily replaced and probably won't be on a postseason roster. I worry a lot more about Floro, Pagán, and Balazovic. For what it's worth, Ortega and Sands would get my vote as better options in the bullpen right now. I do think Headrick has a chance to stick as a starter.

[wabene]

3 hours ago, Doctor Wu said:

Not even a close game, so I won't grind my teeth too much about this one. Eduardo Rodriguez is having a very good season, so it's just unfortunate we had to face him. Now the team just needs to regroup, focus harder, and get a lot more hits tomorrow. 

When the Kitties signed him to that deal I thought he was one we let get away

[saviking]

Someone should calculate how many runs the Twins have scored while Gray is on the mound and convert it into a reverse era .. I bet it will be jaw-dropping..

[USAFChief]

26 minutes ago, saviking said:

Someone should calculate how many runs the Twins have scored while Gray is on the mound and convert it into a reverse era .. I bet it will be jaw-dropping..

Someone = saviking?

[h2oface]

“Cabrera continues to collect milestones and standing ovations on his farewell tour, and with two more hits tonight, he reached 2142, passing Tony Gwynn and tying Robin Yountfor 20th on the all-time hits list.”

Make that Three Thousand One Hundred Forty Two - 3142 - hits!

[Minny505]

Back-to-back days of using a long reliever? Is Baldelli still the manager?

[saviking]

4 hours ago, USAFChief said:

Someone = saviking?

Ha! I mean someone with super stats program that can do it without looking up every game and tracking runs while Gray is in the game. I'm not that curious 😛