Make it Official! Twins 10, White Sox 5: 10 Out of 10, No Notes

[Ted Schwerzler]

Bailey Ober was on the mound and the Twins were on the rampage. On a day made a bit less giddy by the disruption of service for many would-be TV viewers and by an injury to Byron Buxton, the team kept the good vibes going, anyway. The sausage streak is now at 10.

Image courtesy of © Matt Marton-USA TODAY Sports

Box Score
SP: Bailey Ober 6.0 IP, 6 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 0 BB, 3 K (82 pitches, 58 strikes 7 whiffs)
Home Runs: Alex Kirilloff (2)
Top 3 WPA: Willi Castro (.326), José Miranda (.157), Max Kepler (.156)

Win Probability Chart (via FanGraphs)

White Sox Make Noise First
The Minnesota Twins stepped up to the plate first as the away team, but their bats didn’t make any noise during the first inning. Instead, former Minnesota backstop Drew Butera (now a coach for the White Sox) got the heave-ho from home plate umpire James Hoye. There wasn’t much to complain about in an otherwise uneventful half-inning, but Butera found a way to get into the box score.

During the bottom half, with the Twins sending Bailey Ober to the bump, it was another former Minnesota player, Robbie Grossman, starting the game with a leadoff double. Tommy Pham, making another start for his new team, followed with a double of his own to put Chicago on the board. After Ober got Gavin Sheets on a groundout, Andrew Vaughn singled home Pham, making it a 2-0 game with just one out recorded. Edouard Julien made a nice defensive play to kick off an inning-ending double play, but the Twins had work to do early.

Byron Buxton, Hurt, Again
This season the Twins have benefitted by having their star center fielder play in 28 of their first 30 games. He has routinely been available in the outfield, and while his process has been a bit amiss at the plate, he has found a way to make a significant contribution in the form of an early 0.6 fWAR.

After singling off Chris Flexen, a pitcher whom he has owned for some time, Buxton made two steal attempts with Trevor Larnach at the plate. On a third, following a strikeout of the batter, Buxton pulled up going to second and was thrown out by multiple feet. He gingerly walked off the field and was met by head trainer Nick Paparesta. Starting the bottom of the 2nd inning, José Miranda came in at the hot corner, with Willi Castro replacing the center fielder. If there was any hope that it was a soft tissue injury or something less ominous, that was dashed when the Twins announced Buxton left the game with right knee soreness. That's the same knee on which he had what was deemed a successful surgery to alleviate pain this offseason.

Ober turned the corner in the second inning by sandwiching strikeouts of Danny Mendick and Paul DeJong around an exceptional diving stop and throw from Miranda. Having just entered the game, the ball quickly found Miranda, whose role only seems to be growing. Although the Twins needed to challenge the call, his defensive highlight was rewarded with a correct out call.

---

Twins Daily's winning "Make It Official!" game recaps are sponsored by Official Fried Chicken, which you can find in center field of Target Field. With a name like "Official," we know we have to be the best in the game every day, and from your first bite, you'll know that's a promise we make good on.

---

Twins Break Through
Needing some good vibes to get his team going, Castro led off against Flexen with a triple--his second of the year, and second in as many games, Minnesota had their first run just 90 feet away. A Christian Vazquez ground out brought him in and halved the White Sox lead at 2-1. 

Unfortunately for Minnesota, their run was immediately met by a response from Pham. His second hit of the day left the yard, and the solo shot made it a 3-1 lead. He has hit the ball hard against the Twins since stepping into this series and quickly has emerged as the lone Chicago hitter to fear throughout their lineup.

After a diving catch in the field to rob Mendick of a base hit and end the 4th inning, Alex Kirilloff came up in the 5th inning with his sights set on drawing closer. He was among Rocco Baldelli's best hitters during April, and on May Day, sent a bomb over the left field fence to bring the Twins back within one.

Always An Answer
Chicago got ahead early, but the Twins and White Sox continued to respond to one another throughout the matinee affair. After Kirilloff's home run brought Minnesota back within one, it was Chicago's turn to provide distance again. After DeJong reached on an infield single to Carlos Correa, Grossman recorded his second double of the game and brought the run home. Pedro Grifol's club had again extended their lead, 4-2, and he turned the ball over to reliever Steven Wilson for the 6th inning.

Wilson quickly got Correa on a groundout, and then walked Kepler. Miranda lined a ball to left field for an out, but then Wilson walked Larnach and Carlos Santana to load the bases with two outs. Dominic Leone got hot in a hurry for Chicago, and it was his presence being summoned to face Castro and avoid major damage. He proceeded to throw three straight balls to Castro before flipping over a middle-middle fastball. Rolling over a changeup to shortstop DeJong, the White Sox infielder booted it allowing both Kepler and Larnach to score and tie the game.

Once again, Minnesota had new life. At just over 70 pitches entering the bottom of the 6th inning, Ober was back out for another frame. He got the White Sox in order and gave Baldelli a quick inning in the process.

Kepler Comes Up Clutch
Having driven in the go-ahead runs each of the past two games, Kepler stepped in with an opportunity to do it again. Following a few more Leone walks, Minnesota had Kirilloff at second base with Correa at first. Facing Tim Hill, who he doubled off of last week, Kepler singled to right field and brought home Kirilloff to grab the Twins first lead. Miranda, who came on early after the Buxton injury, picked up his second base hit of the ballgame with Correa scoring a run to make it 6-4.

Brock Stewart came on in relief for Ober, and for a guy who hasn't given up a run in eons, it was a shock to see White Sox catcher Korey Lee take him deep. It was a wind-aided home run, but it brought Chicago back within one at 6-5. He bounced back and closed out the 7th inning before turning the ball over to Griffin Jax in the 8th inning. Before the Twins took the field again, Castro grabbed his second extra-base hit of the game, this time a double, but he was called out trying to swipe third.

Unlikely that Jhoan Duran would be available for a 9th inning save having not worked in back-to-back games yet this year, Minnesota made sure to take some pressure off the bullpen. Facing a menagerie of Chicago relievers, Miranda doubled home Kyle Farmer to make it a 7-5 game before Ryan Jeffers followed with a double to score Correa and Miranda. Not to leave Jeffers standing on the pond, Castro brought him home with a single and his third hit of the game. The Twins scored six runs today after the start of the 7th inning, and that pushed their season total in that spot to a big league-best 1st place.

Steven Okert was given a five-run cushion to work with in the 9th inning and secure the victory. He made quick work of the Pale Hose 5-6-7 hitters and wrapped up a 10th straight for the Twins. Minnesota drew eight walks on the day, and while they didn't get to Flexen early, the bats came alive late.

Notes
Wednesday it happened. Comcast pulled the plug on Bally Sports which prompted a message for the vast majority of Twins cable consumers. This also impacts something like 15 other teams, and is an absolute mess for the sport.

Needing innings with a taxed bullpen and a handful of games in a row to their credit, Minnesota swapped in Caleb Boushley for Kody Funderburk. He wasn’t on the 40-man, but a spot was open following Matt Bowman’s DFA on Tuesday. Having pitched in one game for the Brewers last year, he has just 2 1/3 innings of big-league experience. At Triple-A for the Saints this season though, he owns a 30/4 K/BB.

What’s Next? 
A much-deserved off day is on tap as the Twins return home for a weekend series with the Boston Red Sox. The probable pitchers for Minnesota are Chris Paddack, Pablo Lopez, and Joe Ryan. Boston has yet to set their starter for the three-game set.

The big question will be what happens with Buxton, and if he’ll need a stint on the injured list. Assuming that’s the case, no move would need to be announced until the Twins return to action on Friday. However, Austin Martin being held out of Saints action Wednesday and Thursday would give an early indication.

Postgame Interviews

Bullpen Usage Spreadsheet

View full article

[USAFChief]

Today's game brought to you by the number 10.

[Riverbrian]

3 minutes ago, USAFChief said:

Today's game brought to you by the number 10.

Ten Wins in a Row. 

Only goes to show that a baseball season can turn around on a dime.  

A dime

You get it

10 cents

10 wins

A dime

Where's my drummer

Thank you... I'll be here all week. 

[Riverbrian]

That's a Big Ten

[D.C Twins]

Not surprised by Buck injury but still hurts.... a lot.....ugh....

[Patzky]

That's some bittersweet summer sausage. Guess Austin Martin's St Paul cup of coffee is still warm.

[D.C Twins]

Well.... time to get Martin back up for some extended playing time. 

Only potential positive outcome with Buck that I can think of is that he broke up some scar tissue... that can be sudden and painful but not a long recovery. 

 

[jmlease1]

10 in a row, three sweeps, and two of them on the road? Love everything about that.

Props to the Twins pitchers for not issuing a single free pass today. The sorry, no-account ChiSox certainly couldn't say the same, the Twins punished them for it. Ober chewed up enough innings so we didn't need anyone to try and go on back-to-back outings, which was exactly what you want to see on getaway day. Jax is doing a heck of a job, and with Duran and Stewart both back it should keep him from getting overused.

Hopefully Buxton's injury isn't serious and this is just the kind of thing that needs a little maintenance since he's returning to full-on play this year. The good thing is, Martin has shown he can handle things in CF, so it's not like it was a few years ago where we were in desperation mode for OF.

Miranda sure is taking advantage of his chances. Good for him! I'd like to see him grab a few more walks, but he's looking much more like the hitter we saw in 2022 and not like the guy who tried to play through injury in 2023.

Red Sox series should be fun: hope people get to watch it!

[Twins_Fan_in_NJ]

Is it crazy to say that the Twins should re-sign Max this winter...

[Twins_Fan_in_NJ]

E-Rod might not be ready. AK could be at first full time and no telling what will happen with Wallner.

[jimbo92107]

"Sausage streak." Must we?

A caution: The word "sausage" is loaded with potential witticisms, but few of them are fit for human consumption. The intellectual level of wordplay varies so drastically around here... Should we applaud for well-crafted mud, or reserve our plaudits for only the most sublime?

What am I saying? This is a baseball fan site. Have at it, naughty brethren! 'Tis but a sausage, after all. Have a whack at it! Our most cutting jibes will never make it droop. Years hence may we reminisce on this meat product, and wax philosophic.

Dear sausage (or was it beef?) I remember it, Horatio! A well-wrapped tube of dubious content, yet it inspired a troop of men to rally from the depths of a long losing streak, to an even longer winning streak. But was it really the sausage, my friend? Nay, of course not. Not a horse joke. Our destiny lies not in a sausage, but in hands of our trainers, coaches, and nutritionists. We salute not to you, but with you, old tube of meat. Surely it is in the swinging that this brave team has progressed. It was no sausage drove in those runs. It was a man who was ready to hit. The readiness is pretty good. 

[Doctor Gast]

CWS played us tough, some close games & games we had to win from behind in the last inning but the Twins showed no mercy. Flexen had the Twins number & threw a lot slop that the Twins could hardly touch. Again the Twins superiority in the BP prevailed. Castro has been hot to silence doubters & now that Farmer back in his familiar routine has shown life. Miranda also has shown who he is, which is good to see. A good game all way around, IMO we can stretch out this streak against BOS even w/o Lewis & Buxton. Martin should be back.

[darwin22]

32 minutes ago, Twins_Fan_in_NJ said:

Is it crazy to say that the Twins should re-sign Max this winter...

Yes

[Whitey333]

Great 10 game winning streak.  Awesome.  Now let's see what happens when we play some major league teams coming up.  The Twins will have Red Sox, Mariners, Blue Jay's, Yankees, and Guardians coming up.  I hope they perform well.  As for Buxton, it's the same old, same old.  Just trying to pick a date when he goes down.  No the sky isn't falling.  Only Buxton as usual.  Yet some people here think our season is doomed because Byron may be hurt again.  We'll they have always found someone to replace him and have done well.  This time it probably be Martin who played admirably before being sent down.  To bad for Byron but the Twins will be fine without him.

[blindeke]

That's twice they used Buxton in a hit-and-run. Stop doing that.

[jkcarew]

Been doing more than just ‘surviving’ lately.

The club will be going from 2 of the worse pitching staffs to one of the best (in terms of ERA) in Boston. So, the jury is definitely still out on the bats.

The good news is, that they seem to be playing better…baserunning, defense, bullpen, etc…so, maybe we start winning a little more frequently against the contenders as well. 

[jkcarew]

25 minutes ago, blindeke said:

That's twice they used Buxton in a hit-and-run. Stop doing that.

If he can’t run the bases aggressively and play defense aggressively, what value does he have?

[SteveLV]

Re: Max.

I counseled last winter that their true choice was to either trade him or extend him.  Now if they choose to keep him it is gonna cost them!

[DocBauer]

1 hour ago, jimbo92107 said:

"Sausage streak." Must we?

A caution: The word "sausage" is loaded with potential witticisms, but few of them are fit for human consumption. The intellectual level of wordplay varies so drastically around here... Should we applaud for well-crafted mud, or reserve our plaudits for only the most sublime?

What am I saying? This is a baseball fan site. Have at it, naughty brethren! 'Tis but a sausage, after all. Have a whack at it! Our most cutting jibes will never make it droop. Years hence may we reminisce on this meat product, and wax philosophic.

Dear sausage (or was it beef?) I remember it, Horatio! A well-wrapped tube of dubious content, yet it inspired a troop of men to rally from the depths of a long losing streak, to an even longer winning streak. But was it really the sausage, my friend? Nay, of course not. Not a horse joke. Our destiny lies not in a sausage, but in hands of our trainers, coaches, and nutritionists. We salute not to you, but with you, old tube of meat. Surely it is in the swinging that this brave team has progressed. It was no sausage drove in those runs. It was a man who was ready to hit. The readiness is pretty good. 

SURELY you must be a Monty Python connoisseur?

**golf clap. Or is that coconut banging?**

[Parfigliano]

23 minutes ago, SteveLV said:

Re: Max.

I counseled last winter that their true choice was to either trade him or extend him.  Now if they choose to keep him it is gonna cost them!

It will cost them alot.  Im guessing more then they are willing to spend.

[bean5302]

24 minutes ago, SteveLV said:

Re: Max.

I counseled last winter that their true choice was to either trade him or extend him.  Now if they choose to keep him it is gonna cost them!

Max Kepler will be entering his age 32 season, he's already had one of his frequent IL trips, and his batting performance is still below average on the year. If the season ended yesterday and Kepler put up this stat line:
.250/.306/.364 OPS .670 wRC+ 93, he'd probably get a one year deal at $4-6MM or so.

His plate performance, including this year, has him below league average 3 of the past 4 seasons, and his big calling card has been great RF defense, but that's in steady, and significant decline at this point.

A reasonable guess for Kepler, if he were to repeat last year's performance is 2-3 years at AAV $12-15MM.

Why would the Twins be so excited to bring back a 2-3 WAR right fielder on a significant contract? It would mean Emmanuel Rodriguez doesn't look ready, Wallner never rebounds, Larnach flops, and Martin is unable to match Kepler's defense and league average bat profile over the last few years.

 

[MN Brian]

1 hour ago, jimbo92107 said:

"Sausage streak." Must we?

A caution: The word "sausage" is loaded with potential witticisms, but few of them are fit for human consumption. The intellectual level of wordplay varies so drastically around here... Should we applaud for well-crafted mud, or reserve our plaudits for only the most sublime?

What am I saying? This is a baseball fan site. Have at it, naughty brethren! 'Tis but a sausage, after all. Have a whack at it! Our most cutting jibes will never make it droop. Years hence may we reminisce on this meat product, and wax philosophic.

Dear sausage (or was it beef?) I remember it, Horatio! A well-wrapped tube of dubious content, yet it inspired a troop of men to rally from the depths of a long losing streak, to an even longer winning streak. But was it really the sausage, my friend? Nay, of course not. Not a horse joke. Our destiny lies not in a sausage, but in hands of our trainers, coaches, and nutritionists. We salute not to you, but with you, old tube of meat. Surely it is in the swinging that this brave team has progressed. It was no sausage drove in those runs. It was a man who was ready to hit. The readiness is pretty good. 

An Ode to the Sausage*

Behold, the mighty sausage, a culinary delight,
Thy savory scent doth fill the air with might.
Thy casing, plump and firm, a sight to behold,
Thy juices, rich and warm, a tale to be told.

Like the crack of the bat and the roar of the crowd,
Thy presence doth make our spirits soar, unbowed.
For in thee, we find a taste of the game we love,
A symphony of flavors, a gift from above.

O sausage, thou art the king of all meats,
Thy majesty, a triumph that none can beat.
Thy legacy, shall live on through the ages,
Immortalized in verse, upon these pages.

(*This Shakespearean-style ode to a sausage was written by Perplexity, a helpful AI assistant created by Perplexity AI.)

[CCHOF5yearstoolate]

The central division has 4 of the top 6 records in the AL, not too shabby for the worst division in the sport!

[RpR]

19 minutes ago, bean5302 said:

Why would the Twins be so excited to bring back a 2-3 WAR right fielder on a significant contract? It would mean Emmanuel Rodriguez doesn't loo wik ready, Wallner never rebounds, Larnach flops, and Martin is unable to match Kepler's defense and league average bat profile over the last few years.

 

Rodriguez is in AA and fielding stats are mediocre; Wallner was 0-5 in his last game with 4 Ks, i.e. 44 percent K rate;  Larnach and Martin both have weak arms and are no where near as good as Kepler, so the Twins probably would be excited to do as you say.

[IndianaTwin]

3 hours ago, Riverbrian said:

That's a Big Ten

Like the conference, may the Big Ten streak grow to 16. 

[rv78]

Byron Buxton, Hurt, Again
This season the Twins have benefitted by having their star center fielder play in 28 of their first 30 games. He has routinely been available in the outfield, and while his process has been a bit amiss at the plate, he has found a way to make a significant contribution in the form of an early 0.6 fWAR.

The reason why this news is only worth 2 sentences is because it has become an expected occurance every season. It's not really news at all when it happens every season. 

[bean5302]

1 hour ago, RpR said:

Rodriguez is in AA and fielding stats are mediocre; Wallner was 0-5 in his last game with 4 Ks, i.e. 44 percent K rate;  Larnach and Martin both have weak arms and are no where near as good as Kepler, so the Twins probably would be excited to do as you say.

Must be a fun life to hope and dream for your team to suck and for all their options to underperform.

[Riverbrian]

57 minutes ago, IndianaTwin said:

Like the conference, may the Big Ten streak grow to 16. 

That would be awesome but we are going to need more mascots. 

[MMMordabito]

When do we start talking about extending Jeffers? Dude's .... Dude's locked in.

[mikelink45]

Don't wait - but Buxton on IL.  Bring up Martin.  Keep moving forward.