Twins 6, Mets 3: Twins Survive the Battle of Attrition Against the Mets

[Steven Trefz]

While Jackie Robinson Day reminded fans what truly matters in this world, the Twins managed to remind their fans what they are capable of when they play up to their potential. Here's how the Twins bested the Mets.

Image courtesy of © Jesse Johnson-Imagn Images

Box Score
Starting Pitcher: Bailey Ober 6.1 IP, 5 H, 3 ER, 0 BB, 5 K ( 77 pitches, 57 strikes (74%)
Home Runs: Brooks. Lee (1)
Top 3 WPA: Ryan Jeffers (.177), Ty France (.141), Byron Buxton (.095)

Win Probability Chart (via FanGraphs) 

Bailey Ober took the hill in search of his first victory of the 2025 season. He retired Francisco Lindor and Juan Soto on only five pitches, and then the red-hot Pete Alonso retired the baseball, sending it 416 feet to put the Mets up 1-0 before any sense of optimism could creep in. To add injury to insult, Matt Wallner managed to beat out an infield single in the bottom of the first inning, only to limp back to the dugout and out of the game with an apparent leg injury.

Fighting Back in the Third
In the bottom of the third inning, the Twins finally scratched across some offensive intrigue against Mets starter Tylor Megill. Megill came into tonight’s contest with a sub-1.00 ERA, but he wasn’t going to leave that way. Harrison Bader got the start in left field, and he also beat out an infield dribbler to start the third. After an Edouard Julien lineout to left and a Bader stolen base, Byron Buxton snuck a two-hopper into left to put runners on the corners with only one out. DaShawn Keirsey Jr. attempted to make the most of his opportunity of replacing Wallner by catching everyone off-guard with a bunt. That didn’t work; he popped up the bunt for an easy second out. Luckily for Keirsey and the Twins, Lindor proved that he, too, is human, as he booted an easy grounder to allow Ty France to reach safely, and to plate Bader to knot the game up at 1-1.

The Twins then took the lead like only the Twins can. Carlos Correa found the grass in center for a single to plate Buxton, but France misunderstood that the 42 on his back doesn’t bring with it Jackie Robinson’s speed, and he was easily thrown out at third to snuff out any further rally.

Long Ball Issues
The Twins' lead lasted three pitches, as Juan Soto took an Ober changeup to the dock in right field for his second homer in as many days. Credit Ober for not letting the inning spiral as so many have already this season, as he was able to leave the top of the fourth still tied. Twins fans thought that Ryan Jeffers had finally broken free from his woes with a two-run home run in the bottom of the fourth, but replay showed it bounced off the top of the padding, putting Jeffers at second and stopping Trevor Larnach at third. Larnach scored on a contact play grounder to third, and the Twins were right back on top.

Buxton is 42
The speed that didn’t emerge in France’s legs flows through Buxton’s, and his single, stolen base, and advance on Keirsey’s grounder to the right side set up a Byron Buxton moment to make it a fitting 4-2 game.

More Injury to Insult, and More Jeffers
In the bottom of the fifth inning, Correa injured his wrist on a swing and had to leave the game immediately. Again, misfortune followed just behind the Twins’ glimpse of success, as yet another key starter went down. Jeffers took some of the sting of Correa’s away by proving that his swing is indeed back and healthy, smoking a double down the left-field line to start the bottom of the sixth against reliever Max Kranick. Willi Castro moved Jeffers to third with a grounder, but Bader struck out to leave the pressure squarely on the shoulders of young Julien.

Pressure, what pressure? Single, score it. 5-2 Twins.

The pitch count was low again, but Ober gave way to Cole Sands after surrendering a couple of hits against the bottom of the Mets lineup in the top of the seventh, leaving Sands with runners at second and third with only one out. Sands got two outs, only allowing one of the inherited runners to cross the plate, and exiting the inning with a 5-3 lead before Soto and Alonso could come to the plate.

All's Well That Ends Well?
They say when someone goes down, it's next man up. In the bottom of the seventh, that man was Brooks Lee, and then end of his at-bat found Lee wearing a Spartan helmet in the dugout and the Twins with a three-run advantage yet again.

The Twins bullpen kept the game in order, barely, as Griffin Jax survived the heart of the Mets lineup in the eighth after allowing another Alonso extra-base hit. Jhoan Duran came into the bottom of the ninth throwing 102-mph heaters, but he ended up having to overcome an infield error by Castro, and then had Castro bail him out on yet another bad throw by a pitcher on the ensuing play. The missed double play, however, immediately stung, as Luisangel Acuña bled a single up the middle to put runners on the corners with two out. This brought Lindor to the plate, but on a full count, Duran showed that his speed was deserving of 42 as well tonight, rocketing another 102 mph heater by Lindor to notch the first Twins save of the season. 

What’s Next?
The Twins look to take their first series at home, and first since week one of the season by taking game three Wednesday afternoon. Twins righty David Festa will get his second start of the season, after taking a no-decision without giving up a run earlier in the week. The Mets have yet to name their starter for the mid-day tilt. First pitch is scheduled for 12:10 pm CDT.

Postgame Interviews
Coming Soon!

Bullpen Usage Spreadsheet

	FRI	SAT	SUN	MON	TUE	TOT
Funderburk	0	43	0	36	0	79
Topa	37	0	0	21	0	58
Alcalá	23	10	0	18	0	51
Durán	0	12	10	0	16	38
Sands	0	0	17	0	15	32
Jax	0	0	17	0	12	29
Varland	0	0	12	0	0	12
Coulombe	6	0	0	0	0	6

 

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[JD-TWINS]

12 hits - 5 BB - an opponents timely error…..all in 8 innings……..6 runs & a W.

Jeffers 3 hits - Buxton 2 hits - Julien & Lee both adding offense……nice to see!

 

I was back & forth during the broadcast. Are both Wallner & Correa hurt? Seriousness?

[bean5302]

6 minutes ago, JD-TWINS said:

12 hits - 5 BB - an opponents timely error…..all in 8 innings……..6 runs & a W.

Jeffers 3 hits - Buxton 2 hits - Julien & Lee both adding offense……nice to see!

 

I was back & forth during the broadcast. Are both Wallner & Correa hurt? Seriousness?

Wallner hamstring "tightness." Hopefully he won't miss a ton of time, but I'd bet he'll be out for at least 2 weeks.

Don't know much about Correa's wrist. Just know it was sore and he left the game.

[tony&rodney]

Watched Twins on big screen, Saints on small screen. Both pretty good games.

Twins need to pick it up with who they have. Hopefully Correa and Wallner just need tomorrow and Thursday off. Keaschall is playing really well in the field but is still looking for his swing. Emmanuel is off balance and guessing at times. Both are doing fine but need some time. The best swings are from McCusker. He had a 111+ mph line drive off the center field fence to drive in both runs. Morales had a couple of nice catches including one to save and end the game. Matthews looked dominant at times but faded a bit. Neither Festa, Matthews, or the other minor leaguers are built up for higher pitch counts yet it seems. Hope Festa find a gear tomorrow. 

[Maybebaby]

Very nice to see Lee contribute.  I had to turnoff the game with 2 outs in the top of the 9th.  Feared and used to the worst! Terrible defense in that inning which I thought would snake bite them. 

[tony&rodney]

Wanted to add that the Twins seem like they are working really hard but playing tight. I know everyone faces the same elements but what a drag to come out of Spring Training in Florida to play baseball in freezing weather. The good news for me is that most of the ice is off the lake.

Also the more times I see replay challenges the more I want these rules tweaked. 10 seconds to challenge and the replay official gets 30 seconds to make a decision. 2 challenges per team. Disagreed with the calls that went the Mets way tonight, but I am totally biased. When baseball uses the ABS, it must be used on every pitch. J.T Realmuto was called out on a pitch 8-10 inches outside yesterday in a key spot of the game. FWIW, I was hoping for a San Fran win too, but the call was egregious in a key spot.

[IndyTwinsFan]

26 minutes ago, JD-TWINS said:

12 hits - 5 BB - an opponents timely error…..all in 8 innings……..6 runs & a W.

Jeffers 3 hits - Buxton 2 hits - Julien & Lee both adding offense……nice to see!

 

I was back & forth during the broadcast. Are both Wallner & Correa hurt? Seriousness?

Per Rocco's post game presser, won't be sure on either one until tomorrow morning. 

Roster moves likely coming before game time.

[tony&rodney]

I know Wallner left the game due to some type of leg injury and Correa had something wrong with his hand/wrist. What was not discussed to my knowledge was Larnach. He was really hobbling in left field yesterday and was barely moving in today's game. He surely has something .... lower body injury for sure. Sure looks like Keirsey Jr. should be getting some playing time, which can be an opportunity.

[Aggies7]

Really tried to bottle that 9th inning. Duran has been a bright shining star during all this mess. First save of the year (yuck). Jax then Duran works.

[knothole61]

34 minutes ago, Maybebaby said:

Very nice to see Lee contribute.  I had to turnoff the game with 2 outs in the top of the 9th.  Feared and used to the worst! Terrible defense in that inning which I thought would snake bite them. 

Yeah, they were edging closer and closer to setting up a heartbreaking Soto Slam...but not this time!

Also, nice Buddy Holly reference

[stringer bell]

It looks like Rocco prefers Castro at shortstop over Lee. After the ninth inning I think I’d give the job to Lee right now. Castro seems to be fighting it on both sides of the ball. 

[Blyleven2011]

As bad as the twins have played this year , tonight's game had some excitement  , twins were gifted a runner on lindors  error ...

Ober pitched consistent pitches and pitched into the 7th inning , solo homers don't usually hurt , he allowed 2 tonight , Ober and bullpen were efficient  , minimal base on balls  ...

And to recap , when was the last time we had  players with multiple hits  ( bader , buxton and jeffers ) in a game this year ...

Keirsey Jr first hit was sweet going to left field  , Rod carew I'm sure was proud  ...

 

[RpR]

43 minutes ago, stringer bell said:

It looks like Rocco prefers Castro at shortstop over Lee. After the ninth inning I think I’d give the job to Lee right now. Castro seems to be fighting it on both sides of the ball. 

Castro is horrible at 3rd and Lee is good there.

[UK Twin]

Assuming the injury to Correa isn't too serious, it might not be a bad thing if he has to take a week or two off. Gives him a chance to reset mentally. Will miss his defense obviously but if he comes back stronger it will be worth it. Thankfully Lee is healthy and is having good at bats. 

I would imagine an IL stint for Wallner is inevitable - hamstring injuries take time to heal as Royce Lewis knows only too well. Wonder if we'll see Rodriguez called up for the first time. I know he hasn't been exactly been on fire at AAA but his bat is ready for MLB by all accounts anyway. Give him a chance.

[thelanges5]

Per Bobby Nightengale:

Carlos Correa said he’s been dealing with some wrist discomfort since the end of last season. An MRI last year “didn’t show anything too serious,” so he’s optimistic about the severity.

Matt Wallner said his hamstring was more tight than painful. 

[jmlease1]

Hope it's nothing serious on the injuries; the lineup is a little thin right now and offense wasn't exactly the team strong suit. Need Wallner & Correa out there.

Really disappointing to see Kiersey botch that bunt attempt; he's a speed guy, it's not like they were asking Jeffers or Wallner to lay one down. I get he hasn't been playing much, but he needs to execute.

Ober pitched ok, but danced on the edge a bit. The Alonzo hr wasn't great; he's killing fastballs right now and that one was very hittable. The Soto one was a little less bad, but when Ober is homer-happy it doesn't usually end well. Glad he was able to scrape through.

Welcome back Brooks Lee! Tough to come in mid-AB, but he handled it well and the homer added a very needed run.

Can't believe we had another botched throw from a pitcher. Those are starting to really stick out.

[mikelink45]

Injuries are the story this year if we ignore the bad play and losing record (hard to do).  Still think SP need to go deeper or there will be no BP left by the end of the year and we cannot count on Alcala and Funderburk for serious situations - not sure about Topa either and we used our three best today.

[Doctor Gast]

Twins have been geared not to hustle, not to take or steal an extra base, the result is no fire. It took Wallner hustling down 1B to get the fire going. It's not good enough to encourage Correa, France & Vazquez to steal a base, we can't expect 1 year of conditioning for that to prevent injuries that can pop up. We need to get players into the game who have been hustling for years. Lewis is out, then who do we have?

IMO, it's much more important to have a traditional leadoff hitter. A player who has a high OBP, who can take and steal an extra base, and shake up pitchers to make a mistake for the hitters behind them to take advantage of. This is what produces rallies, this is what produces fire, this is the player we need more often in the lineup. Let me ask: "Who is more valuable, a hitter who hits a double or a player who walks, who steals 2B then 3B and scores on a shallow FO? The latter sparked a rally, the former did not. The latter is a much better fielder than the former. Yet the 1st hitter has a much higher OPS than the latter & is held in much more esteem because social media has endocrinated us that the higher the OPS & WAR, the better the player is. I beg that's not necessarily true.

[ryanking61]

One of our local channels in North Dakota struck up a deal to play the Tuesday night games, got to watch it last night, there was ups and downs, but it was nice to actually get to watch them AND see them win, hoping Correa is alright! GO Twins! 

[JD-TWINS]

9 hours ago, IndyTwinsFan said:

Per Rocco's post game presser, won't be sure on either one until tomorrow morning. 

Roster moves likely coming before game time.

Gotta be Keaschall up first? ……Is he on 40 man? He may only be able to hit? (DH)

Gasper at 1B & 2B defensive depth. Nobody on left side for depth - right? Maybe Correa just sits a couple days?

I saw Wallner pull up in replay this morning - 10 day IL almost certainly.

[Blyleven2011]

23 minutes ago, Doctor Gast said:

Twins have been geared not to hustle, not to take or steal an extra base, the result is no fire. It took Wallner hustling down 1B to get the fire going. It's not good enough to encourage Correa, France & Vazquez to steal a base, we can't expect 1 year of conditioning for that to prevent injuries that can pop up. We need to get players into the game who have been hustling for years. Lewis is out, then who do we have?

IMO, it's much more important to have a traditional leadoff hitter. A player who has a high OBP, who can take and steal an extra base, and shake up pitchers to make a mistake for the hitters behind them to take advantage of. This is what produces rallies, this is what produces fire, this is the player we need more often in the lineup. Let me ask: "Who is more valuable, a hitter who hits a double or a player who walks, who steals 2B then 3B and scores on a shallow FO? The latter sparked a rally, the former did not. The latter is a much better fielder than the former. Yet the 1st hitter has a much higher OPS than the latter & is held in much more esteem because social media has endocrinated us that the higher the OPS & WAR, the better the player is. I beg that's not necessarily true.

Brewers stole 5 bases last night against Detroit catcher dingler ...

Something we will never see our twins do ...

[Doctor Gast]

32 minutes ago, jmlease1 said:

Hope it's nothing serious on the injuries; the lineup is a little thin right now and offense wasn't exactly the team strong suit. Need Wallner & Correa out there.

Really disappointing to see Kiersey botch that bunt attempt; he's a speed guy, it's not like they were asking Jeffers or Wallner to lay one down. I get he hasn't been playing much, but he needs to execute.

Ober pitched ok, but danced on the edge a bit. The Alonzo hr wasn't great; he's killing fastballs right now and that one was very hittable. The Soto one was a little less bad, but when Ober is homer-happy it doesn't usually end well. Glad he was able to scrape through.

Welcome back Brooks Lee! Tough to come in mid-AB, but he handled it well and the homer added a very needed run.

Can't believe we had another botched throw from a pitcher. Those are starting to really stick out.

Yes, he needs to execute but the fault isn't on him it's on management for only playing him sparingly the last 2 years. Only 23 ABs spread out in those 2 yrs,! This year he hasn't even MiLB experience to draw from. A bench pinch-hitter is a very demanding role because a hitter who is used sparingly is called to come in & execute. Only a very seasoned veteran can do that & even most of them can't. You can't expect a newly exposed MiLBer to execute in those adverse conditions. 

It took over 175 regular ABs  for Mike Trout to break out. How can we expect Keirsey to accomplish anything with only 23 very irregular ABs? I just hope that Keirsey can show Baldelli enough to reconsider his bias in this small window of regular ABs. I know it's a lot to ask but for the good of the team I pray that it happens.

[LambchoP]

After Correa went down, why was his replacement Lee playing 3rd base with Castro at SS. I thought Lee was Correa's backup and our best option for a true shortstop? Castro sure hasn't looked good on that side of the field this year. Hopefully Wallner is only out a day or two and Twins can build a little momentum and keep hitting. Starting Friday we play the struggling Braves. Could go either way I suppose;)

[laloesch]

1 hour ago, mikelink45 said:

Injuries are the story this year 

they were the story last year, and the year before, and the year before that.

[laloesch]

1 hour ago, JD-TWINS said:

Gotta be Keaschall up first? ……Is he on 40 man? He may only be able to hit? (DH)

One would hope.  Keaschall has spent most of his time at either 2nd or DH.  

[laloesch]

9 minutes ago, LambchoP said:

After Correa went down, why was his replacement Lee playing 3rd base with Castro at SS. I thought Lee was Correa's backup and our best option for a true shortstop? Castro sure hasn't looked good on that side of the field this year. Hopefully Wallner is only out a day or two and Twins can build a little momentum and keep hitting. Starting Friday we play the struggling Braves. Could go either way I suppose;)

He is.  He played most of his games last season at SS, but Rocco also put him at 3rd for 13 games, and another 11 at 2nd.  Hopefully they call up Keaschall soon and he can focus on SS and the occasional start at 3rd.

[tony&rodney]

Castro is a utility player. It is his best role. Willi works hard to make the plays but he does not have the skills of a normal regular position player. The fact that Castro must play nearly every day puts him in a difficult spot because the ball finds him. We should be thankful Castro manages to fill holes all around the field but expecting him to be better in the field ignores his limits. I'm pretty happy with his hustle even when he blunders. Right now Castro looks a little lost at the plate too. The injury to Austin Martin was bad luck because he would have been a good choice as a second utility player. I'm still not able to understand the Gasper situation but maybe Lady Luck will rear her head there.

[Jeff K]

8 hours ago, stringer bell said:

It looks like Rocco prefers Castro at shortstop over Lee. After the ninth inning I think I’d give the job to Lee right now. Castro seems to be fighting it on both sides of the ball. 

i think Castro already has 4 errors this year.  Not all at SS

[Jeff K]

1 hour ago, Doctor Gast said:

Twins have been geared not to hustle, not to take or steal an extra base, the result is no fire. It took Wallner hustling down 1B to get the fire going. It's not good enough to encourage Correa, France & Vazquez to steal a base, we can't expect 1 year of conditioning for that to prevent injuries that can pop up. We need to get players into the game who have been hustling for years. Lewis is out, then who do we have?

IMO, it's much more important to have a traditional leadoff hitter. A player who has a high OBP, who can take and steal an extra base, and shake up pitchers to make a mistake for the hitters behind them to take advantage of. This is what produces rallies, this is what produces fire, this is the player we need more often in the lineup. Let me ask: "Who is more valuable, a hitter who hits a double or a player who walks, who steals 2B then 3B and scores on a shallow FO? The latter sparked a rally, the former did not. The latter is a much better fielder than the former. Yet the 1st hitter has a much higher OPS than the latter & is held in much more esteem because social media has endocrinated us that the higher the OPS & WAR, the better the player is. I beg that's not necessarily true.

Buxton has not hit to expectations, but he has been hustling.  4 SB's and taking the extra base.

[DJL44]

9 hours ago, stringer bell said:

It looks like Rocco prefers Castro at shortstop over Lee. After the ninth inning I think I’d give the job to Lee right now. Castro seems to be fighting it on both sides of the ball. 

A good first baseman catches Castro's throw.