Nationals 7, Twins 2: Native Minnesotans Dominate Twins, Nats Win Series

[Hans Birkeland]

Image courtesy of © Nick Wosika-Imagn Images

Box Score:
Starting (Bulk) Pitcher: Travis Adams: 3 2/3 IP, 5 H, 5 ER, 2 BB, 3 K (83 Pitches, 48 Strikes, 57.8%)
Home Runs: Matt Wallner (12)
Bottom 3 WPA: Travis Adams (-.360), Willi Castro (-.099), Royce Lewis (-.077)
Win Probability Chart (Via Fangraphs):

You could have argued that there were three instances of the Twins season effectively ending since the All-Star break:

1. Losing two of three to the worst team in baseball, the Rockies.
2. Griffin Jax walking pinch-runner extraordinaire Esteury Ruiz to punt away what would have been a revitalizing series win in LA against the Dodgers.
3. Saturday night, with their ace on the mound against a rebuilding but feisty Nationals team, Brooks Lee misses a pop-up and then makes an error on the relay, leading to three back-breaking runs. I turned the game off at that point, meaning I got to miss the part where Byron Buxton left with an injury.

You can't go into a rebuild phase with this roster—not with the talent it still possesses and with Emmanuel Rodriguez, Walker Jenkins and Luke Keaschall all nearly ready to contribute. If rebuilding is your contention, you may be confusing this sport with one where that is far more beneficial. What you do is trade away the expiring contracts and see what the young guys have over the next two months. In 2017, that led to a playoff berth. This year, it probably won't, but it would be nice to have some positive juice when a theoretical new ownership group comes in.

Sunday was a bullpen game, because David Festa was placed on the IL with renewed shoulder soreness. The first pitch Cole Sands threw was crushed by CJ Abrams over the high wall in right-center. Sands settled down after that, and then Trevor Larnach led off the Twins half with a single against Minnesota native Jake Irvin—which was immediately erased by an easy double-play grounder off the bat of Willi Castro.

Irvin has settled into being a decent back-end starter for the Nats. Nothing stands out metrically about him except some elite extension from his 6-foot-6 frame, but he pitched 187 2/3 solid innings last year and generally throws strikes. He threw two fastball strikes to fellow Minnesota Matt Wallner in the second, and Wallner made him pay with a 452-foot blast to tie the game.

Abrams manufactured another run for the Nats in the third, though. He singled past Kody Clemens at first, stole second, and then stole third and scored on a sacrifice fly from Luis García Jr. Pretty impressive for the third-most productive piece of the Juan Soto trade thus far, who also has an All-Star appearance on his resume.

The Twins would return the favor, thanks to Harrison Bader. The center fielder singled up the middle and was running when Christian Vázquez grounded to shortstop. Bader hesitated a bit to make sure shortstop Paul DeJong wasn't paying attention, then kept on running and made third easily. He would then score on a sacrifice fly from Larnach.

Washington quickly reclaimed the lead against Travis Adams in the fourth. Daylen Lile split the gap in right-center field with a rocket line drive (105 MPH), and yet another sacrifice fly—this time from DeJong—scored the Nats' third run.

Adams would continue to struggle in the fifth. He hit Abrams to lead off the inning, walked the struggling James Wood, and gave up a blooper to García. Josh Bell then smoked a single through the left side. Adams retired Nathaniel Lowe on a ground ball to Brooks Lee, who made the decision to come home rather than take the sure double play at second. The broadcast was split on the decision, but Alex Call then grounded a ball off the pitcher's mound that fooled Lee, scoring two more runs. With a pitcher who cannot induce swing-and-miss to save his life (like Adams), I think the better move is to get as many outs as possible, even if it costs a run. A sacrifice fly would then score Lowe to make it 7-2 Nationals.

The rest of the game was a slow death, with Irvin completing seven innings of two-run ball, despite recording only two strikeouts. The Twins never really threatened.

Stray Observations:
-Lee has the hands, arm and instincts to be a really good fielder, including making an incredible jump throw to retire Nats catcher Riley Adams in the eighth. But he rarely makes the right decision, and seems to panic in big moments, struggling to get the ball out of his glove, dropping the ball on the transfer, and generally just being a heart attack out there. He's basically a rookie. If we can be patient with Rob Dillingham, we can be patient with Lee, but he sure makes it hard.

-You try and squint to see what Adams could offer a team if everything broke right for him. Like, if the Rays picked him up, what would they focus on as far as pitch tweaks and sequencing? I kind of like his cutter, I guess.

What's Next: The Twins begin a three-game series against the Red Sox at Target Field Monday night. Simeon Woods Richardson (5-4, 4.14 ERA) takes on Richard Fitts (1-4, 4.86 ERA), as the Twins look to showcase their tradable players one last time with the deadline looming. Fitts has not been overly impressive and is a righty, so maybe the Twins could offer some resistance. Woods Richardson has been good since his most recent call-up, as he looks to retain his rotation spot once Pablo López and Bailey Ober return from injury.

Postgame Interviews:

 

 

Bullpen Usage Chart:

	WED	THU	FRI	SAT	SUN	TOT
Adams	0	0	0	0	83	83
Coulombe	16	0	11	0	20	47
Jax	20	0	25	0	0	45
Funderburk	0	0	0	39	0	39
Topa	0	0	0	27	0	27
Sands	0	0	0	0	27	27
Varland	15	0	0	0	11	26
Durán	0	0	6	0	17	23
Stewart	0	0	0	0	9	9

 

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[DJL44]

Glad I took the boat out instead.

[Vanimal46]

Just your run of the mill listless effort from the 2025 Minnesota Twins.

Idk who out of Falvey and Zoll is taking responsibility for this trade deadline… But it’s time to get to work. The players have been speaking loud and clear for most of the season. 

[OvertheHill]

Good luck to the Twins staff as far as marketing this team. The term “listless “ keeps popping up in the forums; it’s for a reason. There’s so little energy on the field and so few players adequately developed in our system that there’s almost nothing to cheer for aside from the occasional Buxton highlight. 

[mikelink45]

What a sad day. This was pathetic again. We play Colorado and Washington and can't win a series. When Lee, Lewis, and wallner were due up in the 9th inning My first thought was these are the three prospects we have been expecting to rise up and lift the team to new heights. So much for that thought. Then there's a question about Adams. When we added him to the 40 man a long time ago my first question was who is he and now that I've seen him come up a few times My question is who is he and why is he on the 40 man. Shouldn't we look at some of the other high-end prospects and see what they can do.?  

I'm trying to picture what I see as the next iteration of twins. And I'd like to see it soon. Buxton, bader, and Walker in the outfield. Keaschall, Lewis, Lee and Jeffers. Rodriguez and Gonzales at first and DH. Jeffers catching. That is the best I can picture now but SS should be Culpeper soon. 

[Blyleven2011]

What's to comment on , it was a loss and they lost the series too ...

3 wins since allstar game break , no reason for front office to hold out for any HOPE   ...

Trade , get what you can for the expiring contracts  ...

If you trade 1 of Ryan,  Duran or Jax  you better get it right , trade a player with years of control means getting players back that can play now at the ML level and fill our weaknesses  ...

We need to retool not rebuild  ...

I sound like a broken record close to the deadline every year ...

[mikelink45]

The sad part of this loss is a fact that we're going to have to listen or read speculation about trades until this deadline finally ends. Fact is no one knows what this front office or ownership group will do or wants to do.

[karcherd]

I think Lee coming home that was pre determined before the pitch.  Rocco always plays the infield in to cut down the run at home.  I don't think it has anything to do with his instincts, that is the way players are being taught and so went with what was pre determined.  

Also I am not sure that was his ball last night, Castro and France wanted nothing to do with that pop up and he came the farthest and tried to get it.  But Castro probably should have of taken it.  But again when you keep moving players around, communication will be impacted and we have seen this more than once since the ASB.

[jkcarew]

That’s 3 consecutive series out of the break where we weren’t swept. SO close, you can taste it. Let’s trade a couple of rookie league prospects for an average left-handed reliever, and make that run!

[jkcarew]

7 minutes ago, mikelink45 said:

The sad part of this loss is a fact that we're going to have to listen or read speculation about trades until this deadline finally ends.

I think the 54 losses that came before this one played a part.

[thelanges5]

AL worst 19-29 since June 1. Not much more can be said. I hope the FO does something. They’ve been running it back since the playoffs in 2023. No bueno. 

[Vanimal46]

Just now, thelanges5 said:

AL worst 19-29 since June 1. Not much more can be said. I hope the FO does something. They’ve been running it back since the playoffs in 2023. No bueno. 

FWIW, here’s what Disco Dan Hayes just tweeted 

I’d try to combine Bader and Coulombe together to get a better return. Rangers, Dodgers, Yankees all potential suitors for those guys. 

[LastOnePicked]

To be fair, it was very hot. The Twins don't play well if it's very hot. Or very cold. The temperature has to be just right for them to play .500 ball.

Rebuild. Completely. Fully. Commit to a new era of Twins baseball. No more "retool" nibbling with this squad.

[Parfigliano]

58 minutes ago, DJL44 said:

Glad I took the boat out instead.

Wise choice.

[Danchat]

1 hour ago, Hans Birkeland said:

You can't go into a rebuild phase with this roster—not with the talent it still possesses and with Emmanuel Rodriguez, Walker Jenkins and Luke Keaschall all nearly ready to contribute. If rebuilding is your contention, you may be confusing this sport with one where that is far more beneficial.

I dunno, we've had 4 out of 5 disappointing seasons with this core and outside of those prospects you named there aren't a whole lot of other minor leaguers ready to break through. It's a mediocre roster that isn't good enough to compete, but also not bad enough to go through with a rebuild, so I guess we'll just have to enjoy this purgatory until the team is sold.

[Maybebaby]

Per the upcoming series vs the Bosox....define resistance?

[Maybebaby]

2 minutes ago, Maybebaby said:

Per the upcoming series vs the Bosox....define resistance?

Bingo on the moving guys around.  Rocco might be the one guy that puts a hotdog on his ketchup!

[thelanges5]

Keaschall walk off winner for the Saints today. Martin and Eeles providing the bulk of the offense in a 10-9 win. 

[Mike Sixel]

8 minutes ago, thelanges5 said:

Keaschall walk off winner for the Saints today. Martin and Eeles providing the bulk of the offense in a 10-9 win. 

How Kiersey is in Minnesota and not Martin.....

[sweetmusicviola16]

16 minutes ago, Mike Sixel said:

How Kiersey is in Minnesota and not Martin.....

I couldn't agree more. You have nothing to lose by recalling Martin, absolutely nothing. You can only gain. If he struggles so what? But if he doesn't.....

 

So lets keep Martin in St.Paul. smh

[sweetmusicviola16]

43 minutes ago, Danchat said:

I dunno, we've had 4 out of 5 disappointing seasons with this core and outside of those prospects you named there aren't a whole lot of other minor leaguers ready to break through. It's a mediocre roster that isn't good enough to compete, but also not bad enough to go through with a rebuild, so I guess we'll just have to enjoy this purgatory until the team is sold.

This is a 74-78 win team perpetually. And lets face it, the team has regressed. 

[Danchat]

42 minutes ago, Mike Sixel said:

How Kiersey is in Minnesota and not Martin.....

I guess the logic is because they want Martin to be in the lineup every day and he wouldn't be in the majors. It'll be a moot point once Bader is traded in the next week, but they just don't seem to believe in him. I would have given him a shot earlier than now.

[Vanimal46]

52 minutes ago, Mike Sixel said:

How Kiersey is in Minnesota and not Martin.....

Someone has to be on the end of the bench. Martin will be up at any point in the next 4 days, how about that? 

[h2oface]

Why wait until August to start tanking, when you can do it starting in June? 
 

“Tell me again, about the pitching pipeline, George….. Tell me about the pipeline!

[Vanimal46]

15 minutes ago, h2oface said:

Why wait until August to start tanking, when you can do it starting in June? 
 

“Tell me again, about the pitching pipeline, George….. Tell me about the pipeline!

When I think about the Minnesota Twins, the 1st phrase that comes to mind is “forward thinking” 

[rv78]

After losing 2 series to 2 of the worst teams in baseball, tell me again why there is reason for optimism since the Twins have an "easy" schedule the 2nd half of the season.

[David HK]

Geez Louise...

I'm glad these day games start around 2AM at my house.  Didn't miss this one at all, but what sucks is not being surprised when I click on the scoreboard in the morning. 

The Rockies, kick away the dodger series and now the Nats. 

Woof, this team.  Woof.

[Blyleven2011]

3 hours ago, DJL44 said:

Glad I took the boat out instead.

So that was your boat sinking in the game thread  , Vanimal46  posted a picture of a boat sinking , it went down pretty quick  ...

[JD-TWINS]

2026 TWINS:

Buxton - CC - Lewis - Keaschall - Jeffers aren’t going anywhere.

Larnach - Wallner - Lee are all average to below average but probably remain on roster in ‘26.

Sands - Varland - Stewart - Duran

SWR - Matthews - Festa - Ober - Ryan - Lopez (5 of these guys to open ‘26)

Seriously consider moving Jax for a position player that can play out the last two months of this year in Mpls ………C hopefully or RH hitting OF or 1B.

Coulombe, Bader, Paddack & Castro can all go and be mixed and matched to help contenders.

Paddack - Jax - Coulombe all as relievers can help contenders through October……Castro & Bader can also provide real stretch value.

As a number of people have stated at TD, probably have to combine a couple guys to get player ready value back.

Bader & Coulombe or Jax & Castro have to be attractive for a handful of clubs.

Quero (C) from Milwaukee, maybe Rushing (C) from LA……….need to fill that void. Maybe Jeffers could go to 1B next year if 2 Catchers were brought in & he could catch 10% of the time to keep him in tune for potential needs & to keep other guys fresh? Bring in one via trade now and one via FA signing this winter.

If Team sweeps Red Sox they still need to go 33-21, to get close to a Wildcard spot, from August 1st forward. That’s 36-21 starting tomorrow. Maybe a 10–15% chance of that happening? …… that’s if Keaschall helps a bunch and Ober & Lopez are flawless down the stretch.

 

[Old Crow]

3 hours ago, karcherd said:

I think Lee coming home that was pre determined before the pitch.  Rocco always plays the infield in to cut down the run at home.  I don't think it has anything to do with his instincts, that is the way players are being taught and so went with what was pre determined.  

Also I am not sure that was his ball last night, Castro and France wanted nothing to do with that pop up and he came the farthest and tried to get it.  But Castro probably should have of taken it.  But again when you keep moving players around, communication will be impacted and we have seen this more than once since the ASB.

More like since the begining of the season.