Twins 11, A's 8: Connor Prielipp Sharp In Return, Twins' Bats (and Legs) Win Sloppy Slugfest Late

[Hans Birkeland]

Image courtesy of © Jeffrey Becker-Imagn Images

Box Score:
Starting Pitcher: Connor Prielipp: 5 2/3 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 5 K (72 Pitches, 44 Strikes, 61.1%)
Home Runs: None
Top 3 WPA: Kody Clemens (0.19), Prielipp (0.14), Ryan Jeffers (0.11)
Win Probability Chart (Via BaseballSavant):

The Twins needed a series victory over the battered Athletics in the worst way. After losing the opener at Target Field on Friday, the home team took game two behind a nice outing from Kendry Rojas and the bullpen. The Athletics lost their All-Star catcher, Shea Langeliers, in the process, and then had to turn to the struggling Jeffrey Springs in the rubber game.

Springs is a lefty, and we all know how the Twins offense tends to shut down against that type of pitcher. Not today, although some of the production against Springs could certainly be ascribed to dumb luck. It started with Austin Martin doubling off the glove of left fielder Tyler Soderstrom. Ryan Jeffers lofted a bloop single to get Martin to third, and after a Royce Lewis RBI groundout, Kody Clemens tripled to the gap in right-center field and scored after the throw to third base went out of play. It was 3-0 Twins in a blink, thanks partially to the A's.

Another bloop single by Alex Jackson started the second inning, and Brooks Lee followed with a walk. Ryan Kreidler then hit the hardest ball against Springs of all (107 MPH), but that ball was caught. Springs left with a hip injury, capping a brutal day at the ballpark for a pitcher who used to be legitimately All-Star caliber, just a few years ago. Martin drew a walk, bringing up Byron Buxton with the bases loaded. Springs was probably psyched for a minute, as Buxton lined into a double play, but the out call on Lee at second base was overturned. Then reliever Luis Morales balked Jackson home for the fourth Twins run, a call that got A's manager Mark Kotsay ejected.

Ryan Jeffers then continued to crush the hearts of anyone who is still a fan of the Athletics, lining a single to right to score two more.

Meanwhile, Connor Prielipp was on the mound after a brief stay on the IL with a blister issue. The time off seemed to have done him some good, as Prielipp was painting the corners of the zone with all of his pitches, striking out three in his first three innings (all perfect frames) while hitting 98 MPH on his fastball.

He wavered a bit in the fourth, walking Nick Kurtz with one out and falling behind the next hitter, Jonah Heim, 3-0. He fought back into the count and eventually got Heim to tap to Lee at third, who started an around-the-horn double play with Jackson, who was making his first start at first base, sprawling out to collect the relay throw from Lewis. The A's got their first hit in the fifth inning off the bat of Soderstrom, but he, too, was erased on an inning-ending double play.

Prielipp began the sixth with only 62 pitches thrown, which surely made Derek Shelton a little uncomfortable. Prielipp's workload has been intensely managed, but all of the Twins' top relievers were used in Saturday's victory, and the A's had not eclipsed 100 MPH on any ball they had put in play to that point. Prielipp got the first two outs on 10 more pitches before giving way to Cole Sands with the top of the lineup coming up for the third time.

That may have been too cute a move, as Sands—making his first appearance in nearly three months—hit Jacob Wilson with a pitch on an 0-2 count and served up a splitter to Kurtz, who smashed it out into the bullpen in left-center field, 412 feet.

Their lead reduced from seven to four, Ryan Kreidler doubled with one out in the bottom of the frame and then, for the third time in two games, stole third base. Martin lofted a ball deep enough to score him, but Soderstrom took his eye off the ball and it skittered away, allowing Kreidler to score and Martin to reach third.

Sands stayed on for the seventh and appeared to get the first out off the bat of Soderstrom, but this time it was Martin in left field who couldn't track down a fly ball in the direct sun, allowing Soderstrom to reach second. Tommy White then singled, followed by a walk to pinch-hitter Lawrence Butler. That spelled the end for Sands, who was relieved by Tommy Nance. Nance promptly walked another pinch-hitter, Donovan Walton, to force in the A's' fourth run and bring the tying run to the plate. An RBI groundout and sacrifice fly later, the lead was down to two. Clemens made a diving catch on a liner from Wilson to finally end the inning, one of the biggest defensive plays of the Twins' season to date.

The Twins answered right away, too, with Clemens hitting his second triple of the game, this one to the base of the wall in right-center. He would then score on a sacrifice fly by Keaschall for a key insurance run. The Twins would add another in the eighth, with Kreidler delivering his third double of the day to score Lee. He would score when Jeffers hit a tapper to third base that White made a poor throw on, pushing the cushion to five runs.

Travis Adams made it interesting in the ninth, allowing three hits, but kept it together enough to secure the 11-8 victory.

Stuff I'm Tracking:

• Luke Keaschall entered play with a .493 OBP in July and an OPS over 1.000. 
• Martin has an OBP over .400 in July after looking like a good candidate for a return to Triple-A for a while, adding a double and a walk today.
• Buxton looks rough at the plate right now, missing the pitches he normally crushes, and chasing the pitches he usually spits on.
• Sands didn't look great before he got hurt, and looked awful today in this return. Relievers sometimes have a short shelf life, but hopefully that is not the case with Sands, who was nails as a high-leverage guy in 2024.

What’s Next: Taj Bradley (9-4, 3.69 ERA) takes on Seth Lugo (4-6, 4.36 ERA) as the Twins welcome the Royals to Target Field for a three-game set starting Tuesday. The Royals look like clear sellers for this year's trade deadline, with their formerly prized pitching staff failing them, as they have allowed even more runs than the Twins this year. A series victory would get the Twins back to .500 before their final pre-deadline series in Seattle.

Postgame Interviews:

 

Bullpen Usage Chart:

	WED	THU	FRI	SAT	SUN	TOT
Morris	28	16	0	26	0	70
Adams	27	0	14	0	15	56
Rojas	0	0	0	56	0	56
Funderburk	22	0	12	0	17	51
Rogers	0	13	0	30	0	43
Nance	0	13	0	13	15	41
Anderson	0	18	17	0	0	35
Gomez	0	22	0	8	0	30
Sands	0	0	0	0	28	28

 

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[soyouresayingtheresachance]

Anyone else annoyed at the timing of Prielipp being pulled? Let him finish the inning. I understand hes on a limit but he was dealing and looking darn good. That decision cost us 6 runs and completely undermined the dominating start from Prielipp. 

And why does Sands automatically get a spot on the roster while a guy with an ERA under 3 gets sent out? Because he had 1 decent season 2 year ago? Dude is overrated. I do understand why he was put in the game in that spot. It Should've been a low leverage spot but he completely imploded. 

Nance and Funderburk are looking decent at the moment. Adams was on a nice run before today. Hopefully just a hiccup and not the start of something bad. 

I am fully over Royce Lewis at this point. Why is he ever batting cleanup? .208 average for the season and his numbers are even worse over the past couple weeks or so. Its been 3 years since hes done anything. Its well past time to let go. 

Is Buck ok? He has been struggling pretty bad for a couple weeks. I hope that hip isn't holding him back still. If it is, he needs to let that heal up. 

Clemens with 2 triples today. What a difficult feat.

Kriedler with 3 doubles and 2 stolen bases. He and Clemens have been stepping up on both sides of the ball. 

3 hits and 3 RBIs for Jeffers, showing hes healthy. I sure hope we keep him. Probably a top 5 Catcher in the league. We need to keep guys like him. 

A's were kicking the ball all over the field today. Very nice to see the team take advantage of those opportunities. 

On a side note, I wasnt too pleased to see Arcia released from AAA so Gray could have a roster spot. Arcia is a better player in a every aspect of the game. It was a puzzling decision for sure and I just cant understand why the team has been sticking with him so much. He kept getting starts in the ML over better players and now hes taking a AAA roster spot over a better player. 

[wesnewy]

awesome watching the rookies show out in back to back starts! Only one game back of .500 🤞🏻

[mikelink45]

5 minutes ago, soyouresayingtheresachance said:

Anyone else annoyed at the timing of Prielipp being pulled? Let him finish the inning. I understand hes on a limit but he was dealing and looking darn good. That decision cost us 6 runs and completely undermined the dominating start from Prielipp. 

And why does Sands automatically get a spot on the roster while a guy with an ERA under 3 gets sent out? Because he had 1 decent season 2 year ago? Dude is overrated. I do understand why he was put in the game in that spot. It Should've been a low leverage spot but he completely imploded. 

Nance and Funderburk are looking decent at the moment. Adams was on a nice run before today. Hopefully just a hiccup and not the start of something bad. 

I am fully over Royce Lewis at this point. Why is he ever batting cleanup? .208 average for the season and his numbers are even worse over the past couple weeks or so. Its been 3 years since hes done anything. Its well past time to let go. 

Is Buck ok? He has been struggling pretty bad for a couple weeks. I hope that hip isn't holding him back still. If it is, he needs to let that heal up. 

Clemens with 2 triples today. What a difficult feat.

Kriedler with 3 doubles and 2 stolen bases. He and Clemens have been stepping up on both sides of the ball. 

3 hits and 3 RBIs for Jeffers, showing hes healthy. I sure hope we keep him. Probably a top 5 Catcher in the league. We need to keep guys like him. 

A's were kicking the ball all over the field today. Very nice to see the team take advantage of those opportunities. 

On a side note, I wasnt too pleased to see Arcia released from AAA so Gray could have a roster spot. Arcia is a better player in a every aspect of the game. It was a puzzling decision for sure and I just cant understand why the team has been sticking with him so much. He kept getting starts in the ML over better players and now hes taking a AAA roster spot over a better player. 

I have nothing left to say - you nailed it. 

[HarmonK03]

9 minutes ago, soyouresayingtheresachance said:

And why does Sands automatically get a spot on the roster while a guy with an ERA under 3 gets sent out? Because he had 1 decent season 2 year ago? Dude is overrated. I do understand why he was put in the game in that spot. It Should've been a low leverage spot but he completely imploded. 

I know Sands blew up today, but he has had plenty of positive appearances over the years with the Twins and pitched six scoreless appearances in St. Paul.  He earned his spot back on the roster, now he has to pitch better to keep it.  Anderson has looked good in two appearances with the Twins and I am glad we kept in the organization.  There will be other opportunities for him.  But you don't keep someone with Sands resume down in St. Paul for someone with limited experience like Anderson.

 

14 minutes ago, soyouresayingtheresachance said:

Kriedler with 3 doubles and 2 stolen bases. He and Clemens have been stepping up on both sides of the ball. 

Kreidler has stablized shortstop on the defensive side, but he has definitely not been stepping up on the offensive side of the ball before day, he has a batting average of .127 and OPS of .344 in July.   We can appreciate his performance today and enjoy it but let's not pretend that he is a consistent offensive threat.

 

17 minutes ago, soyouresayingtheresachance said:

I am fully over Royce Lewis at this point. Why is he ever batting cleanup? .208 average for the season and his numbers are even worse over the past couple weeks or so. Its been 3 years since hes done anything. Its well past time to let go. 

He is still taking good at bats and has been drawing walks, last night his double was one of the keys to the win.  Maybe keeping him at one position might help.  You need to give him the rest of the year.

[Saxophone Joe]

- Buck’s RISP struggles, dang. It is in his head, full stop. Elephant in the room…

Oh well, hope he snaps out of it. These past two games were all about living to see another series as playoff contenders. Not exactly impressive but mission accomplished. Go get at least 2 out of 3 from KC and head to Seattle with a .500 record (or better).

-  Kreidler is a Sunday afternoon game-changer!

PS that was my wife & me with the “Circle Me Pablo” signs they showed in the 8th. Pablo: “That’s so nice of them.” Filmed at yesterday’s game though 🤣

[tony&rodney]

Clearly the Twins had a 70 pitch count on Prielipp. The big lead and a rested Sands made sense in the moment. The problem was strictly on Sands inability to execute his pitches. Rojas and Prielipp both looked sharp but they are understandable pitch count limits.

The goal is to win games and series. Check versus the Athletics. Now it is time to win the series against a gritty Kansas City club.

This Twins team is playing a neighborhood that was unexpected in late March.

[HarmonK03]

1 minute ago, tony&rodney said:

Clearly the Twins had a 70 pitch count on Prielipp. The big lead and a rested Sands made sense in the moment. The problem was strictly on Sands inability to execute his pitches. Rojas and Prielipp both looked sharp but they are understandable pitch count limits.

The goal is to win games and series. Check versus the Athletics. Now it is time to win the series against a gritty Kansas City club.

This Twins team is playing a neighborhood that was unexpected in late March.

I can understand Prielipp but when are they going to increase Rojas usage.  If feels like they still him have on this bulk pitcher nonsense and we do need starters that can be stretched out.  You can't continue to use the bullpen like we have been, or it catches up and those series wins get harder.

[HarmonK03]

• Luke Keaschall entered play with a .493 OBP in July and an OPS over 1.000.

This is why you do not take AB's away from Keaschall and platoon him.  I really hope that will not be the plan when they start facing more RH pitchers.

[Parfigliano]

30 minutes ago, soyouresayingtheresachance said:

Anyone else annoyed at the timing of Prielipp being pulled? Let him finish the inning. I understand hes on a limit but he was dealing and looking darn good. That decision cost us 6 runs and completely undermined the dominating start from Prielipp. 

And why does Sands automatically get a spot on the roster while a guy with an ERA under 3 gets sent out? Because he had 1 decent season 2 year ago? Dude is overrated. I do understand why he was put in the game in that spot. It Should've been a low leverage spot but he completely imploded. 

Nance and Funderburk are looking decent at the moment. Adams was on a nice run before today. Hopefully just a hiccup and not the start of something bad. 

I am fully over Royce Lewis at this point. Why is he ever batting cleanup? .208 average for the season and his numbers are even worse over the past couple weeks or so. Its been 3 years since hes done anything. Its well past time to let go. 

Is Buck ok? He has been struggling pretty bad for a couple weeks. I hope that hip isn't holding him back still. If it is, he needs to let that heal up. 

Clemens with 2 triples today. What a difficult feat.

Kriedler with 3 doubles and 2 stolen bases. He and Clemens have been stepping up on both sides of the ball. 

3 hits and 3 RBIs for Jeffers, showing hes healthy. I sure hope we keep him. Probably a top 5 Catcher in the league. We need to keep guys like him. 

A's were kicking the ball all over the field today. Very nice to see the team take advantage of those opportunities. 

On a side note, I wasnt too pleased to see Arcia released from AAA so Gray could have a roster spot. Arcia is a better player in a every aspect of the game. It was a puzzling decision for sure and I just cant understand why the team has been sticking with him so much. He kept getting starts in the ML over better players and now hes taking a AAA roster spot over a better player. 

Sands running on 2 yr old fumes.

[bean5302]

Nice start by Prielipp, but once again snakebit badly by the Twins bullpen tagging earned runs onto his stat sheet. Seems to be an automatic at this point.

Seeing the runs come from almost everybody in the lineup is nice as well. 

[Peter]

Twins tried to give it away but thankfully they got the win!!! That’s all that matters!!! There’s going to be ugly win and this was one of them but it’s still a win!!! Much needed day off tomorrow-2-1 or 3-0 against royals and get over and stay over .500 rest of season!!! Let’s enjoy this one before tough road trip!!! Go twins!!!

[D.C Twins]

Anyone who takes two wins of the Oakland as a sign that this team is playoff competitive is sadly mistaken. Check out the strength of schedule after the trade deadline.... 

[tony&rodney]

18 minutes ago, HarmonK03 said:

I can understand Prielipp but when are they going to increase Rojas usage.  If feels like they still him have on this bulk pitcher nonsense and we do need starters that can be stretched out.  You can't continue to use the bullpen like we have been, or it catches up and those series wins get harder.

Morris, Prielipp, and Rojas have all been called up because they have good stuff and can get MLB hitters out. All of them were expected to make an appearance in late August or September this season but events required their apprenticeships at AAA to be cut short. All three will be handled carefully throughout the remainder of the year. While I do believe Prielipp may be stretched back to 90-100 pitches, it is unlikely that Rojas is stretched out to that territory until next season.

The need for innings behind both Rojas and Prielipp will depend on how often and successfully the Twins can receive two innings from their relievers. The loss of Paredes was a difficult bad loss. Hopefully he is back and pitching effectively by mid August.

[Wedman13]

25 minutes ago, HarmonK03 said:

I can understand Prielipp but when are they going to increase Rojas usage.  If feels like they still him have on this bulk pitcher nonsense and we do need starters that can be stretched out.  You can't continue to use the bullpen like we have been, or it catches up and those series wins get harder.

Bradley, Pablo, Abel, prielepp and Rojas in the rotation next year (yes no Joe Ryan) with Quick, Zebby and Ober ready to step in. 

yes please 

[DJL44]

Some really lackluster outfield defense from the Athletics. I think they gave the Twins at least 4 extra bases.

Prielipp looked great. Sands looked terrible. Everyone else did okay.

[HarmonK03]

9 minutes ago, Wedman13 said:

Bradley, Pablo, Abel, prielepp and Rojas in the rotation next year (yes no Joe Ryan) with Quick, Zebby and Ober ready to step in. 

yes please 

I am not ready to put Abel in pen, I think he is going to have to show he is healthy and that he can throw strikes consistently.  I am guessing he will start in St. Paul.  I still believe in Matthews, he is consistently giving them 6 innings in his starts and giving up 3 or 4 runs.  That is what you want from your fifth starter.  Now if Rojas can pitch like he did yesterday and Abel can pick up where he left off then we will have a nice problem.

[bean5302]

8 minutes ago, D.C Twins said:

Anyone who takes two wins of the Oakland as a sign that this team is playoff competitive is sadly mistaken. Check out the strength of schedule after the trade deadline.... 

God forbid people have nice things.

Hey, glad you finally got that project car together you've been working on for years! Must be so great to have that accomplishment wrapped up! Don't forget your wife died last week, though. 

[LastOnePicked]

I've lost count of the number of season-saving victories in just this week alone.

What a goofy year.

[bean5302]

36 minutes ago, HarmonK03 said:

• Luke Keaschall entered play with a .493 OBP in July and an OPS over 1.000.

This is why you do not take AB's away from Keaschall and platoon him.  I really hope that will not be the plan when they start facing more RH pitchers.

I think it's fine to keep playing Keaschall every day at 2B so he can play a position his bat might be good enough to stick at. That's not likely going to be corner OF, though.

If you're going to look at a SSS, you should at least be looking at the expected stuff. Anybody can get hot (or cold) for a month. Keaschall is holding his own at the plate. His xwOBA has been roughly league average June and July (almost identical June/July) after a terrible April and May.

 

[D.C Twins]

2 minutes ago, bean5302 said:

God forbid people have nice things.

Hey, glad you finally got that project car together you've been working on for years! Must be so great to have that accomplishment wrapped up! Don't forget your wife died last week, though. 

I am excited about the young core forming for the Twins.

I would like to augment it by trading players that will be leaving the team before the Twins become playoff competitive anyway. I would especially NOT like it if we trade away young talent in a foolhardy mission to augment a team that will not be playoff competitive.

If perpetual mediocrity or worse is your idea of 'nice things' .... to each their own, I guess