MIN 8, CHW 4: Rosario Drives in Five

Snapshot (chart via FanGraphs)

The Twins jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the top of the first, but Lynn did his best to make things interesting in the bottom of the inning. The White Sox scored a run on four hits, but with the bases loaded, Daniel Palka grounded into a double play.

That was a huge turning point for Lynn in this game, and hopefully ends up representing the turning point in his season.

Over the next five innings, Lynn only gave up four hits and one more run. The biggest plus sign was his control. After issuing 23 free passes in his first 23 2/3 innings, Lynn didn’t walk a single batter. He threw 71 of his 97 pitches for strikes.

https://twitter.com/BallparkVids/status/992944800402898944

The Twins offense kept pouring it on, adding three runs in the third and two more in the fourth. Rosario was a beast. He ended the night 4-for-5 with a home run and five RBIs. The Twins had really been struggling to pick up hits with men on base, but Rosie did it three times Saturday night.

https://twitter.com/BallparkVids/status/992919872429592576

Joe Mauer, who hit leadoff again, also had a nice night, going 2-for-3 with a couple of walks. Max Kepler drew three walks in the contest and Eduardo Escobar broke the ice in the first inning with a big RBI double.

The Twins were leading 8-2 when Lynn exited, allowing Matt Magill and Phil Hughes to get in some low-leverage work. Magill gave up a run in his two innings, but also struck out three batters. Hughes gave up a solo home run in his inning of work.

Postgame With Rosario

https://twitter.com/fsnorth/status/992957932617715712

Bullpen Usage

Here’s a quick look at the number of pitches thrown by the bullpen over the past five days:

Next Three Games

Sun at CHW, 1:10 pm CT

Mon at STL, 7:10 pm CT

Tue at STL, 12:15 pm CT

Last Three Games

MIN 6, CHW 4: Twins Slug Four Homers in Victory

CHW 6, MIN 5: Twins Blow 5-1 Lead

MIN 4, TOR 0: Fernandomania!