Rangers 6, Twins 2: Seager Goes Off as Rangers Avoid Sweep

Box Score:
Starting Pitcher: Pablo López: 4 2/3 IP, 7 H, 6 ER, 1 BB, 6 K (92 Pitches, 60 Strikes, 65.2%)
Home Runs: None
Bottom 3 WPA: López (-.265), Edouard Julien (-.077), José Miranda (-.069)
Win Probability Chart (Via Fangraphs):

The vibes were good after Saturday's come-from-behind victory over the defending champion Rangers. The winning streak had reached four, and today's pitching matchup certainly favored the Twins, as staff ace Pablo López faced career minor-leaguer Gerson Garabito, who was making his major-league debut. Could they complete the sweep and establish positive momentum going into a series with the surprisingly good Royals?

López started strong, striking out Corey Seager and Adolis Garcia in the first on elevated fastballs; the one to Garcia registered 96 MPH. He then pitched a 1-2-3 second, with another strikeout added in.

Things shifted in the third. After two fairly easy outs, Lopez battled with leadoff hitter Marcus Semien, an eight-pitch at-bat that resulted in a walk. That brought up Seager, who demolished a López curveball (to the tune of a 109-MPH exit velocity) to make the score 2-0. Seager has been hot since his brutal start to the season (.631 OPS in April), and he would not be done.

López's fourth inning was even worse, his changeup being hit particularly hard. Following a hit-by-pitch to García, López allowed two sharp singles and a double en route to the Rangers doubling their lead. Home runs gave way to a series of base hits last outing, as well.

Garabito looked decent early, flashing a plus slider and working around some shaky command to put up a couple of zeroes. He walked three through his first three innings, but did not allow a hit, with no Twin able to register an exit velocity 100 MPH or greater. Carlos Correa and Max Kepler changed that storyline quickly to start the fourth, with Correa singling and Kepler nearly homering (18/30 ballparks) to make the game 4-1.

After two outs, Garabito walked Carlos Santana, and his day was done. Normally, getting into a weak Texas bullpen in the fourth inning would be considered a good sign, but Jonathan Hernandez retired the slumping Edouard Julien to end the threat.

Seager rendered Kepler's double meaningless by jumping on López's first pitch to start the fifth and launching it into the right-field pavilion. A double and two outs later, López was done. He did not get a single whiff on non-fastballs all afternoon.

The Twins attempted to mount rallies against the underbelly of Texas's struggling bullpen, but managed only a run before José Leclerc was brought in. Leclerc has struggled this year, but was nails in the playoffs last year, and his slider remains elite. He pitched the final 2 1/3 innings to seal the win.

The Good:
-Kepler and Correa are doing damage in the middle of the order right now, putting up quality at-bats and not missing their pitch.
-Bullpen whipping boy Jorge Alcalá threw well, his slider looking sharp at 92 MPH and his fastball reaching 99 MPH. Seems like a weapon to me, but what do I know?
-Josh Staumont struck out Seager with a 98-MPH sinker. Maybe there have been advances in Thoracic Outlet Surgery, because generally, velocity and command do not return to those who have undergone the procedure. Staumont never had much command, so if his velo is back, his signing is a steal for the Twins, who have him under team control for two years after this one.

The Bad:
-López needs to be perfect with his fastball command if his secondaries are going to be as hittable as they were today. The Twins also may want to review film to see if he is tipping his non-fastballs.
-Julien is scuffling badly, striking out in the zone, or rolling over and hitting grounders to the right side. It may be time to let him work through these struggles in the minors, with Miranda hitting well, and Royce Lewis (as well as Brooks Lee) on the mend.
-Miranda made errors in consecutive innings, neither of them particularly pretty.

What’s Next: Joe Ryan (3-3, 3.15 ERA) goes against Alec Marsh (4-1, 2.74 ERA) as the Twins open a four game series against a confident Royals squad, currently at 14 games above .500. Marsh was a second round pick of the Royals, and never had good minor league numbers, but nonetheless represents a developmental success story for a team with very few of those.

Postgame Interviews:

Coming Soon

Bullpen Usage Chart: