Twins 15, Tigers 2: Is 10 Technically a Crooked Number?

Box Score
SP: Andrew Morris - 1 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 0 BB, 0 K (29 pitches, 19 strikes (66% strikes))
Home Runs: Kody Clemens, Royce Lewis, Ryan Jeffers
Top 3 WPA: Connor Prielipp (0.28), Royce Lewis (0.18), Walker Jenkins (0.12)
Win Probability Chart

The Twins entered Tuesday night's matchup against the Tigers looking to secure a series victory, after demolishing Detroit in Monday's opener. They did exactly that—and somehow, they were even more dominant the second time around.

Minnesota fell behind 1-0 in the first inning, but Kody Clemens immediately tied the game with a solo homer. The offense stayed quiet for a few innings, but once the Twins finally broke through in the fifth, the floodgates opened. Minnesota scored 14 runs between Tigers tallies and put together a massive 10-run sixth inning en route to a 15-2 victory.

A Belated Beatdown of Troy Melton

The Twins didn't have much success against Troy Melton early, despite the fact that they had hit four home runs against him when they faced him back in June. Outside of Clemens's first-inning homer, Minnesota struggled to create any offense through the first four innings. After Clemens tied the game with a 108-mph solo shot to right, Ryan Jeffers followed with a triple. Unfortunately, the Twins couldn't bring him home. Melton then retired 10 consecutive hitters as Minnesota's offense went quiet.

That changed in the fifth. Trevor Larnach led off the inning with a walk. Royce Lewis smoked a first-pitch fastball (exit velocity: 108 MPH) to left for a double. With runners on second and third and nobody out, the Twins had their first real opportunity to break the game open. They took advantage of it. Kaelen Culpepper grounded out, but Walker Jenkins hit a fateful ground ball to short. Larnach broke for home and got caught in a rundown, but Dillon Dingler's throw sailed past third base. Both Larnach and Lewis scored on the error, giving the Twins a 3-1 lead. Luke Keaschall then added an RBI double to make it 4-1, and Minnesota had finally figured out a way to get to Melton. It was only the beginning of what turned into another massive offensive night.

After Forcing a Crack, Twins Rush Through the Breach in 6th

The Twins entered the sixth inning with a 4-1 lead, but it didn't take long for that advantage to become something much more comfortable. Josh Bell singled and Larnach was hit by a pitch, bringing Lewis to the plate with two runners aboard. The Tigers threw him a first-pitch slider over the heart of the plate, and Lewis didn't miss it. He sent it 427 feet to dead center field for his 14th homer of the season, turning a three-run lead into a 7-1 laugher. It was a great swing from a hitter who badly needed one. But the Twins weren't done.

Culpepper followed with a double, Jenkins worked a walk, and Keaschall added another RBI hit. Brooks Lee then lifted a sacrifice fly to make it 9-1, before Clemens walked to bring Jeffers back to the plate. The veteran catcher put the game completely out of reach, jumping on a slider over the middle of the plate and smoking it off the left-field foul pole for a three-run homer. Suddenly, the Twins had scored eight runs in the inning and were leading 12-1. And they still weren't done.

Bell and Larnach reached again, Lewis added an infield single and Culpepper ripped a 107-MPH single through the left side to drive in two more runs. By the time the inning was over, the Twins had scored 10 runs and taken a ridiculous 14-1 lead. For the second consecutive night, Detroit simply had no answer for Minnesota's offense.

CONNOR PRIELIPP DID HIS JOB 
The Twins went with an opener Tuesday night, using Andrew Morris before turning the game over to Prielipp in the second inning. Morris allowed two singles and a sacrifice fly in the first, giving Detroit an early 1-0 lead. But after Prielipp entered, he settled things down quickly.

The left-hander ran into some traffic in the second inning when Spencer Torkelson led off with a ground-rule double and Max Clark was hit by a pitch. But Prielipp responded by getting Javier Báez to ground into a double play and inducing a John Peck groundout. That would be the biggest threat Detroit had against him.

Prielipp worked through five innings, allowing just three hits and one walk while striking out five. He wasn't perfect (he also committed a fielding error in the fifth), but he consistently made the pitches he needed to make and kept the Tigers from adding to their early lead.

Considering the Twins were coming off a rough week and needed a strong performance from their pitching staff, Prielipp did exactly what Minnesota needed him to do. Once the offense finally broke the game open, the Twins were able to turn things over to their bullpen and coast to the finish line. Even Ben Ross got his first taste of the major leagues, entering at third base and stepping to the plate for his first major-league at-bat. Ross struck out, but the moment was still an important one for the September call-up.

Minnesota also gave Garrett Acton his first appearance after being called up when rosters expanded, while Travis Adams worked a clean seventh inning. The Tigers managed one more run in the eighth, but by then, the outcome had been decided for a long time.

The Twins have now won three consecutive games and have (for now) flipped the script after a frustrating stretch last week. They still have work to do if they're going to turn their late-season playoff hopes into something real, but this is exactly what Minnesota needed. Don't let them get hot.

What’s Next?
The Twins will look to sweep the Tigers at Target Field tomorrow night. Dean Kremer will take the mound for Minnesotal he’ll face off against right-hander Drew Anderson. First pitch is set for 6:40 PM.

Postgame Interviews
Coming soon!

Bullpen Availability Chart