Twins 3, Giants 2: Taj Bradley's 200th Strikeout, Young Core Spark Twins to Victory

Box Score
SP: Taj Bradley 6.0 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 3 BB, 6 K (104 pitches, 67 strikes (64%))
Home Runs: Walker Jenkins (4)
Top 3 WPA: Bradley (0.20), Luke Keaschall (0.18), Andrew Morris (0.14)

Win Probability Chart (via FanGraphs) 

There have been fewer bright spots than fans hoped for in the 2026 Twins season, but Taj Bradley is definitely one of them. The young righty came into his last start of the season with career bests in wins, ERA, strikeouts—you name it. Opposing him was young Giants righty Anthony Molina, making only his seventh career start but bringing a stingy 1.03 WHIP to the bump. On paper, we were set for a pitchers' duel. The game lived up to the billing gorgeously.

Bradley Makes Some History, and Then Gets Robbed

In the bottom of the first, Bradley became just the 10th Twins pitcher to notch 200 strikeouts in a season when he enticed leadoff man Drew Gilbert to check-swing on a pitch outside the zone. 

Unfortunately, in the bottom of the second inning, Bradley should have had No. 201, but automated check-swings are still a year away. Scott Bandura was given new life, instead. Bandura singled, which put runners on the corners with only one out. Drew Cavanaugh bunted in the first run of the game to make that missed call sting, as the Giants went up 1-0.

From Flailing to Flying

In Monday's series opener, the Twins mustered only four hits against a Giants squad that ranks near the bottom in terms of team ERA. On Tuesday night, the bats went hitless through three innings against Molina. Brooks Lee finally broke that goose egg open with a single in the top of the fourth, but Molina kept cruising until the top of the sixth. Ryan Kreidler laced a single with one out, and another bright spot in the Twins season kept on shining bright, as Luke Keaschall dented the 399 sign on the left-center-field wall for a game-tying triple.

Next up was the aforementioned Lee, who poked a single through the drawn-in infield to put Minnesota on top, 2-1.

Youth Movement Keeps Moving

While strikeout number 201 took an inning longer than it should have for Bradley, he kept the Giants on lockdown with five more punchies through six stellar innings. That made 205 strikeouts, and hopefully, he'd also collect his 12th win. That would depend on his young teammates' ability to keep scoring runs, and in the top of the seventh, it was Captain America's turn to shine. Walker Jenkins's fourth homer of the year continued his torrid pace on this road trip and put the Twins up 3-1.

Bullpen Dims the Room

One of the dim spots of the 2026 season, at least since the All-Star break, has been the bullpen's inability to hold leads. Kody Funderburk followed Bradley's awesome outing by only getting one out and leaving runners on first and second in the bottom of the seventh. Andrew Morris got the call to clean up Funderburk's mess, and Keaschall had his teammate's back. He made a fine sliding catch and started a 9-3-6 double play to end the threat.

Morris got the first out of the eighth, as well, before losing Victor Bericoto to a walk. A.J. Minter was next man up, and again, Keaschall slid his way into a solid catch to save an extra-base hit. Bo Davidson decided to direct the next Minter pitch away from Keaschall, shooting a single into the left-field gap. Davidson quickly took second, too, as teams continue to run wild on the Twins battery (no matter who's at either end thereof). With the tying run at second base, Minter got ahead of Shay Whitcomb, only to see the youngster work the count full. Victor Caratini typed in a 3-2 changeup, and Whitcomb whiffed to keep the Twins in the lead for one more inning.

One of the brightest spots in the season has been Yoendrys Gómez. As the Twins looked to close the game in the ninth, though, the well-rested but recently cratering Gomez was not called upon. Instead, Jeff Hoffman looked to become the 15th Twin to notch a save. Hoffman walked the leadoff man, Brett Harris, on five pitches. Seriously. Then he hit Andrew Knizner on the very next pitch. Seriously. Christian Koss bunted the runners over, and Hoffman almost got Kody Clemens killed with a throw up the line. In a season of bright nights and dark weeks, the stage was set for another epic bullpen collapse. Osleivis Basabe was the batter, the count ran full, and Hoffman missed the inside corner by 0.2 inches to load the bases.

Jonah Cox ripped a 10.2.5-MPH rocket over Lee's head, and Lee got it in his glove, only to have it pop free behind him. He alertly scrambled to pick up the ball and touch third base for the second out of the inning, but a run did score to make it 3-2. Basabe pulled something in his mad dash to second, and needed to be replaced as a baserunner. Therefore, Marcelo Mayer became the new tying run as Hoffman faced Bericoto with the game in the balance. Hoffman's slider decided to click back into place just in time, as Bericoto went down flailing to lock down the victory for Bradley and the Twins.

What’s Next?
The Twins look to take their last road series of the season in a Wednesday matinee against the Giants. Twins rookie LHP Connor Prielipp (6-7, 4.94 ERA) will start his last game of the season in hopes of evening out his record after a bright start to his career. Fellow rookie LHP Cesar Perdomo (0-1, 3.72 ERA) will get the start for San Francisco, after failing to complete five innings in each of his last two starts. First pitch is scheduled for 2:45 PM CDT.

Postgame Interviews

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