Twins 9, Rangers 7: Keuchel Stumbles, but Donovan Solano and the Offense Fight Back in Key 10-Inning Win

Box Score:
Starting Pitcher: Dallas Keuchel: 3 1/3 IP, 5 H, 5 ER, 1 BB, 2 K (57 Pitches, 35 Strikes, 61.4%)
Home Runs: Donovan Solano (5), 
Top 3 WPA: Solano (.259), Jorge Polanco (.249), Michael A. Taylor (.199)
Win Probability Chart (Via Fangraphs):

Coming off a much-needed win in game one of the series (in which Max Scherzer was dominant), the Twins turned to Dallas Keuchel in game two. On the surface, it looked like a mismatch, as the Rangers were starting Jordan Montgomery, who completely stifled the Twins in Minnesota for five innings only to have his outing ruined by the first of Royce Lewis's grand slams (off reliever Chris Stratton) that week.

The lefty Montgomery pitched out of trouble in the first after Solano and Jorge Polanco led the game with singles. He got Lewis to ground into a double play and Carlos Correa to bounce out to end the threat.

Keuchel was not so lucky. After allowing a sharp leadoff double to Marcus Semien, he retired the dangerous Corey Seager and hit-machine Nathaniel Lowe on grounders to bring up Adolis Garcia. Behind in the count, Garcia got a backdoor cutter from Keuchel and punished the mistake into the left field stands for the game's first two runs. That cutter was 85 MPH with an inch of horizontal break.

History repeated itself in the second. After allowing a near-home run (reviewed by the umpires) to Robbie Grossman, Keuchel got Ezequiel Duran to pop out weakly. But Sam Huff, a catcher just called up with rosters expanding and operating as the DH, crushed a first-pitch cutter 430 feet for another two-run home run.

The Twins started to chip away in the third, with Solano crushing a two-out home run to get the Twins on the board.

They added on in a big fourth inning. After two quick outs, Jordan Luplow blooped a single to center, and Kyle Farmer walked. Fooled on a two-strike changeup, Ryan Jeffers poked a single through the five-hole to score a run. Matt Wallner fell behind in the count but worked a walk to load the bases. Michael A. Taylor drove a sharp single to tie the game at four, taking second on the throw, and Solano smacked his third hit of the game, a single, to make the game 6-4 and knocking Montgomery from the game. Playing with a sore hamstring, Taylor looked pretty hobbled scoring on the play and was removed afterward.

It was an impressive rally, as Montgomery is not only a lefty but a quality one (115 career ERA+ over 135 games, 134 starts) who had been given a four-run lead. He also did not strike out a single Twins batter.

After a quick third inning, Keuchel couldn't make it through the fourth, allowing a walk and a hit before being lifted for Dylan Floro, who allowed one of the runners to score. His sinker looked okay, but he threw 18 cutter/sliders, two of which were socked for home runs. Command of that pitch will be critical for him going forward.

The bullpens were lock-down through the middle innings. On the Twins side, Kody Funderburk and Josh Winder needed only 15 pitches to navigate through the fifth and sixth innings. The Rangers got scoreless innings from Chris Stratton, Martin Perez, Jose Leclerc, and Will Smith.

Emilio Pagan had a rough eighth inning, walking three before settling down to retire the next three batters. However, one of those batters was Robbie Grossman, and his sacrifice fly made it a 6-6 game.

After Brent Headrick pitched a 1-2-3 ninth against the top of the Rangers' order, the game went to extra innings. Jorge Polanco advanced to third with no outs on a wild pitch when facing Aroldis Chapman. Carlos Correa and Max Kepler hit solid singles to make it an 8-6 game, ending Chapman's night. Ryan Jeffers then added a sacrifice fly for the final Twins ru

Jhoan Duran got the tenth and began his outing with a 3-2 102 MPH fastball that struck out Lowe. After a short flyout from Garcia, Jonah Heim fought off a high fastball for a single, and Grossman added his third hit of the game, a deflection off of Duran's glove. Duran then buckled pinch-hitter Josh Smith with a beautiful 1-2 curveball to end the game.

The good:
Solano was unconscious, hitting four rockets for hits and ending up with three RBI. He also made a potentially game-saving over-the-shoulder catch in the eighth; Funderburk, Winder, Jax, and Thielbar were solid in protecting a one-run lead; Correa hit the ball hard with two sharp singles. Three of his batted balls were clocked over 102 MPH.

The bad:
Keuchel was roughed up, leaving numerous cutters up in the zone. He wasn't quite as bad as his line suggests, but regardless, he put the team in a deep hole and was fortunate the offense bailed him out; Royce Lewis swung early and often, grounding into a rally-killing double play in the first, then two lazy fly balls and a strikeout, before walking in the tenth. His average is now below .300.

Emilio Pagan walked the first three batters he faced, pitching with a one-run lead in the eighth. He did retire the next three batters but allowed the game-tying sacrifice fly to Grossman.

What's Next: Kenta Maeda (3-7, 4.69 ERA) goes against Jon Gray (8-7, 3.79 ERA) as the Twins look to complete the series sweep in Arlington. Maeda struggled his last time out against the Guardians, giving up six runs over four innings and escaping with a no-decision thanks to Royce Lewis's second grand slam of the week. Gray has been decent but has allowed eight runs over his last two starts, spanning ten innings.

Bullpen Usage Chart: