MINNEAPOLIS — After a one-day respite, the Twins' hitting problems returned on Saturday. But Bailey Ober, by now used to little run support, made sure it didn't matter.
Ober gave up only two singles and no other baserunners over seven innings Saturday, and the Twins held on to win their second consecutive game over the Orioles, 1-0, at Camden Yards in Baltimore.
The Twins have won two 1-0 games this season, and both of them were started by Ober. The other came at Cleveland on June 2.
Minnesota, which broke out with eight runs in Friday's series opener, managed seven hits against Baltimore right-hander Kyle Bradish, but all but one were singles. The exception: a high, hanging full-count slider in the fourth inning, a pitch that Joey Gallo launched 439 feet to right-center field, his team-leading 15th home run of the season.
The Twins went 0 for 4 with runners in scoring position, though, and couldn't add another run. Baltimore even ended the Twins' franchise-record streak of 29 consecutive successful stolen bases, when catcher Adley Rutschman threw out Michael A. Taylor trying to steal second base in the seventh inning, the team's first caught stealing since May 13.
Ober dominated the Orioles with a four-pitch mix, but focused on his fastball and split-finger changeup, the latter pitch producing five swing-and-misses.
Griffin Jax pitched a scoreless eighth, and Jhoan Duran picked up his 12th save of the season in 14th chances. Duran gave up an infield hit to Rutschman with one out in the ninth, and appeared in trouble when a replay determined that pinch runner Jorge Mateo had stolen second, overturning the original out call.
But Max Kepler made a full-speed sliding catch of Anthony Santander's long fly ball to record the second out, and Duran ended the game by getting Ryan O'Hearn to ground out to first, earning Duran his 12th save of the season.
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The Star Tribune did not send the writer of this article to the game. This was written using a broadcast, interviews and other material.
