MINNEAPOLIS — The Target Field crowd began buzzing in the sixth inning Sunday, then erupted when the Vikings' score was posted on the scoreboard, pockets of fans even starting "Skol" chants.
The enthusiasm level for the Twins never reached such a crescendo, and for good reason. "Just here for the free hats" is a weird thing to chant.
Unlike the Vikings, the Twins couldn't seem to finish a scoring drive most of the afternoon. In six of the first seven innings, the Twins advanced a runner to second or third base, five times with fewer than two outs. But only two of those runners managed to reach home plate, dooming the Twins to their ninth loss in 11 games, 10-3 to the Angels.
The Twins' piecemeal lineup went 2-for-12 with runners in scoring position, the exceptions being Gio Urshela's first-inning single, which followed a Carlos Correa double, and Nick Gordon's third-inning single sliced down the left field line, bringing Jose Miranda home from third base.
After that, the Twins gave their fans plenty of reason to pay more attention to the football game across town, stranding runner after runner, four times with inning-ending strikeouts.
In other words, the Twins managed about as much offense as Mike Trout and Shohei Ohtani, who combined to score five runs and drive in two as the Angels captured the season series, 4-2.
Not until Caleb Hamilton improbably ended the longest career-opening hitting drought in Twins history with a home run into the left-field bleachers did the remnants of the late-afternoon crowd have much reason to cheer.
Hamilton, who struck out in his first three at-bats to go 0-for-12 in his career — one more at-bat than pitcher Bill Zepp needed before recording his first hit in 1970 — launched a first-pitch fastball 387 feet, delighting his teammates, who had clearly been rooting for him to collect that first hit.
Trout and Ohtani immediately spoiled the feel-good moment, of course, with Trout leading off the ninth with a double, his third extra-base hit of the day, and Ohtani driving him home with a single. That sparked a five-run inning off reliever Trevor Megill.
Dylan Bundy allowed five runs over 3 1/3 innings to even his record at 8-8, presumably with one start remaining in the season. Ronny Henriquez, making his second major-league appearance, contributed 4 2/3 scoreless innings in relief.
