The Minnesota Twins scored two runs off of the first eight pitches they saw in their return from the All-Star break.
Carlos Correa took the game's first pitch to the opposite field. Double. Donovan Solano slapped the next pitch. Single. And Byron Buxton looked at a pitch before his hard-hit sacrifice fly brought in Correa, for perhaps the Twins easiest run in recent memory.
It appeared to be an extended round of batting practice, against the Oakland Athletics — the worst team in Major League Baseball — with the only pitching staff that had an ERA above 6.00. That much made sense.
Then they played the rest of the game.
Joey Gallo's tiebreaking two-run blast in the top of the ninth salvaged a 5-4 Twins victory, though they fielded the same players who suffered the same hitless stints that have plagued their position in an atrocious AL Central all season.
At 46-46 after Jhoan Duran pitched around trouble to earn his 13th save of the season, they find themselves back in first place by a half-game as Cleveland lost at Texas earlier in the night.
The tying, two-out RBI double pinch hitter Edouard Julien ripped in the top of the fourth inning was the last run the Twins scored before Gallo's blast. Oakland starter Ken Waldichuk gave up an RBI triple to Kyle Farmer following Buxton's sac fly, but the Twins left Farmer stranded — once again they lapsed in many run-scoring situations.
Alex Kirilloff grounded out to leave the bases loaded in the fifth inning and Buxton looked at a called third strike to do the same in the sixth. Correa came up with two runners on in the eighth but hit into his league-leading 17th double play.
The Twins left a total of 10 runners on base, though hitting coach David Popkins wasn't around to see all of them unwind their batting gloves. He was ejected in the seventh, as he appeared to explicitly voice his frustrations with plate umpire Nic Lentz's strike zone.
"All night, and you know it," he seemed to say, after Gallo was called out on a borderline third strike to open the seventh.
Kenta Maeda entered with an excellent 17 innings of three-run baseball in the three starts since his return from the injured list, and exited after three innings, 80 pitches and a season-high four walks. Maeda's six strikeouts were among few other positives as he struggled through one of the worst displays of command in his career.
He has issued more than three walks only in eight outings across his seven MLB seasons.
(The Star Tribune did not send the writer of this article to the game. This was written using a broadcast, interviews and other material.)
