MINNEAPOLIS — Byron Buxton drove a two-strike slider from Orioles closer Jorge Lopez into the left-field seats in the bottom of the ninth inning, providing a dramatic finish — and a 3-2 Twins victory — to a game that included little offense until that final swing.
Minnesota strung together three hits and a walk in the first inning on Friday, with the last of the hits — Jose Miranda's ground-ball single to shallow left field — driving home Luis Arraez with a run. But Carlos Correa was thrown out at the plate on the play, ending the threat and grinding the Twins offense to a halt.
No other Twins batter reached base over the next seven innings, not a strange occurrence for a team that had scored one run or fewer three times in its previous four home games. Right-hander Spencer Watkins retired 15 Twins hitters in order, the Orioles bullpen recorded six more without allowing a ball to leave the infield, and Baltimore appeared ready to hand the Twins their third consecutive loss.
Arraez and Buxton had other ideas. Arraez led off the ninth against Lopez with a ground-ball single to center field, bringing up Buxton as the fireworks-night crowd of 25,540 grew loud. The Twins' leading slugger took a strike, then fouled off a sinker. After ducking out of the way of a high slider, Buxton zeroed in on the next pitch, a slider over the heart of the plate.
When it landed, 399 feet away, Buxton pounded his chest as he circled the bases, his teammates ready to soak him with water in celebration.
After losing back-to-back games in walk-off fashion, the Twins got to celebrate winning one, and keeping their place atop the AL Central, now by 1 1/2 games after the Guardians' game against the Yankees was rained out. The teams play a doubleheader Saturday.
The Twins got a terrific start by rookie Joe Ryan, who pitched one inning more than Watkins and gave up one fewer hit. But one of the two hits, Cedric Mullins' third-inning double, was costly, since it followed Ryan's lone walk, to ninth-place hitter Jorge Mateo, who scored from first base without a throw. Though Ryan retired the final 11 hitters he faced, the Twins' offensive drought dropped him to 6-4 on the season despite a 3.00 ERA.
Ryan struck out all three Orioles he faced in the fifth inning, and also the final two hitters he faced in the seventh, giving him 90 career strikeouts — the most ever by a Twins pitcher over his first 17 appearances.
