The first part is a fable of offensive glory, where the Twins lambasted Toronto starter Kevin Gausman, hanging seven runs on the righty in just three innings. There was a flurry of action, from broken-bat singles to screaming homers and scrambles around the bases. Minnesota hung crooked numbers like nobody’s business, rallying for eight runs before the Jays could pick up 12 outs.
Through four innings, the Twins played the brand of baseball that had won them 16 of their last 18 games heading into Saturday. Ryan Jeffers homered to bring his AL-leading OPS up to .988. Max Kepler extended his hit streak to 13 games. Carlos Santana, the wily vet, socked a massive three-run bomb in the third inning, his second home run in as many days. Vibes were good, and the Twins flipped on cruise control after 12 hits through four innings.
“We’ve been playing some great baseball,” said Twins manager Rocco Baldelli. “The beginning of that game was tremendous … and then from there, we just couldn’t get outs.”
The second half of this contest tells a more tragic tale. Not only did the Twins’ red-hot offense take a snooze, but the club’s respectable run prevention fell apart in dramatic fashion.
Simeon Woods Richardson, a key haul in the Twins-Jays trade involving José Berríos, was never crisp Saturday, yielding five runs on eight hits, including two home runs.
“I take all that,” said Woods Richardson, shouldering the blame for his club’s inability to maintain the early lead. “It’s all me, especially that first half. There’s no way that we have that type of a lead, and I don’t go out and finish and give my team the best chance to win.”
As harshly as Woods Richardson critiqued his performance, things were cozy when the 23-year-old left the game one out into the fifth inning. The Twins had a five-run lead, a cushion the club’s above-average bullpen has easily handled this season. That relief core is loaded with some of the best leverage arms in baseball. One problem, though: Griffin Jax, the Twins closer, was unavailable, and Jhoan Duran was reserved for the ninth, thus thrusting others into the spotlight. It didn’t go well.
