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After dropping games two and three of the series, the Twins bounced back tonight to force a series split against the Chicago White Sox as they won by a score of 7-2. Box Score Starting Pitcher: Pineda 5 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 3 SO Homeruns: Kepler (12), Polanco (14) Top 3 WPA: Polanco (0.195), Pineda (0.163), Kepler (0.144) Win Probability Chart (via FanGraphs) Pineda Impresses Right Before Trade Deadline With the Twins well out of contention, it is not secret that they will be sellers at the trade deadline, and one of the names that could be on the block is starting pitcher Michael Pineda, who will be a free agent at season’s end. While Pineda is not one of the biggest names on the block, he certainly had value for a contending team looking to add depth to their rotation, and starts like tonight will only help that trade value go up. In tonight’s start, Michael Pineda allowed just one run on four hits, across five innings of work against one of the best offenses in baseball. This was a great sign, as Pineda got hit around pretty hard in his only other start since returning from the Injured List, which also came against the White Sox back on July 7th. Pineda did run into a little struggle in the bottom of the third inning. After getting Zack Collins to fly out to left to leadoff the inning, Billy Hamilton laced a ground ball double to left field. Hamilton would then steal third in the next plate appearance, which would result in a walk to Tim Anderson. After Anderson stole second, the White Sox had a serious threat going with second and third and only one out. Adam Engle then hit a hard ground ball between third and short that just deflected off the glove of a diving Josh Donaldson. Andrelton Simmons was able to field the ball, but he didn’t have a play and everyone was safe, with Billy Hamilton scoring the game tying run. After a mound visit, Pineda was then able to get Jose Abreu to ground into a 6-4-3 double play to get out of the jam with the game still tied at one a piece. Max Kepler Hits Another Home Run in Chicago Much like Nelson Cruz, Max Kepler has grown accustomed to hitting home runs in Chicago, as he went deep again there tonight. This home run got the scoring started in the top of the third off a 1-1 breaking ball from Dylan Cease. When Kepler first hit the ball, it was clear that the ball had enough juice to get out, the question was would it stay fair. This time that answer was yes, as the ball struck the foul pole in right about 10 feet above the wall. The Twins String Together a Two Out Rally to Take the Lead in the Fifth With the score tied at one all in the top of the fifth, it appeared that Dylan Cease would give the White Sox lineup a chance to take the lead in the bottom of the inning with two quick outs versus Andrelton Simmions and Max Kepler. However, the heart of the Twins order was not about to let that happen. Jorge Polanco got the rally going when he laced a single into right. Nelson Cruz then followed that up with a ground-rule double over Adam Engel’s head in right. The White Sox appeared to catch a break, as had that ball stayed in play, Polanco would have likely scored from first. That was a moot point, however, as both Polanco and Cruz came around to score on a ground ball single up the middle off the bat of Josh Donaldson, giving the Twins a 3-1 lead. Trevor Larnach kept the two out rally going with a single of his own, but Miguel Sano swung and missed at three straight pitches, putting an end to the rally. Jorge Polanco Adds to the Twins Lead in the Sixth After starting the two out rally the inning prior, Jorge Polanco came up with another big two out hit in the sixth, this time it was a three-run blast to bust the game open for the Twins. The sixth inning got started much the same way as the fifth, with two quick outs. However, after an Andrelton Simmons single, followed by his first stolen base of the season, and a Max Kepler walk, the table was set for Jorge Polanco to deliver, and he did just that as he sent a 3-1 fastball into the Twins bullpen in right-centerfield, extending the Twins lead to five. Jorge Polanco’s night would not end there, as he would help add another insurance run in the top of the ninth. With one out in the inning, Polanco lined a double to left field. He then attempted to steal third and was initially ruled out, but after a successful Twins challenge he was ruled safe. He then came into score the Twins seventh run of the game (his third) on a Nelson Cruz sac-fly, giving the Twins the 7-2 lead. The Twins Bullpen has Strong Showing After a good start from Michael Pineda, it was the bullpen's job to protect the Twins lead and they did just that tonight, giving up just one run over four collective innings of work. Tyler Duffey was the first out of the pen to start the sixth, and though he gave up four hits, he did not surrender a run across 1 and 2/3 innings of work. Alex Colome came in an finished things off in the seventh, before giving up a run on a pair of doubles in the eighth. Caleb Thielbar then came in to close things out in the ninth. He gave up a leadoff walk to start the inning, but then got Billy Hamilton to strikeout before inducing a 6-4-3 double-play off the batt of Tim Anderson to seal the Twins victory. Bullpen Usage Chart What is Next? The Twins will return home on Thursday to being a four-game series against the Los Angeles Angels. Game one of the series will begin Thursday at 7:10 p.m. CDT with Kenta Maeda on the mound against Angels starter Andrew Heaney. 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After splitting the first two games of the series against the Chicago White Sox, the Minnesota Twins had a chance to pick up their first series win against the the White Sox this season, but failed to do so and fell to a brutal 2-10 record against their division foe on the season. Box Score Pineda: 5.1 IP 12 H, 5 R, 5 ER, 0 BB, 4 SO Home Runs: Larnach (7) Bottom 3 WPA: Pineda (-.237), Cruz (-.105), Rortvedt (-.097) Win Probability Chart (via Fangraphs) Michael Pineda Get Hit Around in Return from IL Earlier today, the Twins activated Michael Pineda of the Injured List for him to make a return to the staff. The hope is Pineda could pitch well over the next few weeks and boost his trade value at the deadline, however, today did not go according to plan as the White Sox lineup lit him up for twelve hits and five runs across 5 and ⅓ innings. TIme Anderson and Leury Garcia in particular had strong games against Pineda, as Anderson went 3-for-3 against him, while Garcia hit him even harder, as he also went 3-for-3 against Pineda with a triple and this home run that got the scoring started in the top of the second. Trevor Larnach Provides Only Offense for the Twins As has often been case this year, the Twins bats were quite for most of the game, as they were only able to muster just one run on six hits, with the lone run coming from a Trevor Larnach home run leading off the 4th. In addition to Larnach’s home run, Jorge Polanco and Luis Arraez had pretty good games themselves, with Polanco going 2-for-4 with two singles, and Luis Arraez also going 2-for-4 with a double, and made an incredible throw from third to get the final out of the seventh inning. Derek Law Pitches Well in Mop Duty Derek Law has not had the best of showings thus far for the Twins, as he had a 5.40 ERA in 10 innings so far in 2021, though his last two outings entering today’s game were a lot better. He continued that trend, as he only gave up 1 run over 2 and ⅔ innings of work. The lone run that Law surrendered was on a two-out double in the seventh. Overall, Law retired seven of the eleven batters that he faced, including a couple of strikeouts in the eight. Caleb Thielbar then came in and pitched a scoreless ninth inning after giving up a leadoff walk to Tim Anderson. Bullpen Usage Chart What’s Next? The Twins will rap up the first half of the season at home in a four-game series with the Detroit Tigers, with the first game coming Thursday night at 7:10 pm CT. View full article

Another quiet night for the bats ended in a Twins loss Tuesday. Rookie Dane Dunning helped keep the White Sox rolling, surrendering two runs (one earned) over seven innings. Since dropping back-to-back games to the Twins to open September, the White Sox have gone 10-1.Box Score Dobnak: 4.1 IP, 8 H, 4 ER, 1 BB, 4 K Home Runs: Buxton (9) Bottom 3 WPA: Dobnak -.259, Sanó -.103, Jeffers -.079 Win Probability Chart (via FanGraphs): Download attachment: Winchart.png The Twins got another look at one of the strong young AL Central arms in Dane Dunning. Dunning was an often-overlooked secondary piece in the Adam Eaton and Lucas Giolito trade back in 2016. Dunning went seven strong innings for the White Sox tonight, allowing just two runs (one earned) on just three hits, while striking out seven. With the way Dunning has pitched in his first five starts, he is making a bid for a spot in the White Sox Postseason starting rotation. After having his inside-the-park home run in last night’s game taken away, Byron Buxton got redemption leading off the third inning of tonight’s ballgame. This time, there was no doubt as Buxton circled the bases with his usual lightning fast speed. That wasn’t the only time Buxton trotted around the basepaths tonight. In the fifth, Buxton reached base with a leadoff single on a liner over the shortstop’s head into centerfield. Buxton was then able to advance all the way to third during the next at-bat, thanks to both a wild pitch followed up by a passed ball. He then came in to score the Twins second run of the game on Ryan Jeffers RBI groundout. Randy Dobnak had another rough outing tonight, marking his third rough start in his last four outings. In the first, Dobnak allowed a run on three groundball singles, two of which come with two outs in the inning. He then allowed a couple more baserunners in the second but was able to pitch his way out of the inning without allowing another run to score. Dobnak wasn’t as fortunate in the third inning as he was in the second. He began the inning by issuing a walk to Yasmani Grandal before giving up another groundball base hit to Jose Abreu. Jorge Polanco made a nice diving play on the ball, but his rushed throw to second was errant, and allowed Grandal to advance to third. Dobnak was able to strikeout Eloy Jimenez for the first out of the inning, but then gave up a double to James McCann, followed by Luis Robert, and before you know it the White Sox had opened up a 4-1 lead. Tyler Clippard came on with one out in the fifth to relieve Randy Dobnak. After pitching out of yet another jam, Clippard came out to pitch the sixth and proceeded to give up a solo home run to Tim Anderson, that extended the White Sox lead to a score of 5-2. A big story of tonight’s game was the strike zone that umpire Will Little had behind the plate. It seemed to be all over the place, and more often than not it went against the favor of the Minnesota Twins. After yet another missed call from Little, where he rung up Ryan Jeffers to end the Twins half of the seventh. This led to some unkind words from the Twins dugout that resulted in the ejections of both Rocco Baldelli and Nelson Cruz. If you were unable to watch the game, here is a chart that illustrates the called strikes that the White Sox pitchers received tonight, as you can tell, it was pretty bad. Download attachment: 4353C84C-E26E-4E33-847D-91DF7CC3F2BB.png Jorge Alcala came in to pitch the seventh and eighth innings for the Twins, and aside from a solo home run that he gave up to James McCann in the seventh, it was another impressive outing for Alcala, who is making a strong case for being added to the Twins Postseason roster with his performance of late. Lost in everything, Travis Blankenhorn made his MLB debut tonight. After recording outs in his first two at-bats of the evening, he was hit by a pitch in the seventh, before picking up his first career MLB hit with a two-out double in the ninth. Bullpen Usage Spreadsheet Download attachment: Bullpen.png Click here to view the article

The Twins were in desperate need of a boost, and tonight they got one. Michael Pineda delivered a quality start in his first outing in nearly a year while Buxton robbed a homer and drove in the go-ahead run in his return from the Injured List.Box Score Pineda: 6.0 IP, 6 H, 2 ER, 1 BB, 4 K Home Runs: None Win Probability Chart (via Baseball Savant): Download attachment: WinChart.png Michael Pineda’s first start back from his seemingly never-ending suspension got off to a rocky beginning. After allowing a couple singles, Pineda gave up a two-out double to Eloy Jimenez, and before you know it the White Sox has a quick 2-0 lead. After that Pineda settled in nicely, as he faced the minimum over the next three innings. He got himself into a two-out jam in the fifth, as he loaded the bases after retiring the first two batters of the inning. Fortunately, Pineda was able to get the hottest hitter on the planet in Jose Abreu to hit a squibber to Miguel Sano at first to end the inning. Edwin Encarnacion got ahold of one to leadoff the sixth, but Byron Buxton was there to save the day with this incredible (for all human beings not named Byron Buxton) catch. In total, Pineda had a strong return to the mound for the Twins. He went six strong innings, allowing just the two runs that he gave up in the first. He gave up six hits and a walk, while striking out four. While Pineda reportedly was ramped up to throw more pitches, Rocco Baldelli pulled him after just 81 pitches, though that was probably situational more than anything else. The Twins' bats were silent through the early innings of the game. They got a two out rally together in the third, but failed to cash in on two-out hits from Jorge Polanco and Nelson Cruz. It took until the fifth for the Twins to finally break through, thanks in part to a drop from Jose Abreu at first, which if it had been caught would have likely been an inning ending double-play. Rocco Baldelli pulled all the right strings in the sixth to help the Twins tie the game back up at two. After a Byron Buxton pop out to leadoff the inning, Baldelli had Jake Cave pinch-hit for Ildemaro Vargas, and Cave promptly rewarded that decision with a one-out triple. Baldelli went back into the well for the next at-bat, having Luis Arraez pinch-hit for Ryan Jeffers in the nine hole. On the first pitch of the at-bat Arraez drilled a ground ball down the first base line, past Jose Abreu, and into the outfield for a game-tying double. Caleb Thielbar had another impressive relief appearance in the seventh inning for the Twins. After giving up a couple runs in the third inning of his return to the majors, Thielbar has had eight consecutive scoreless outings, including tonight. Thielbar has been dominate in those outings, striking out 12 while allowing just four hits and one walk across 8 and 1/3 innings. After scoring single runs in the fifth and sixth innings, the Twins added another in the seventh to take a 3-2 lead. Nelson Cruz doubled to start the inning, which was Cruz’s third hit of the game and fourth time reaching base safely. Then, after a pitching change, Marwin Gonzalez drew a gritty walk to give the Twins first and second with nobody out. After Eddie Rosario and Ehire Adrianza both failed to advance the runners, it was Byron Buxton who came up clutch, in his return to the lineup, with a two-out single. Sergio Romo had another 1-2-3 inning tonight, showing that he has put his blow-up outing in Cleveland in the rearview mirror. Romo had a minor injury scare in the inning, that was reminiscent of the leg issues he was going through at the end of last season. In the end, Romo appeared to be fine, as he stayed in the game and finished off the inning. After much of the bullpen got used up in last night’s ballgame, it was Matt Wisler who was called upon to close the game out in the ninth. Much like he has been all season, Wisler was very impressive. Firs, he needed some help from his defense, as Ehire Andrianza made a diving play to take away a double from Eloy Jimenez, that was completed by a great pick from Miguel Sano at first. Then Wisler struck out both Luis Robert and Nomar Mazara with his trusty slider to finally put an end to the Twins six-game losing streak. Bullpen Usage Spreadsheet Download attachment: Bullpen.png Postgame Pint Immediately following the game, Nick Nelson, John Bonnes and David Youngs are joined by Twins Daily's virtual live audience to discuss the return of Michael Pineda and Byron Buxton and a Twins win. Download The Postgame Pint Podcast You can also listen to the Postgame Pint and never miss another one. Just head over to our iTunes page and subscribe. Every morning you'll have a new episode waiting for you. Or listen wherever you download your favorite podcasts. MORE FROM TWINS DAILY — Latest Twins coverage from our writers — Recent Twins discussion in our forums — Follow Twins Daily via Twitter, Facebook or email Click here to view the article

This game had pretty much everything you could ask for from a great baseball game. An historic home run, three different comebacks to tie the game, and a walk-off hit-by-pitch by Ronald Torreyes. When all was said and done, 22 different Minnesota Twins played a part in their 9-8 win over the Chicago White Sox.Box Score Perez: 4.2 IP, 10 H, 3 ER, 0 BB, 4 K, 70.3% strikes (45 of 64 pitches) Home Runs: LaMarre (1), Sano (30) Multi-Hit Games: Rosario (3 for 6, 2 2B), Gonzalez (3 for 6), Arraez (3 for 6, 2B) WPA of +0.1: Gonzalez .359, Rosario .307, Wade .254, Torreyes .164, Rogers .144, LaMarre .122, Romo .111, Cruz .102, WPA of -0.1: Harper -.402, Sano -.214, Littell -.145, May -.143, Polanco -.114, Schoop -.100 After the Twins failed to hit a home run in their 5-3 win over the White Sox last night, it was Ryan LaMarre of all people who hit the Twins first home run of the series, leading off the bottom of the third inning. It was just LaMarre’s third home run of his major league career. The homer drew this great reaction from Minnesota Timberwolves head coach Ryan Saunders. Later in the third inning, Miguel Sano helped the Twins make more major league history, when he belted his 30th home run of the season, making the 2019 Minnesota Twins the first team to ever have five different 30-home run hitters in the same season. Sano’s home run traveled 482 feet, and became the second longest home run in Target Field history, behind only Jim Thome’s 490 foot blast back in 2011. Unfortunately for the Twins, the pitching staff was unable to hold the 5-0 lead they were given. Martin Perez was hit all over the yard tonight, giving up 10 hits in just 4- 2/3 innings. Somehow, he managed to give up just three runs. In the top of the sixth, Trevor May gave up home runs to Zack Collings and Adam Engel on back-to-back pitches, and just like that the game was tied. Tyler Duffey had another excellent outing tonight, striking out the White Sox' 3-4-5 hitters in the top of the seventh inning. Duffey has now worked 22 consecutive scoreless outings, dating back to July 28th. Over that time, Duffey has 33 strikeouts to just five walks in 19 2/3 innings pitched and has lowered his ERA from 3.82 down to 2.39. It was Sergio Romo’s turn in the top of the eighth inning to keep the score tied at five. Which is just what he did, getting a couple of big strikeouts with a runner on first to end the inning. However, he did so with an obvious limp after every pitch. The Twins came out to chat with him about it, be he insisted he was fine and stayed in the game to get the final two hitters. It will be worth monitoring this situation in the coming days to make sure nothing comes from it. Both Taylor Rogers and Zack Littell had to work out of jams in the top of the ninth and the top of the tenth respectively, to give the Twins hitters extra chances to try to win the game. The first two batters reached against Rogers via an error by Jorge Polanco, and a fielder’s choice by Rogers, when he tried to make the play at second after fielding a comebacker but was late with the throw. However, he was able to battle back by inducing a double play and getting Eloy Jimenez to strike out. In the tenth, Littell gave up two singles to lead off the inning. Then, after a sac bunt, Rocco Baldelli decided to load the bases with an intentional walk. That moved paid off, as Littell got a pop out and a flyout to get out of the jam. The Twins weren’t as fortunate in the 11th inning as they had been in the innings prior, as Tim Anderson led off the inning with a no-doubter off Zack Littell. Littell did a nice job not surrendering any more runs in the inning, keeping the White Sox lead at just one run. This played out huge for the Twins in the bottom of the inning, when Jonathan Schoop led off the inning with a single. He got pinch run for by LaMonte Wade Jr., who advanced to second on a C.J. Cron ground out, and to third on a wild pitch that barely got away from the White Sox catcher. This aggressive base running kept the Twins alive, as Mitch Garver came through with a sac fly to tie the game back up at six. In the 12th inning, Rocco Baldelli turned to Ryne Harper to get three outs, and the Twins bats back up with a chance to win the game. Harper did get those three outs However, that wasn’t until after he had surrendered a two-run home run to Ryan Cordell, giving the White Sox a 8-6 lead. Harper nearly gave up a few more runs, as the White Sox had first and third with two outs, but Harper got Eloy Jimenez to ground out to end the inning. The Twins may have been down but they certainly weren’t out of it, with the middle of their order due up in the bottom of the 12th. Nelson Cruz got the rally started with a lead off single, which was immediately followed by a double from Eddie Rosario, and just like that the Twins were in business. Then Miguel Sano came to the plate, and was immediately set down on three pitches. After Sano came Marwin Gonzalez, who after falling behind in the count, came through with a base hit to bring both Cruz and Rosario around to score, tying the game at eight. However, the Twins weren’t done quite yet. Luis Arraez followed up Gonzalez’s single with one of his own, Arraez’s third hit of the game. That brought LaMonte Wade Jr. up to the plate and he smacked a line-drive single up the middle. Fortunately for the Twins, Tony Diaz has learned from his mistakes earlier in the season, and held Gonzalez at third on a throw that would have had him out by 30 feet. This loaded the bases for Ronald Torreyes, who came in as a defensive replacement for C.J. Cron in the top of the 12th, and this happened. Postgame With Baldelli Bullpen Usage Here’s a quick look at the number of pitches thrown by the bullpen over the past five days: Next Three Games Wed vs CHW, 6:40 pm CT (Cover-Odorizzi) Thu vs KCR, 6:40 pm CT (Montgomery-TBD) Fri vs KCR, 7:10 pm CT (TBD-TBD) Last Game Twins Game Recap (9/16): Berrios tosses a strong 7.1 innings Click here to view the article

As the season starts to wind down, every Minnesota Twins game seems that much more important. With the Cleveland Indians blowing out the Detroit Tigers, the Twins needed to hold serve against the Chicago White Sox to maintain their 3 1/2 game lead in the American League Central. Fortunately Michael Pineda, and the back end of the Twins bullpen were up to the task, leading the Twins to a 3-to-1 victory.Box Score Pineda: 5 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 8 K, 67.4% strikes (60 of 89 pitches) Home Runs: Gonzalez (15), Schoop (19) Multi-Hit Games: Cruz (2 for 4) WPA of +0.1: Pineda .177, Duffey .108 WPA of -0.1: None Bomba Counter: 255 There was a scoring chance for the Twins right away in the first inning. Jorge Polanco drew a one out walk, and Nelson Cruz drove him over to third with a single, giving the Twins first and third with just one out. Then Eddie Rosario stepped to the plate, and with Lucas Giolito showing he didn’t have he best control early, Rosario swung at the first pitch, which was out of the zone high, and popped up to the third baseman. Giolito was able to come back in strike out Miguel Sano, and the Twins early threat was squandered. In the second inning, the Twins went back to their routine to put a couple of runs on the scoreboard. First Marwin Gonzalez leadoff the inning with his 15th home run of the season, giving the Twins nine different hitters with at least 15 home runs this season. A few batters later, Jonathan Schoop blasted a home run of his own, giving the Twins a 2-0 lead. The White Sox were able to bounce back with a home run of their own, when Tim Anderson took Michael Pineda deep to lead off the fourth inning. This was the only blemish, on what was otherwise an excellent start for Pineda. Since the start of May, Michael Pineda has a 3.60 ERA, which is slightly better than Jake Odorizzi’s 3.64 ERA and Jose Berrios’s 3.71 ERA over that time. If those three can carry that level of performance into the postseason, the Twins will have three pitchers that can give their offense a shot to win each and every game. Eddie Rosario made up for his inability to come through in the first inning by driving in a big insurance run in the eighth. Following a couple of one-out singles from Jorge Polanco and Nelson Cruz, Eddie Rosario poked a line drive into center field, bringing around Polanco to score. With two outs in the inning, Max Kepler pinch hit for Marwin Gonzalez, and hit a popup into shallow left field that looked like it was going to drop. However, it held up just long enough for While Sox outfielder Eloy Jimenez to run underneath it and make a nice sliding catch to end the inning. It was later announced that Marwin Gonzalez was lifted due to an abdominal issue, but nothing more was said about the issue before the end of the game. The Twins bullpen was on display tonight, showing just how valuable the trade deadline additions really were. After Pineda’s five strong innings, Sam Dyson, Tyler Duffey, Sergio Romo and Taylor Rogers each gave the Twins one scoreless inning to secure the Twins win. Among them, Sergio Romo deserves some recognition. He came in for the eighth inning to face the White Sox 2-4 hitters, and he made them look silly, striking out all three. Bullpen Usage Here’s a quick look at the number of pitches thrown by the bullpen over the past five days: Next Three Games Wed at CHW, 7:10 pm CT (Odorizzi-Detwiler) Thu at CHW, 1:10 pm CT (Berrios-Cease) Fri at DET, 6:10 pm CT (TBD-TBD) Last Game Twins Game Recap (8/25): Pérez Impresses, Twins Beat Detroit for Series Win Click here to view the article

Monday night was a bit of a come down to earth for the Minnesota Twins, who cruised their way to a four-game sweep against the Texas Rangers over the weekend. However, the Twins jumped right back on the gas pedal last night again, putting up 14 runs on 10 extra-base hits against the Chicago White Sox. In New York, the Mets took care of business, beating the Cleveland Indians by a score of 9 to 2, which helped the Twins extend their lead in the division back up to three games.Box Score Pineda: 7 IP, 6 H, 4 ER, 0 BB, 4 K, 79.5% strikes (70 of 88 pitches) Home Runs: Kepler (34), Cruz (33), Polanco (19) Multi-Hit Games: Kepler (2 for 5, 2B, HR), Cruz (4 for 5, 3 2B, HR), Rosario (2 for 5) WPA of +0.1: Cruz .347, Kepler .176 WPA of -0.1: None The pitchers were in control of this game in its early stages, as they both breezed through the first couple of innings, facing just one more batter than the minimum between the two pitchers. However, that narrative took a 180 in the third inning, when both teams found their bats. In the top of the third, Michael Pineda was one out away from another quick inning, leaving just a runner on first. That all changed when Tim Anderson roped a double down the first-base line that ricocheted off the side wall, and away from Jake Cave, allowing Yolmer Sanchez to score from first. Jose Abreu followed that up with another third-inning home run, putting the White Sox 3-0. Mitch Garver led off the bottom of the third with a double into the right-center field gap, for the Twins first baserunner of the game. Garver advanced to third on a Marwin Gonzalez groundout, but was still standing there with two outs, after Jake Cave struck out. No worries though, as Max Kepler, who was back in the lineup after missing last night’s game as a result of the heat exhaustion he suffered over the weekend in Texas, came through with a two-out, two-run home run to cut the White Sox lead down to one. After a strong showing in his return from the injured list last night, Nelson Cruz showed everyone that the ruptured tendon in his left wrist wasn’t going to slow him down, as he took Reynaldo Lopez deep to left field, to tie the game at three. After tying the game up in the bottom of the fourth, Nelson Cruz gave the Twins their first lead of the game, just an inning later. A lead they would not look back from. The inning didn’t look like it was going to be anything much after Mitch Garver and Marwin Gonzalez both grounded out to leadoff the inning. Jake Cave then followed that up with an opposite field single, extending his modest hit streak to eight games. Max Kepler then nubbed the ball two feet in front of home plate, but the inning was kept alive when Jose Abreu inexplicably missed the catch on the throw to first. Jorge Polanco kept the inning going when he was hit by a pitch to load the bases for Nelson Cruz, who promptly delivered with a two-run double off the wall in right. On the very next pitch, Eddie Rosario followed that up with a base hit, bringing in both Polanco and Cruz to extend the Twins lead to four. Tim Anderson led off the top of the sixth inning with a home run, which was the fourth earned run allowed by Michael Pineda on the night. That marks just the second start for Pineda since the beginning of May, when he has allowed more than three earned runs. The Twins busted the game wide open with a seven-run inning in the bottom of the eighth. The inning was highlighted by two doubles from Nelson Cruz, a bases clearing double from C.J. Cron, RBI-doubles from both Miguel Sano and Max Kepler, and a two-run home run by Jorge Polanco. Bullpen Usage Here’s a quick look at the number of pitches thrown by the bullpen over the past five days: Next Three Games Wed vs CHW, 12:10 pm CT (Giolito-Odorizzi) Fri vs DET, 7:10 pm CT (TBD-TBD) Sat vs DET, 6:10 pm CT (TBD-TBD) Last Game Twins Game Recap (8/19): Twins Unable to Mount Comeback, Drop Series Opener 6-4 Click here to view the article