July 24, 2018

Color me surprised: Twins pound Toronto

The Twins will not go gently into that good night after they shook off a three-game sweep and pounded the Toronto Blue Jays on Monday, 8-3.

The offense kicked it into gear and scored eight runs on 13 hits, including home runs from Logan Morrison and Max Kepler. Joe Mauer and Mitch Garver also had three hits apiece and the much maligned Morrison drove in three runs.

But perhaps the game ball should go to pitcher Adalberto Mejia, who was recently recalled from Triple-A Rochester to face the Blue Jays. Mejia limited Toronto to one run over five-plus innings with two walks and three strikeouts. Relievers Matt Belisle and Matt Magill also made scoreless appearances (for a change), which is good because Belisle needs to put a dent in his 6.66 ERA.

Jose Berrios gets the ball Tuesday, followed by Ervin Santana on Wednesday. Could the Twins sweep the Blue Jays? Put the phones down, Falvey & Co., this season might not be over just yet.

Extra innings…

-The Cleveland Indians were blanked by the Pittsburgh Pirates on Monday, so the Twins picked up a game to move within 8.5 games of the Tribe.

-Mauer had three hits on Saturday, struck out three times Sunday and had three more hits on Monday. He’s hitting .285 this season.

COMMENTS

Hi, I’m Rolf Boone, Twins fan.

I became a fan of the Minnesota Twins after a friendly wager in the early 1980s. I survived Ron Davis, the meltdown in Cleveland, Phil Bradley at the Kingdome and then marveled at a rising generation of stars and two World Series wins in 1987 and 1991. Brad Radke made the 1990s bearable, while Kirby Puckett’s eye injury, exit from the game and eventual death made it almost too much to bear. The new century ushered in more talent — Joe Mauer, Johan Santana, Joe Nathan, Torii Hunter, Justin Morneau — and consecutive seasons of playoff baseball, followed by consecutive seasons of losing baseball. A winning season returned in 2015. So here we are. Go Twins.