Max Kepler broke out of a mini-slump in a big way, Jose Berrios pitched a quality start and the Twins bullpen did just enough to preserve the 5-4 win over Cleveland Thursday night and snap a two-game losing streak.
Up next, the Twins stay on the road to play the Detroit Tigers on Friday.
Who scored four of the Twins’ five runs? Kepler did, hitting home runs 13, 14 and 15. He also added a single to go 4-for-4 for the night. Meanwhile, after the bullpen fell apart Wednesday night, Berrios gave the Twins six good innings with six strikeouts. He’s now 8-2 with a 3.14 earned run average.
And then once again things got interesting when Berrios exited the game,
Matt Magill gave up a run, Taylor Rogers gave up a run, too, but Rogers also struck out three in two innings to earn his sixth save of the season. Rogers is the clear ace in the bullpen, but the Twins are going to have to be very careful and not overuse him. It sure would be great to still have Ryan Pressly.
Kyle Gibson gets the ball Friday.
Extra innings…
-Something I forgot to mention in my previous post: Tribe starter, Carlos Carrasco, who was supposed to pitch Wednesday, didn’t because he landed on the injured list with a blood condition, according to various reports.
-This is the second time that Kepler has hit three home runs in a game against Cleveland.
After going 5-4 against the Brewers, Rays and Indians, and with their AL Central lead back in double digits, the Twins now embark on nine straight games against sub-.400 opposition: Tigers, Mariners, Royals.
— Phil Miller (@MillerStrib) June 7, 2019