August 9, 2021

Wow. Twins get series win over AL West-leading Houston Astros

I disappeared for a few days after I saw the Houston Astros on the schedule. They hit and pitch well, they are 20 games over .500 and they have had mostly success against the Twins, including in the postseason, of late. So, I ignored the internet and TV, thinking the Astros would make quick work of the Twins over the four-game series.

And then the Twins went and proved me wrong. They won 5-3 on Thursday, 5-4 on Friday, they lost Saturday, but then came right back to win 7-5 on Sunday. It’s a reminder that the Twins still have a good team, and minus the injuries and struggling free agents, this season might have looked a lot more like 2020 or 2019 instead of 2021.

The Twins scored seven runs on 12 hits, getting three hits out of Max Kepler, as well as two hits apiece from Jorge Polanco, Luis Arraez, Miguel Sano and Trevor Larnach. The Big Bopper was Polanco who hit two home runs, including his team-leading 20th homer of the season.

Starter Kenta Maeda did enough to get the win, and once again relievers Juan Minaya and Alex Colome (yes, that Alex Colome) looked pretty good. Minaya pitched a scoreless inning and Colome closed out the game, earning his fifth save of the season.

Looks like Beau Burrows is going to get the start Monday at home against the Chicago White Sox. The Twins are 4-12 against the South Siders this season.

Extra innings…

-So the Twins survived their four-game series in Houston, but what about the rest of the month? It doesn’t get any easier. Up next they play the White Sox, followed by the Rays, Guardians, Yankees, Red Sox and Brewers. Ugh. They need to play like they did against Houston. If not, you might as well hammer the nail on this season.

-The Twins turned three double plays on Sunday.

-Sunday’s game was played in four hours, seven minutes. What took so long? Well, both teams combined used 11 pitchers.

-Now that Nelson Cruz is no longer with the Twins, not only is Polanco the team leader in home runs, he’s also the team leader in batting average, runs, runs batted in and stolen bases. And he has gone about all of it in his quiet and unassuming way.

-And then there was this;

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.