*Photo from the Duluth News Tribune*
Yeah, I think the Minnesota Twins are off to a pretty good start. Carlos Correa had a 3 RBI game, the pitching staff excelled, the the Twins cruised by the Detroit Tigers with a 7-1 victory on Thursday afternoon in Minneapolis.
After this series, the Twins are on quite a roll. They pulled off a sweep of the Tigers, winning their 7th straight game, the longest winning streak since June of 2011. They also pulled off a perfect homestand, sweeping the Tigers and Chicago White Sox for a 6-0 homestand, the first time they have had a perfect homestand in the history of Target Field.
Correa, one of the reasons for this win, said of the winning streak that "We're having a lot of fun. I was telling them, I love this team. I love to be part of this culture. You guys can see it when you walk into this clubhouse. Everybody's a family. Everybody's together. It's pretty special, what we're building here."
The Twins got the scoring in the second inning, when Trevor Larnach hit an RBI single to center field, scoring Gio Urshela to put the Twins up 1-0. Kyle Garlick then scored to make it 2-0, off an RBI single from Gilberto Celestino. In the 4th inning, Derek Hill got the Tigers on the board, making it a 2-1 game with an RBI single.
In the 5th inning, the Twins ripped off a big inning. Correa got it started by lining a double into the left center field gap with the bases loaded, scoring all 3 runners to open the Twins lead up to 5-1. Correa then scored on an RBI single by Urshela to make it 6-1. In the 6th, Correa hit an RBI single to score Celestino, making it a 7-1 Twins lead and win.
Bailey Ober got the start for the Twins, who was on his way to another good start for the Twins rotation, before leaving after 3 2/3 innings with a right groin strain. Cody Stashak got the win, pitching 1 1/3 shutout relief innings, improving to 1-1 on the season. Tyler Duffey and Griffin Jax finished off the game for the Twins, with Jax getting the 3 inning save.
Asked about how the pitching has done well, Twins starter Chris Archer said that "I think it's a combination of everything. We have some really, really good arms. Wes is a really good pitching coach. I've been on teams that are super, super analytical, and these are the best scouting reports that I've seen."
Tarik Skubal got the start and the loss for the Tigers, falling to 1-2 on the season. Skubal lasted just 5 innings, allowing 6 runs on 6 hits and two walks. Jacob Barnes allowed the other run in relief, with scoreless outings from Wily Peralta and Joe Jimenez.
Tigers manager AJ Hinch said of being swept by the Twins that "It was a bad trip here. We didn’t play good enough to win. We completely fell apart defensively in the fifth inning, and when you do that, when you give extra chances and get a little bit of momentum, when things are going bad, it keeps going bad. Not a good trip."
Up next, the Twins head south to face the Tampa Bay Rays, with Dylan Bundy to start the series opening game. The Tigers go to the west coast to face the Los Angeles Dodgers, with Tyler Alexander getting the start.
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