*Photo from the Star Tribune*
The Twin Cities were treated to a release of the Kraken on Saturday night, and not the hockey team. Carlos Correa drove in a run, Gary Sanchez homered, and the Minnesota Twins defeated the Los Angeles Angels with a 8-4 victory on Saturday night in Minneapolis.
Entering Saturday in the midst of a rough stretch, the Twins picked up just their second win in 10 games. It's been a stretch that has seen the Twins drop to under .500 and are no longer in contention to win the AL Central. Their wild card hopes are also on life support, entering Sunday 9 1/2 games back.
But, for one night, the Twins wound up on top, taking the middle game of a 3 game set against the Angels, and they have a chance to win the series on Sunday. Sanchez counted for half of the Twins run total, driving in 4 of the 8 runs scored.
Twins manager Rocco Baldelli said of the win that "We went out there and scored a bunch of runs, we had a lot of good at-bats. I think the approach was good. We found ways to get on top of some fastballs in a good way today."
Gio Urshela got the Twins going, hitting an RBI double in the first inning to make it 1-0 off the bat. Luis Arraez then scored on a sac fly from Sanchez, making it 2-0 Twins after one inning. In the second, an RBI single from Carlos Correa made it a 3-0 game. In the 3rd inning, the Angels got on the board courtesy of an RBI double from Mike Trout and an RBI single from Shohei Ohtani, making it a 3-2 game.
The Twins got one run back in the 4th, taking a 4-2 lead on a sac fly from Jermaine Palacios. In the 5th inning, with two runners on, Sanchez got every bit of a 3 run home run, sending it to the second deck to make it 7-2 Twins. An RBI groundout in the 7th from Gilberto Celestino made it 8-2, before Trout got a run back for the Angels in the 9th with a sac fly.
Starting for the Twins was rookie Joe Ryan, who didn't have a long start. Ryan allowed two runs on 4 hits, lasting just 4 innings in a no decision. Jhoan Duran allowed one run while closing out the game in the 9th, while Griffin Jax, Caleb Thielbar, Michael Fulmer, and Jorge Lopez had scoreless outings.
Ryan said of his start after the game that the "Offense was outstanding, so that was a bright spot. Always good to see that and to get the win is huge. But, personally, it’s definitely frustrating. But as a team, good energy back in the clubhouse feels great. Carry that to tomorrow and the next couple of road trips."
Fellow rookie Reid Detmers got the start for the Angels, allowing 5 runs on 8 hits in 4 innings pitched. Mike Mayers allowed 3 runs while pitching the next 2 1/3 innings. Rob Zastryzny pitched 2/3 of an inning, and Zack Weiss threw one inning, both scoreless appearances.
Angels interim manager Phil Nevin said of Detmers' start that "He just wasn't sharp and left some pitches up in the zone, and they got hit. It happens. It's a good offense over there. To get where he did in the game, it could've unraveled a little bit more early. I thought he made some good pitches when he needed to to get to that point, and he didn't walk anybody. But certainly, he did leave some pitches up that got hit."
Up next, the Twins and Angels conclude their series on Sunday with both teams going for a series win. Dylan Bundy gets the start for the Twins, while Jose Suarez goes for the Angels.
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