Series Review: Twins lose 2 of 3 in Texas

Jun 29, 2014; Arlington, TX, USA; Minnesota Twins manager Ron Gardenhire (35) during the game against the Texas Rangers at Globe Life Park in Arlington. Minnesota won 3-2. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports

The Twins road woes continue as they have now lost 10 of their last 11 road contests. Just as things seemed to be turning around after a 4 game sweep of the White Sox last week at home, the Twins were swept in Anaheim and now lose 2 of 3 in Texas.

REVIEW:

The Rangers got to starter Kevin Correia early, as Adrian Beltre belted a 2 run HR in the bottom of the 1st and then the Rangers added to their lead in bottom of the 5th and getting themselves an insurance run in the 8th, enough to secure the win for the Rangers. The Twins threatened putting up 4 runs in the 9th, including a 1-out, 2 run triple from rookie Jorge Polanco. Unfortunately, Dozier and Suzuki weren’t able to get Polanco in, ending the game on a strikeout and a groundout.

Yu Darvish pitched like well, Yu Darvish and shut out the Twins in a 5-0 victory. Darvish struck out 10 and only allowed 4 hits through 8 IP, lowering his ERA to an amazing 2.42. This will happen when you face one of the best and I can’t really hang my head too low on this loss. On the flip side of things, Phil Hughes battled Darvish for a good amount of the game before getting into real trouble in the 8th, allowing 3 runs.

At least the Twins were able to end their road trip with a 3-2 win in the finale of this series. Kyle Gibson was impressive, only giving up 2 runs on 8 hits in 8 IP, improving his overall record to 7-6. Kendrys Morales provided a clutch RBI double to give the Twins the lead in the 9th and made way for Glen Perkins to strike out the side and notch his 20th save of the season.

THOUGHTS

• Hughes has by far been the Twins best starter this season, so I can’t really fault him or the Twins for trotting him out for the 8th inning on Saturday. As the Twins were shut out, those 3 late runs wouldn’t have made a difference in the result anyway. While he did allow 11 hits, this is a very strong Rangers offense who had been reeling and came alive Friday night. I’m not worried a bit about him.
• I love Brian Dozier, especially when he makes plays like these.
• Two days before making his MLB debut, 2o year old prospect Jorge Polanco was playing in Class A. Class A! What a nice debut for him and his confidence, hitting this clutch 2 RBI triple late in the game for his first big league hit. He also came through with a nice RBI double in Sunday’s finale.
• Yes, it continues to be a down year for Joe Mauer, but at least he has raised his .avg from .254 to .270 over the last 10 games. Hopefully this turnaround isn’t brief.
• Perkins striking out the side to end Sunday’s game was awesome. Love it!

UP NEXT

The second place Royals (42-39) will be visiting the Twins (37-43) for a 3 game set at Target Field, beginning Monday night.