The Minnesota Twins were able to rebound in a pretty big way on Wednesday afternoon in San Diego. After back-to-back losses and two blown leads in three days, the Twins flipped the script and finished a three-game series against the Padres with a 11-4 win.
It’s the sort of offensive fire power we’ve seen on display numerous times this season, and the explosion allowed Minnesota to give its taxed bullpen a bit of a break. While Simeon Woods Richardson only pitched five innings, he picked up the win and the massive lead took all of the pressure off relievers like Cole Sands and Steven Okert in their apperances.
Given how the last few times out had gone of those guys, this was a much-needed break even if it meant seeing some action.
Above all else, the Twins victory was coupled with a Cleveland Guardians loss in the Bronx, which narrowed the race in the AL Central.
Updated AL Playoff standings after Twins beat Padres and Guardians fall to Yankees (Updated August 23rd)
Update: After publishing this, the Twins had an off day but the Guardians played one more game against the Yankees. Cleveland lost, getting shutout and losing a half-game on Minnesota heading into the weekend. That lead in first place is down to just two whole games.
Minnesota blew a chance to come within a game of first place after a meltdown against the Rangers on Sunday, and lost ground after blowing another lead on Tuesday. At the very least, though, that ground was picked back up and the Twins prepare for a weekend series at home against teh Cardinals with the chance to begin action on Monday sitting in first place.
Seed | Team | Proj. Finish |
|---|---|---|
1 | New York Yankees | AL East winner |
2 | Cleveland Guardians | AL Central winner |
3 | Houston Astros | AL West winner |
4 | Baltimore Orioles | Wild Card 1 |
5 | Minnesota Twins | Wild Card 2 |
6 | Kansas City Royals | Wild Card 3 |
MLB Postseason bracket if the season ended today (August 21st)
While the Twins might have gained some ground on the Guardians on Wednesday night, there are a few other things to keep an eye on that are a bit more pressing at the moment.
For starters, the Royals also gained ground on Cleveland and are tied with Minnesota for second place in the AL Central. The Twins season series victory over the Royals comes in handy here, as that’s what is making up the difference between the two teams in the standings right now.
That puts extra pressure on the Twins to come out of their upcoming series against the St. Louis Cardinals with another series victory. All eyes are fixed on Cleveland and winning the division, but the margin for error has significantly narrowed.
Team | Record | GB |
|---|---|---|
Baltimore Orioles | 74-54 | — |
Minnesota Twins | 71-56 | — |
Kansas City Royals | 71-56 | — |
Boston Red Sox | 65-58 | 3.5 |
Seattle Mariners | 64-61 | 5.5 |
Tampa Bay Rays | 62-61 | 6.5 |
Detroit Tigers | 61-64 | 8.5 |
Another development worth watching is the latest twist atop the AL East. New York beating up Cleveland helped the Twins, but it also knocked the Orioles back into the Wild Card picture. That’s significant because it alters Minnesota’s first round match up.
Rather than playing the Yankees in the Wild Card, the Twins would be heading to Camden Yards if the season ended today.
- (3) Houston Astros vs. (6) Kansas City Royals
- (4) New York Yankees vs. (5) Minnesota Twins
There’s still a lot of season left, and as we’ve already seen over the course of the last week a lot of things can and will change. All Minnesota can do is keep putting its best foot forward and avoid disasterous series like they just had in San Diego, because the postseason race is about to tighten up real fast.
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