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Today's game was the final in a 3-game series in Anaheim, and for the third game in a row, the Twins weren't able to overtake the powerful Angels lineup. It didn't help that Ricky Nolasco didn't pitch well, or that the offense didn't start rallying until too late in the game, but a lot of credit does go to the big bats in the Angel's lineup.
The Minnesota pitching left a lot to be desired today. While Ricky Nolasco did last 6 innings, he gave up 11 hits, 6 earned runs, and a walk. He did strike out 6 - the same number of batters Weaver K'd - but wasn't able to keep the potent Angels off the base paths. Jered Weaver had a good game, though he did give up a lot of hits as well. Unlike Nolasco and the Twins, however, he was able to keep the runs from scoring. Weaver went 7 innings, giving up 8 hits, 1 earned run, and one walk.
While Joe Mauer had himself a nice little offensive game, the Twins just couldn't put anything together against Weaver, Cory Rasmus, Ernesto Frieri, or Joe Smith. Joe hit his 15th and 16th doubles of the year off Rasmus and Smith, and he did knock in 3 of the Twins' runs. If nothing else, it is nice to see Mauer heating up again. Minnesota did try to be a little aggressive on the base paths today, and it backfired a bit, as Chris Parmelee was caught stealing second by catcher Hank Conger.
All in all, it was a difficult game for the Twins, especially since it locked the sweep up for the Angels (who, with their earlier sweep of the Rangers, have swept the first 6+ game homestand since 2004).
Roll Call
| # | Commenter | # Comments
 |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | MNWildcat | 23 |
| 2 | SooFoo Fan | 22 |
| 3 | kenzertz | 13 |
| 4 | NoahRJ | 10 |
| 5 | twinsgirl197 | 7 |
| 6 | Gunnarthor | 4 |
| 7 | myjah | 4 |
| 8 | smookaj | 2 |
| 9 | Boot | 2 |
| 10 | Jesse | 1 |
| 11 | DavidRF | 1 |
Win Expectancy Graph (via Fangraphs.com)
<iframe src="http://www.fangraphs.com/graphframe.aspx?config=0&static=0&type=livewins&num=0&h=450&w=450&date=2014-06-26&team=Angels&dh=0" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" height="450" width = "450" style="border:1px solid black;"></iframe><br /><span style="font-size:9pt;">Source: <a href="http://www.fangraphs.com/livewins.aspx?date=2014-06-26&team=Angels&dh=0&season=2014">FanGraphs</a></span>
What's Next
The Twins head to Arlington to take on the Rangers for a 3-game series. Tomorrow's game starts at 7:05 pm CST and will feature Kevin Correia throwing for Minnesota and Nick Tepesch throwing for Texas. Make sure to stop by Twinkie Town for all your game-time information!