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Twins 5, Tigers 1: Let’s go White Sox

The Twins did their part, and now it’s up to the White Sox

MLB: Minnesota Twins at Detroit Tigers
Eddie flipped this fly ball from his glove to his bare hand for the out. Why? Nobody knows, but it was effective.
Raj Mehta-USA TODAY Sports

As gross as it feels, let’s start the chant.

Say it with me: “Let’s. Go. White Sox.” [clap, clap, clap clap clap]

All together now: “LET’S. GO. WHITE SOX.” [clap, clap, clap clap clap]

The Twins overcame an exceedingly sloppy first few innings to beat the Tigers on Wednesday night in Detroit by a final score of 5-1, and now all we can do is wait.

So, for now, let’s talk about the Twins game.

Randy Dobnak’s last pre-marriage start was fantastic. It began with a quick two outs in the first inning before a high chopper from Miguel Cabrera clanked off the glove of Jorge Polanco. Miggy (barely) scored on a double to the gap, and the Tigers were ahead by a 1-0 margin.

The Twins had hits in each of the first three innings but had baserunning mistakes and disinterested at-bats and never truly threatened.

The next time Cabrera batted, he hit a high chopper to Miguel Sano at third base. That also richocheted off his glove and allowed Cabrera to reach. There were a handful of other near-errors in the field as the entire infield looked as if it were sleepwalking for much of the night.

Dobnak kept doing his thing, however, and pitched six innings of one-hit ball, striking out six and walking none. The unearned run with two outs in the first was the only blemish on his line, and the double that scored it was the only hit.

Finally, in the top of the seventh inning, a Sano walk was followed by a Luis Arraez bomba, and the Twins were ahead 2-1 and Dobnak was in line for his second career win.

Tyler Duffey, Trevor May, and Zach Littell each pitched a scoreless inning as the Twins added three more runs on a Nelson Cruz single and a two-run homer from Eddie Rosario, giving the Twins 299 home runs as a team on the season.

All together now: Let’s. Go. White Sox....

Notes

  • Did I mention that a Cleveland loss to the White Sox tonight means that the Twins have clinched the division and can get some much-needed rest? As of this writing, Cleveland trails by a 5-3 margin in the sixth inning. Nine outs to go...
  • Mitch Garver struck out four times and did not look close to making contact in any of his at-bats. In his first game back from what was reportedly a minor hip issue, it seems likely that the issue was a) the hip issue is still bothering him, or b) a bit of rust. Here’s hoping it was neither and he can get things going again over the weekend to prepare for playoff baseball.
  • Miguel Sano went 0-for-3 and struck out twice but also looked uncomfortable at the plate, swinging at plenty of breaking balls off the plate.
  • On the other side of things Jorge Polanco, Cruz, and Arraez all continue to be awesome. Oh, and Dobnak, too.

Studs

  • Luis Arraez: 2-for-3, HR, 2 RBI, BB
  • Nelson Cruz: 2-for-4, RBI, R
  • Eddie Rosario: 1-for-4, HR, 2 RBI
  • Jorge Polanco: 2-for-5, R, 3B
  • Randy Dobnak: 6 IP, H, 0 ER, 6 K, 0 BB

Duds

  • Like we’re gonna have any duds tonight...we’re still hoping for champagne!