Twins 10, Mariners 4: The homer show continues

The 2022 Twins have no use for small ball.

The Twins hit six home runs, led by Byron Buxton’s pair, and rode the momentum of a five-run first inning to a 10-4 victory.

After a brilliant defensive play in which Alex Kirilloff and Carlos Correa combined to throw out Jesse Winker at home, Byron Buxton started the dong parade with a solo shot. Six batters later, with the bases loaded and the inning extended thanks to Adam Frazier’s bobble of a Kirilloff grounder, Gary Sánchez clobbered a grand slam to put a bright and shiny 5 on the scoreboard.

Not content with a quintet of tallies, Buxton led off the second with another liner over the left field wall.

From there, a series of solo big flies extended Minnesota’s lead, even after Mitch Haniger butted in on the fun with a three-run Seattle slug. Max Kepler, Jorge Polanco, and Correa all put up individual runs in separate frames with sent spheres, before the Twins finally got their first non-homer run of the year when Sánchez doubled in Gio Urshela.

The pitching was just fine as well, Bailey Ober going five innings to pick up the win and four relievers keeping the Mariners off the scoreboard.

TWIM’S WIM!

Studs

Everybody!

Duds

Nobody!

Comment of the Game Thread

Goes to JoelHernandez for his banning of Mike Pelfrey.

Outside Comment of the Game

Goes to Reddit user YOTM18, a Mariners fan who wrote after the Opening Day game:

Can’t wait to win tomorrow by a run and get blown out by 6+ in game 3 to get the fun differential going

Well-prognosticated.