Twins springing surprises

TWINS 13
RED SOX 6

My 1st Twins game of 2026 was to see a ballclub that entered the game with the best record in the American League. But it wasn't the Red Sox. 

Somehow, the Twins, who entered 2026 with rock bottom expectations, and then began to live up to them with a largely listless 3-6 start, swept a 4 gamer from Detroit and took 2 of 3 in Toronto heading into Monday's game. And yes, that made them a modest 9-7, which tied them with Cleveland for the best in the league. 

Make it 10-7, after the most stunning win of the young season, a demolition of Sox ace Garret Crochet.

The Twins' resurgent bats began teeing off right away. 4 hits, a walk, an HBP, and an error led to a 4 run 1st. 
The 2nd was even more of a bloodbath, with a bases loaded Josh Bell double, a 3 run Victor "The Great" Caratini homerun, and then a Ryan Kreidler solo shot as the cherry on top. Finally, Crochet was pulled.

At 11-0, I was hoping the Twins would set a new record for most runs scored with me in person. I've been stuck on 15 for a long time. But only a pair of solo homeruns from Byron Buxton (setting the record for most homeruns hit at Target Field) and Ryan Jeffers added on. 

Bailey Ober started for the Twins, and was alright. 4 runs over 6 is about the best he's got. The shaky bullpen allowed a lot of baserunners in the late innings, but only a couple runs. 

And the rain, which battered cities south of here, mostly stayed away. It only kicked in late in the game.

This was definitely the least attended Twins game I've ever been to. The Pohlad-induced wounds aren't going away. And even a hopeful stretch of baseball won't change that. I have a hard time believing this team truly be in the mix all year with this bullpen (and we know the owners won't spend to bolster the roster at the deadline). 

And every team has a couple of good stretches during a season. We won 13 straight last year. But maybe this current run at least provides some hope that this won't be a totally empty summer. 

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