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New York Times
9 hours ago
- Sport
- New York Times
Big nights from Brooks Lee, David Festa, Byron Buxton pace Twins over Tigers
DETROIT — He always looks for a fastball to hit, but Brooks Lee really wanted this one. Batting with the schizophrenic Twins ahead by two runs in the sixth inning Friday night against the first-place Detroit Tigers, Lee hoped to provide his team and pitcher a little breathing room. Similar to his performance the past month, Lee achieved his goal. Rather than try to do too much with a four-seam fastball, Lee stayed up the middle with his approach and deposited a single in center field to drive in a crucial run. Advertisement Lee's two run-scoring hits, a sterling performance by David Festa, another big game from Byron Buxton and even a run-scoring bunt paced the Twins to a 4-1 victory in the series opener at Comerica Park, the team's third straight victory. Festa struck out six in 5 2/3 scoreless innings, Buxton belted his 18th homer and stole a base and Lee stayed red hot. Despite losing 11 of 12 before their current win streak, the Twins are only two games back of the final spot in what remains a wide-open American League wild-card race. 'He's showing a lot of different tricks and different adjustments he can make,' Twins manager Rocco Baldelli said of Lee. 'He looks really comfortable. He always looks like he knows what to do next. You have to be on your toes because pitchers are going to make a lot of good adjustments. … When they've done that, he's done different things. He's come right back at them.' Lee has done many things over the past month for the Twins. Almost all could be described as wonderful. While the stretch hasn't been perfect — Lee recently had a rough defensive day, and there was the game-ending strikeout Sunday in which he didn't run out the play to first base — it's been pretty close. Since May 28, Lee has hit safely in 25 of 26 games, including a 20-game hitting streak which ended Sunday with the aforementioned strikeout. Over 26 games, Lee is batting .350/.375/.510 with four doubles, four home runs and 17 RBIs. A day after he homered to stretch the lead to three runs in another tight game, which ended with a blowout victory over Seattle, Lee got the Twins going in the Motor City. Double double animal style! — Minnesota Twins (@Twins) June 28, 2025 He broke a scoreless tie with two outs in the fourth inning, pulling a 1-0 cut fastball from ex-Twins farmhand Sawyer Gipson-Long down the first-base line to drive in Matt Wallner, who also doubled. Buxton extended the lead to two runs with a massive, two-out, solo homer in the fifth off Gipson-Long. Though the two-run cushion was nice, recently, no lead has been safe with the way the Twins have been pitching. Enter Lee, who spent the entire offseason gearing himself up to hit the fastball following a disappointing end to his rookie season. For his entire career, back to Little League, Lee said he's always punished fastballs. He didn't in 2024, finishing his rookie season batting .193 against four-seamers. His struggles forced Lee to refocus his efforts ahead of spring training, and the effort is paying off. Though back and shoulder injuries very likely played a part in last season's struggles, Lee spent the winter refining his swing to make it more compact. The adjustment has Lee in a better position to impact the ball, whether he's trying to pull it for power or line it back up the middle. Advertisement Facing reliever lefty reliever Brant Hurter with runners on the corners and one out in the sixth, Lee hoped for a fastball at the top of the zone. Though the 0-1 pitch was a little lower than he expected, Lee jumped on it and ripped it for a run-scoring single. Lee entered Friday hitting .375 on fastballs, according to Baseball Savant. 'I'm probably going to get a lot off-speed pitches, but when I do get a fastball that's there, it's a gift,' Lee said. 'It's the straightest ball in the game. I should hit it. It should be the easiest pitch to hit for me, and it all centers around my approach. I just want to be on the fastball for most of my at-bats. I really think it's been working, but I have to continue to stay on top of it because it can go away.' The Twins added a fourth run in the seventh when Buxton walked, stole second, advanced to third on a groundout and scored to make it 4-0 on Willi Castro's sacrifice bunt. Despite a Jekyll and Hyde-type season, the Twins aren't going away yet. Following their 1-11 stretch, the Twins fell to five games under .500. Suddenly, they're 40-42 and only 2 1/2 back of Seattle, though they'd have to leapfrog four teams to earn a wild-card spot. One reason the Twins were so down and out was a heinous 17-game stretch by the pitching staff, which yielded nine runs eight times. But suddenly, the Twins look as if they might rediscover the form that made them one of baseball's top pitching staffs before the injury to Pablo López. Festa delivered the third straight gem by a Twins starting pitcher as he followed in the footsteps of Joe Ryan and Simeon Woods Richardson with a scoreless outing. Leaning heavily on his slider while mixing in a changeup and both fastballs, Festa cruised through all but one inning. He set down the side in order in the first, third, fourth and fifth innings, retiring 12 in a row at one point. Advertisement '(The slider) felt good, it felt good getting ahead and putting away,' Festa said. 'They say hitting's contagious — I think pitching is as well. We're just trying to stack good outings on good outings.' Festa only slowed down in the second inning when he hit a batter and yielded a two-out single. But Festa, who generated nine swings-and-misses in 75 pitches, remained composed and induced an inning-ending comebacker off Dillon Dingler's bat. He wouldn't allow another base runner until two outs in the sixth inning. Along with his six strikeouts, Festa walked none and limited Detroit to two hits. After posting a 6.85 ERA over their previous 17 games, Twins starting pitchers have produced 18 2/3 consecutive scoreless innings, including the final two from Chris Paddack's start on Tuesday. Lee, Buxton, Castro and the Twins' bullpen made sure it counted. That's a NO DOUBTER from Byron Buxton!!!! — (@twinstv) June 28, 2025 For Lee, it's another sign over the past month that his bat still has the potential that led the Twins to select him with the eighth pick of the 2022 amateur draft. 'It's been good,' Lee said. 'I can't complain. I'm still working as hard as I can to make sure both of my swings are on point. Try to come to the ballpark and try to get better every single day. It's all I can do. I can't control the wins and losses, but I can help.' (Top photo of Brooks Lee: Lon Horwedel / Imagn Images)
Al Arabiya
11 hours ago
- Sport
- Al Arabiya
Byron Buxton Homers in the Twins' 4-1 Victory Over the Tigers
Byron Buxton homered and scored twice to help the Minnesota Twins beat the Detroit Tigers 4–1 on Friday night for their third straight victory. David Festa (2–2) pitched 5 2/3 scoreless innings, allowing two hits. He struck out six and didn't walk a batter. Jhoan Durán pitched the ninth for his 12th save. Brooks Lee drove in a pair of runs for the Twins. Sawyer Gipson-Long (0–1) took the loss, allowing three runs in 5 1/3 innings. The Twins took a 1–0 lead in the fourth on back-to-back doubles by Matt Wallner and Lee, then made it 2–0 an inning later on Buxton's long homer to left. The Twins made it 3–0 in the sixth. Reliever Brant Hurter replaced Gipson-Long with one out and a runner on first. After a wild pitch, Hurter walked Ty France before Lee hit an RBI single. Hurter then hit former Tiger Kody Clemens to load the bases, but Carlos Hernández replaced Hurter and got out of the inning when Harrison Bader struck out and Christian Vázquez grounded out. Buxton led off the seventh with a walk, stole second, took third on Trevor Larnach's groundout and scored on Willi Castro's squeeze bunt. The Tigers had two runners on in the seventh, but Dillon Dingler grounded into a force at third and Parker Meadows popped out. But they finally scored when Colt Keith tripled in the eighth and scored on Gleyber Torres' single. Zach McKinstry singled to put runners on the corners, but Griffin Jax struck out Riley Greene and Spencer Torkelson to end the inning. Key moment: The Tigers had a chance to rally after Torres got their second hit with two out in the sixth. Twins manager Rocco Baldelli replaced Festa with Danny Coulombe, and Tigers manager A.J. Hinch countered with pinch-hitter Jahmai Jones. Baldelli won the duel as Jones grounded to Lee at third for a force at second. Lee had prevented a bigger rally earlier in the inning, going behind the bag to field a Javier Báez grounder and make the play at first. Key stat: The Tigers came into the game with a 21–5 record in series-opening games this season, including 12–1 at home.
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Twins take on the Mariners after Lee's 4-hit game
Seattle Mariners (39-37, second in the AL West) vs. Minnesota Twins (37-40, fourth in the AL Central) Minneapolis; Monday, 7:40 p.m. EDT PITCHING PROBABLES: Mariners: Bryan Woo (6-4, 2.92 ERA, 0.93 WHIP, 78 strikeouts); Twins: Bailey Ober (4-4, 4.54 ERA, 1.40 WHIP, 62 strikeouts) Advertisement BETMGM SPORTSBOOK LINE: Mariners -125, Twins +105; over/under is 8 1/2 runs BOTTOM LINE: The Minnesota Twins take on the Seattle Mariners after Brooks Lee's four-hit game on Sunday. Minnesota is 37-40 overall and 20-15 at home. The Twins are 18-10 in games when they did not give up a home run. Seattle has gone 19-18 in road games and 39-37 overall. Mariners hitters have a collective .327 on-base percentage, the fifth-best percentage in MLB play. Monday's game is the fourth time these teams meet this season. TOP PERFORMERS: Byron Buxton leads the Twins with a .285 batting average, and has nine doubles, three triples, 17 home runs, 23 walks and 47 RBIs. Lee is 14 for 39 with two home runs and seven RBIs over the past 10 games. Advertisement Cal Raleigh has 31 home runs, 45 walks and 66 RBIs while hitting .276 for the Mariners. Donovan Solano is 14 for 28 with a double, three home runs and 11 RBIs over the past 10 games. LAST 10 GAMES: Twins: 1-9, .240 batting average, 7.97 ERA, outscored by 39 runs Mariners: 6-4, .289 batting average, 3.58 ERA, outscored opponents by 23 runs INJURIES: Twins: Willi Castro: day-to-day (wrist), Royce Lewis: 10-Day IL (hamstring), Pablo Lopez: 60-Day IL (shoulder), Zebby Matthews: 15-Day IL (shoulder), Luke Keaschall: 60-Day IL (forearm) Mariners: Trent Thornton: day-to-day (heat illness), Bryce Miller: 15-Day IL (elbow), Collin Snider: 15-Day IL (forearm), Gregory Santos: 60-Day IL (knee), Victor Robles: 60-Day IL (shoulder), Ryan Bliss: 60-Day IL (biceps) ___ The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.
Associated Press
5 days ago
- Sport
- Associated Press
Twins take on the Mariners after Lee's 4-hit game
Seattle Mariners (39-37, second in the AL West) vs. Minnesota Twins (37-40, fourth in the AL Central) Minneapolis; Monday, 7:40 p.m. EDT PITCHING PROBABLES: Mariners: Bryan Woo (6-4, 2.92 ERA, 0.93 WHIP, 78 strikeouts); Twins: Bailey Ober (4-4, 4.54 ERA, 1.40 WHIP, 62 strikeouts) BETMGM SPORTSBOOK LINE: Mariners -125, Twins +105; over/under is 8 1/2 runs BOTTOM LINE: The Minnesota Twins take on the Seattle Mariners after Brooks Lee's four-hit game on Sunday. Minnesota is 37-40 overall and 20-15 at home. The Twins are 18-10 in games when they did not give up a home run. Seattle has gone 19-18 in road games and 39-37 overall. Mariners hitters have a collective .327 on-base percentage, the fifth-best percentage in MLB play. Monday's game is the fourth time these teams meet this season. TOP PERFORMERS: Byron Buxton leads the Twins with a .285 batting average, and has nine doubles, three triples, 17 home runs, 23 walks and 47 RBIs. Lee is 14 for 39 with two home runs and seven RBIs over the past 10 games. Cal Raleigh has 31 home runs, 45 walks and 66 RBIs while hitting .276 for the Mariners. Donovan Solano is 14 for 28 with a double, three home runs and 11 RBIs over the past 10 games. LAST 10 GAMES: Twins: 1-9, .240 batting average, 7.97 ERA, outscored by 39 runs Mariners: 6-4, .289 batting average, 3.58 ERA, outscored opponents by 23 runs INJURIES: Twins: Willi Castro: day-to-day (wrist), Royce Lewis: 10-Day IL (hamstring), Pablo Lopez: 60-Day IL (shoulder), Zebby Matthews: 15-Day IL (shoulder), Luke Keaschall: 60-Day IL (forearm) Mariners: Trent Thornton: day-to-day (heat illness), Bryce Miller: 15-Day IL (elbow), Collin Snider: 15-Day IL (forearm), Gregory Santos: 60-Day IL (knee), Victor Robles: 60-Day IL (shoulder), Ryan Bliss: 60-Day IL (biceps) ___ The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.
Reuters
15-06-2025
- Sport
- Reuters
Astros rally in ninth, sweep Twins with walk-off in tenth
June 15 - Mauricio Dubon hit a walk-off single to left field with two outs in the 10th inning, and the Houston Astros completed a three-game series sweep of the Minnesota Twins with a 2-1 win on Sunday. Dubon drove home Jake Meyers with a high fly ball off Twins reliever Cole Sands (3-3) that left fielder Willi Castro failed to catch at the wall. Meyers opened the bottom of the 10th placed at second base, but had not moved up after a ground out and a strike out. The Astros rallied against Twins closer Jhoan Duran for a second consecutive game, pulling even in the ninth when Victor Caratini hit a sacrifice fly to left that scored Jeremy Pena, who walked to lead off the frame. With one out, Pena stole second base and advanced to third on a Jose Altuve infield single. Josh Hader (4-0) earned the win for Houston with a perfect 10th. The Astros completed a six-game homestand at 5-1. Brooks Lee extended his hitting streak to 15 games with a solo home run for a 1-0 lead in the top of the third. Lee finished 3-for-4 and homered for a second consecutive game. He owns the longest hit streak by a Twin since Carlos Correa produced a 16-game hitting streak last season. Lee, who belted his career-best seventh homer 374 feet to left, represented the lone blemish for Astros left-hander Brandon Walter, who excelled while making his third spot start for Houston. Walter retired the Twins in order in the second, fourth, and sixth innings and worked a career-best 6 2/3 innings. He worked around a two-out single from Castro in the first and stranded Correa and Castro by getting Ty France to fly out to right field in the third. Castro, who finished 3-for-4, struck out with Lee and Ryan Jeffers in scoring position to end the fifth. Walter sandwiched strikeouts of Harrison Bader and Christian Vazquez around a Lee single before departing in the seventh. He allowed six hits and did not walk a batter while recording a career-high nine strikeouts. Twins right-hander Simeon Woods Richardson logged five shutout innings. He needed only 26 pitches to complete one trip through the Houston order and retired the top of the Astros' lineup in order in the bottom of the fourth. Woods Richardson didn't throw more than 11 pitches in any frame before he surrendered an infield single to Meyers with one out in the fifth. Cam Smith followed with a 10-pitch walk to nudge Meyers into scoring position, but Woods Richardson rallied to escape that inning unscathed. He threw just 53 pitches. --Field Level Media
