Dude Weather Subscribe to Secrets Minneapolis / St. Paul
(AP Photo/Jim Mone)
Season Record: 27-28
Up Next: Seattle (9:10 CT, 6/5)
Jason Kubel ended his 0-17 slump at the plate on Wednesday night, and a day later he made sure it was over for good. With a run already in and two on in the bottom of the first, Kubel hit his sixth homerun of the season to give the Twins a comfortable lead early. The very next inning, in the same exact situation, Kubel launched his seventh homerun of the season over the right field wall to give the Twins a 7-0 lead after only two innings. The Twins never looked back, and behind a career outing for starter Scott Baker, the Twins took the series and the game, 11-3.
Kubel wasn't the only player that showed off his power; Justin Morneau hit a two-run homerun to give him 15 homeruns and 50 RBI on the season, and Denard Span hit his fourth homerun of the season. The top four hitters for the Twins, consisting of Span, Joe Mauer, Morneau, and Kubel, went a combined 10-15 with four homeruns, 10 RBI, and 11 runs scored. The rest of the lineup went a combined 3-21 with one RBI.
The early lead was all starter Scott Baker needed, and the righty lasted seven strong innings behind the big performance. Baker took a no-hitter into the fifth inning, and had a career day with 10 strikeouts. In the seven inning outing, Baker allowed only six hits and two earned runs to advance to 3-6 on the season and lower his ERA below 6.00.
The victory for the Twins moved them one game closer to the .500 mark at 27-28, but the win was much more important that just that. The Twins will head on a 10-day road trip that will make stops in Seattle, Oakland, and Chicago. At only 6-16 away from home this season it'll be a trying time for the team. The weeks ahead, in which the Twins will play 19 of 25 games on the road, could determine whether the 'Boys of Summer' are contenders or pretenders.
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