Twins 9, Astros 6
W: Thielbar (3-2)
L: Chapman (0-1)
Contributed by Reuben
Let’s just appreciate how awesome it was that Brandon Barnes hit a game-tying, 3-run homer with 2 outs, on an 0-2 count in the bottom of the 9th. That just doesn’t happen very often, yet it will get very much overlooked and soon forgotten because the Astros ultimately lost the game. In fact, Barnes had a fantastic night overall, going 3-for-4 with a walk and 5 RBI. For the year, he’s hitting about .300 vs. lefty pitchers, and heading into this game had a very nice .362 OBP and .435 SLG% against them. Barnes probably does not have a future as a full-time player, but that’s a very valuable 4th outfielder right there, particularly when you factor in his superb CF defense.
The rest of the story of this game was basically this: the Astros made several mistakes, and the no-name Twins hitters were really annoying and kept getting hits in key situations.
Villar was thrown out in a silly attempt at stretching a single into a double. Like Biggio’s 3,000th hit silly. In this case, the Astros were down 4-1, which made it bad baseball. Porter removed Villar from the game immediately.
Cosart walked too many guys, and got behind the ones he didn’t walk, allowing 2 homers and 4 runs in just 4 innings. Altuve twice grounded into double plays on 0-0 counts. Marwin got caught in a rundown with the tying run on 3rd and 2 outs.
Astonishingly enough, Lucas Harrell tossed 3 scoreless innings in relief of Cosart, despite giving up 4 hits and 2 walks.
The Astros pulled within 1 in the 7th, but unfortunately Porter chose the flappable Jorge De Leon to pitch the 8th, and he gave those 2 runs right back. After Barnes’ homer, Josh Zeid remained in the game and provided 3 very solid scoreless innings himself, notably with a simplified stretch setup. Let’s hope this is the beginning of a turnaround for him.
Finally, in the 12th, Kevin Chapman’s luck ran out, and so did the Astros’.
About the author: The author has not had running water at his house for over two days now. Please send good water vibes his way, so that the plumber coming in the morning can figure out what the hell is wrong with his well or pump, and that it won’t cost thousands of dollars to fix. The author is poor and he badly needs a shower.