They had a chance to keep the line moving, to keep the pressure on the Brewers to grab the top overall seed in the National League. However, Minnesota had Mick Abel, clearly brimming with insider knowledge of how to get the Philadelphia lineup out and he was masterful. The Twins took the game and the last gasp the Phillies had to get that top seed.
It started with Byron Buxton putting Minnesota on top with a solo home run off of Ranger Suarez to begin the game.
Another run was added in the third on a fielder’s choice that made it 2-0. James Outman homered in the fifth for a 3-0 lead before the Twins got another runner on for Austin Martin. Martin lined a ball back at Suarez and, well, you can see.
Listen, so long as it didn’t miss a few inches closer because that would be something akin to death.
From there, we had to slog through Abel carving up the Phillies lineup left and right. He ended the night with nine strikeouts in six innings, only letting three hits get scattered about and walking one.
So long as he doesn’t find the future success against the Phillies, it’s nice to see Abel end his season on a note like this one. He had a hand in helping the Phillies stay afloat when Aaron Nola got hurt, so hoping he continues to find good times in his career.
The Twins got a few more runs in the seventh on a home run by Ryan Fitzgerald and an RBI double by Ryan Jeffers, giving them their final five run tally. The offense for the Phillies scattered a few hits around the ballpark tonight, but never really mounted anything resembling a threat offensively. “Disinterested” might be the word to use, but I’m not sure.
They’ll play their final regular season game in what looks like a spring training tuneup on Sunday.
