BY J.A. SCHWARTZ
The Minnesota Twins won their eighth straight game in dramatic fashion on Sunday, sweeping the Giants by a score of 7-6 in 10 innings on a walk off single by DeShawn Keirsey Jr. to sweep the weekend series at Target Field.
San Francisco took the lead in the top of the 10th on an RBI groundout by pinch hitter Jonathan Villar against Twins closer Jhoan Duran, but once again Ryan Walker couldn’t hold a lead, sending the Giants to their third consecutive defeat.
The Giants led 3-0 against Twins ace Pablo Lopez, largely on the strength of Heliot Ramos’ play. Ramos plated Mike Yastrzemski with a sacrifice fly in the first, then hit a long two-run home run (105 MPH exit velocity, 407 feet) in the fourth to pad the lead. Ramos, who finished the game 2-2 with four RBIs, also made diving catches in left field in both the fourth and fifth innings, keeping the Twins from rallying.
Lopez, who was 0-1 with a 2.10 ERA in 30 innings against the Giants (all as a Marlin) entering the game, was chased after six innings, allowing four earned runs and trailing 4-3. “It wasn’t the outing I was looking for…there were some moments that I felt like I was fighting with myself on the mound, which is not where I should be,” Lopez would note after the game.
Giants starter Landon Roupp was effective through three innings, holding Minnesota scoreless before Walnut Creek native Trevor Larnach singled to start the fourth. Brooks Lee then followed with a two run home run to right to bring the Twins within a run of San Francisco. Both Lee and Larnach had three hits in the game. Larnach is now 10-21 lifetime against the Giants.
Roupp (2-3, 4.95) left after five innings and 75 pitches with a 4-3 lead, but the normally dominant Giants pen immediately coughed up the advantage. Coming into play on Sunday, the San Francisco bullpen featured a major league leading 2.28 ERA, but lefty Erik Miller started the sixth by allowing singles to Brooks Lee and Willi Castro sandwiched around a walk to Ryan Jeffers, loading the bases for the struggling Royce Lewis. To that point in the season, Lewis was hitless in all 15 of his 2025 at bats, and had not recorded a hit in his past 36 trips to the plate, dating back to last September. Lewis finally got a knock, singling to center to drive in the run, tying the game and chasing Miller. Camilo Doval allowed a broken bat groundout to pinch hitter Jonah Bride to allow the go-ahead run to score, but wiggled out of the inning without further damage.
The Giants would tie the score in the eighth off Twins right hander Griffin Jax, with Ramos again delivering a clutch single to plate Willy Adames, but they couldn’t take the lead, as pinch hitter Patrick Bailey grounded out with two out and two on. Excellent relief work from Hayden Birdsong (two innings, zero runs, three strikeouts) kept the game tied heading into the ninth. Giants skipper Bob Melvin sent up Christian Koss to pinch hit for Brett Wisely against lefty Danny Coulombe to lead off the ninth, but Koss was called out on strikes on a checked swing that was appealed to first base umpire Ramon DeJesus, who rang up Koss for the out. Melvin charged out of the dugout to argue the call, and was swiftly ejected, his 65th such disqualification in his long managerial career.
San Francisco managed to scratch a run across against Twins closer Jhoan Duran in top of the tenth, as ghost runner Jung Hoo Lee scampered home on a weak dribbler to third base by pinch hitter David Villar. Duran struck out Wilmer Flores to end the tenth, and Giants closer Ryan Walker, who has seven saves despite a 6.08 ERA, entered trying to nail down the hard fought victory.
He couldn’t do it. The tenth started with Ty France placed at second base, and Brooks Lee singled to left to put runners on first and third. A sharp ground ball to Gold Glove third baseman Matt Chapman bounced off his chest, and while he still threw out Jeffers at first, the tying run scored, with Lee moving to second. After an intentional walk and a ground out, Walker faced DeShawn Keirsey Jr., who was 2-29 on the season and mired in an 0-17 skid. Keirsey lined a single to left for his first career walk off hit, and the Twins streak was extended to eight.
Twins Manager Rocco Baldelli, whose team rallied from 3-0, 4-3 and 6-5 deficits to win and finish a 6-0 home stand, was effusive in his praise for Keirsey Jr. “Whether you did it in Little League or in high school, there are not that many times where you get to go out there and win the game for your team with the bat…And then get your moment and come through. It’s very satisfying I bet.”
Baldelli also singled out Lewis for his efforts to finally break through with a hit and some improved plate appearances. “The adjustments that he’s making, pitch to pitch, I think he looked good, really good.” Both Lewis and Keirsey Jr. were in long slumps before contributing to the victory, but both had crucial hits at key junctures. That is the hallmark of teams playing well: there is a different-often unlikely, hero every day.
The hero of the hour, however, was Keirsey Jr. Asked what he tells himself prior to such a big at-bat, he was succinct. “For me, it’s not putting too much pressure on that moment, and take it for what it is, another at-bat. If it goes the right way, great.”
It certainly went the right way for Keirsey Jr. and the Twins Sunday, now riding the strength of an eight game winning streak.
With a six game road trip (2-4) now in the rear view mirror, the Giants will have little time to lick their wounds on their flight home, starting a nine game home stand tomorrow night against the Arizona Diamondbacks with Justin Verlander (0-2, 4.50) facing Merrill Kelly (3-2, 4.09) in the opener. Following a day off Thursday, the Sacramento Athletics will arrive for a weekend series before Kansas City visits for three games.
GAME NOTES:
With Sunday’s pinch hitting appearance, Wilmer Flores has now played exactly 581 games with both the Giants and the Mets, with whom he started his career.
Verlander will be making his eighth start as a member of the Giants, still in search of his 263rd career win.
