Alright, it all comes down to these final three games. The Twins are in the playoffs, but they can avoid playing the Yankees on the road in the first round. They probably need a sweep (along with some help) to do it, but there’s still a solid chance.
Monday was the day the Twins clinched a post season berth and they did it with a blow out win. Justin Morneau hit a three run shot for homerun number 34 and Torii Hunter went yard with his 30th in the 8-1 blowout. Boof Bonser threw a nice game and he gave up only one run on two hits in 6 1/3 innings of work.
Johan Santana picked up win number 19 in a close game on Tuesday. He gave up two runson seven hits with five strikeouts in eight innings of work. The Royals actually took a 2-0 lead until the Twins started chipping away at it. Luis Rodriguez got the game winning RBI when he drove home Torii Hunter with a sac. fly.
Wednesday was the lone loss and that snapped a four game winning streak. Carlos Silva was hit hard and he gave up five runs in only four innings of work. Michael Cuddyer hit his 23rd homerun and Rondell White drove in two runs in the 6-4 loss.
The Twins tied the Tigers yesterday with a dramatic ten inning performance. Brad Radke made his return and threw well. He gave up only one unearned run in five innings of work and it’ll sure be nice to have him for the post season. Regardless, this was a close game. The Royals were up 1-0 most of the way until Joe Mauer hit a solo homerun with two outs in the bottom of the ninth to tie it. Then in the tenth, Jason Bartlett singled home Justin Morneau to win it.
The Twins now head into their final series against the White Sox tied, but they’re effectively a half game back because the Tigers have the Wild Card. Detroit hosts the Royals, so we can’t really expect them to lose. Maybe one at the most.
