The Twins defeated the suddenly surging Detroit Tigers 11-1 last night.
They won the game by racking up 16 hits on 3 Tigers pitchers (4 were used overall), 5 extra base hits (4 doubles and a triple off the baggy by Jason Kubel) and a strong 7 inning, 8 hit and 1 earned run (a solo home-run by Magglio Ordonez) outing by Livan Hernandez.
The Tigers struggled to figure out Hernandez who baffled them with fastballs that barely made 90 mph and change-ups and curveballs that barely hit 65. He kept them off balance and did a great job getting out of jams. It came down to groundball outs and flyouts that Hernandez got.
Both teams left a good amount of runners on base (Detroit, 8 / Minnesota 9) but the Twins capitalized when they needed to.
All around it was a solid game by the Twins against a team, despite their sluggish start, who has been playing well as of late. The only concern was when Carlos Gomez was attempting to steal second in the 5th inning and was hit in the helmet by Ivan Rodriguez's throw. He was carted off the field but is reported to be okay.
Game two of the three game series will start at 6:10 pm tonight as Scott Baker, who returns from a groin injury last week against Texas, will face off against Justin Verlander.
Also, our thoughts go out to the entire Gardenhire family as manager Ron Gardenhire's brother suddenly passed away this week at his home in Oklahoma. Gardy will return in due time and until then 3rd base coach Scott Ulger will take over mangerial duties.
Check back tomorrow for a recap of tonight's game.
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