Tonight was the kind of game that reminds everyone why the Minnesota Twins selected No. 1 overall in the draft before the game started. While the Twins were the fourth team in MLB history to pick 1-1 while in first place in the division, that lead, as it has been all season long, remains tenuous.
Starter Adalberto Mejia gave up nine runs (eight earned) in 3.2 innings. He walked the first batter, Ben Gamel. Mitch Haniger advanced on his errant throw to first, and then Nelson Cruz scored both runners with a single before Mejia got out of the inning.
“It was one of his rougher starts, kinda from the get-go,” said manager Paul Molitor. “Walked the leadoff hitter — we’ve seen that a lot where it’s really hurt us — and then he didn’t make a play. Got off the field with two runs, which I was feeling pretty good about after the way it started, and we responded nicely with a comeback and then we just gave them right back.”
The Twins tied the game 2-2 with a Brian Dozier leadoff double, Robbie Grossman’s walk and Joe Mauer’s RBI double. But Seattle knocked around Mejia and the Twins bullpen. Haniger (4-for-6) had a career-high four hits and Cruz (2-for-3) extended his 11-game hitting streak at Target Field dating back to May 2, 2014 as the Mariners scored a season-high 14 runs.
“He impacted the game tonight significantly,” Molitor said of Cruz. “That was one of the disappointing things in the first inning, I really didn’t want to intentionally walk him as the third hitter of the game. But we tried to pitch him intelligently, and we got behind and we threw him a fastball that was kind of where we wanted to stay away from.
“That was not a good sign.”
As for the Twins bullpen:
Alex Wimmers gave up three hits and a run in 1.1 innings. He was optioned to Triple-A Rochester after the game.
Buddy Boshers pitched 2.0 innings and was the only reliever that didn’t allow a run.
Craig Breslow gave up back-to-back homers in the eighth to old friend Danny Valencia and Mike Zunino.
“In Craig’s situation, when we’ve used him in games where either matchups, left-handers he’s performed fairly well,” said Molitor. “When we’ve tried to extend him in some situations that have either been longer or matchup — whatever you want to talk about, they’ve had a couple rough outings back-to-back.”
Chris Gimenez was the last reliever. He is the backup catcher.
