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Twins Recap
Game 1 – Sox 3, Twins 2
Vargas steals it late
Miguel Vargas was the offense: RBI double in the 3rd and a towering solo shot off Jhoan Duran in the 9th for the game-winner (3 RBI total).
Martin Pérez danced through traffic (4.2 IP, 3 ER, 5 BB), but the ‘pen picked him up: Bryse Wilson, Justin Anderson and Sean Burke combined for 4.1 scoreless, Burke locking down save No. 5.
Chase Meidroth and Kyle Teel set the table (two hits each), while the defense turned a Lipcius–Meidroth–Vaughn double play at a key moment.
Storyline: first true “bullpen win” of the year – heavy traffic for Minnesota (11 LOB) but no damage after the 4th.
Game 2 – Sox 3, Twins 0
Davis Martin shoves, Rojas provides thunder
Davis Martin was excellent: 6.0 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 3 K, no walks – efficient and in control all night.
Bullpen perfection again: Shuster, Murfee, and Eisert closed the last three frames without allowing a run.
The offense did just enough early (Lipcius RBI double in the 1st) and then Josh Rojas crushed a solo homer in the 9th for breathing room.
Andrew Vaughn, Nick Maton and Rojas all chipped in extra-base knocks as Chicago out-slugged Minnesota 7–5 in total bases despite only three runs.
Storyline: back-to-back one-run, then shutout wins – Sox clinch the series behind 18 straight scoreless innings from the staff (4th inning of Game 1 through the end of Game 2).
Game 3 – Twins 5, Sox 2
Cannon wobbles, Buxton and friends avoid sweep
Jonathan Cannon again fought his command (4.1 IP, 3 ER, 7 H, 3 BB, HBP). Byron Buxton punished him with a 2-run blast in the 1st, and Minnesota never trailed.
Mike Tauchman did his best to drag the offense along, rapping two RBI singles (both driving in Travis Jankowski after steals), but the lineup mustered just six hits.
The game got away in the 8th: Clevinger and Shuster combined for three walks, a sac fly from Trevor Larnach and an RBI single by Carlos Correa to push it from 3-2 to 5-2.
Jhoan Duran slammed the door in the 9th, stranding two runners to preserve the win for the Twins.
Storyline: control issues and free passes finally bite the bullpen after a near-perfect first two games.
Series Themes & Standouts
Pitching carries the trip (mostly)
Team allowed just 10 runs in 27 innings (3.33 RA), and five of those came in the finale.
Davis Martin’s 6 scoreless and the combined bullpen line in Games 1–2 (8.1 IP, 3 H, 0 R) are huge positives.
On the flip side, Cannon’s rough rookie April continues, and Pérez was inefficient even in a “fine” start.
Sneaky, aggressive baserunning
Meidroth, Jankowski and Teel all grabbed bags; Jankowski in particular basically manufactured a run by himself in Game 3.
This club suddenly looks willing to push the envelope – something that fits the low-scoring, pitching-first identity.
Bats: just enough, but still inconsistent
Vargas (series-winning HR + RBI double), Rojas (2 HR in back-to-back nights), and Lipcius (pair of key doubles) look like the current heartbeat of the lineup.
The overall run total – 9 runs in 3 games – shows the margin for error remains razor thin. When the walks and strikeouts spike (Game 3), there isn’t enough raw thump to bail them out.
Series MVPs (Sox)
Davis Martin: 6.0 IP, 0 R in Game 2, setting the tone for the shutout.
Miguel Vargas: go-ahead bomb off Duran plus 3 RBI in Game 1, and the monstrous 9th-inning shot in the opener is the single biggest swing of the series.
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