The Moment: The Twins fell behind early but scored the next 3 runs, two of which came on Brian Dozier’s 5th inning home run. He has 10 so far this season, which means he is still very productive, even if he probably won’t hit 40 dingers this year. 30 is still pretty good. The one today just so happened to come at a climactic moment as well.
The Hero: Brandon Belt didn’t get much support today, but he managed to be successful in the critical moments he came to the plate for the Giants. He gave the team their first lead of the game, with a solo home run in the first inning, and put himself on base and Eduardo Nunez in scoring position with nobody out in the 5th, threatening to erase the Twins’ lead. The Giants never could, but Brandon Belt did all he could.
The Goat: The Giants’ other Brandon, Crawford, didn’t have a great day. In that same inning that the Giants began to threaten after Belt’s timely single, Crawford followed up with a strikeout. He actually did that a lot. 3 times, to be exact.
The Soundtrack: Let Me Love You – Mario – Dedicated to Princess Peach.
The Story: Jose Berrios seems to have figured out how to pitch in the Major Leagues. He struck out 8 in his 5 1/3 innings of work, allowing a pair of runs, but only one after Brandon Belt homered in the first inning. Thanks to his pitch count, but mostly because of management, he was pulled in the 6th inning. No worries, though, because Tyler Duffey, Matt Belisle and Brandon Kintzler didn’t allow a hit in their combined 3 2/3 innings.
Frankly, the Giant’s pitched pretty well, aside from Brian Dozier’s home run and Kennys Vargas’ rocket to center. Crazy person Jeff Samadzija scattered 4 hits in 6 innings of work, and even crazier person Hunter Strickland allowed only one more, and that was it for the Twins. I’m not familiar with the mental state of Derek Law, but he worked a pair of solid innings in relief for the Giants.
Nik Turley, long time Yankees farmhand and recent Independent league pitcher, will make the start for the Twins tomorrow after a 15 strikeout performance for Rochester last week. He’s definitely not to be regarded as a top prospect, so maybe this won’t ultimately be a big deal for the Twins in the long term, but it will definitely be a big moment for Turley, and we all wish him well.
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