Twins Erase Three-Run Hole in Third, Outlast Baltimore 7-5

Dylan Beavers hit a 374-foot, three-run homer in the third inning that swung Minnesota's win probability from 47% down to 22% — and the Twins answered by scoring four runs in that same half-inning to retake the lead for good. Minnesota held on to win 7-5, with Baltimore's only response coming on a Leody Taveras solo shot in the ninth that amounted to nothing more than a footnote.

Baltimore struck first. In the top of the first, a Holliday fielder's choice plated Henderson to put the Orioles up 1-0. Minnesota tied it immediately when Bell singled to right and Larnach scored. Then came the third inning, and what looked like a Baltimore takeover: Beavers crushed a 374-foot shot to right, scoring Alonso and O'Neill along with himself, and suddenly it was 4-1 Orioles. The win probability for Minnesota cratered from 47% to 22% on that single swing. Game over, right? Not even close.

What followed was one of the more complete single-inning collapses a pitching staff can suffer. Baltimore starter Yaramil Hiraldo — who had been sharp, striking out three in just 1.2 innings — couldn't hold the lead as the Twins sent a parade to the plate. Clemens singled to right to score Lewis. Keaschall hit a sacrifice fly to center to score Bell. Caratini singled to center to score Clemens. Then Roden doubled to right to score Lee, and just like that, Minnesota led 5-4 after a four-run third. The Orioles had gone from commanding to trailing in the span of a few at-bats, and the story of the night was that they never recovered.

Minnesota extended the cushion in the fifth. Caratini scored on a Larnach groundout, and Lewis doubled to left to score Roden, pushing the lead to 7-4. The Twins' bullpen did the rest — Andrew Morris and A.J. Minter each threw a scoreless inning, combining for four strikeouts and zero hits allowed. Taveras hit a 378-foot solo homer in the ninth to make it 7-5, but that's all Baltimore could muster. On the Minnesota side, the offensive contributions were spread around: Bell went 3-for-5, Roden was a perfect 3-for-3, Caratini went 2-for-4, and Lewis added a 2-for-5 night with the go-ahead insurance double. Beavers' three-RBI blast looks like the loudest hit of the game on paper, but it appears the Twins simply had more answers — and more depth — when it mattered most.