Minneapolis – It’s never an easy day in the clubhouse when a team has to say goodbye to one of its favorite teammates. That was the case for the Minnesota Twins on Monday when they learned around 2:30 p.m. that Chris Paddack had been traded to the Detroit Tigers.
While it left a somber mood in the clubhouse, they wouldn’t let it deter them from their focus on the game against the Boston Red Sox. They had to wait an hour and a half to get their opportunity to win, but the focus and determination of their clubhouse brought the Twins one of their most satisfying walk-off wins on the season.
“It’s awesome,” said DaShawn Keirsey Jr., who got the Twins on the board with a 2-run homer in the third. “I think it just goes to show the guys we have in this locker room. Rallying together. It’s always a tough day. It’ll be a tough couple days, with the deadline and guys think about it.”
Simeon Woods Richardson toed the rubber for the Twins and gave them 4 ⅔ innings on 99 pitches, allowing three runs, all on an Alex Bregman 3-run shot in the fifth. Aside from the home run, he kept the Twins in the game, striking out five and allowing only three walks.
“(Bregman’s) a good hitter,” Woods Richardson said postgame. “He’s been doing it for a while. I definitely don’t want to walk him, try and be as competitive as possible. He got the best out of that one. But giving my team the best chance to win is always keeping them close, keep them in striking range. That’s the best thing I could have done.”
The bullpen worked things out well after Woods Richardson departed in the fifth. Justin Topa got the last out on the first batter via a groundout to second and only allowed one hitter to reach in the sixth on a Wilyer Abreu single. Griffin Jax pitched a perfect 7th, striking out two of three. Brock Stewart only allowed one base runner to reach on a double.
It looked like Minnesota’s bullpen would hold things down as they usually do, but Jhoan Duran ran into trouble in the 9th. Duran allowed a lead-off walk to Abraham Toro, who David Hamilton pinch-ran for. Hamilton stole second and third, and all it took was an RBI single from Roman Anthony to make it 4-3.
Mother Nature didn’t have a pleasant summer evening in her plans for Minnesota. A derecho storm began to downpour as the Twins finished the top of the ninth. The radar showed unfriendly colors with the incoming storm, and the Twins knew they’d have to sit this one out for a while.
“The blob on the screen was purple, that was coming in over us,” said Baldelli. “We don’t mess around with deep red and purple.”
The hour-and-a-half delay was just what the Twins needed to rejuvenate their chances against Jordan Hicks and the Red Sox. Keirsey used Trajekt to prepare against Hicks. It paid off as he battled five foul balls off him before pulling a single to right field. Hicks then hit Mickey Gasper and Willi Castro on back-to-back pitches, setting up a bases-loaded situation for Carlos Correa.
Correa hit into a fielder’s choice, but Lee came up with an opposite field single to left field that scored Gasper and Castro and won the Twins the game 5-4 on his third walk-off of the year.
“I just hit off one of the machines, throwing a sinker,” Lee said about his preparation to face Hicks. “Felt comfortable after a few pitches and just rolled with it. Trusted my swing.”
“It’s a challenging day saying goodbye to a guy that you care about that’s done good work for us in Paddy,” Baldelli said, “but watching guys step up on a day that’s kind of an emotional day is great. It’s really great.”
With the win, Minnesota’s record improves to 51-55. They will have a new rookie on the team on Tuesday to pitch in their bullpen game. RHP Pierson Ohl was confirmed by team sources, earning the call-up to the majors to join the team on Tuesday. Ohl, a 14th-round pick by the Twins in the 2021 draft, has pitched to a 2.44 ERA between Double-A and Triple-A this season with 79 strikeouts in 66.1 innings.