Some of the most exciting wins in baseball are walk-offs. It doesn't really matter whether it's the bottom of the ninth or the 15th. For at least one game it isn't impossible to comeback from a deficit and beat the odds to win.
I had the privilege Sunday of witnessing maybe the most exciting victory in Target Field's young history. The Twins came back to beat the division-leading Chicago White Sox 7-6 and grab a series win to open second-half play. It was a game that was filled with a variety of baseball elements, but let's start with the good stuff.
Knocking around the closer
So many things about the way the Twins won in that last half inning of play are astounding. They came into the inning facing closer Bobby Jenks, who looked to get the save with a 6-3 lead. A couple of walks, hits, two runs and no outs later, the Twins had chased Jenks to the showers and had brought the game within reach at 6-5.
Sergio Santos was the relief, but he wasn't much better. He also did not record an out as the base-runner parade continued for the Twins. He walked a batter on five pitches to load the bases for Delmon Young, who had already hit a two-run homer to the left-field bleachers in the second.
Nick Punto was the pinch runner at third, and Michael Cuddyer was checked in at second as the potential winning run. It didn't take long for Young (who had struck out twice after his blast) to hit a single to center. The 40,000-plus crowd erupted as Punto came in to tie the game. But the play wasn't over yet.
Where was he throwing that ball?
I looked to third base to see if Cuddy was being held or not. It looked like he was going to be stopped, but then Alex Rios made an air-mail throw into the infield that went sailing to the Sox dugout. With that costly throwing error (the only one of the game), Cuddy easily scored the winning run and the celebration ensued.
It was an amazing victory for the Twins who were able to grab three of four games against the hated-rival Sox. Rallies like that against a tough closer are pretty rare. All the more reason for fans to stick around for all 27 outs. I am definitely not a believer in leaving the game early, no matter the lead difference. Is it really that important to beat traffic?
Still trouble for Blackburn
Nick Blackburn started the game, and he didn't have the best outcome, but it wasn't horrible either. At the start, he looked like he had turned a corner from his previous bad outings. He gave up a few hits and just a couple runs through five innings.
But he hit a huge wall in the sixth and wasn't able to get an out. The final dagger was a two-run, RBI single to give the Sox the lead at 4-3. At this point, Brian Duensing came in from the pen and ended up pitching the rest of the way. He also had a rough start as Chicago went on to bat around in the sixth and scored a total of four runs in the inning.
The game went on knotted at 6-3 until the very end. After the Twins wasted a couple opportunities in the later innings, it looked like the lack of clutch hitting would be contributing to a loss. When all was said and done, both teams pounded out 16 hits.
But the hometown boys also left 10 men on base, which explains the no-clutch situation. With all those hits, you'd expect more runs than there were.
Another good day at the ball park
I had a great time in my third visit to Target Field. My mom and I went, and this time our seats were in the left field bleachers (actual bleachers, which is kind of cool), thanks to a pair of tickets from my mom's bowling buddy. We were seated right next to the bullpen, which was a different but neat perspective.
The weather was once again beautiful, which helped make up for the fact that I was sold a burned corn dog (I got another one.), and that the klutzy lad behind us accidentally splashed his Sprite on my mom and me. We also saw a friend, so that was a nice surprise too.
But all in all, a great day and a great ball game. When we arrived at Target Field and were walking on the plaza, I spotted a $20 bill on the ground. I said, "It must be my lucky day." I guess maybe that luck rubbed off on the Twins too.
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