The Twins coasted to an 11-1 victory over the Mariners to win their fifth consecutive series on Thursday afternoon. After finally losing Sunday to end the franchise's second best winning streak at 12, the Twins took three of four games against Seattle who came to Target Field in first place in the AL West.
It was hot bats early against Mariner's ace Logan Gilbert and a third straight win for Twins' ace Pablo Lopez.
“I don’t know what more I could ask for from our offense and the way they did their jobs,” Twins manager Rocco Baldelli said. “I was sitting back for a period of time, just watching and being very impressed with the whole group.”
That Twins have hit their stride with Royce Lewis and Byron Buxton sidelined — a testament to their depth.
“There’s no way to have sustained success in this game if there’s only a portion of the lineup that’s producing,” Baldelli said.
Now, the Twins get a rematch from last year's American League Wildcard Series against Toronto. The Twins took that series 2-0 to win in the postseason for the first time in over two decades.
PREVIEW: Minnesota Twins (22-15, second in the AL Central) vs. Toronto Blue Jays (17-20, fifth in the AL East)
Toronto; Friday, 6:07 p.m. CDT, Saturday 2:00 p.m., Sunday 12:30 p.m.
FRIDAY PITCHING PROBABLES: Twins: Joe Ryan (1-2, 3.54 ERA, 1.01 WHIP, 46 strikeouts); Blue Jays: Yusei Kikuchi (2-2, 2.72 ERA, 1.16 WHIP, 43 strikeouts)
BETMGM SPORTSBOOK: LINE Blue Jays -118, Twins -101; over/under is 7 1/2 runs
BOTTOM LINE: The Toronto Blue Jays host the Minnesota Twins on Friday to open a three-game series.
Toronto has a 17-20 record overall and an 8-7 record in home games. The Blue Jays are 7-3 in games when they did not allow a home run.
Minnesota has an 11-7 record on the road and a 22-15 record overall. The Twins have the fifth-ranked team on-base percentage in the AL at .317.
The teams meet Friday for the first time this season.
TOP PERFORMERS: Justin Turner has eight doubles, four home runs and 16 RBI for the Blue Jays. Danny Jansen is 11-for-31 with four doubles, three home runs and four RBI over the past 10 games.
Max Kepler has eight doubles and three home runs for the Twins. Ryan Jeffers is 12-for-34 with six doubles and three home runs over the past 10 games.
Eddie Rosario hits 2-run HR in 7th to help Nationals outlast Blue Jays 11-8
LAST 10 GAMES: Blue Jays: 4-6, .228 batting average, 5.17 ERA, outscored by 20 runs
Twins: 8-2, .248 batting average, 3.80 ERA, outscored opponents by 16 runs
INJURIES: Blue Jays: Yimi Garcia: day-to-day (back), Yariel Rodriguez: 15-Day IL (spine), Bowden Francis: 15-Day IL (forearm), Chad Green: 15-Day IL (teres major)
Twins: Brock Stewart: 15-Day IL (shoulder), Byron Buxton: 10-Day IL (knee), Daniel Duarte: 60-Day IL (tricep), Zack Weiss: 60-Day IL (shoulder), Royce Lewis: 10-Day IL (quadricep), Justin Topa: 15-Day IL (knee), Anthony DeSclafani: 60-Day IL (elbow), Josh Winder: 60-Day IL (shoulder)
The Associated Press contributed to this story.