Tristan Gray hit a three-run home run, Kody Clemens added a solo shot and the Minnesota Twins beat the Toronto Blue Jays 8-2 on Sunday.
And don't look now, but your Minnesota Twins are tied for first place in the AL Central with Cleveland.
Taj Bradley (3-0) allowed one run and five hits in five innings to win his third straight start as the Twins took two of three from Toronto, bouncing back after failing to hold a 4-0 lead in Friday’s opener. Minnesota has won six of seven.
Bradley’s ERA rose from 1.08 to 1.25. He walked four and struck out seven.
Gray homered in the second, his second, and Clemens connected in a five-run third, his second. Victor Caratini had a sacrifice fly and Brooks Lee added a two-run double as the Twins roughed up three-time Cy Young Award winner Max Scherzer.
Despite fan expectations being pretty low to start the season, Gray says the team's confidence level is high.
"I think it's very high in a sense of we're just playing our game," Gray said. "We're not too focused on trying to get ahead of ourselves. It's trying to win every single day, be in every single ball game, and if we can do that, we're going to put ourselves in a position to win."
Twins hitters are clearly loving playing north of the border too. They have homered in 26 consecutive games in Toronto, hitting 55 total homers in that span. Their most recent homerless game in Toronto was Aug. 25, 2017.
Twins manager Derek Shelton says he is seeing a team feeding off success, even when facing a veteran pitcher heading to Cooperstown, Max Scherzer.
"I think they're definitely feeding off each other. I mean, if we continue to hit 3-run homers, I think that would be very good for me," Shelton said, tongue-in-cheek. "But we're grinding through at-bats and we got to a first ballot Hall of Famer today. We made them work. Whether it was a base hit, a walk, a hit by pitch, then we scattered in a homer or two. But overall, very pleased, with this short road trip."
That short, three-game trip means the Twins are back home for six at Target Field, hosting Boston then Cincinnati.
Boston Red Sox (6-9, fourth in the AL East) vs. Minnesota Twins (9-7, second in the AL Central)
Minneapolis; Monday, 6:40 p.m. Pregame at 6:00 p.m. on 830 WCCO, 102.9 The Wolf, and via the Audacy App (in-market only)
PITCHING PROBABLES: Red Sox: Garrett Crochet (2-1, 3.12 ERA, 1.04 WHIP, 22 strikeouts); Twins: Bailey Ober (1-0, 5.27 ERA, 1.24 WHIP, seven strikeouts)
BETMGM SPORTSBOOK LINE: Red Sox -167, Twins +141; over/under is 7 1/2 runs
BOTTOM LINE: The Boston Red Sox play the Minnesota Twins after Trevor Story had four hits on Sunday in a 9-3 win over the Cardinals.
Minnesota has a 5-2 record in home games and a 9-7 record overall. Twins pitchers have a collective 4.18 ERA, which ranks 10th in the AL.
Boston has a 3-6 record on the road and a 6-9 record overall. The Red Sox have the seventh-ranked team batting average in the AL at .233.
Monday's game is the first meeting between these teams this season.
TOP PERFORMERS: Luke Keaschall has a double, a home run and seven RBIs while hitting .213 for the Twins. Josh Bell is 10 for 33 with two doubles and a home run over the past 10 games.
Ceddanne Rafaela has a double, a home run and five RBIs for the Red Sox. Willson Contreras is 14 for 36 with two doubles and three home runs over the past 10 games.
LAST 10 GAMES: Twins: 7-3, .229 batting average, 4.10 ERA, outscored opponents by 10 runs
Red Sox: 5-5, .245 batting average, 3.38 ERA, outscored opponents by 13 runs
INJURIES: Twins: Cody Laweryson: 15-Day IL (forearm), Royce Lewis: 10-Day IL (knee), David Festa: 60-Day IL (shoulder), Travis Adams: 15-Day IL (tricep), Pablo Lopez: 60-Day IL (elbow)
Red Sox: Justin Slaten: 15-Day IL (oblique), Johan Oviedo: 15-Day IL (elbow), Patrick Sandoval: 15-Day IL (elbow), Kutter Crawford: 15-Day IL (wrist), Triston Casas: 10-Day IL (knee), Romy Gonzalez: 60-Day IL (shoulder), Tanner Houck: 60-Day IL (elbow)
