Game 96: Friday, July 19, 2013
Boxscore
Twins Record: 42-54
Blown save sends Twins to 6th straight loss
We took a 5-2 lead into the 8th, and 5-3 lead into the 9th only to lose 6-5 in 11 innnings. Brian Duensing blows his 3rd save pitching just 1/3 inning, giving up 2 runs.
After the game, GM Mike Lowe met with Ron Gardenhire about the closer situation. After being presented with a few different options, Gardenhire reportedly did not want to budge on using Duensing as his closer, so Lowe made the decision to demote Duensing to AAA Rochester.
"This allows us to also take a look at Hiro (Hiroyuki Kobayaski) who's been pitching well in AAA at the age of 35," said Lowe.
The Japanese right hander is rumored to be auditioning for a possible trade before the July 31st deadline.
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Game 97: Saturday, July 20, 2013
Boxscore
Twins Record: 43-54
Twins crush Indians on 18 hits, 6 walks
Well the losing streak is over as our 2-4 hitters went a combined 11 for 14 with 5 RBIs and 3 walks.
In his first start since signing a 2 year extension, Ubaldo Jimenez earned the win pitch 7.2 innings, giving up 2 runs and striking out 9.
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Game 98: Sunday, July 21, 2013
Boxscore
Twins Record: 44-54
Winning in all fashions: Twins victorious over Indians, 1-0 in combined shutout
Ryan Doumit had yet another 3-hit game, as the Twins sneak a series win against Cleveland by shutting out the Indians 1-0 behind Scott Diamond and the bullpen.
Josh Roenicke earns his first save after being promoted to closer upon the demotion of Duensing.
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Game 99: Monday, July 22, 2013
Boxscore
Twins Record: 45-54
Twins win 3rd in a row, begin west coast swing
Just a nice all-around win as the Twins kick-off a 7 game west coast road trip.
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Game 100: Tuesday, July 23, 2013
Boxscore
Twins Record: 45-55
Blanton near perfect: Twins fall as Angels break 0-0 tie late
A game that was 0-0 going into the 7th ends up being a 3-0 loss for the Twins. The short-lived win streak is over, as the Twins muster just one hit off of Angels' starter Joe Blanton who was completely dominant, throwing just 97 pitches for the complete game shutout.
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Game 101: Wednesday, July 24, 2013
Boxscore
Twins Record: 45-56
Blown save strikes again: Twins surrender 3 in 9th, drop 2nd straight to Angels
Ryan Roenicke was rocked in the 9th giving up 3 runs in 2/3 innings pitched. He was relieved after putting the winning run on base, and Liam Hendricks gives up the winning hit just 8 pitches later.
Makes you wonder about all of these late losses...
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Around MLB:
July 23: Pittsburgh Ships McKenry to New York: After prolonged negotiations Pittsburgh agreed to ship 29-year-old catcher Michael McKenry to New York for 26-year-old shortstop Eduardo Nunez. The deal is awaiting confirmation from the league office but neither team expects any hang-ups. "It took longer than expected," said one GM, "but we knew that the deal was going to happen."
Currently McKenry has 1 home run and a .160 batting average.
To date this year Nunez is batting .317 with 3 home runs.
July 23: Jason Kipnis out 3 months (injured in Friday's game)
July 23: Buster Posey is day-to-day after totaling his custom built, $500,000 Mercedes-Benz
July 24: Matt Kemp injured, out for 3-4 weeks