MINNEAPOLIS — With a roster loaded with outfielders and infielder Miguel Sano readying to rejoin the Twins from the injured list, Alex Kirilloff had plenty of motivation to put together his best game at the major league level.
The rookie, first called up for a doubleheader April 14 before joining the team again April 23 in the wake of Sano's right hamstring strain, hit two home runs, the first of his career, as the Twins beat American League Central Division leader Kansas City 9-1 on Friday night at Target Field.
Kirilloff, the Twins' top prospect, was a bit of a surprising absence from the Twins' Opening Day roster, which team president of baseball operations Derek Falvey attributed to shaky timing in his at-bats. So the Twins kept him at the alternate site in St. Paul, not even putting him on road trip taxi squads, so he could find a rhythm in consistent simulation games there.
In his eight MLB games ahead of matching up with the Royals, Kirilloff was batting .115. In his first four at-bats Friday, he hit two homers and walked.
The 23-year-old sent reliever Tyler Zuber's fastball 394 feet to left-center field in the third inning, driving in three runs after walks to Byron Buxton and Nelson Cruz. In the fifth inning, he hit a solo homer off former Twins pitcher Ervin Santana, sending that one 416 feet to center field.
He nearly had a homer in his first plate appearance, too, but Kansas City center fielder Michael Taylor made the catch at the wall. Kirilloff finished with two high-velocity connections (106.1 and 105.5 mph), as well as three long-distance shots, including 404 feet on his fly ball to center. He also made some solid plays at first base, even though he is a left fielder by trade.
A Jorge Polanco base hit plus walks from Andrelton Simmons and major league debutant Ben Rortvedt loaded the bases in the second, and Royals starter Brady Singer hit Luis Arraez in the ribs with a pitch to score Polanco.
With the bases still loaded, Josh Donaldson fired a 105.5 mph liner off Singer's sinker. But the ball didn't sail into the Target Field stands for a home run. No, it beelined right for Singer's ankle, ricocheting off his heel and into a double play.
The Twins left that inning with just a 1-0 lead, while Singer left the game with a "left heel contusion." Quite the sacrifice for Singer, who had struggled in his two innings, allowing two hits, an earned run and three walks.
Between Kirilloff's homers, Carlos Santana hit one out of the park as well for the Royals, launching Michael Pineda's four-seamer to right center field in the fourth inning. Pineda went five innings, giving up three hits, one earned run and two walks with five strikeouts.
Manager Rocco Baldelli said before the game the Twins were starting to feel back to normal after COVID-19 positive tests and injuries depleted the roster to start the season. The Twins and Royals rematch at 1:10 p.m. Saturday and Sunday at Target Field.
"It's been a little while since we've had our group on the field together, and we felt we can roll that familiar lineup out there," Baldelli said. "To get these guys back is a big pick-me-up for us."
Yet it was Kirilloff, one of the call-ups during those absences, who was the big star Friday.
