MINNEAPOLIS_The 2,000 fans who paid extra for "Big Sexy" T-shirts on Friday night got their money's worth: A garment whose artistic merit lies in the eye of the beholder. And a pitching performance by the night's honoree that was, too.
Bartolo Colon carried a shutout into the fifth inning, a mostly impressive outing that nevertheless kept his fielders busy running to the far reaches of Target Field. But the long outs twice turned into home runs in the fifth and sixth innings, and he left _ to an appreciative ovation _ in the seventh, after putting two runners on base who would eventually score.
The four runs allowed meant that Colon remained winless since Aug. 25, but he kept the Minnesota Twins within striking distance of the Toronto Blue Jays. Unlike consecutive walkoff wins Wednesday and Thursday, however, the Twins couldn't muster similar late magic and fell 4-3.
An exciting game at least fit the spirit of Big Sexy Night. "He knows the seriousness of baseball, but he could just as well be playing a little sandlot ball with his buddies," Molitor said of the quirky righthander. "You just never know what particular antic he's going to bring to a game."
Kevin Pillar broke up Colon's shutout with a long home to lead off the fifth inning, and Josh Donaldson launched a missile into the upper deck in left field to lead off the sixth. But it was the walk to Pillar to lead off the seventh inning that likely annoyed Colon, since it sparked a Blue Jays rally that turned a Minnesota lead into a deficit. Russell Martin followed with a double into the left field corner that scored Pillar from first base, and Twins manager Paul Molitor removed the 44-year-old magician after just 86 pitches.
Ryan Pressly relieved and had trouble fielding Ryan Goins' comeback bouncer, which turned into an infield hit. after getting Tenscar Hernandez to pop up and Richard Urena to strike out on a 98-mile-per-hour fastball, Pressly was victimized by a comebacker again, this one on an 0-2 breaking ball to Josh Donaldson. The 2015 AL MVP hit the ball right back up he middle, and it deflected off Pressly's foot and into short left field, enabling Martin to score the go ahead run.
It spoiled a festive night for the announced 27,902 fans, except for the large and noisy percentage of them Canadians cheering for Toronto. After those two consecutive nights of walkoff home runs, there was a festive atmosphere in Target Field, and it only grew as the Twins took an early lead off Blue Jays lefthander J.A. Happ.
Joe Mauer delivered the game's first run on a third-inning sacrifice fly, and Chris Gimenez provided a two-out single in the fourth inning that scored Byron Buxton from second base. Buxton had reached base on a bunt single, and stole second base, his 21st consecutive successful steal, just one shy of Chuck Knoblauch and Matt Lawton's franchise record.
Brian Dozier led off the fifth inning with a solo home run, giving him a team-high 31 homers this season. The Twins' leadoff hitter also ranks third in the major leagues in homers with no runners on base, with 24.
Happ, a 20-game winner last year, shut the Twins down after that, giving up three runs on seven hits in 61/3 innings.
