ARLINGTON, Texas _ Jonathan Schoop's playing time is gradually being eroded away by rookie Luis Arraez. But the veteran infielder occasionally leaves reminders for his team that he's still around.
A game-turning two-run homer off an All-Star left-hander makes for quite a Post-It Note.
Schoop, making just his fifth start of August, lofted an inside change-up into the first row of the left-field seats at Globe Life Park on Friday, a two-run shot that turned a one-run deficit into a 4-3 victory.
Twins manager Rocco Baldelli opened a spot for Schoop in Friday's lineup by moving Arraez to left field for a night, and against Rangers left-hander Mike Minor, the move paid dividends. Schoop's seventh-inning home run, his 17th on the season but first since July 26, salvaged a Twins offense that, except for a pair of homers, failed to move a runner even into scoring position against Minor.
Max Kepler's fourth-inning home run into the right-field seats had handed the Twins an early two-run lead _ it was two runs because one pitch earlier, Texas second baseman Rougned Odor dropped Miguel Sano's routine popup, a costly error. Then Schoop's seventh-inning blast brought home two more and gave starting pitcher Jake Odorizzi and the Twins' bullpen a chance to halt Minor's three-game winning streak.
Odorizzi, who hadn't allowed more than one run in his past three starts, did his part, too, until tiring in the 97-degree Texas heat. The right-hander allowed only one run through the first five innings _ and the run scored on a real rarity.
Odorizzi had only thrown one wild pitch in his two seasons with the Twins, that coming 14 months and 40 starts ago. But with Elvis Andrus on third base and Odor at the plate with two outs in the fourth inning, an Odorizzi fastball sailed high. Catcher Mitch Garver got his glove on it, but it deflected away, the first time a wild pitch cost Odorizzi a run since 2016.
In the sixth inning, however, the Rangers struck for two more in more conventional fashion, eventually denying the Twins' right-hander a shot at his 14th win. Shin-Soo Choo led off with a double, but Danny Santana stuck out and Andrus grounded out. Odorizzi issued a walk to Willie Calhoun, though, extending the inning. And when Odorizzi's 99th pitch of the night sailed over the middle of the plate, Nomar Mazara crushed it to right-center, a double that scored both Choo and Calhoun and ended the pitcher's night, the 17th time in 25 starts he failed to get through six innings.
The Twins had to work out of a few jams once Odorizzi left, too. A walk and a pinch-hit single by Hunter Pence got Sam Dyson into trouble, but a slick double play, started by Arraez shortly after he replaced Schoop at second base, ended the threat. And Taylor Rogers surrendered a pair of two-out singles before striking out Odor to escape his own jam.
Marwin Gonzalez continued his hot hitting in the hot weather. With three singles in his first three at-bats, Gonzalez is now 7 for 9 in two games in Texas this year.
