MINNEAPOLIS _ Kyle Gibson had a chance to make a statement Thursday night. He could channel his newfound strength in his pitching, resemble the right-hander who seemed to break through a year ago and show the club he could be relied upon during the final weeks of the regular season _ and perhaps the postseason.
He came out firing, his fastball reaching 95 miles per hour several times in the first inning, a hint that the ulcerative colitis that had zapped 10 pounds off his lanky frame also affected his pitching.
Then the Nationals came out firing, driving his pitches until he was knocked out of the fifth inning with the Twins trailing, 5-2. The Nationals won the rain-delayed game, 12-6, dropping the Twins' AL Central lead to 3 { games over the idle Indians heading into their three-game series in Cleveland this weekend.
It's back to the drawing board for Gibson, who spent a stint on the 10-day injured list to take medication that would calm the inflammation in his intestines and help him feel closer to normal.
Gibson gave up an average exit velocity of 95.6 miles per hour _ any batted ball over 95 is considered barreled by Statcast. Eight balls hit off his pitches were over 95, including Trea Turner's 107.5-mph double in the third.
Anthony Rendon hit a 1-0 pitch out to left-center in the first to open the scoring. Eddie Rosario tied the game in the bottom of the inning with a two-out RBI single.
Washington loaded the bases in the third with no outs before scoring twice to take a 3-1 lead. Nelson Cruz blasted a long home run to center in the bottom of the inning to keep the Twins within 3-2.
In the fifth, Gibson gave up a homer to Adam Eaton then an RBI triple to Asdrubal Cabrera before being replaced by Cody Stashak. Cabrera scored on a passed ball as the Nationals took a 6-2 lead. Cruz countered with an RBI single in the bottom of the fifth, but Kohl Stewart took over in the sixth and gave up four more runs, two coming on Juan Soto's 34th home run.
A minor controversy broke out in the third on Cruz's home run. He got all of a Patrick Corbin pitch and hit it to center field, the ball clearing the batters eye and landing in the restaurant above it. Cruz became only the fourth Twins player _ joining Jake Cave, Miguel Sano and Byung-Ho Park _ to hit a ball into Catch.
But the Statcast estimate had the ball traveling 427 feet. Twins director of baseball communications Dustin Morse grabbed the microphone and overruled the technology, announcing that the ball traveled 454 feet. Either way, the blast was the 396th of Cruz's career, tying him with Joe Carter for 60th all time.
After removing Luis Arraez, Mitch Garver and Rosario from the game, the Twins still were able to make it interesting. With right-hander Aaron Barrett _ who before getting called up for September last pitched in the majors in 2015 _ on the mound for the Nationals, Jonathan Schoop hit the Twins' 279th home run of the season, a two-run shot in the eighth inning, and the Twins pushed across another run and loaded the bases with one out. But former Twins closer Fernando Rodney struck out Nelson Cruz and Jorge Polanco _ pinch hitting after not starting the game following emergency dental surgery _ to escape the jam with a four-run lead intact.
And if that wasn't enough of a disappointment, Yan Gomes hit a two-out, two-run homer off Twins right-hander Trevor Hildenberger in the ninth inning, restoring Washington's lead to six runs.
