MINNEAPOLIS _ A dropped pop fly by right fielder Max Kepler led to three unearned runs against closer Taylor Rogers as the Twins lost to the Chicago White Sox 8-5 on Monday night at Target Field. It was the Twins' sixth loss in a row.
The Twins entered the ninth tied 5-5 against the White Sox in a battle of American League Central rivals.
Miguel Sano walked to lead off the sixth then moved to second on a ground out before Jake Cave brought him home with a single to put the Twins back up 5-4 top after blowing a 4-0 lead.
But Luis Robert hit a solo homer off Trevor May in the top of the seventh to even the score.
White Sox righthander Lucas Giolito was making his first start since throwing the first no-hitter of the season at Pittsburgh last week.
The Twins had lost five straight and came staggering back home after getting swept by Detroit over the weekend. The Twins were looking to regain their mojo while Giolito tried to join Johnny Vander Meer as the only pitchers with back to back no-nos.
Ugliness ensued.
Giolito was tough once again, getting Twins hitters to alter their swings while trying to hit an unhittable changeup. Giolito had eight strikeouts through five innings, but he wasn't perfect.
The Twins scored three runs on two hits in the second, one in which the White Sox defense made a meal out of the inning. Sano singled with a man on in the third, but the runners moved up a base when Adan Engel booted the ball in right field. Luis Arraez followed with a two-run single to open the scoring.
Marwin Gonzalez followed with a grounder to second, but rookie Nick Madrigal threw wildly to second, the ball rolling to the left field foul line. Arraez scored from first. Giolito himself was charged with an error when he mishandled Max Kepler's tapper to the left of the mound.
Sano returned in the third to launch a fat Giolito slider into the seats in left-center, giving the Twins a 4-0 lead. They seemed to be on their way.
Not so fast. Because the Twins weren't playing crisp baseball themselves. Much of the problem was on the mound. For example, by the fifth inning, the White Sox had a season high six walks.
Rich Hill started the game and was effective for all of two innings. He allowed the first two batters of the third to reach base before escaping the inning. He then walked the bases loaded in the fourth, an inning that stood out for what happened right after that.
Danny Mendick hit a soft liner that was caught, then dropped, by Luis Arraez. None of the runners took off, so Arraez was able to throw to second for the force play. Jorge Polanco then threw to Miguel Sano at first, who then fired back to Polanco.
The Twins were trying to get as many outs as possible, but the mistake came when Arraez flipped to second instead of throwing home. Instead, only the runner on first was forced out, and the batter was safe at first, so the bases were still loaded. The umpires huddled for a few moments before ruling that only the runner on first, Robert, was out. The Twins asked for replay to make sure, but it verified their call.
It mattered on the next play, as Engel slapped a two-run single. It was 4-2, and manager Rocco Baldelli went to the mound to replace Hill with 17 outs to go.
The bullpen, however, continued what Hill started. Chicago had four straight innings in which they got the first two batters on base. That's playing with a blowtorch, given how the White Sox offense is one of the best in the game. And the Twins were finally burned in the sixth when Jose Arbeu hit a two-out, two-run double that tied the game at 4-4.
Giolito went five innings, giving up four runs, two earned, on four hits and one walk with eight strikeouts. Hill allowed two runs on three hits and four walks in 3? innings.
