MINNEAPOLIS _ The Twins' offense remains a work in progress, which is scary to think.
Miguel Sano can provide power. Eddie Rosario and Max Kepler will get their share of line drives. Brian Dozier can clear the fences. And while Joe Mauer's batting average is baffling, he still takes good at-bats.
But that's the thing with this group. Many of them take good at-bats.
And that's how they beat Oakland, 7-4, on Wednesday to take the first two games of the three-game series at Target Field. They worked over starter Kendall Graveman early to build a lead and eased to their fourth consecutive victory and fifth in six games. Two swings of Kennys Vargas' bat got them off to the right start: A broken-bat blooper to drive in two runs in the first inning, then a three-run home run in the third that landed in the grass behind the center-field wall.
Graveman throws a heavy sinker and forces ground balls _ but the Twins had him out of the game by the fourth.
His control was a little off Wednesday, which is dangerous against a Twins team that suddenly is not chasing many bad pitches.
Dozier led off the first with a walk and went to third on Graveman's errant pickoff throw. Sano and Mauer also drew walks to load the bases. The three walks in the first inning was more than in any of Graveman's first four starts.
Vargas followed with a busted-bat lob that bounced past A's second baseman Chad Pinder and into center field for a two-run single. Oakland scored in the third to cut the lead in half.
Sano led off the bottom of the third with a sharp single to left and Mauer walked. Pitching coach Curt Young went to mound to consult with Graveman. Vargas blasted the next pitch over the fence for a three-run home run and a 5-1 Twins lead.
The Twins forced Graveman to walk four batters in three innings Wednesday after walking five over his first four starts. Sano worked a full count in each of his first three at-bats, Mauer in each of his first two. The Twins entered the game leading the majors in walks, and now have drawn at least four walks in a game 18 times this season. The walk has become a weapon for the Twins.
Yonder Alonso kept the A's within striking distance with a two-run home run off left-hander Hector Santiago in the fourth to make it 5-3, but Byron Buxton tripled and scored on a groundout in the fourth to put the Twins ahead 6-3. Eddie Rosario's RBI double in the sixth put them up 7-3.
While they began the day eighth in the American League in runs scored, the Twins were averaging 5.4 runs per game over their past five games. And manager Paul Molitor's confidence is growing that his offense will continue to string good at-bats together. Sano's plate discipline has improved dramatically, Kepler doesn't look overmatched at the plate and Buxton has drawn several walks of late.
Graveman lasted only 31/3 innings, his shortest outing of the season, and gave up six runs on five hits and four walks with three strikeouts.
Santiago wore customized cleats in honor of this grandmother, who passed away last weekend. He wasn't sharp but still held Oakland to three runs over six innings on four hits and three walks with two strikeouts.
