Carlos Correa started Friday’s game against Kansas City having reached base in 16 straight games, raising his batting average from .200 to .280.
“I’m getting my walks, I’m getting my base hits,” the Twins shortstop said before the game. “It’s just the power that’s missing a little bit.”
He took care of that on Friday while extending his on-base streak to 17 games.
Correa broke a 4-4 tie with a 432-foot home run into the Twins’ half of the bullpen to lead off the fourth inning, and Nick Gordon and Gio Urshela each drove in a pair of runs with two-out hits as Minnesota snapped a two-game skid with a 10-7 victory over the Royals in front of 21,841 at Target Field.
The Twins broke open a 6-5 game in with four runs in the eighth inning — three with two out — to extend their American League Central lead to five games over idle Chicago. Correa’s homer was his third this season, and first since May 4.
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After resting his sore right ankle for three straight games, second baseman Jorge Polanco started the scoring with a two-run home run in the first inning — part of the Twins’ 15-hit attack — and Trevor Larnach drove in a run with a sacrifice fly in the fourth. Luis Arraez, batting leadoff while Byron Buxton rested his sore right knee, went 2 for 5 with a walk, run scored and RBI.
After Yennier Cano gave up two runs in the ninth on MJ Melendez’s solo home run and a run-scoring double by Emmanuel Rivera, Emilo Pagan struck out Nicky Lopez for his team-leading seventh save.
Twins starter Bailey Ober lasted only three innings, leaving with a 4-3 lead after throwing 60 pitches.
The Twins broke out big in the first inning. Arraez singled sharply to right to start. Correa followed with a rocket to deep left-center that was tracked down by Andrew Benintendi, but Polanco followed with a towering home run into the plaza in right field for a 2-0 lead.
After Max Kepler grounded out to second, Gary Sanchez singled and Trevor Larnach walked ahead of Urshela, who singled to center to score Sanchez and sent Larnach to third. Nick Gordon, playing center field in place of Buxton, then slapped an opposite-field single to left to score Larnach and make it 4-0. The Twins, however, left the bases loaded when Arraez struck out.
Ober set the Royals down in order in the second, two on strikeouts, before the Twins loaded the bases with two out in the second on singles by Max Kepler and Sanchez and a walk by Larnach, but Urshela grounded out to first to end the threat. The Royals quickly took advantage.
After putting runners at first and second on one-out singles by Nicky Lopez and Whit Merrifield, Bobby Witt Jr. doubled off the scoreboard in left-center to plate two, and Witt Jr. scored on a single by Hunter Dozier to make it 4-3.
Ober never came out for the fourth, leaving after throwing 60 pitches with a drop in his typical velocity. Left-hander Danny Coulombe, fresh off the injured list, allowed the first three batters he faced to reach on a single to Ryan O’Hearn, walk to Rivera and a game-tying single by Lopez.
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Lopez stole second before Merrifield lined out to Urshela at third – he lept high to stab a rocket bound for the left-field corner – and Benintendi reached on a walk to put runners at first and third. Baldelli replaced Coulombe with Trevor Megill, and the big right-hander coaxed a 5-4-3 double play grounder by Witt Jr. on his first pitch to keep the game knotted.
Correa then homered to start the Twins half of the fourth, and Polanco scored on Larnach’s sacrifice fly to give the Twins a 6-4 lead.
Twins right-hander Joe Smith started the seventh and gave up a leadoff home run to Witt Jr. to make it 6-5, then walked Dozier before getting a 4-6-3 double-play grounder from Melendez. He then walked Carlos Santana, bringing left-hander Caleb Thielbar to pitch to lefty O’Hearn. The designated hitter popped to first baseman Arraez on the first pitch he saw to end the inning.
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