Dozier became the sixth Twins player to hit three home runs in a game and the first to do it at home. “It really made life a lot easier for us, especially offensively”. After struggling in April and May, he’s hitting.312 since June 1 with 30 home runs in those 86 games.
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The Royals went 2-4 in their last six games with NY and Detroit, with each of the losses a close one. Dozier cranked one into the upper deck for a 3-2 lead.
Dozier became the second Twins player with a three-homer game this year.
“Who’s leading, Trumbo?” Twins manager Paul Molitor said. The Royals begin a stretch of 14 straight contests against teams with losing records when they visit the major league-worst Minnesota Twins on Monday to open a three-game series.Kansas City has dropped four of its last five encounters, including Sunday’s 6-5 loss to Detroit, and stands four games out of the American League’s second wild card.
“It would be better to be on the winning side of it”, Dozier said. He now has 10 home runs against Kansas City this season, two more than any other Royals opponent in franchise history.
His 38 homers are the most in a season for a Twin since Killebrew hit 41 in 1970. Making his 10th start for the Twins, Berrios gave up five earned runs in five innings.
Morales hit a three-run drive off Jose Berrios (2-5) in the fifth for a 5-4 lead. However, he fell behind with a first-pitch ball to all six hitters in faced in a two-run second, giving up run-scoring hits to Alex Gordon and Alcides Escobar.
Berrios looked like he would get through the fifth, giving up a leadoff single before coaxing a fielder’s choice ground out and striking out Paulo Orlando, but the rookie right hander walked Hosmer to keep the inning alive, setting up Morales’ massive shot to the concourse beyond the right-field fence.
Kansas City Royals center fielder Jarrod Dyson, left, dives safely back to first to beat the throw to Minnesota Twins first baseman Joe Mauer on a pickoff attempt in the fifth inning of a baseball game Monday, Sept. 5, 2016, in Minneapolis. “Mollie said to get out there”. The 22-year-old, who was recalled to make his first major league start since August 25, has walked 23 and yielded eight homers in 37 innings.
In 17 minor league starts in 2016, he has recorded a 2.51 ERA across 111.1 innings of work. That marked the ninth homer off Berrios in just 42 big-league innings as his earned run average ticked down ever so slightly, from 9.24 to 9.21.
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Dillon Gee (6-7, 4.33) is scheduled to start for Kansas City on Tuesday against Ervin Santana (7-10, 3.54).
