Morales gave the Royals a quick 2-0 lead with a two-run shot to deep right field that almost exited the stadium.
Advertisement
The powerful second baseman just won’t stop hitting home runs, and he got another one in his first plate appearance Tuesday. The double by Escobar extended his hitting streak to 13 games. But Dozier dived to his right, flipped the ball out of his glove to shortstop Jorge Polanco at second for one, and Polanco threw to first for the 4-6-3 double play to get out of the inning.
Brian Dozier is making a habit of hitting home runs in bunches.
Kansas City started the fourth inning with back-to-back hits, the second an RBI single by Morales that scored Eric Hosmer to tie the game. “We need a guy like him to carry us, and he sure is right now”. Minnesota starter Ervin Santana gave up three runs on three hits and a trio of BB through six innings before Brandon Kintzler and Pat Light combined for five runs allowed.
If there’s anything negative to say about this run that Dozier is on, it’s that he doesn’t have very good timing. Dozier became the sixth Minnesota player to hit three home runs in a game, and the first to do it at home. He’s up to 25 taters since the All Star break, a full six more than anybody else has hit. “We were trying to keep (reliever) Wade (Davis) out of the game”. He is three behind Major League Baseball leader Mark Trumbo, a first baseman for the Baltimore Orioles. Duffy has struggled the past two times out with eleven runs plated on 18 hits over 10.2 innings. This is partly due to the fact that Dozier is notoriously streaky and can disappear for months at a time, and partly due to the fact that he’s stuck playing in baseball wilderness with the Minnesota Twins.
NOTES: The Royals recalled INF Christian Colon from Triple-A Omaha. To make room on the roster for Nava and McCarthy, the Royals designated OF Reymond Fuentes and RHP Nick Tepesch for assignment.
Kansas City Royals catcher Salvador Perez has only a bruise on his right wrist after getting hit by a pitch.
Buxton tacked on an important run on his solo blast in the eighth inning. Twins UTIL Danny Santana was transferred to the 60-day disabled list to create space on the 40-man roster for Beresford. Plouffe left after falling behind 1-2 and was replaced by Vargas.
Advertisement
The Chicago White Sox shut out the Detroit Tigers 2-0, the New York Mets defeated the Cincinnati Reds 5-3, the Baltimore Orioles knocked off the Tampa Bay Rays 11-2, the Philadelphia Phillies edged the Miami Marlins 4-3, and the Houston Astros downed the Cleveland Indians by the same score. Gibson has been largely disappointing in his Twins career, but is 5-4 with a 3.10 ERA in 10 starts against Kansas City.
