Dominant Performance by Taj Bradley
Minnesota Twins starting pitcher Taj Bradley was the standout performer in Thursday’s game, striking out 11 batters over five innings of work. His performance earned him the win, improving his record to 7-3. Bradley allowed four hits and one earned run while issuing three walks.
Houston Astros starter Tatsuya Imai took the loss, dropping his record to 5-4. Imai pitched 1.1 innings, surrendering four hits and five earned runs while walking five batters and recording two strikeouts. The Twins’ offense capitalized heavily on Imai’s struggles early in the game.
Scoring Highlights
The Twins’ offense erupted in the first inning. With two outs, Bell launched a 452-foot home run to center field, driving in Larnach to give Minnesota a 2-0 lead. The Astros responded in the same inning when Altuve scored on a groundout that resulted in a double play, making the score 2-1.
Minnesota’s lead expanded significantly in the second inning. Clemens hit a 399-foot home run to right-center field, bringing in Keaschall and Lee to extend the advantage to 5-1. The Twins continued to pile on runs in the fifth inning. Larnach singled to center field, allowing Caratini and Keaschall to score, pushing the margin to 7-1.
Houston managed to score two runs in the sixth inning. Loperfido singled to left field, bringing Matthews home to make it 7-2. Allen then singled to right, scoring Smith and advancing Loperfido to third, bringing the score to 7-3. The Twins added an insurance run in the eighth inning when Keaschall hit a 373-foot home run to left-center field, finalizing the 8-3 score.