Twins sweep Tigers in four-game series, climb above .500 for first time since June

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And then, as so often happens, Lee found himself at the plate against the Detroit Tigers for the game’s biggest moment — and he delivered. After entering in the top of the eighth inning as a defensive replacement, Lee batted in the bottom half of the frame with the bases loaded and two outs in a 1-1 game. He fell behind 0-2, battled back to a full count and came through with a two-run single to right field, pausing on his way to first base for a celebratory scream toward the Twins’ dugout. “I feel like that was the biggest situation I could have been put in,” Lee said. “I could see I was going to get up at some point. I did think if Royce (Lewis) hits an infield single, then I’ll be up with the bases loaded and two outs. Of course, I thought of it, and then sure enough, the next pitch it happened.” Lee’s clutch hit helped Minnesota complete a four-game sweep of division rival Detroit with a 3-1 win, a shocking outcome versus the preseason American League Central favorites for a Twins team that started the season 3-6 amid their lowest preseason expectations in over a decade. Prior to Thursday’s game, the 25-year-old shortstop had batted just .167 with zero extra-base hits, along with several fielding misplays. Lee described himself as “grinding” through the first two weeks of the season, but Shelton has made it clear he’s sticking with the 2022 first-round pick. “You see the genuine excitement and emotion (in the dugout),” Shelton said. “You know, this is a brotherhood. They know one of their guys is struggling right now. And when you come up in a big situation like that, and get a hit, it’s a nice feeling to know the other 25 guys are behind you.” Asked about the dugout’s reaction to his game-winning hit, Lee joked: “I’m happy my teammates like me. Got to make sure it continues to be like that.” Lee also cited a phone call he had Wednesday night with his father, longtime Cal Poly head coach Larry Lee, as helping him to stay positive amid the poor start. “I needed to talk to my dad for 30 minutes last night,” Lee said. “It felt like a really good talk that we had. Just trying to get things off my chest, because I keep it in all the time. It’s a tough game.” In addition to Lee’s slump-busting, late-game heroics, the Twins also got a very encouraging start from 24-year-old right-hander Mick Abel, who had struggled similarly for the opening two weeks of the season, going 0-2 with an 11.05 ERA. Abel shut out the Tigers for six innings, the final out of which came after he and catcher Victor Caratini talked an open-minded Shelton into letting him stay in the game with the score tied, a runner on second base and Javier Baéz — who already had two hits — at the plate. “Caratini was yelling at me the whole time to leave him in,” Shelton said. “That’s what you love about veteran catchers. I purposely walked out with Vic. I was like, ‘Where you at?’ And he was like, ‘Keep him in.’ And then I went out, and Mick’s first reaction to me was very clear that he wanted to stay in.” Right-hander Garrett Acton, who joined Minnesota’s bullpen last week following a minor trade with the Miami Marlins, picked up the victory in his Twins debut. And right-hander Eric Orze closed out the game with a 1-2-3 ninth inning to become the fourth different Twins reliever to notch a save in the four-game sweep. It’s just the third time since saves became an official statistic in 1969 that any MLB team has won four consecutive games in a series with four different pitchers — Orze, Cody Laweryson, Justin Topa and Kody Funderburk — recording them. “I think that was the plan going in,” Orze said. “Closer by committee. Everybody ready to go at all times. The boys are doing their job.” Despite losing two out of three games in each of their first three series, the Twins have climbed above .500 at 7-6, marking their first winning record since June 15 of last season. They played exactly 100 games between holding winning records, going an AL-worst 37-63. New principal owner Tom Pohlad was handing out first bumps in the hallway outside the Twins’ clubhouse following the sweep-completing win. Pohlad then made his way into the clubhouse — a common occurrence during the 5-2 home stand — to personally congratulate Lee and soak in the good vibes. Pohlad took over the lead ownership role in December and has spent the four months since then assuring disillusioned Twins fans this season will be different. It didn’t look promising after a 3-6 start, and it’s still extremely early, but in the afterglow of a four-game sweep, at least there are some good vibes again at Target Field. Spot the pattern. Connect the terms Find the hidden link between sports terms Aaron Gleeman is a senior writer for The Athletic covering the Minnesota Twins. He was previously the editor-in-chief of Baseball Prospectus and a senior writer for NBC Sports. He was named the 2021 NSMA Minnesota Sportswriter of the Year and co-hosts the "Gleeman and The Geek" podcast. Follow Aaron on Twitter @AaronGleeman