Minnesota Twins Capture American League Central Crown, Advance to Playoffs

The Minnesota Twins beat the Los Angeles Angels on Friday night 8-6 to clinch the American League Central and advance to the playoffs for the first time since 2020.

Per Bobby Nightengale, who covers the Twins:

The Minnesota Twins are the 2023 American League Central champions. Jhoan Duran secures the save on his 34th pitch.

The Minnesota Twins are the 2023 American League Central champions. Jhoan Duran secures the save on his 34th pitch.
— Bobby Nightengale (@nightengalejr) September 23, 2023

The Twins are currently 82-72 and will most likely finish with the worst record of any of the American League division winners. That would put them as the No. 3 seed in the American League playoff picture and means they won't get a bye in the wild card round and will need to play.

With nine days left in the regular season, we don't know who they'll play yet: It could be any of the Texas Rangers, Houston Astros, Seattle Mariners or Toronto Blue Jays.

In the clincher, right-hander Pablo Lopez got the win on the mound by going 6.0 innings and allowing three earned runs. He walked one and struck out seven. He's now 11-8 with a 3.61 ERA after being acquired in a trade this past offseason from the Miami Marlins.

Offensively, the Twins got a home run from young slugger Alex Kirilloff - his 10th of the year.

The Twins take on the Angels on Saturday afternoon with the first pitch slated for 2:10 p.m. ET.

While the Twins certainly could ease off the gas pedal now that they've clinched, they still have a chance at finishing in the No. 2 spot and getting that first-round bye, so perhaps they'll continue to go for it.

Sonny Gray pitches on Saturday.

Follow Fastball on FanNation on social media

Continue to follow our Fastball on FanNation coverage on social media by LIKING us on Facebook and by following us on Twitter @FastballFN.

You can also subscribe to "The Payoff Pitch" podcast on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.