Three Wins Show How Twins Have Fought Way into Playoff Picture

Minnesota was picked to finish last in the AL Central. The direction of their season has been defined by a handful of wins.

Minnesota Twins first baseman Royce Lewis. Credit: Jordan Johnson-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The Minnesota Twins were not supposed to be here. One MLB.com preseason projection picked Minnesota to finish last in the American League Central, and by June 9, that prediction looked increasingly reasonable. The Twins were 30-38, had lost five of six and sat a season-worst eight games below .500.

Two months later, the Twins are in the dog days of the season at 63-65 and hold the American League’s final Wild Card spot. Three wins best illustrate the perseverance that carried them there.

July 5 at Yankees

Joe Ryan. Credit: David Richard-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The Twins had started to dig out of their early-season hole, but their biggest test yet awaited in the Bronx. Joe Ryan tossed seven scoreless innings, allowing three hits while striking out nine in a 6-1 victory. Minnesota did it despite Byron Buxton leaving in the first inning after aggravating his right hip.

The victory also ended one of Minnesota’s longest-running frustrations: its inability to win a series at Yankee Stadium. It marked the Twins’ first series victory in the Bronx since 2014 and their first over New York anywhere since 2023. The frustration went far beyond the regular season, too. The Yankees eliminated Minnesota from the playoffs six times between 2003 and 2019, going 16-2 against the Twins in those matchups.

The degree to which New York has terrorized Minnesota is nearly theatrical, but the past does not have to define the future. The Twins took two of three in the Bronx, giving their fans reason to believe this season could end differently.

July 30 vs. Royals

Kody Clemens. Credit: Bruce Kluckhohn-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Royals starter Noah Cameron carried a no-hitter into the seventh, and the Twins reached the bottom of the ninth trailing 3-0 with just one hit. Few fans in attendance could have been blamed for heading toward the exits early to beat the traffic.

Then Ryan Jeffers was hit by a pitch. Royce Lewis singled. Josh Bell walked. Kody Clemens did the rest, launching a 407-foot walk-off grand slam to give Minnesota a 4-3 win. It marked the first time in MLB history a team broke up a no-hitter in the seventh inning or later before eventually winning on a walk-off grand slam.

Minnesota moved back to .500 at 55-55 and within one game of a Wild Card spot.

"Until they say the game is over and you lost, I have belief that we're going to win every game," Lewis told MLB.com afterward.

August 19 vs. Braves

Brooks Lee. Credit: Bruce Kluckhohn-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The most recent example should still be fresh in the minds of Twins fans. Minnesota entered its series against Atlanta after being swept by Philadelphia, blowing a five-run lead in the finale and falling out of playoff position. With one of baseball’s best teams arriving at Target Field, another setback could have easily sent Minnesota spiraling.

But Minnesota kept its composure and did more than simply win the series against Atlanta, it completed the sweep. The finale was the hardest-fought win of the three. The Twins built a 4-1 lead, watched Atlanta erase it in the sixth and answered immediately. Clemens delivered the go-ahead RBI single in the seventh before Brooks Lee added insurance in a 6-4 victory.

The win put Minnesota in sole possession of the American League’s final Wild Card spot. There are still 34 games left and several teams waiting for the Twins to slip, but the playoff spot they spent months chasing is finally theirs to protect

There were plenty of reasons for this team to simply fold, but the Twins have continued fighting against the odds and produced a season that would have sounded laughable back in March. Now comes the difficult part: finishing the job and potentially bringing postseason baseball to a fan base that expected its players to be booking vacations by now.