The Minnesota Twins needed a win on Saturday night against the Detroit Tigers to stay in the hunt for the final American League Wild Card spot, and got it thanks to a strong outing from right-hander Tyler Duffey.
The Twins got the scoring started in the top of the first inning when Rookie of the Year candidate Miguel Sano reached base on an error by Dixon Machado, which allowed Brian Dozier to score to put the Twins up 1-0 before Detroit even got a chance to hit.
The Twins would tack on another run in the third inning when Dozier hit a sacrifice fly to center field to score Eduardo Escobar. The Tigers then responded in the fourth inning when Nick Castellanos doubled to center field to score Miguel Cabrera to cut the lead in half. Detroit then tied the game when James McCann singled to center field to score J.D. Martinez.
That was the score in the seventh inning when Kurt Suzuki put the Twins up for good with a single to left field that allowed former Tiger Torii Hunter to score. Escobar then hit into a fielder's choice, allowing Aaron Hicks to cross the plate that extended the lead to 4-2.
In the ninth, Escobar hit a two-run home run to left field to score Kurt Suzuki and give the Twins a little bit more breathing room going into the bottom of the ninth.
In the bottom of the ninth, the Twins brought in Kevin Jepsen to shut down the Tigers. The first batter he faced was James McCann, who grounded out to second base for the first out of the inning. Tyler Collins then stepped up to the plate as a pinch hitter for Dixon Machado. Collins then flew out to left field for the second out of the inning. Rajai Davis was then able to get a single to keep the game alive. After Davis advanced to second on defensive indifference, Anthony Gose struck out swinging to end the game and give the Twins the 6-2 win over their division rival.
The win also puts the Twins just 1.5 games behind the Houston Astros for the final Wild Card spot. If the Twins make the playoffs for the first time since 2010, it will have to be via the wild card, as the AL Central division was clinched by Kansas City on Friday night.
On Sunday afternoon, the two teams will play for the final time this season as the Twins will send Ervin Santana to the mound, while Detroit will send Randy Wolf to the hill. The Twins will then travel to Cleveland before they finish the regular season at home against the Kansas City Royals.