The Minnesota Twins blew an opportunity to move into a first-place tie in the American League Central on Friday night as benches cleared during a 4-3 loss to the Chicago White Sox.
The incident happened in the bottom of the ninth inning with the Twins trying to maintain a 3-3 tie. Jorge Lopez had control issues throughout the inning and loaded the bases after hitting Andrew Vaughn.
Vaughn and Lopez exchanged words before both benches cleared. Twins manager Rocco Baldelli was in the middle of the fray, trying to restore order before the game continued.
Benches cleared in Chicago! pic.twitter.com/b6Hb6X3sts
— White Sox on CHSN (@CHSN_WhiteSox) September 3, 2022
Lopez appeared to hit Jose Abreu after the game resumed but the call was overturned via replay after the pitch hit Abreu’s bat. The White Sox first baseman came through later in the at-bat, however, sending a dribbler into the infield to allow the game-winning run to score.
Nick Gordon all three runs for Minnesota at the plate while Luis Arraez and Jose Miranda each had two hits to help the cause.
It was a blown opportunity for the Twins, who remain one game back of the Cleveland Guardians in the American League Central after their 6-1 loss to the Seattle Mariners. To make matters worse, Sonny Gray left the game after four innings with right hamstring tightness.
The Twins will look to rebound from the disappointing loss on Saturday night when Tyler Mahle makes his return from the injured list to battle Dylan Cease.
