Nine innings wasn’t enough in the second game of a day-night doubleheader for the Minnesota Twins.
Scott Van Slyke and former Twins’ catcher Drew Butera blasted solo home runs in the 12th inning to give the Dodgers the lead and an eventual 4-3 win.
Van Slyke finished 2 for 4 with the home run and two runs scored. For Butera it was his first homer since he hit one as a member of the Twins in 2012.
5 hours, 11 minutes is the longest game in Target Field history
— LaVelle E. Neal III (@LaVelleNeal) May 2, 2014
The win gave the Dodgers the sweep in the three-game series.
The Twins made it interesting in the 12th, they loaded the bases with nobody out for Joe Mauer who hit a sacrifice fly to pull the Twins within a run, but with runners on second and third and two out Chris Colabello hit a line drive at Dodgers second baseman Dee Gordon who made the play and ended the series.
It was amazing the game was that close, but the Dodgers stranded 27 runners on base. That allowed the Twins the chance to stay in the game.
It was a battle of Triple A call-ups in the second game Thursday night. Lefty Kris Johnson started for the Twins. He worked 4 1/3 scoreless innings and gave up four hits. Johnson dodged trouble with six walks, but he also struck out five.
LA’s starter was Red Patterson, like Johnson, was also called up to start the game. He gave up one run on two hits in 4 2/3 innings. LA reliever Jamey Wright pitched three innings of shutout baseball late to earn the win.
Brian Duensing took the loss for the Twins in relief.
Despite the score, it wasn’t a great night for Twins pitching. Twins pitchers as a team walked 12. More amazingly not a single walk came around to score a run for Los Angeles.
The Twins start a weekend series with Baltimore on Friday.
