The Minnesota Twins continued to struggle at the plate on Wednesday night, mustering just four hits in a 5-3 loss to the Houston Astros.
The Twins got off to a rough start in the first inning when Jose Altuve hit a leadoff home run off Dylan Bundy. Although the Twins used a Sandy Leon walk and a Jorge Polanco double to set up Carlos Correa’s sacrifice fly in the third inning, it would be all they could get against Houston starter Framber Valdez.
Just like Justin Verlander the night before, Valdez was lights out against the Twins. The left-hander racked up eight strikeouts on the night while allowing one run over seven innings, giving the Astros an easy night at the plate.
Although Bundy rebounded to allow just two runs over five innings, he was pulled after 66 pitches. A diving effort by Tim Beckham in left field helped Houston build a 3-1 lead in the sixth inning before Trey Mancini delivered a two-run homer off Michael Fulmer to blow the game open.
The Twins rallied in the ninth inning for a pair of runs, but a double play off the bat of Max Kepler extinguished any hopes of a comeback.
The loss continues the Twins’ free fall in the standings, as the Cleveland Guardians pounding the San Diego Padres 7-0 on Wednesday afternoon. Now facing a four-game deficit in the division, the Twins will try to avoid the sweep when Chris Archer takes the mound against Luis Garcia on Thursday night.
