Dean Kremer settled in just long enough to keep the Twins in it, but Detroit’s bats and one brutal extra-inning swing turned Wednesday night into an 11-6 Tigers win.
Kremer was trying to straighten things out after a rough stretch, and the first inning offered a hint that he might be close. But the second cracked open on him.
Eduardo Garcia singled, then Max Clark and John Peck ripped back-to-back doubles to put the Tigers up 2-0. Kremer did regroup in the third by leaning more on his fastball and backing away from the cutter that had been giving him trouble, and that adjustment bought him a clean inning.
The Tigers got back to him in the fifth. Kevin McGonigle opened the frame with a walk, moved up on a wild pitch and scored on a Hao-Yu Lee line drive to make it 3-1.
That was it for Kremer, who was lifted after 5 innings with 6 hits, 3 earned runs, 2 walks and 5 strikeouts on 79 pitches, 51 for strikes. Kody Funderburk took over, but Detroit kept the pressure on.
Riley Greene drove in two more, and Clark and Peck later teamed up for another run to stretch the lead to 5-1.
Minnesota spent much of the night chasing missed chances, but the offense finally scratched out some damage in the fourth. Drew Anderson had already put runners on base without much punishment, and the Twins cashed in when Kody Clemens walked and Ryan Jeffers lashed a line drive to left. Clemens scored, Jeffers picked up his 17th double of the season and the 100th double of his MLB career, and the Twins were on the board at 2-1.
The sixth inning brought a better break for Minnesota. Jeffers reached on an error after two outs and nobody on, Josh Bell followed with a single and Trevor Larnach hammered a double to pull the Twins within 5-2. That set up a bullpen stretch that at least gave Minnesota a window.
They used it in the eighth. Brooks Lee, hitless up to that point, opened the inning with a double into the gap.
Kody Clemens was hit by a pitch, Bell singled to load the bases, and the Twins started shuffling pieces in search of a bigger swing. Gabriel González was burned so Victor Caratini could pinch-hit for Larnach against Kenley Jansen, and Caratini worked a walk to bring Lee home and cut the deficit to 5-3.
Ryan Kreidler then entered as another speed option as Minnesota tried to create chaos.
Yoendrys Gómez handled the ninth with a scoreless frame, and the Twins kept pressing against the Tigers bullpen. Ryan Jeffers nearly ended the inning with a fly ball that died at the warning track, but it stayed in play and Minnesota had to keep chasing.
Gómez also worked through the 10th, and the game moved on to the 11th tied up in the kind of messy, tense stretch that had become the Twins’ only route back. Taylor Rogers took the ball for Minnesota and Detroit struck immediately.
A misread ball by Clemens on Max Clark’s hit allowed Ben Melgeri to score, putting the Tigers ahead 6-5. Tommy Nance came in and escaped the inning without further damage.
Minnesota answered right back in its half. Walker Jenkins started the 11th with Kaelen Culpepper on base, and after Jenkins battled through the at-bat and reached on a force, Culpepper advanced to third.
Keaschall then drove a ball into center to score Culpepper and tie it 6-6. But the Twins couldn’t finish the job.
Lee singled to put Keaschall at third with one out, then Clemens struck out and Jeffers grounded out, leaving the winning run stranded.
The 12th finally broke Minnesota’s grip on the game. Nance returned and, at the worst possible moment, surrendered his second home run as a Twin. Detroit jumped to an 8-6 lead in a flash and kept pouring it on until the score reached 11-6 before Nance could hand it off.
By then, the Tigers had the one rally that mattered and the one homer that changed everything.
In Other News...
Former Twins Infielder Finds Another Opportunity After Brief St. Paul Run
Orlando Arcias stint in the Twins organization was short, but it gave him a path back into the conversation after a rough start to 2025. He opened the season in Triple-A St. Paul after losing the backup shortstop job to Tristan Gray, then got to Minnesota in May before the roster squeeze caught up with him in June. Even so, Arcia played well enough in Triple-A to keep drawing attention.
Now he has landed another minor-league deal, this time with the Cincinnati Reds, and will report to their Triple-A affiliate. The fit makes some sense on paper, especially with Cincinnati looking for middle-infield depth after the injury to shortstop Elly De La Cruz, and it gives Arcia another chance to work his way back toward the majors after a brief stop in St. Paul. [Read more 🡒]
Former Twins Starter Gets Another Shot After Quick Toronto Exit
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For Minnesota, it is another reminder of how quickly the pitching picture can change for a young arm. Woods Richardson never got much time to settle in with Toronto before being waived, and Seattle now offers a fresh landing spot as he looks to rebuild momentum and show he can still factor at the highest level. [Read more 🡒]
Twins Fans Have Every Right To Demand Accountability For This Collapse
The Twins entered September in a spot that feels a long way from where they were when the summer still offered hope, and the frustration around this stretch is easy to understand. A club that looked like it had enough traction to stay in the race instead stumbled through August, went 10-17, and now finds itself hanging around a crowded Wild Card chase with little room left to absorb another bad week.
Jeremy Zoll and Derek Shelton are part of the conversation because every collapse has layers, but this one also reflects the roster limits, the injuries, and the uneven production that have dragged the season off course. Ownership sits in the middle of it too, because when a team with this kind of midseason position slips into survival mode, fans are left asking not just what happened on the field, but who is accountable for building a club that could end up here. [Read more 🡒]