Baltimore is 58-62. Minnesota is 59-62. And after Tuesday's 5-2 win evened the series at a game apiece — following Monday's loss to former teammate Dean Kremer in his first start against his old team — the Orioles have a chance to take the rubber match and leave Target Field with a series win in Wednesday's finale.
Tuesday's win came fast. Pete Alonso and Gunnar Henderson hit two-run homers in the first two innings against Bailey Ober, and Christian Encarnación-Strand added a solo shot in the third to make it 5-1 before Minnesota had settled in. All three finished with three hits: Alonso went 3-for-4, Henderson 3-for-5 with a double added in, and Encarnación-Strand 3-for-4. Brandon Young turned in six strong innings for the win, allowing two runs (one earned) on six hits, and Josh Walker, Yennier Cano, and Andrew Kittredge combined for three scoreless innings to close it out — Kittredge's sixth save. Ober took the loss, his first since May 30, snapping a stretch of one win and four no-decisions over his previous five starts.
Wednesday's rubber match pits Shane Baz against Twins right-hander Zebby Matthews, and it's a matchup between two pitchers with rough win-loss records that undersell their stuff. Baz carries a 4-11 mark but a respectable 3.76 ERA, the kind of split that usually points to a lack of run support more than performance. Matthews (5-8, 5.23 ERA) has been more hittable, but Minnesota has managed just three wins in its last ten games overall — the same stretch in which Baltimore has gone 4-6.
Both teams are technically still alive in the AL wild-card picture, separated by percentage points more than any real distance in the standings, which is exactly what makes a series like this feel bigger than a mid-August getaway-day game. A win would give the Orioles the series and pull them back to a game under .500 heading into the rest of a brutal stretch of the schedule; a loss hands Minnesota the series instead, and sends Baltimore out of Minneapolis no closer to separating itself from a fellow wild-card hopeful.
Probable Starters
Minnesota Twins: RHP Zebby Matthews (5-8, 5.23 ERA)
Baltimore Orioles: RHP Shane Baz (4-11, 3.76 ERA)
Where to Watch/Listen
First pitch: 1:40 PM ET at Target Field
Weather: 90°F, Mostly Clear
TV: MASN
Radio: 98 Rock (97.9 FM) and WBAL NewsRadio (AM 1090 / FM 101.5)
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