Twins to their last breath after failing – again and again – to beat the Marlins

MINNEAPOLIS — Nothing is official, but the Twins’ postseason chances all but evaporated Thursday night.

And they have no one to blame but themselves.

After an afternoon in which Minnesota’s nearest rivals both increased their lead in the wild-card race, the Twins rallied from another early deficit but then lost painfully, suffering a repeat 8-6 defeat in 13 innings against the Miami Marlins had to target field.

Despite overcoming a four-run deficit, the Twins abandoned 11 of 15 baserunners starting in the seventh inning and lost a crucial series to the 100-loss Marlins. The Twins finished the game 2 for 19 with runners in scoring position, falling three games behind Kansas City and Detroit in the American League wild-card race with three games left.

To make the playoffs, the Twins must defeat the Baltimore Orioles, while they need either the Atlanta Braves or Chicago White Sox to defeat the Royals or Tigers.

FanGraphs gives the Twins a 3 percent chance of making the playoffs.

“It sucks,” catcher Ryan Jeffers said. “We had every chance to win this baseball game. Our season is at stake and we haven’t been able to sustain this run. It’s a really, really shy feeling.”

Thursday’s attempt was a microcosm of a season-ending meltdown in which the Twins blew a 10 1/2-game lead to the Tigers; They couldn’t put the Marlins away.

Trevor Larnach and Royce Lewis needed just one run in the ninth to take the win, putting two runners out of action.

After one run, the Twins tied it in the 10th inning on Willi Castro’s sacrifice fly, a play that ended with an incredible diving catch by Marlins centerfielder Derek Hill.

“Right away I thought it was gone,” midfielder Byron Buxton said. “I think, ‘This is what we needed.’ He checked the box and asked himself, ‘What else do we need to do?’ That was a slam dunk because we thought we had it done.”

Passion from the tower!#MNTwins #MLB pic.twitter.com/4sL06qprtP

— Bally Sports North (@BallySportsNOR) September 27, 2024

They had another chance with two goals, but Austin Martin failed.

Buxton was tied in the 11th minute and was thrown out before Carlos Correa’s intentional walk. Larnach singled, but Martin had to stop the play to ensure the ball got through the infield and was held at third. With Miami using five infielders, Lewis ended up with an 8-2 fielder’s choice, and then Carlos Santana flied out to extend the game again.

But the Twins’ worst performance came in the 12th.

After Brooks Lee was intentionally walked, Jeffers launched a sac bunt attempt and Santana was doubled from second base. Castro was eliminated, sending it to 13th place.

“Obviously there’s something missing when we get guys on base,” Twins manager Rocco Baldelli said. “We really have problems. I can’t tell you exactly why. I have seen, been there, played with and managed teams that struggled with runners on base. We had a lot of baserunners. They were everywhere all night. But to win, you have to bring them in. And part of that is doing certain things with these types of attack bats, because there are things you can do that can lead to scoring runs. It won’t all be doubles and home runs.”

Thursday couldn’t have been much worse for the Twins.

Detroit and Kansas City played afternoon contests, meaning the Twins knew before they even took the field whether their deficit in the wild-card race had increased or decreased.

What started as a promising afternoon took a bad turn when the Royals scored three runs in the ninth inning and defeated the Washington Nationals 7-4. Meanwhile, at Michigan, the Tigers rallied from a late three-run deficit to win 4-3 and complete the sweep over Tampa Bay.

“I’m keeping my fingers crossed that they lose,” Baldelli said before the game. “But really all we can control is winning the game tonight. That’s all we can do.”

The Twins weren’t up to the task early on.

For the third time in three games, the Marlins struck first. David Festa issued a walk to Miami’s Xavier Edwards, who later drove home with an RBI double by Jake Burger.

Although Festa needed 31 pitches to get through the first inning, the rookie right-hander found his rhythm, retiring eight batters in a row in the fourth inning. Festa became economical and maintained the deficit until the fifth minute.

But Otto Lopez, who also hit a double off Scott Blewett in the 13th, singled, as did Nick Fortes, Miami’s No. 9 hitter. Edwards also hit a single to left to make it 2-0. One out later, Burger hit a run single to bring the lead to three and end Festa’s night.

Reliever Caleb Thielbar took over and sent a walk to load the bases before throwing a ground ball to Correa, who threw the ball home in time for the forceout – but Jeffers dropped the ball to make it 4-0.

“I feel like I let a lot of people down,” Jeffers said. “I made a crucial mistake when I dropped the ball at the plate on the play and didn’t manage to get the bunt down. Personally, I just didn’t do what I needed to do to help the team win a baseball game. I probably hurt them more than I helped them.”

Jeffers wasn’t alone.

The roster is littered with many offenders who struggled during the six-plus weeks the team spent in baseball purgatory. Due to a player’s error, teams are not 2:19 with runners in scoring position.

Despite the early struggles, the Twins fought back again, albeit with the help of a lackluster Miami defense that gave them several extra outs.

Correa hit a home run in the sixth inning to make the score 4-1.

Carlos Correa gets #MNTwins on the board of the human resources department. Let’s build on that. ☄️ pic.twitter.com/BNmptBsKmc

— Bally Sports North (@BallySportsNOR) September 27, 2024

Jeffers got it in the seventh inning when his fly ball to center, a routine out, fell harmlessly for a one-out single. Martin doubled with one out and Buxton reached on a throwing error by Miami shortstop Edwards.

An inning later, Lewis appeared to foul, but two Marlins defenders dropped it through the visiting bench. Lewis walked, Santana hit a single to right off the high wall and Lee followed with a two-run double.

But Jeffers and Lewis each prevailed weakly and opened the parade of stranded runners.

On the other hand, the Twins’ backup players delivered another potentially season-saving performance. A night after the bullpen racked up 14 strikeouts in eight scoreless innings, the Twins almost successfully eked out another victory.

Thielbar, Michael Tonkin, Griffin Jax, Jhoan Duran, Cole Sands and Jorge Alcala combined to allow one unearned run over 6 2/3 innings. Blewett also pitched a scoreless score in the 12th inning before giving up three runs in his second frame.

“I had a couple of opportunities there to make the run, but I just couldn’t do it,” Buxton said. “It’s one of those that hurts. We know what’s at stake and we have to keep pushing. …Everyone understands what’s going on. It’s a little different. But we know we’re still in it. We just have to continue to focus on what we can control and do what we do. Must be better.”

Not only do the Twins need to improve and deliver consistently good baseball, something they haven’t been able to do lately, they also need a miracle in Atlanta or Detroit. The Twins have been 12-24 since August 17 and were defeated by the Orioles in Baltimore in April.

“I know how we played,” Baldelli said. “I’ve been here, been there and seen everything. At this point we are not yet eliminated. And I don’t think we can get out of here. I don’t care who’s in jail tomorrow. I don’t care how we played today. My intention is to win. Tomorrow starts with Pablo (López), who goes out there and has a great game for us. And win our games and see what happens. That sounds like a lot because we didn’t play particularly well, but that’s where I’m at right now.”

(Photo of Austin Martin unsuccessfully trying to avoid a mark at the plate by Nick Fortes: Stephen Maturen / Getty Images)