Game Wrap 5/11/2025: Twins 7 Giants 6

The Giants jumped out to a 3-0 lead in this one but gave it up in the 6'th inning and ultimately lost in extra-innings due to a couple of bullpen failures.  Key Lines:  

Mike Yastrzemski RF- 3 for 5, 2 SB(4), 2 R.  BA= .276.  That's about as close to an ideal leadoff line as you are going to get.  YtY led off the game with as single and scored on a sac fly by Heliot Ramos.  

Jung Hoo Lee DH/CF- 1 for 4, SF, R, RBI.  BA= .286.  Like much of the lineup, Lee has been in a slump batting .172 over his last 7 games and .207 over his last 15.

Matt Chapman 3B- 2 for 4, 2B, BB, R.  BA= .225.  Chapman's bat warmed up over the past week with a .320 BA but .222 over his last 15.

Heliot Ramos 2 for 2, HR(7), SF, HBP, R, 4 RBI.  BA= .278.  Right now, Heliot is carrying the lineup but there's only so much he can do by himself.  He also made a couple of circus catches in LF.

Landen Roupp RHP- 5 IP, 6 H, 3 R, 0 BB, 3 K's, ERA= 4.95.  Roupp sailed through the lineup first time through allowing only a GB single to 9'th place hitter, Harrison Bader before running into choppy waters in the 4'th in 5'th innings coming an inning short of a QS.  

Erik Miller LHP- 0.0 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 1 BB, 0 K.  ERA= 2.19.

Camilo Doval RHP- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K.  ERA= 1.45.

Hayden Birdsong RHP- 2 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K's.  ERA= 1.33.  I'm still scratching my head over the order of Melvin's pitcher usage here.  I think he wanted to turn switch-hitting Brooks Lee who homered in the 4'th inning around.  The third batter of the inning, Willi Castro, is also a switch-hitter.  But that meant Miller had to face a parade of 4 batters from the right side and that strategy backfired spectacularly.  Melvin already knew he was going to use Birdsong at some point in the game, why wouldn't he let him pitch innings 6, 7 and possibly 8 and leave himself more options for later in the game?  Defensible?  Yes.  The way I would have done it?  Not.

Ryan Walker RHP- 0.2 IP, 2 H, 2 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 0 K.  ERA= 6.43.  By the time the game reached the 10'th inning, it was pretty much set in stone that Melvin would use Walker and with both him and Rogers warmed up it looked like Walker would be the Closer in the 9'th if the Giants had the lead.  I hate to blame an extra-inning loss on a reliever give the rules, but.....Walker's command of his slider was a little better than his last appearance, but it's still not there and without it he doesn't miss enough bats for a closer, especially in extra-innings. Maybe I'm imagining things, but again, when I see his face close up on TV, something seems not right. I think he has fear in his eyes and possibly a slightly gaunt look about him.  I understand the whole stand by your man dynamic but he's had more than enough rope.  I wouldn't send him out, but he needs to pitch in lower leverage situations until he proves he has his slider command back and proof takes more than one appearance.

Christian Koss PH/2B- 0 for 1, K.  BA= .213.  There was some drama in the 9'th inning that I think went deeper than it looked on the surface.  Christian Koss PH for Brett Wisely against Danny Coulombe LHP.  He was called out on a questionable check swing but on slo-mo it looked like the right call.  Christian got upset and it looked like he was chirping on his way back tot he dugout.  Melvin came racing out and got into a heated discussion with the first base ump who called the swing and got tossed for his trouble.  I don't know what Melvin said to the ump but I'm pretty sure the reason he went racing out was to keep Koss in the game because at that point he did not have anyone else to play 2B.  Well, Villar could but Melvin had burned his DH by moving Lee to CF and Villar was his last PH with a pitcher due to bat third in the 10'th, not that any of that mattered in the end.  In the last scene of the encounter with Christian Koss in the dugout, it looked like he was also yelling something at Coulombe so we're still not sure exactly what he as hot about.

There was more umpire drama in the 10'th inning when the home plate ump was late getting set up so called no pitch instead of a pitch-clock violation which led to a prolonged discussion between him and Twins manager Rocco Baldelli.  Same ump had earlier called Wilmer Flores out on strikes on a 3-1 pitch so he had a rough day too. 

 

It was a rough ending to a rough series and road trip.  The Giants come back home to start a 3-game series agains the D'Backs with Justin Verlander RHP facing Merrill Kelly RHP.  Gotta say though, the Twins have a serious team when all their players are healthy.