Byron Buxton’s three homers gives Twins rare series win in Toronto
By Travis Young
Byron Buxton’s career day and Kyle Gibson’s solid outing keep Twins in the second wildcard spot.
Boy, did our site expert Collin Kottke ever nail it! On August 26th, Kottke posted his thoughts on the improved play recently of Minnesota Twins center fielder Byron Buxton. Well, this afternoon in Toronto, Buxton had a career day. Buxton hit three home runs, four hits and five runs batted in a 7-2 victory over the Blue Jays. He displayed his strong-arm and speed in the outfield and also stole a base, giving him a team high 24 on the season so far.
Kyle Gibson was impressive as well, hurling six and 2/3 innings of seven hit ball with seven strikeouts. The right hander improved his personal mark to 8-10. He pitched well in his previous start against the Chicago White Sox as well. Solid pitching from Gibson and the continued development of Buxton will go a long way toward helping the Twins get to the playoffs over the next five weeks.
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This series win for the Twins was only their second in the past 11 years in Toronto. I was there today to enjoy it in the Rogers Centre with family from a bird’s-eye view behind home plate. Living near Toronto, I had become increasingly frustrated over the past decade watching my Twins come into the ‘Big Smoke’ and getting consistently beaten. It’s no fun being in the minority with 40,000 fans of the Blue Jays, but days like today are very rewarding.
The Twins finished up the week at four up and four down. With a mark now of 67-63, the Twinkies now have a game and a half lead in the Wild Card. They return to Target Field to face the White Sox on Tuesday and hopefully make amends for their poor performance in the Windy City earlier this week.
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