Clemens’ Revenge Blast and Lights-Out Bullpen Power Twins Past Tigers, 3-2

DETROIT — A familiar face provided the definitive spark the Minnesota Twins desperately needed on Tuesday night. Kody Clemens launched a decisive two-run home run against his former club, lifting the Twins to a 3-2 victory over the slumping Detroit Tigers at Comerica Park. The victory effectively snaps a sluggish stretch for Minnesota and sets up a high-stakes rubber match for the series finale.

📉 Early Control and Shaky Command

The Twins jumped into the driver's seat immediately in the top of the first inning. Facing Detroit right-hander Drew Anderson, rookie Brooks Lee got the offense moving by slicing a sharp double into the right-field corner. Anderson struggled early with his visual targets, laboring through his pitches and conceding consecutive walks to Clemens and Ryan Jeffers to quickly overload the bases. Veteran slugger Josh Bellcapitalized on the early traffic, lifting a deep sacrifice fly to deep outfield to map out a 1-0 lead for Minnesota.

Despite his early navigation issues, Anderson stabilized over the next few frames to keep the Tigers within striking distance.

💥 Rookie Surge Puts Tigers on Top

Detroit’s bats remained quiet through most of the early frames against Twins starter Dean Kremer. Kremer mixed a strong cutting fastball with breaking stuff to limit any real threats through four frames.

The layout of the game flipped entirely in the bottom of the fifth. Detroit utility man Zach McKinstry sparked the hometown crowd by drilling a single into the outfield. Moments later, breakout rookie Kevin McGoniglecrushed an absolute blast—his second home run in as many days—over the wall to shift the momentum entirely and propel the Tigers into a 2-1 advantage.

🚀 Clemens Answers Back

The Tigers' lead was short-lived, as the top of the sixth inning belonged completely to Clemens.

Leading off the inning, Luke Keaschall showed great discipline, working a critical walk out of Anderson to put a runner on first. Clemens then stepped into the box facing a 2-2 count. Anderson left a pitch right in the sweet spot, and Clemens hammered a high fly ball deep into right field. The ball cleared the warning track and sailed over the fence for his 25th home run of the season, putting Minnesota back out in front, 3-2. The blast also tied him with Byron Buxton for the team lead in home runs.

🔒 Bullpen Escapes Late Threat to Lock It Down

With a one-run lead established, the Minnesota bullpen navigated tight ropes to secure the win. Dean Kremer left the mound after 5.0 solid innings, turning the game layout over to the relief corps.

The Tigers mounted their heaviest threat in the bottom of the 7th when a walk from A.J. Minter and a throwing error by catcher Ryan Jeffers allowed Ben Malgeri to reach third base with just one out. However, reliever Andrew Morris entered the game in relief and coolly struck out Hao-Yu Lee before forcing a Zach McKinstry lineout to escape the jam unscathed.

In the 9th, closer Yoendrys Gómez came on to preserve the lead. With two outs, Ben Malgeri hit a slicing flare to shallow right, but right fielder Luke Keaschall charged hard and made a spectacular sliding grab to squeeze the final out and lock down Gómez’s 22nd save of the year.

📊 Box Score Breakdown

Team	R	H	E
Minnesota Twins (69-76)	3	5	1
Detroit Tigers (66-79)	2	5	0

Stat Leaders:

• MIN: Kody Clemens (1-for-3, HR, 2 RBI, BB); Brooks Lee (1-for-4, 2B, R); Dean Kremer (W, 3-5, 5.0 IP, 5 H, 2 ER, 3 SO).
• DET: Kevin McGonigle (2-for-4, HR, 2 RBI); Zach McKinstry (1-for-3, R).