It was worth the wait for the Minnesota Twins as they beat the Detroit Tiger 8-6 after weathering a 90-minute rain delay before the first pitch. Once the game started the Twins slugged three home runs to hold on for their fifth-straight win and second against the Tigers in the four-game series between the teams.
Third baseman Trevor Plouffe came up big for the Twins at the plate and in the field, belting his19th home run of the season to cap off the 5-run third inning for Minnesota. Later with the Twins holding a one-run lead in the bottom of the seventh inning, Plouffe snagged a hard line drive from Detroit's Miguel Cabrerra and then doubled off Quintin Berry at first base.
The game went back and forth early and after the Twins scored five runs in the top of the third to chase Detroit starter Duane Below from the game, the Tigers roared back to tie the game at 6-6 with a three-run fourth inning fueled by a solo shot from Boesch and a two-run homer by center fielder Austin Jackson.
Eventually, though a Ryan Doumit sac fly would score the winning run for the Twins while Joe Mauer smacked his 18th home run of the season to lead off the ninth and add a little insurance.
Minnesota reliever Jeff Gray moved his record to 5-0 after earning the win, while closer Glen Perkins shut down the Tigers for his fourth save of the season. Reliever Brayan Villareal (3-2) was tagged with the loss for the Tigers.The two teams continue their four-game series on Wednesday night at 7:05 p.m. ET.
For more on the Tigers, head over to Bless You Boys. For more on the Twins, check out Twinkie Town. And for more MLB news and analysis, visit Baseball Nation.