MINNEAPOLIS -- In a season that has already thrown so much at them, the Twins¡¯ Tuesday night game against the Mets threatened to be the worst of the year so far. Then something unusual happened: they won.
Minnesota lost two key players due to injury, but held on for a badly needed 6-3 win against the Mets that was one of the team¡¯s most complete showings of the season. There was certainly concern in the clubhouse for shortstop Carlos Correa, who experienced left wrist discomfort, and outfielder Matt Wallner, who suffered left hamstring tightness. But there was also plenty of good feelings about overcoming the injuries and pulling out the victory.
¡°I think we just picked those guys up,¡± said outfielder Byron Buxton, who singled twice, stole a base and scored two runs --- including one on an athletic slide on a contact play. ¡°Obviously, seeing them go down, especially in that situation -- Wally first inning and Correa late in the game -- it¡¯s just one of those things where we try to push that line down to make sure we¡¯re picking each other up. Tonight was a perfect example of us making sure we¡¯ve got each other¡¯s backs.¡±
The Twins won¡¯t know how long they¡¯ll be without Correa and Wallner until Wednesday, when both are expected to get MRIs. The team has an early afternoon game Wednesday, then an off-day Thursday before a brief one-series road trip to Atlanta. So even if one or both players heads to the injured list, it¡¯s possible no transactions would happen before Friday.
Wallner felt tightness in his left hamstring while running out an infield hit in the first inning and was immediately removed from the game. Four innings later, Correa suffered left wrist soreness and was also pulled.
Correa fouled off a pitch, then shook his left hand before reaching for it. He removed his batting glove as he winced, and after a brief conference with manager Rocco Baldelli and athletic trainer Masa Abe, he walked off before he could complete the at-bat.
He said that he has been dealing with some level of wrist discomfort dating back to 2024, and that he spent much of the spring working to strengthen the joint.
¡°The wrist is something I¡¯ve been working on since spring,¡± Correa said. ¡°Just strengthening it, and I just felt a tweak on the swing and miss and then when I hit the foul ball, I felt pain in the area. But [I¡¯ll] get it checked out, get an MRI tomorrow. It shouldn't be anything too serious.¡±
Correa has been off to a slow start at the plate, but he has remained a key defender and had an RBI single earlier in Tuesday's game. Wallner, meanwhile, has been the Twins¡¯ best hitter in the early going, boasting a .263/.373/.474 line while starting every game either in the outfield or at designated hitter.
With two outs in the bottom of the first, the slugger hit a slow roller to the left side that was fielded by New York third baseman Mark Vientos. He beat out Vientos¡¯ throw for a single, but felt something amiss as he ran out the ball.
¡°Just tight,¡± Wallner said. ¡°It¡¯s not painful, so that¡¯s good, I guess. I really don¡¯t know because I¡¯ve never done anything similar to that, so I can¡¯t say anything really.¡±
DaShawn Keirsey Jr. replaced Wallner in the game, while Brooks Lee replaced Correa. Lee lined out in the at-bat where he replaced Correa, then homered two innings later. Keirsey added a single for his first hit of the year.
¡°Beautiful, beautiful,¡± Correa said. ¡°Brooks, both at-bats, incredible. And then Keirsey comes in and he looks good out there. It¡¯s a good team. We¡¯ve just got to keep piling these wins, piling these good ABs and take off from there.¡±