Twins fall to Athletics for seventh loss in 10 games

Bobby Nightengale, The Minnesota Star Tribune on Aug 19, 2025

Published in Baseball

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MINNEAPOLIS — Joe Ryan removed his cap and ran his right hand through his hair as he trotted off the mound after a 39-pitch fourth inning Tuesday, in which three unearned runs scored, and then he sat on the dugout bench for the next several minutes reviewing his pitches on an iPad.

There haven’t been many moments this season when Ryan didn’t look in complete command.

Ryan was charged with giving up two earned runs in four innings. The Twins didn’t play clean defense behind him, but he wasn’t at his sharpest during a 6-3 loss to the Athletics at Target Field. It was the first time Ryan failed to complete at least five innings all year.

The Twins have lost seven of their last 10 games.

The fourth inning started with three plays that could’ve been made. Tyler Soderstrom hit a ground-ball to shortstop on the first pitch of the inning, but Brooks Lee’s throw after he fielded the ball to his backhand pulled first baseman Kody Clemens off the bag.

Lawrence Butler, the next batter, followed with a one-hop rocket that spun off second baseman Luke Keaschall and bounced all the way to right field for a double. With two runners in scoring position and no outs, Ryan induced a slow ground-ball against Darell Hernaiz in a 10-pitch at-bat, but Clemens dropped a throw from third baseman Royce Lewis for an error.

Ryan, backed into a bases-loaded, no-out jam without a ball leaving the infield, struck out JJ Bleday on three pitches. Next up, Brett Harris lofted a fly-ball into shallow right field. Keaschall caught the ball about six steps into the outfield, but Soderstrom opted to test his arm (Keaschall had Tommy John surgery on his right elbow last year and broke his right forearm this year).

Soderstrom, not known for his speed, beat Keaschall’s throw to the plate, scoring a run on a sacrifice fly to the second baseman.

The fourth inning snowballed further when Ryan surrendered an RBI single to Luis Urías, a line drive to right field, and Nick Kurtz added an RBI double into the right field corner. Kurtz, who reached base in all five of his plate appearances, is the current leader to win the American League Rookie of the Year award.

If a three-run fourth inning could be chalked up to a rough defensive inning, Ryan cost himself in the third. After retiring eight consecutive batters, Ryan issued a four-pitch walk to Kurtz with two outs. Shea Langeliers bashed Ryan’s next pitch, an inside sinker, to the metal bleachers in left field for a two-run homer.

Ryan permitted six hits, matching his second-highest total in a start this season. It was just the second time in Ryan’s last 10 starts that he gave up more than two runs, raising his season’s ERA to 2.77 through 143 innings.

A’s lefty starter Jacob Lopez hadn’t allowed a run in his previous four starts, but his streak ended quickly. Lee reached on an error and Matt Wallner followed with a two-out RBI double that dropped in front of a diving center fielder.

Down by four runs in the fourth inning, Lee drilled an opposite-field, solo homer to right field off Lopez. Lee, who has 13 homers this season, has an extra-base hit in five consecutive games.

Ryan Jeffers launched a solo homer with two outs in the fifth inning, and the Twins brought the tying run to the plate in the eighth. After back-to-back hits from Trevor Larnach and Keaschall — Larnach legged out an infield hit — Lewis skied an infield popup to end the threat.

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