Kepler belts 3 HRs to back Berrios in win over Tribe
CLEVELAND -- The Twins continued their success against the American League Central-leading Indians on Monday night, as right fielder Max Kepler put on a stellar performance with three of Minnesota's five home runs in a 12-5 win in the series opener at Progressive Field.All three of Kepler's homers were two-run
CLEVELAND -- The Twins continued their success against the American League Central-leading Indians on Monday night, as right fielder
All three of Kepler's homers were two-run shots. He hit one in the first, third and sixth to log the fifth three-homer game in Twins history. It was the first since
"I'm not a home run hitter, so it's rare," Kepler said. "I'm just trying to hit singles. I'm just trying to put the ball in play and hit it hard. I'm thankful for the backspin I was blessed with."
Minnesota starter
• Berrios bounces back early, attacks zone
Tribe starter
"He obviously doesn't look like himself the last couple games," Indians manager Terry Francona said. "So what we're going to do is we're going to get him looked at tomorrow, mostly, I hope, just for his peace of mind. Hopefully, nothing, and then we can move forward, and I think Danny can relax a little bit, and if there's a need to look at it further, we can."
MOMENTS THAT MATTERED
Max power: Kepler put on a historic performance against the Indians by crushing three homers that went a combined 1,234 feet, per Statcast™. He also became the fourth player this season to hit three homers at least 400 feet. It marked the second multi-homer game of Kepler's young career, as he also hit two against the Rangers on July 2. He has firmly established himself in the mix for the American League Rookie of the Year Award. Kepler came up with two late chances to hit a fourth homer, but he grounded out to first against newly acquired
"It's historic in the sense that you don't see three home runs all the time, and he's just one of a handful of Twins to do it," Twins manager Paul Molitor said. "It's fun to watch. He does a really nice job as far as his swing being on a downward plane and getting that backspin. Those balls are basically line drives that went really far and weren't lifted." More >
Homers haunt Salazar: Salazar's struggles continued with the long ball on Monday. The 26-year-old hurler coughed up three home runs for the first time in his career. But it has been a trending issue for Salazar. He has allowed seven homers over his last five starts after allowing just six through his first 15 nods. This has led to a 8.84 ERA over his past four starts. Prior to that, the AL All-Star posted a 2.36 ERA.
"It's bad for me and for the team," Salazar said. "I think the sooner we [find out what it is], then the sooner we'll get through this. I know if I keep pitching like this, I'd be doing damage for the team." More >
Mauer power: Kepler's three homers overshadowed his performance, but
"I think we were all hoping Joe is getting into a little of a run," Molitor said. "He's been tweaking a few things, trying to find a rhythm. Tonight was a good sign."
Chisen-wall: The Indians called on
"I thought Lonnie was really active out there," Francona said. "Even the ball he didn't get, he went all out. I like when he plays that way because when he's aggressive out there, he's one of the better outfielders around."
QUOTABLE
"It's definitely an honor to be added to that list. Those guys are almost legend status." -- Kepler, on joining Morneau, Bob Allison (1963), Harmon Killebrew (1963) and Tony Oliva (1973) as the only Twins players with a three-homer game
SOUND SMART WITH YOUR FRIENDS
Kepler never hit more than 10 homers in any Minor League season, but he leads the Majors with 11 homers since July 1. His 14 long balls also pace all American League rookies.
MILLER MAKES DEBUT
Newly acquired Miller made his Indians debut in the eighth inning with his new team trailing, 10-3. The former Yankees lefty hadn't pitched since Tuesday, contributing to the decision to insert him into the lopsided affair. Miller was greeted with a standing ovation as he jogged from the bullpen. He surrendered a solo shot to Mauer and then got Kepler to ground out before exiting the game in his brief outing. More >
UPON FURTHER REVIEW
Dozier led off the game with a single to center. During Mauer's at-bat, Dozier attempted to swipe second base and was initially awarded the bag as he appeared to have avoided the tag from Cleveland shortstop
WHAT'S NEXT
Twins: Right-hander
Indians: Right-hander
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Shane Jackson is a reporter for MLB.com based in Cleveland and covered the Indians on Monday.
Rhett Bollinger has covered the Twins for MLB.com since 2011. Read his blog, **Bollinger Beat, follow him on Twitter [@RhettBollinger](https://twitter.com/RhettBollinger)** and listen to his podcast.