HOUSTON -- The Twins left Houston in frustrating fashion after getting swept in a three-game set, but their first game with a new collective mentality yielded some positive results in the 6-3 loss to the Astros.
After Wednesday’s defeat, the Twins were in a five-game skid that left the club a season-high four games behind first-place Cleveland in the AL Central. In hopes of avoiding a sixth consecutive loss, manager Rocco Baldelli held a team meeting to lay out the new mindset: Minimizing anxiety and focusing on the game itself, or, as was written on the clubhouse whiteboard pregame on Thursday, a "no [expletive]" mentality.
Baldelli emphasized playing "the freest baseball that we can," and though Minnesota lost Thursday's game (and was swept by Houston in the season series, six games to none), the club didn't lose any ground in the Central as both Cleveland and Chicago lost their games. What's more, there were signs of steps in the right direction.
"There’s not a lot to reconcile, as we saw a lot of good things," Baldelli said of the team's effort in the finale. "There were glimpses of things we would rather see than what we’ve seen lately, but we need to put it all together."
The Twins' recent struggles start with the offense, which has posted a .176 average and scored 12 runs through these six games. The lack of run production comes from the struggles of sluggers like Carlos Correa -- who went 1-for-11 against the Astros -- but also their lack of power, as Jorge Polanco's first-inning blast on Thursday ended a five-game homerless drought -- the team's longest such drought since 2014.
"Sending a player up there with a clear mind is really the goal every step up to the plate," Baldelli said. "When you do struggle as a collective group sometimes, it's very hard to clear your mind and just go out there and see the ball and hit the ball."
The offense applied that new approach, and the benefits were shown early with Polanco's first-inning homer. The rest of the team continued to be aggressive at the plate, showing progress in the box but still only managing to score three runs and failing to cash in on a few key opportunities.
"In the end, us players have to have each other’s back regardless of results," outfielder Max Kepler said. "Adversity is going to be inevitable in this game, so we just need to stay positive and give it our best shot."
One area that continues to face adversity and needs to turn things around is the starting rotation, which has thrown just 25 1/3 innings in its last seven games and has thrown the fewest innings in the Majors since the All-Star break (141 2/3 IP).
Thursday’s starter, Chris Archer, has had an ongoing issue going deep into games. He has yet to record an out in the sixth inning this season, and the Twins have struggled in his last seven starts, during which he's posted a 6.90 ERA.
The Astros jumped on Archer right away, scoring a run on a double play off the bat of Yordan Alvarez. Archer had a chance to escape the first inning with the game knotted at 1-1, but a three-run homer by Trey Mancini punctuated the rough start.
Houston forced Archer to throw 31 pitches in that inning, wiping out any chance of Archer going deep and causing him further issues later on, ultimately being tagged for five earned runs on eight hits in four innings.
Despite the Twins' slump, the club should have a chance to control its own destiny in the division, with nine games left against the White Sox and eight more against the Guardians.
Time will tell if the Twins' new approach will pay off, but the series did leave a strong impression on Astros manager Dusty Baker nonetheless.
"Those guys, if they get healthy, Minnesota's going to be tough," Baker said. "They've got like six guys coming out of that bullpen throwing 95-102. They've got some good arms over there. I'm just glad we caught them kind of down offensively."