BOSTON -- Hours before producing a spectacular game-ending play, Eddie Rosario was talking about defense. He was complimenting teammate Jorge Polanco, noting how the shortstop in particular is tasked with playing impeccably in the field.
Fast forward to the bottom of the ninth inning on Thursday night at Fenway Park, and all eyes were on the outfield. Left field, to be exact, where it was Rosario making a head-turning defensive play to clinch a 2-1 victory for the Twins over the Red Sox and a series win.
“I think I did everything perfect,” Rosario said.
The Twins took a one-run lead in the seventh inning thanks to a Willians Astudillo pinch-hit, bases-loaded RBI. The Red Sox, who are vying for a postseason berth like the Twins, threatened to rally in the bottom of the ninth.
With Rafael Devers on first, J.D. Martinez smacked a 341-foot double off the Green Monster against Twins closer Taylor Rogers. It was a shot that could have tied the game if Rosario misplayed it, but instead, he smoothly maneuvered the play with plenty of time to nab a sliding Devers at home.
“I think when I saw the ball on the wall, I’m thinking I am the only chance to get this guy at home plate,” Rosario said. “I want to try to [make] a good throw. I want to focus to finish the game.”
Devers said he went “full speed” and thought he had a chance to tie the game. Not against Rosario, though, who recorded his seventh outfield assist of the season, tied with Marwin Gonzalez for most on the Twins.
"I had to wait and let the play develop,” Red Sox third-base coach Carlos Febles said. “Rosario was playing in the left-center gap. Ball hits off the wall. I know Raffy’s coming hot. Now he has to make a decision: Throw it to the plate from there or hit the cutoff man. He came up and made a perfect throw to the plate."
“Perfect” was also the term Twins manager Rocco Baldelli used to describe the final play. Rosario had already set a new career high this series with his 28th home run of the season, and on Thursday, he was making just as much of an impact on the defensive end.
“He’s not scared of anything,” Baldelli said. “There’s a lot of things happening at once, but when those moments come up, Eddie is looking for greatness. It doesn’t mean that you’re always going to get the job done. No one does. No one does that, but he’s prepared to do anything he has to do in those moments where if he’s at bat, he might sell out on some pitches. He’s not going to be afraid and hedge. He’s not hedging in any way, whether he’s taking swings or making a play like he made tonight out there in left field.”
The Twins could have been facing a different late-game scenario if not for another stellar defensive play two innings earlier. Jake Cave's diving catch in center field stopped Christian Vazquez from doing damage with one out in the seventh. Cave ran 56 feet in 3.6 seconds to convert a play with a 25-percent catch probability, according to Statcast. His jump on the play covered 8 1/2 feet above average.
“When it was first hit, I remember I wanted to get to it so I could cut it off so it wouldn’t be a double,” Cave said. “Then as I was getting there, I realized I had a chance. To me, that’s when you make the best plays, when you’re not really anticipating having to dive for something and it just kind of happens.”
It was not one, but two plays in the outfield on Thursday that helped the Twins seal a successful 8-2 road trip. The fact they were executed in Fenway Park stood out to Baldelli, who played for the Red Sox.
“I think this is the most difficult outfield to play in baseball,” he said. “None that I've seen is even close. And there's an awkwardness to the entire field. The way you grew up playing baseball doesn't apply when you walk out onto Fenway Park outfield.”
With the victory, the Twins improved to 34 games above .500 and have a 6 1/2-game lead over the Indians in the American League Central. They had not won eight games on a road trip since 1996.
“It was a wonderful trip all the way around,” said Baldelli.