TORONTO -- Brooks Lee and Trevor Larnach provided the spark, and the Twins kept showing their lefty-heavy lineup can handle a tough early run of southpaw starters.
After falling behind by two runs early, Minnesota erupted in the third inning, with Lee right in the middle of it again. Batting right-handed against Blue Jays lefty Eric Lauer, the switch-hitting shortstop opened the rally with a solo homer to left field, setting the tone for a 7-4 win at Rogers Centre.
There was plenty to like about the performance, especially given the matchups Minnesota has drawn to open the season. The Twins lean heavily left-handed -- they carried five lefty bats on the roster Saturday -- and entered the day having logged 208 at-bats against left-handed pitching this year, more than any team in baseball.
Lee has, in some ways, been preparing for a stretch like this his whole life. As a youngster, Lee’s father, Larry, a longtime college baseball coach, instilled the importance of switch-hitting. This way, no matter who his son faced, he’d have the matchup advantage.
“He’s just the smartest baseball brain I know,” Lee said of his dad.
Switch-hitting is an especially difficult skill to master, Lee said. And the mid-game side switch? That’s even harder.
“If you get two at-bats left-handed, and then you face a left-handed reliever, it feels like you just swung for the first time,” Lee said with a smile.
Right now, Lee is using this lefty-heavy stretch to get comfy with consistent right-handed cuts. He finished 2-for-4 and has become an important part of Minnesota’s approach during this stretch. He delivered a key hit Thursday, launched his first homer of the season Friday and went deep again Saturday.
“It's been nice,” Lee said. “We've been doing a good job on offense. More opportunities, more chances to get a hit.”
From there, the Twins kept the pressure on, finishing the inning with seven runs. Following Lee’s blast, Minnesota strung together two walks and three singles against Lauer before Larnach delivered the decisive blow.
Larnach turned on a high fastball and sent it soaring over the right-field wall for a game-breaking three-run homer, his first of the season. In a matter of moments, the Twins had flipped the game with the kind of patient, powerful inning that has helped them weather this challenging stretch.
Saturday marked the ninth time in 15 games the Twins faced a left-handed starter. Grinding out quality at-bats in those spots has been an important part of their 8-7 start amid a stiff early season schedule.
Larnach, in particular, could become an X-factor in games like these. As manager Derek Shelton pointed out, only five of Larnach’s 53 career homers have come against left-handed pitching.
If Larnach keeps slugging, he could see more playing time -- regardless of who’s pitching.
“When you perform, you get more opportunities,” Shelton said.
The Twins’ explosive third inning gave Joe Ryan all the support he needed. The right-hander surrendered an early two-run home run to Daulton Varsho, but bounced back quickly and yielded just one hit the rest of the way over seven innings.
Ryan picked up his second win of the season and gave credit to catcher Ryan Jeffers for helping tweak the pitching plan as the outing unfolded.
“Jeffers did a really good job just communicating between pitches, setting up well,” Ryan said. “We had a really good plan and just good options to go back and forth on, too.”
And those adjustments -- on offense and defense -- have become an early theme for Minnesota. However the matchup looks on paper, the Twins keep showing they can adjust and still find a path through it.