The Baltimore Orioles<\/a> have clinched home-field advantage for the Wild Card Round after a 7\u20132 victory over the Minnesota Twins<\/a> Friday at Target Field in Minneapolis. The Twins loss eliminates them from playoff contention and puts the Kansas City Royals<\/a>, losers in Atlanta Friday night, into the final AL playoff spot. Earlier Friday evening, the Detroit Tigers<\/a> clinched the second AL Wild Card spot with a 4\u20131 victory over the woeful Chicago White Sox<\/a>.<\/p>\n The Orioles jumped out to a 2\u20130 lead in the top of the second on a no-doubt two-run homer to right field by designated hitter Ryan O\u2019Hearn<\/strong><\/a>. Twins starting pitcher Pablo Lopez<\/a><\/strong> pitched a scoreless third, fourth, and fifth before getting into a bases-loaded, two-out jam in the top of the sixth. Reliever Caleb Thielbar<\/a><\/strong> pitched the Twins out of the inning by getting Gunnar Henderson<\/a><\/strong> to ground into a side-retiring force play at second.<\/p>\n Orioles first baseman Colton Cowser<\/a><\/strong> extended the lead to 3\u20130 with a towering solo home run down the right-field line off Thielbar in the top of the seventh. The Orioles made it 7\u20130 with four runs in the top of the eighth, all off Twins reliever Kody Funderburk<\/a><\/strong>. A bases-loaded Ramon Urias<\/a><\/strong> single plated the fourth run, and the fifth run scored when Henderson followed with a sacrifice fly to center. Jordan Westburg<\/a><\/strong>, up next, made it 6\u20130 when a comebacker deflected off Funderburk, whose only play was to first as the run scored from third. Anthony Santander<\/a><\/strong> followed with a single to center, scoring Urias from second for the Orioles\u2019 seventh and final run.<\/p>\n The Twins scored two consolation runs in the bottom of the ninth off Seranthony Dominguez<\/a><\/strong> on a two-run single to right by Carlos Santana<\/a><\/strong> to complete the scoring.<\/p>\n Byron Buxton<\/a><\/strong> went 2-for-4 with two doubles and a run scored.<\/p>\n Santana went 1-for-4, with his ninth inning single giving the Twins their only RBI of the night.<\/p>\n Lopez allowed two runs, both earned, on six hits across 5 2\/3 innings. He walked three and struck out eight, pitching to within one out of a Quality Start.<\/p>\n The Twins\u2019 offense struggled its way to only seven baserunners. They had no answer for rookie Orioles starting pitcher Cade Povich<\/a><\/strong>, managing only two hits and a walk off the southpaw. An eighth-inning walk off Danny Coulombe<\/a><\/strong> gave them their fourth baserunner, with the rest coming in the bottom of the ninth off Dominguez.<\/p>\n Kody Funderburk got shelled in the eighth inning, allowing four runs on five hits.<\/p>\n The Orioles jumped out to an early lead and kept piling on. They managed 12 hits on the evening. Only three were for extra bases, but it did not matter. Additionally, the Orioles avoided grounding into any double plays. They also batted .333 (3-for-9) with runners in scoring position.<\/p>\n As mentioned earlier, Cade Povich pitched effectively, allowing no runs on two hits across 5 2\/3 innings, walking one and striking out two.<\/p>\n The Orioles left nine men on base, meaning that their 7\u20132 victory could have been a blowout.<\/p>\n Friday\u2019s game was the capstone of a large collapse for the Twins. At the end of play on August 17, they were 70\u201353, 17 games over .500 and in playoff position. Since then, they have gone 12\u201325, the third-worst record in the American League over that stretch. Only the Los Angeles Angels<\/a> and Chicago White Sox have a worse record \u2014 and 2024 has been the worst season in franchise history for both.<\/p>\n The Orioles are in the playoffs for the second straight year after missing six in a row. Additionally, they are only three years removed from a 52\u2013110 campaign. \u2026 This is the first set of back-to-back playoff appearances for the Orioles since the 1996 and 1997 campaigns. Both years, they fell in the ALCS, doing so in five games to the New York Yankees<\/a> in \u201996 and six games to the then-Cleveland Indians<\/a> in \u201997.<\/p>\n Povich (3\u20139) earned the win, with Lopez (15\u201310) taking the loss.<\/p>\n The Orioles (89\u201371) and Twins (82\u201378) will play the second game of their three-game series Saturday evening. Rookie right-hander Zebby Matthews<\/a><\/strong> (1\u20133, 5.71 ERA) will start for the Twins. The Orioles have yet to announce their starting pitcher. First pitch will be at 6:15 pm Central Time at Target Field.<\/p>\nOrioles \u2013 Twins Game Summary<\/h3>\n
What Went Right for the Twins<\/h3>\n
What Went Wrong for the Twins<\/h3>\n
Punchless Offense<\/h4>\n
Rough Outing for Funderburk<\/h4>\n
What Went Right for the Orioles<\/h3>\n
Relentless Offense<\/h4>\n
Starting Pitching<\/h4>\n
What Went Wrong for the Orioles<\/h3>\n
Quick Hits<\/h3>\n
Looking Ahead<\/h3>\n
Main Photo:<\/h4>\n