MINNEAPOLIS — The Twins scratched Nelson Cruz with a non-COVID illness before Tuesday’s series opener against the Red Sox — and they sure missed his big right-handed bat.
Fortunately for the Twins, reinforcements will soon be on the way when Josh Donaldson makes his impending return to the lineup following his recovery from a right hamstring strain and Cruz recovers from his illness. That added power should help Minnesota pack more of a punch than it did when it dropped its third straight game in a 4-2 loss to the Red Sox on a chilly Tuesday at Target Field.
Cruz was originally in the starting lineup against left-hander Martín Pérez as part of the Twins’ customary right-handed stack atop the order against southpaws, but he was scratched less than an hour before the game and replaced in the batting order by the left-handed Jake Cave.
It was a particularly big loss considering Cruz carried a career .935 OPS against Boston into the matchup and also had the third-best slugging percentage in the American League, at .926. He also carried a seven-game hitting streak and a team-leading 10 RBIs into Tuesday.
The Twins had plenty of those opportunities for RBIs throughout Tuesday’s contest, putting runners on base in every inning but the ninth and stranding 10 baserunners in all, but they couldn’t punch through. Minnesota finished the game 0-for-8 with runners in scoring position and only plated runs in the first inning on a sacrifice fly and an RBI fielder’s choice.
It didn’t help that the temperature of 33 degrees at first pitch at Target Field matched the third-coldest home game measured in Twins history, and a continuous dusting of blowing flurries made for an almost snow globe-like atmosphere at the ballpark for the first five innings.