A great way to finish the first half. While technically the final game of the first half of the season was Game 81, most statistics that show first-half and second-half splits are actually referring to pre-All-Star break and post-All-Star break.

Friday's ninth-inning comeback may or may not be a major turning point of the season, but it certainly was in this important four-game series and really for the season series with the Tigers. Going into the bottom of the ninth inning Friday, the Tigers had outscored the Twins 10-3 with the Twins having very few scoring opportunities. Including that ninth inning and the final two games of the series, the Twins outscored the Tigers 23-6. The Tigers had won 8 of the first 10 meetings prior to the Twins winning the last three.

I've been more optimistic than most (hard to believe, right?) about the Twins' surprising play in the first half not because I thought this team was better than most thought but because I felt like this team was just going to get better as the season went on due to replacing ineffective players with more talented prospects and/or young players gaining experience. We're really starting to see this young talent start having a big impact.

Sunday was a great example with all four extra-base hits and 7 of the team's 9 hits coming from players age 25 or younger. Miguel Sano (22) got things going with a two-run first-inning home run. The more I watch this kid hit, the more I think he's going to be very special. He's been racking up the strikeouts lately, but he's shown a wonderful blend of patience and the ability to crush the ball to all fields. He has two home runs in his first 11 games, but it could easily be 4 as he hit two balls inches from the top of the wall in Kansas City and Target Field in areas where it would easily be home runs in just about any other ballpark. Even when the rest of the lineup is hitting well, I keep thinking let's just extend this inning to get to Sano.

Danny Santana (24) added a double and a triple (which would have been two triples if Eric Fryer wasn't running in front of him on the double). Santana has looked like the Santana of 2014 since getting that big hit against Joakim Soria on Friday. Santana of 2014 might not ever return, but it wouldn't be too difficult to imagine him being a league average shortstop offensively.

Eddie Rosario (23) had a triple and a single. He's picked it up this series after a little bit of a slump. He's had a decent start to his career, but his 47-8 K-BB ratio is concerning. I'm a little worried he'll be Santana 2.0. We keep hearing about Rosario's quick hands, but we kept hearing the same thing last year with Santana. So far, Rosario has been a slightly below-average hitter, but he's offset that with better than average defense. If his offense drops, however, it would be a problem.

Fortunately, the Twins will options in the outfield once Byron Buxton returns (assuming he only rehabs and doesn't get optioned to AAA when healthy) because Aaron Hicks (25) is making it look like he's starting to figure this thing out. Not only does he look like he's taking better at-bats, he's starting to get his numbers up as well. Hicks has never hit for much average. His strengths have always been a nice combination of patience and power to go with good athleticism. In Hicks' first 10 games this season, he had 10 strikeouts and just 1 walk and his OPS was just .480. I was worried at one point this season that he had adjusted his approach at the plate so much that he had abandoned his biggest strength: his patience at the plate. However, since May 24, he has 11 walks and 10 strikeouts and is batting .271/.354/.440 for a .795 OPS, which doesn't include him going 2-for-3 with a walk in Sunday's game, which was his sixth consecutive game with a walk. Prior to Sunday's game, Hicks was batting .286/.400/.643 in July.

If Buxton does return to reclaim center field, I hope Molitor will recognize the improvement of Hicks and give him plenty of playing time in the corner outfield spots and in center when Buxton needs a break. I dream of someday having an outfield of Hicks in left, Buxton in center and Rosario in right, but I know they won't sit Torii Hunter on a consistent basis anytime soon. I just really hope that Hicks' improved play isn't overlooked because of a silly thing like batting average.