Tag Archives: 2003 rewind

Keeping Track

2003 Rewind: Game Eighty-five

MINNESOTA 9, CLEVELAND 2 IN MINNESOTA

Date:  Friday, July 4.

Batting stars:  Cristian Guzman was 2-for-4 with two doubles and two RBIs.  Justin Morneau was 1-for-4 with a two-run homer, his third.  Corey Koskie was 1-for-4 with a home run (his thirteenth), a walk, and three RBIs.

Pitching star:  Rick Reed pitched seven innings, giving up one run on six hits and a walk and striking out five.

Opposition stars:  Coco Crisp was 2-for-4.  Alex Herrera pitched two shutout innings, giving up a walk.

The game:  The Twins offense provided the Fourth of July fireworks.  In the second, Torii Hunter singled and Morneau hit a two-run homer.  The Indians got one back in the third when Milton Bradley walked and scored from first on a double by Jody Gerut.  But the Twins scored two more in the bottom of the third Doug Mientkiewicz walked and Koskie hit a two-run homer.

The offense continued in the fourth.  Dustan Mohr walked, Guzman doubled, and Luis Rivas hit a two-run single.  Singles by Bobby Kielty and Mientkiewicz loaded the bases, and an infield out made the score 7-1.  They added two more in the fifth.  Mohr walked, A. J. Pierzynski singled, and Guzman hit a two-run double to put the Twins lead at 9-1.

That was pretty much it.  Cleveland tacked on a run in the eighth but never threatened to get back into the game.

WP:  Reed (4-8).  LP:  Jason Davis (7-7).  S:  None.

Notes:  Mohr was again in left field in place of Jacque Jones.  Kielty was in right and Morneau was the DH.

Lew Ford pinch-hit for Hunter in the third and stayed in the game in center field.  A couple of balls were hit to center in the prior half-inning--perhaps Hunter tweaked something.  He would be back in the lineup the next day.  Tom Prince pinch-hit for Pierzynski in the seventh and stayed in the game to catch.

Ford was 0-for-2 and was batting .319.  Koskie was batting .304.

By game scores, this was Reed's best game in nearly two months.

Indians players in this game who had Twins connections include Matt Lawton, Casey Blake, and Terry Mulholland.

Alex Herrera had come up on July 1.  This was his third game.  He had an ERA of zero through four innings.  He would be unscored upon in his next four appearances.  He would then give up seven runs in 1.1 innings in his next three appearances, be sent to the minors, and would never make it back to the big leagues again.  He was only twenty-three.  He would play in the minors through 2006 and played in a variety of foreign leagues, both summer and winter, through 2015.

The Twins' victory broke a four-game losing streak.

Record:  The Twins were 44-41, in second place in the American League Central, 2.5 games behind Kansas City.  They were just two games ahead of third-place Chicago.

Keeping Track

2003 Rewind: Game Eighty-four

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CLEVELAND 4, MINNESOTA 1 IN MINNESOTA

Date:  Thursday, July 3.

Batting star:  Matthew LeCroy was 2-for-4 with a home run, his eighth.

Pitching star:  Kenny Rogers pitched 6.2 innings, giving up three runs on six hits and four walks and striking out three.

Opposition stars:  C. C. Sabathia pitched a complete game, giving up one run on four hits and one walk and striking out five.  Shane Spencer was 2-for-4 with two RBIs.  Coco Crisp was 2-for-5 with a stolen base (his fifth) and two runs.  Jody Gerut was 1-for-4 with a home run, his ninth.

The game:  Crisp led off the game with a bunt single and scored from first on Milton Bradley's double to give the Indians a 1-0 lead.  The Twins put men on second and third with one out in the second, but a strikeout and a ground out ended the inning.  In the third, ex-Twin Matt Lawton and Bradley drew two-out walks and Spencer singled home a run to make it 2-0.

Crisp scored again in the fifth.  He had a one-out single, stole second, and scored on Spencer's single to make it 3-0.  The Twins put two on with two out in the fifth, but again could do nothing with it.  In the eighth, Gerut hit a leadoff home run to increase the lead to 4-0.

The Twins did not threaten to get back into the game.  Their lone run came on LeCroy's home run with one out in the ninth, but all that did was spoil Sabathia's shutout.

WP:  Sabathia (8-3).  LP:  Rogers (7-4).  S:  None.

Notes:  The Twins used their B lineup against Sabathia, if that's any consolation.  Tom Prince was behind the plate in place of A. J. Pierzynski.  LeCroy was at first base in place of Doug Mientkiewicz.  Dustan Mohr was again in left and Bobby Kielty in right, with Jacque Jones still out.  Lew Ford was in center field, with Torii Hunter as DH.

Ford was 0-for-3 to drop his average to .333.  Corey Koskie was 1-for-3 and was batting .305.

Grant Balfour made his season debut with the Twins in this game, striking out five in 2.1 innings.  He gave up one run on two hits and a walk.  It was not his major league debut--he had appeared in two games in 2001.  He was not a good pitcher for the Twins, but he would become one in 2008 with Tampa Bay and would make the all-star team with Oakland in 2013.  He didn't have his first good season until he was thirty--I guess he's an example of "sometimes it takes guys a while to figure it out."

Sabathia had 38 complete games in his career.  Ten of them came in 2008, and seven of them came in the half-season he pitched for Milwaukee.

The Twins had now lost four in a row and six of eight.  They were starting to be in danger of dropping below .500.  They were also in danger of dropping to third place.

Record:  The Twins were 43-31, in second place in the American League Central, 2.5 games behind Kansas City.  They were just one game ahead of third-place Chicago.

Keeping Track

2003 Rewind: Game Eighty-three

CHICAGO 8, MINNESOTA 6 IN CHICAGO (12 INNINGS)

Date:  Wednesday, July 2.

Batting stars:  Bobby Kielty was 4-for-5 with two doubles, a walk, and a stolen base, his fifth.  Torii Hunter was 3-for-6 with a home run (his twelfth) and three RBIs.  Justin Morneau was 2-for-6.

Pitching stars:  Johan Santana struck out two in two perfect innings.  LaTroy Hawkins pitched two perfect innings and struck out one.  J. C. Romero pitched a scoreless inning despite giving up two hits and a walk.

Opposition stars:  Frank Thomas was 2-for-5 with two home runs (his nineteenth and twentieth), a walk, and four RBIs.  Brian Daubach was 1-for-3 with a two-run homer (his fourth) and a walk.  Paul Konerko was 1-for-4 with a home run, his fourth.  Damaso Marte pitched two shutout innings, giving up two hits and striking out one.  Tom Gordon struck out two in two shutout innings, giving up one hit.

The game:  The Twins scored two in the first when Kielty led off with a walk and Hunter hit a two-out two-run homer.  Kielty started another two-run rally in the third with a single.  He scored on a double by Doug Mientkiewicz, who in turn scored on Morneau's single to give the Twins a 4-0 lead.

It didn't last long.  In the bottom of the third Jose Valentin drew a two-out walk and Thomas homered to make it 4-2.  In the fourth Carlos Lee singled and Daubach followed with a two-run homer to tie it 4-4.  The White Sox struck again in the fifth.  Valentin singled, went to second on a wild pitch, and scored on a Magglio Ordonez double to give Chicago their first lead at 5-4.

The Twins tied it in the seventh, and again it was Kielty getting things started, this time with a double.  Hunter brought him home with a two-out single and it was 5-5.  It stayed there through nine, and we had extra innings.

The White Sox loaded the bases with one out in the tenth, but a double play ended the inning.  The Twins took a 6-5 lead in the eleventh when Luis Rivas hit a two-out triple and scored on Kielty's single, but Chicago tied it in the bottom of the eleventh on a pinch-hit two-out home run by Konerko.  With two out in the twelfth, Thomas hit a walkoff two-run homer.

WP:  Billy Koch (5-4).  LP:  Eddie Guardado (1-3).  S:  None.

Notes:  Denny Hocking was at shortstop in place of Cristian Guzman.  Dustan Mohr was again in left field in place of Jacque Jones, with Kielty in right.  Morneau was the DH.

Guzman entered the game in the eighth.  He went to short, with Hocking moving to first base and Mientkiewicz leaving the game.  The only reason I can think of that you'd do that is an injury or illness to Mientkiewicz.  He would miss the next day's game, but be back in the lineup after that.

Corey Koskie was 1-for-6 and was batting .305.

Kyle Lohse started and pitched five innings, allowing five runs on six hits and three walks.  He did strike out six.  Santana lowered his ERA to 2.43.  Hawkins went down to 1.70.

Konerko apparently had some sort of minor injury that he was dealing with.  He hadn't played since June 28 and would not play again until July 6.  Whatever it was, it apparently didn't affect his swing.

Dan Wright started for Chicago.  He pitched four innings, giving up four runs on eight hits and a walk and striking out one.  This was the third of his four major league seasons.  His career record was 20-26, 5.65, 1.53 WHIP.  He appeared in 70 games, 64 of them starts.  He had been jumped from AA, and it really didn't work very well.  He did have a couple of short stints in AAA in 2003 and 2004 and didn't get much accomplished.  It may have hurt him that he was rushed to the majors, or it may be that he simply wasn't good enough, and wouldn't have been no matter how he was handled.

The White Sox swept the series, words that we never like to write.  They would come home to play Cleveland for a four-game series next.

Record:  The Twins were 43-40, in second place in the American League Central, 1.5 games behind Kansas City.  They were only 1.5 games ahead of third-place Chicago.

Keeping Track

2003 Rewind: Game Eighty-two

CHICAGO 6, MINNESOTA 1 IN CHICAGO

Date:  Tuesday, July 1.

Batting stars:  Cristian Guzman was 2-for-4 with a double.  Matthew LeCroy was 1-for-4 with a home run, his seventh.

PItching stars:  J. C. Romero struck out three in a perfect inning.

Opposition stars:  Mark Buehrle pitched eight innings, giving up one run on eight hits and no walks and striking out five.  Frank Thomas was 2-for-4 with a home run (his eighteenth), a double, and three RBIs.  Brian Daubach was 2-for-4 with a home run, his third.  Sandy Alomar was 1-for-3 with a home run, his second.

The game:  Willie Harris led off the game with a single and Thomas hit a one-out two-run homer in the first inning.  With two out Daubach hit a home run to make it 3-0 White Sox after one.  Alomar homered in the second to make it 4-0.

The Twins opened the third with a pair of singles, but a double play took them out of the inning.  Neither team really threatened after that until the sixth, when ground-rule doubles by Magglio Ordonez and Joe Crede increased the Chicago lead to 5-0.  Thomas doubled home a run in the seventh to make it 6-0.

The Twins got their lone run in the ninth when LeCroy led off with a home run.

WP:  Buehrle (6-10).  LP:  Brad Radke (5-8).  S:  None.

Notes:  Dustan Mohr was in left field in place of Jacque Jones.  Bobby Kielty was in right.  Jones would not return to the lineup until July 17.

Corey Koskie was 1-for-4 and was batting .308.

As often happened, Radke did well after the first inning.  Still, his line was 5.2 innings, five runs, eight hits, no walks, and five strikeouts.  His ERA went up to 5.76.

Johan Santana allowed a run in 1.1 innings to raise his ERA to 2.51.

This was the second time in five days Buehrle had shut down the Twins.  After scoring ten runs off him in 3.1 innings on May 16, the Twins had managed just two runs in 17 innings.

Radke's ERA in the first inning in 2003 was 6.00.  Overall it was 4.49.  For his career, his ERA in the first inning was 5.05.  Overall it was 4.22.

Record:  The Twins were 43-39, in second place in the American League Central, a half game behind Kansas City.

Keeping Track

2003 Rewind: Game Eighty-one

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CHICAGO 10, MINNESOTA 3 IN CHICAGO

Date:  Monday, June 30.

Batting stars:  A. J. Pierzynski was 3-for-4 with a home run (his ninth) and two runs.  Bobby Kielty was 1-for-3 with a home run (his ninth) and a walk.

Pitching star:  Juan Rincon pitched 4.1 innings, giving up one run on one hit and two walks and striking out one.

Opposition stars:   Magglio Ordonez was 2-for-3 with two home runs (his thirteenth and fourteenth), a walk, and three RBIs.  Jose Valentin was 2-for-4 with a two-run homer, his twelfth.  Willie Harris was 2-for-5 with a triple.  Carlos Lee was 1-for-3 with a home run (his thirteenth), a walk, and three runs.  Joe Crede was 1-for-4 with a two-run homer, his seventh.  Jon Garland struck out seven in seven innings, giving up two runs on five hits and two walks.

The game:  It got late early, as they say.  Harris led off the bottom of the first with a triple and scored on an Aaron Rowand single.  Crede hit a two-run homer in the second.  In the third Rowand walked and scored on a Frank Thomas double.  Ordonez followed with a two-run homer.  After an error, Valentin hit a two-run homer, making the score 8-0 White Sox.

There's not a lot to say after that.  The Twins got on the board in the seventh on back-to-back homers by Kielty and Pierzynski.  In the eighth Ordonez and Lee homered.  The Twins got one more in the ninth when Pierzynski singled and scored on a Lew Ford double.  And that was that.

WP  Garland (6-6).  LP:  Joe Mays (8-5).  S:  None.

Notes:  Ford was 1-for-3 and was batting .357.  Corey Koskie was 1-for-3 and was batting .309.  Doug Mientkiewicz was 0-for-2 and was batting .302.  Jacque Jones was 1-for-2 to get back up to .300.

Mays lasted just 2.1 innings, allowing eight runs (seven earned) on six hits and striking out two.  His ERA was 6.30.

Micheal Nakamura gave up a run in 1.1 innings.  His ERA went to 7.82.  He had been with the Twins for 22 games and had appeared in 12 of them.  He then would be sent down to AAA and would not return the rest of the season.  He went from being used every day to being in Rochester in a big hurry.

Eight of the ten Chicago runs were scored on homers.  Two of the three Twins runs were scored on homers.

This was Rincon's second-longest appearance of the season.  He had gone five innings on April 6, his first game of the season.  He had six other games in which he pitched three innings or more.

We are now half-way through the 2003 season.  Kansas City was swept in a doubleheader, so despite getting beaten badly the Twins moved into first place.

Record:  The Twins were 43-38, in first place in the American League Central, a half game ahead of Kansas City.

Keeping Track

2003 Rewind: Game Seventy-nine

MINNESOTA 5, MILWAUKEE 2 IN MINNESOTA

Date:  Saturday, June 28.

Batting stars:  Torii Hunter was 3-for-4 with a home run (his eleventh), a stolen base (his third), two runs, and two RBIs.  Corey Koskie was 2-for-4 with a home run, his twelfth.  Doug Mientkiewicz was 2-for-4.

Pitching stars:  Kenny Rogers struck out six in six innings, giving up one run on six hits and two walks.  LaTroy Hawkins pitched a scoreless inning, giving up a hit and striking out one.  Eddie Guardado pitched a perfect inning.

Opposition stars:  Scott Podsednik was 2-for-4 with two RBIs.  Keith Ginter was 2-for-4.

The game:  The Brewers put men on first and second with none out in the second but did not score.  It cost them, as the Twins got two in the bottom of the second.  Hunter led off with a home run, Mientkiewicz singled, Bobby Kielty walked, and Luis Rivas had an RBI single to make it 2-0 Twins.

It stayed 2-0 until the fifth, when Eddie Perez doubled and scored on a two-out single by Podsednik to cut the lead in half at 2-1.  The Twins got the run back in the bottom of the fifth when Koskie homered to make it 3-1.

Milwaukee opened the sixth with consecutive singles but did not score.  In the seventh, however, Eric Young doubled and scored on Podsednik's two-out single to again cut the lead to one run at 3-2.  In the seventh, however, the Twins used the stolen base to score twice.  Cristian Guzman singled, stole second and third, and scored on Hunter's single.  Hunter then stole second and scored on a Mientkiewicz single, making the score 5-2.

That pretty much iced the game.  The Brewers got a single in the eighth but never brought the tying run up to bat.

WP:  Rogers (7-3).  LP:  Dave Burba (0-1).  S:  Guardado (20).

Notes:  Matthew LeCroy was behind the plate in place of A. J. Pierzynski.  Kielty was in right field.  Justin Morneau was the DH.

Lew Ford pinch-hit for Morneau in the seventh.  Tom Prince replaced LeCroy behind the plate in the eighth.

Ford was 0-for-1 and was batting .353.  Koskie raised his average to .314.  Mientkiewicz went up to .307.

Hawkins lowered his ERA to 1.83.  Guardado went down to 2.76.

Burba was apparently injured at the start of the season, as this was his first game of 2003.  He would make only two starts, although he would appear in fifteen games in relief.  He pitched 5.2 innings, giving up three runs on nine hits and a walk and striking out three.

It seems like every time I do a Twins/Brewers game Scott Podsednik plays a key role, making me wonder if he was a Twins killer.  Not really.  For his career he batted .285/.328/.381, not bad numbers but nearly identical to his career numbers generally.  In 2003, however, he batted .440/.500/.600 against the Twins, so he was certainly a Twins killer that season.

Record:  The Twins were 42-37, in second place in the American League Central, one game behind Kansas City.

Keeping Track

2003 Rewind: Game Seventy-eight

MILWAUKEE 13, MINNESOTA 1 IN MINNESOTA

Date:  Friday, June 27.

Batting stars:  Jacque Jones was 2-for-3.  Doug Mientkiewicz was 2-for-4.

Pitching stars:  None.

Opposition stars:  Matt Kinney pitched a complete game, giving up one run on eight hits and one walk and striking out four.  Royce Clayton was 3-for-4 with a double and two runs.  Richie Sexson was 3-for-5 with a home run (his twenty-second), two runs, and five RBIs.  Scott Podsednik was 3-for-5 with two doubles, a walk, two runs, and two RBIs.  John Vander Wal was 2-for-4 with a two-run homer (his eighth), a double, a walk, two runs, and two RBIs.  Eddie Perez was 2-for-5 with a home run (his eighth) and two runs.  Brooks Kieschnick was 2-for-5 with a home run (his fourth) and two RBIs.  Eric Young was 2-for-5.

The game:  The Brewers didn't have one big inning, but scored two runs five times and three runs once.  It was scoreless until the rhid, when Podsednik hit a two-run double.  Kieschnick's two-run single-plus-error made it 4-0 in the fourth.  Vander Wal hit a two-run homer in the fifth to make it 6-0.

The Twins got on the board in the sixth when Corey Koskie and Torii Hunter doubled.  But Sexson hit a three-run homer in the seventh to bring the score to 9-1.  Sexson struck again in the eighth, with a two-run single that increased the lead to 11-1.  Kieschnick and Perez hit back-to-back homers in the ninth to make it 13-1.

WP:  Kinney (6-6).  LP:  Kyle Lohse (6-6).  S:  None.

Notes:  Denny Hocking was at second base in place of Luis Rivas.  Morneau was the DH.

With a blowout, the Twins made several substitutions.  Tom Prince replaced A. J. Pierzynski behind the plate in the eighth.  Lew Ford replaced Hunter in center field in the eighth.  Bobby Kielty pinch-hit for Jones in the eighth and remained in the game in right field, with Dustan Mohr moving to left.  Matthew LeCroy pinch-hit for Koskie in the eighth and went to first base, with Mientkiewicz moving to third.

Ford was 0-for-1 and was batting .364.  Koskie was 1-for-3 and was batting .311.  Mientkiewicz was batting .303.  Jones was batting .302.

Johan Santana allowed three runs in 1.1 innings to raise his ERA to 2.51.

Lohse pitched five innings, allowing six runs (five earned) on eight hits and a walk and striking out four.

Kinney, of course, is an ex-Twin.  This was the only time he had a full year as a member of a starting rotation.  He was 10-13, 5.19, 1.47 WHIP.  He was too much for the Twins on this day, though.  As with Mark Buehrle yesterday, the Twins had beaten him up the last time they faced him (6.1 innings, 6 runs), but they couldn't do it a second time.  They would not face him again this season.

Record:  The Twins were 41-37, in second place in the American League Central, two games behind Kansas City.

Keeping Track

2003 Rewind: Game Seventy-seven

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CHICAGO 5, MINNESOTA 1 IN MINNESOTA

Date:  Thursday, June 26.

Batting star:  Corey Koskie was 2-for-4 with a double.

Pitching star:  Micheal Nakamura pitched a scoreless inning, giving up one hit.

Opposition stars:  Mark Buehrle struck out nine in a complete game, giving up one run on five hits and two walks.  Jose Valentin was 2-for-3 with a triple, a double, and two RBIs.

The game:  With two out in the third Sandy Alomar singled and scored from first on a D'Angelo Jimenez double.  Aaron Rowand followed with a run-scoring single and it was 2-0 White Sox.  In the sixth, Magglio Ordonez and Brian Daubach singled, and Valentin circled the bases on a double-plus-error, making the score 5-0.

Meanwhile the Twins were doing next to nothing on offense.  Through eight innings they had three hits and did not advance a man past first base.  They avoided the shutout in the ninth when Denny Hocking led off with a single and scored from first on Koskie's double.  The next three batters went out and the game was over.

WP:  Buehrle (5-10).  LP:  Brad Radke (5-7).  S:  None.

Notes:  Matthew LeCroy was behind the plate in place of A. J. Pierzynski.  Hocking was at short in place of Cristian Guzman.  Bobby Kielty was the DH.  There were no in-game lineup substitutions.

Koskie raised his average to .311.  Mientkiewicz was 0-for-3 and was at an even .300.  Jacque Jones was 0-for-4 and fell under .300 at .299.

Radke pitched eight innings but allowed five runs (four earned) on seven hits.  He walked none and struck out two.  His ERA came down to 5.64.

By game scores, this was Buehrle's best game of the season, narrowly beating eight shutout innings in his second start of the year.  The Twins had beaten up on him the last time they saw him, on May 16 (10 runs, 9 earned, in 3.1 innings), but he got his revenge here.  That's baseball.

Record:  The Twins were 41-36, in second place in the American League Central, one game behind Kansas City.

Keeping Track

2003 Rewind: Game Seventy-six

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MINNESOTA 6, CHICAGO 5 IN MINNESOTA (11 INNINGS)

Date:  Wednesday, June 25.

Batting stars:  Jacque Jones was 3-for-6 with a home run (his tenth), a double, and three RBIs.  Dustan Mohr was 2-for-3 with two walks.  Corey Koskie was 2-for-4 with a double and a walk.

Pitching stars:  Juan Rincon pitched 3.1 scoreless innings, giving up two hits and a walk and striking out two.  Johan Santana struck out two in 1.2 scoreless innings, giving up three hits.  LaTroy Hawkins struck out four in 1.2 scoreless innings, giving up two hits and a walk.  Eddie Guardado pitched a perfect inning and struck out one.

Opposition stars:  Joe Crede was 2-for-5.  Frank Thomas was 2-for-5.  D'Angelo Jimenez was 2-for-6.  Jose Valentin was 1-for-5 with a three-run homer, his tenth.  Damaso Marte pitched 2.1 scoreless innings, giving up a hit and a walk and striking out one.  Tom Gordon struck out three in two shutout innings, giving up a hit and two walks.

The game:  The Twins loaded the bases with one out in the first on two singles and a walk, but could only score one on a sacrifice fly.  The 1-0 lead held up until the fourth.  Two singles and a walk loaded the bases for the White Sox with none out, and they did a lot more with the situation.  Brian Daubach singled home a run, another run scored on a ground out, and Valentin hit a three-run homer, making the score 5-1 Chicago.

The Twins got one back in the fourth when Torii Hunter reached on an error and scored on an A. J. Pierzynski double.  They then tied it with three in the sixth.  Doug Mientkiewicz hit a one-out triple and scored on Mohr's single.  Luis Rivas singled with two out and Jones delivered a two-run double to make the score 5-5.

The White Sox put two on with two out in the seventh and loaded the bases with one out in the ninth, and the Twins loaded the bases with two out in the tenth, but the score remained tied until the eleventh.  With one out Jones put an end to things with a walkoff home run.

WP:  Guardado (1-2).  LP:  Billy Koch (2-4).  S:  None.

Notes:  Justin Morneau was the DH.  Bobby Kielty pinch-hit for Rivas in the eleventh.

Koskie raised his average to .308.  Mientkiewicz was 1-for-5 and was batting .304.  Jones raised his average to .303.  Morneau was 1-for-5 and was batting .302.

Joe Mays started for the Twins.  He did well for three innings, but his line was 3.1 innings, five runs, six hits, a walk, and zero strikeouts.  His ERA went up to 5.77.  Santana's ERA went down to 2.09.  Hawkins was at 1.88 and Guardado went to 2.84.

Record:  The Twins were 41-35, in second place in the American League Central, two percentage points behind Kansas City.

Keeping Track

2003 Rewind: Game Seventy-five

CHICAGO 2, MINNESOTA 1 IN MINNESOTA

Date:  Tuesday, June 24.

Batting stars:  Denny Hocking was 2-for-2 with a double and a walk.  Corey Koskie was 2-for-4.

Pitching stars:  Rick Reed pitched seven innings, giving up two runs and six hits and two walks and striking out six.  J. C. Romero struck out two in a scoreless inning, giving up a walk.  LaTroy Hawkins struck out two in a scoreless inning, giving up two hits.

Opposition stars:  Esteban Loaiza pitched eight innings, giving up an unearned run on six hits and one walk and striking out six.  Carlos Lee was 2-for-4 with a double.

The game:  The White Sox put men on first and second with one out in the first, but a line drive double play took them out of the inning.  Brian Daubach led off the second with a double and scored on Lee's single to put Chicago ahead 1-0.

Neither team did much then until the sixth, when Miguel Olivo led off with a double.  He was still on second with two out, but Frank Thomas singled him home to make it 2-0 White Sox.

Loaiza pretty much stifled the Twins offense.  They did not put two men on in an inning until the eighth, when Bobby Kielty led off with a single and Hocking drew a one-out walk.  At that they might not have scored, but a forceout-plus-error brought Kielty home.  The Twins had the tying run on second with two out, but a ground out ended the inning.  They went down in order in the ninth.

WP:  Loaiza (11-2).  LP:  Reed (3-8).  S:  Billy Koch (11).

Notes:  Hocking was at second base in place of Luis Rivas.  Kielty was in right field, with Justin Morneau at DH.

Morneau was 0-for-4 and was batting .316.  Doug Mientkiewicz was 1-for-3 and was batting .306.  Koskie was batting .305.  Jacque Jones was 0-for-4 and dropped below .300 at .299.

Hocking had a five-game hitting streak over which he was 9-for-16.  He raised his average nearly a hundred points, from .167 to .265.

A. J. Pierzynski was on an 0-for-9 streak, dropping his average from .300 to .288.

Hawkins lowered his ERA to 1.96.

This was by far Loaiza's best season.  He went 21-9, 2.90, 1.11 WHIP and led the league in strikeouts.  He made the first of two all-star teams and finished second in Cy Young voting to Roy Halladay.  His next highest win total was 12, in 2005, and he only got his ERA below four one other time, also in 2012 (3.77).  I don't know what happened to him in 2003, or if it was just luck, but whatever it was, he couldn't do it again.

Record:  The Twins were 40-35, in second place in the American League Central, one percentage point behind Kansas City.