As the Minnesota twins take on the Kansas City Royals just got done seeing the first place Guardians as the twins won the first two. Guardians won the last 2, 3.5 games back are the twins and here come the Royals in town for three, only four games behind the twins and the Guardians in the A L central standings. And on the mound tonight for the Twins morning is Pablo Lopez going to come out and hopefully improve off of his last start. He's the table setter for Bobby Wood Junior and he swings and misses and down. He goes on strikes for the first out of the ball game. Another big game for Bobby on Saturday RB I triple and an RB I single over the last couple of innings. The pitch breaking ball deep to left field. Nick turns around looks up, it's gone. Third row bleachers. Bobby Junior continues his tear. It's a first inning homer and two batters into the game. The Royals lead the twins one nothing and right into the hands of a Royals fan. A Royals fan wearing a Bobby Witt Junior jersey, Lopez kicks and delivers and a swinging foul tip into the glove and down goes Perez out on strikes and the inning is done a run on the hit , a home run from who else? Bobby with Junior. And now the twins back for the first time will Castro leads off Trevor nick on deck, Royce Lewis in the hole against Brady Singer kicks and delivers slider, swung on and missed strike three. Got Castro way out in front. So it's one up, one down, one strikeout for Brady Singer tonight. Slider foul tipped in his mid, popped out. Salvy runs nick up the first base line and that completes the put out and Brady Singer got back to back strikeouts to begin the bottom of the first inning. Roy has never faced singer. He has only played in two games against the Royals have weekly third base Garcia charging glove on the run and not in time. So Lewis hustling up the line beat the throw from Garcia and matt saying no challenge we play on. Here's the pitch sinker over the outer half called strike three. Walner is down looking Brady Singer strikes out three in the bottom of the first. All of them batting left handed. Catcher's interference. That's a, that's a costly error. And boy, instead of a strikeout , you've got Melendez at first base swing and Miss by Renfroe, he's down on strikes. So that's out number 1 to 2 to the left side of the diamond picked up by Lewis flips to Mart-n at second base, they get the force out and that's it. Frazier stops it. Second, Garcia is on at first and the Royals have runners on 1st and 2nd with two outs. And now kyle Isbell bats fastball hit on the ground to the right side. Mart-n dives it's past him into right field. A base hit Frazier races around third. He's in to score standing. Garcia goes first to third and kyle Isbell delivers a two out RB I single. The Royals double their lead. It's two nothing in the top of the second in saves. This time, the 12 pitch to shallow left center and nick will make the play and the inning is over. Here's the 02 to Kepler swung on and missed strike three sweeper down and in was a half hearted swing from Kepler. Not a full swing. That's four K's for singer. Six batters into his evening twins have their second hit first to reach the outfield. And there are two on here for AustinMart-n. Mart-n. That line to right that will land and Santana is going to try to score. The throw is cut off by past Pitino Mart-n back to first base. Santana is in and the twins now trail by 12 out RB I single from the rookie austin Mart-n here in the second. Now it's Willie Castro, a swing and a drive to right field and deep Beckett goes deep. It goes and gone Willie Castro, a two out go ahead three run homer and the Twins surge in front here at target field. It's four, two. Roy Lewis trying to make singer pay and the pitch swung on and hit high in the air. Deep left field, Melendez can only watch it. It's gone off the facing of the second deck. Roy Lewis rings the bell and the twins lead it 6 to 215 for Lewis and Willie Castro happy to give him that purple Fedora fifth straight two out hit in an amazing second inning one ball. One strike. Lopez watch three strikeouts hasn't walked anybody. Melendez ground ball up. The middle is going to be field by Castro behind the bag strong arm as Melendez bang bang at first base hustling down the line good job. And now Lopez, he says I can do it too. Two down, swung on a miss got him. Nice job Lopez three up, three down on a roll. Stay hot. He's at third base with two outs for Bobby Wood Junior breaking ball inside, hit on the elbow and he's now down on a knee just to the left of the righty batter's box and Kyle Turner comes out of the dugout. So does Maro that was a fastball at 95 miles an hour that came inside. It looked like it might have gotten him flush on the elbow guard that he wears. So 1st and 3rd with two outs for Vinny Pascu Andino softly to center Buxton in Buxton gets there. So the Royals, a couple of base runners do not score. Twins have a 62 lead as we start the sixth. The Rocco Baldelli has his lineup card in his hand. He came out and chatted with home plate umpire Ryan Wills and Byron Buxton is no longer in this game and well Margo takes over is now in center and a pitch swung a miss on a bender strikeout number five. And the payoff pitch in a breaking ball is lined in the right center. A base hit MJ around first. He's going for second Margo, the new center fielder on it in right center and the second standing up is MJ Mele with the 17 double on the year and J still at second base now with two down and Frazier will bat for a third time and a swing and a ground ball into right field. A base hit here comes MJ around third, he'll come home and he is safe out of the throw and it's an RB I base hit by Frazier and the Royals are within three at six to three. And here's the pitch, ground ball shortstop Castro too hot strong throw to retire garcia. The Royals add one here in the top half of the sixth inning, Rocco ball deli shaking hands with Pablo Lopez. Always the image that tells us that the night is over for the starter. 96 pitches six innings, three runs, two earned no walks and struck out five. Here's austin Mart-n, their number nine hitter, the rookie and that's hit well to left field. Melendez is at the wall leaping and he got it pretty good drive off of Martin's bat. Didn't quite get under it. He not happy but MJ, another nice play on defense. 45 steps back to the wall. Look up, where are you? He knows where the wall is by looking down, he knows exactly where he is on that track nicely. It looked like Bobby was thinking about two off the bat and he just wasn't able to secure it in his glove. He had to go pretty far to his left, but it trickled out of his glove and so everybody's safe laning to second Lewis to first base. A rare defensive miscue by Witte and now Walner in the right center field drops it for a base hit. Nick takes the turn. The throw from Renfroe will be cut larn scores standing. Matt Walner an RB I single and there's the extra point twins lead 73. He picks up the big RB I and Margo Skies one to center field Lewis is at third. He will tag Isbel makes the catch. Royce is headed down the ch he will score. That's a professional at bat and a sack. Fly RB I 83 twins, Scott. It comes on to make his twins debut and like a lot of players , scott wasn't ready to hang things last year. So we went overseas and spent the season playing in Taiwan. He said it was really beneficial old school baseball over there. There's not a lot of technology. You almost have to be your own coach with a lot of self evaluation with that said Splitters are a big pitch over there. So he learned how to throw one and the Splitter Erases Isbell, there's his first strikeout as a twin. So two up two down for Blewitt and Michael Massey carries the Royals final out. 22 popped up. This should do it, man. He's there, man. He's got it. The twins take game one of this critical three game set with the Royals. They say 3.5 back of the front running Guardians while the Royals 12, 5 games off the pace.