Usually the number 13 is looked upon in negative terms, an unlucky number often skipped by hotels in their elevator floor listings.
In the case of the Minnesota Twins, I’m rather appreciating the number 13. This number is the amount of consecutive wins the team posted from May 3 to May 17.
Before this streak, the team sat in fourth place with a 13-20 record in what was proving to be a competitive American League Central division, one of the strongest in the league based on records, led by the current MLB-best Detroit Tigers.
After that streak, the Twins’ record stood at 26-20, putting the team in a heat for second in the division with the Cleveland Guardians and Kansas City Royals. Over this streak, the team outscored its opponents by a 68-29 margin.
Beyond the numbers, by the eye test, the team was playing better all-around baseball – with the bats, on the pitching rubber, and out in the field. It’s a far cry from the group that started 7-15, having not won more than two straight games at that time. Before this streak, I honestly wondered if the team would lose 100 games.
Baseball seasons should never be considered sprints, but instead marathons. With that said, we should be careful to judge a team right away or put too much emphasis into a team’s short-term play. The Twins did use a short sprint though to get itself back into the marathon.
Where this sprint takes the team, I don’t know. Last season, the team won 12 straight earlier in the year to also turn around at that time a losing season. That same season, they also stumbled the last month and a half to lose its grip on what was once solid playoff positioning. So, who knows?
As of June 2, the team sits third in the AL Central with a 31-27 record and, knock on wood, is a healthy group. I’m not quite as superstitious as some baseball fans, but do still have a little bit of a superstitious streak. With that said, I hope that health comment doesn’t come back and bite me.
I did have the privilege of sitting down the first base line for a Twins home game versus the San Francisco Giants on Mother’s Day. While there, I had the chance to see a first for me – a walk-off win. It put the Twins’ record at 21-20, the first time the team had a winning record so far this season.
It was a day this die-hard Twins fan will remember forever. As I stood up and watched the Twins celebrate the 7-6 walk-off victory – win number eight during the 13-game streak – I couldn’t help but think, “Finally, I’m now watching some Twins baseball.”