Ryan wins for 7th time in 8 decisions, Clemens hits 9th homer and Twins beat Mariners 2-0

MINNEAPOLIS, MN — Joe Ryan delivered another strong outing, Kody Clemens belted his ninth home run, and Willi Castro drove in the go-ahead run as the Minnesota Twins snapped a five-game losing streak with a 2-0 win over the Seattle Mariners on Wednesday night.

Ryan (8-3) was dominant, allowing just three hits over six shutout innings, striking out eight without issuing a walk. It was his seventh win in his last eight decisions and marked the ninth time in 15 starts this season that he’s allowed one run or fewer. The victory also ended Minnesota’s six-game home skid — their longest at Target Field since an eight-game slide in 2016.

Minnesota’s bullpen was lights out, as Louis Varland, Griffin Jax, and Jhoan Duran combined for three hitless innings of relief. Duran, topping out at 100 mph, retired the side in the ninth for his 11th save in 13 chances.

The game’s first run came in the sixth inning when Byron Buxton singled off Seattle starter George Kirby (1-4), advanced on a groundout, and scored on a clutch RBI single from Castro. Clemens added insurance in the seventh, launching a solo homer off reliever Eduard Bazardo.

Kirby pitched well despite the loss, allowing just one run and three hits over six innings for the Mariners, who had entered the night on a three-game win streak.

Seattle’s best scoring chance came in the sixth when Julio Rodríguez reached on an infield single. But Ryan fanned home run leader Cal Raleigh and induced a double play from former Twin Jorge Polanco to escape the jam.

The Mariners, who began the day ranked third in the majors with 105 home runs, had hit 14 during the first five games of their 10-game road trip. Raleigh alone had contributed 32 of them — nearly 30% of the team’s total.

Up next:
The four-game series wraps up Thursday with Seattle’s Emerson Hancock (3-3, 5.43 ERA) set to face Minnesota’s Simeon Woods Richardson (2-4, 5.06 ERA).