Twins finish .500 road trip by getting knocked around by Athletics in 14-3 loss

Phil Miller, Star Tribune on Jun 5, 2025

Published in Baseball

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WEST SACRAMENTO, Calif. — The Twins’ 11-day, 10-game coast-to-coast marathon road trip didn’t tire the players at all, manager Rocco Baldelli said before Thursday’s finale at Sutter Health Park, because they had dominated the Athletics for three straight days.

“When you win some games toward the latter half of the trip,” Baldelli explained, “it energizes guys and you power through some of the days in a really good frame of mind.”

Imagine how exhausted the Twins must feel now.

David Festa gave up eight runs in fewer than four innings, Jorge Alcala surrendered a grand slam, and infielder Jonah Bride pitched the final two innings. The Twins allowed a season-high number of runs, a season-high number of hits and a season-high number of home runs, allowing the A’s to snap their eight-game losing streak with a 14-3 rout of Minnesota.

The Twins finished the road trip, which included seven games in minor league parks, with a 5-5 record.

Festa, activated a couple of hours before his fourth start for the Twins this year, wasn’t the same pitcher who sported a 1.38 ERA entering the game. He fell behind 2-0 to four batters in the first inning, and that quartet produced a single, a walk, a run-scoring single and a 410-foot three-run homer by Max Muncy. He got through a scoreless second inning with no trouble, but gave up home runs to Jacob Wilson and Tyler Soderstrom in the third to fall behind 7-0.

When Festa walked Lawrence Butler — only the third batter he’s faced three times in his four starts this year — with two outs in the fourth, Baldelli replaced him with Alcala.

Things quickly got worse. Wilson singled and Rooker walked to load the bases, and Soderstrom followed with another long home run.

The Twins got a solo home run from Matt Wallner, and added two runs in the seventh on an RBI double by Ty France and a run-scoring single by Brooks Lee.