Correa rallies Twins over Yankees 4-3
Carlos Correa homered for the second straight game and hit a go-ahead, two-run double in the eighth inning off Clay Holmes as the Minnesota Twins rallied to beat the New York Yankees 4-3 on Friday night.
Correa homered in the sixth off Nestor Cortes and helped the Twins overcome a 3-2 deficit in the eighth, dealing the Yankees their first consecutive losses this season. After winning its first four series, New York can at best split four games against the Twins.
Anthony Volpe led off of the game with his first big league homer and Aaron Judge hit his fifth of the season on the next pitch. Giancarlo Stanton homered for a 3-1 lead in the sixth, but the Yankees lost for just the third time when Judge and Stanton homered together.
Michael A. Taylor singled to start the eighth off Holmes (0-1), brought in to pitch the eighth against right-handed batters at the top of the order rather than in the ninth. Byron Buxton walked, and Correa followed by lining a sinker down the right-field line.
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“That’s one of the best sinkers you’re going to see in baseball, and we took advantage of the control issues,” Buxton said.
Correa had his second multi-RBI game since returning to the Twins during the offseason after failing physicals with the New York Mets and San Francisco.
Correa heard boos before each at-bat and homered for the fourth straight game against the Yankees and got his 22nd career hit to give his team a lead in the eighth or later. He also is hitting .387 (12 for 31) in his past eight games against the Yankees.
“It’s a baseball atmosphere,” Correa said. “Fans know the game. They know every player’s name. They know their families. They know their wives. They know everything about the sport. To me that’s what I grew up loving about this game.”
Emilio Pagán (1-0) pitched a perfect seventh for the Twins, who romped 11-2 Thursday, and Jhoan Duran got his fourth save. The Yankees’ previous losses when Judge and Stanton homered were in the 2021 Field of Dreams game and last Oct. 4, when Judge hit his 62d homer.
On the second straight warm night that felt more like midsummer than April, Volpe at 21 years, 351 days became the third-youngest Yankee to hit a leadoff home run, according to the Elias Sports Bureau. Volpe also became the first Yankee whose first career homer came leading off since Bobby Richardson on July 25, 1959 at Detroit.
“It was pretty neat from what I remember,” Volpe said of the reaction from his teammates. “I was pretty blacked out. It was cool.
The ball was caught by 30-year-old Marvin Castillo of Brooklyn, who was sitting in row 5 of section 136 with his wife Andrea. Castillo gave the ball back to Volpe and was working out an exchange.
“I did see it coming,” Castillo said. “Obviously, I didn’t think it was going to land that close to me. It was just there, and I naturally just jumped on it.”
Judge followed with a 404-foot drive into New York’s bullpen. Judge has five homers in his first 14 games after hitting three in his first 14 games during his record-breaking 62-homer season.
It was the 12th time the Yankees opened with consecutive homers, the first since DJ LeMahieu and Judge at Toronto on June 25, 2019.
Kyle Garlick homered in the seventh inning for the Twins, who won for the fourth time in the last 20 regular-season games in the Bronx.
“This was a tremendous character win for our team,” Minnesota manager Rocco Baldelli said.
Cortes allowed two runs and five hits in seven innings. Pitching with bubble gum images on his cleats, Cortes allowed two runs or fewer for the ninth straight start, matching the longest streak by a Yankees starter.
Louie Varland, who allowed Judge’s 55th homer in his major league debut Sept. 7 in New York, pitched in place of a fatigued Kenta Maeda.
Varland was supposed to fly in Thursday but his flight from Indianapolis where Triple-A St. Paul played was canceled and he flew in early Friday morning. The Minnesota native allowed three runs and six hits in six innings.
Trainer’s room
Twins: RHP Cole Sands was optioned to St. Paul to make room for Varland.
Yankees: LeMahieu (quadriceps), who last played Tuesday in Cleveland, was in the on-deck circle in the ninth and could return Saturday. ... RHP Carlos Rodón (forearm strain) threw again at the minor league facility in Tampa, Florida. He will throw a two-inning bullpen Sunday or Monday and could progress to facing hitters. … RHP Greg Weissert was recalled from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes Barre and RHP Colten Brewer was designated for assignment.
Up next
Minnesota RHP Tyler Mahle (1-1, 4.09 ERA) opposes New York RHP Domingo Germán (0-1, 5.87) Saturday.