Red Sox's 10-run ninth inning demolishes Twins 17-6

Normally mild-mannered Joe Mauer was far from that in the bottom of the eighth inning Sunday, when he had a spirited conversation with plate umpire Dan Iassonga about a borderline strike call.

"I'm still a little fired up about it now," Mauer said. "I like Dan. He's a good umpire. I just thought he missed it right there. It was a big situation to miss on."

How big? The Twins failed to complete their second game-tying rally — and the Red Sox then turned a one-run game into a 17-6 laugher at Target Field by scoring 10 runs in the ninth inning.

The game hardly turned into the anticipated pitchers' duel betwen the Twins' Ervin Santana and Boston's Chris Sale, who entered with the best and third-best ERA in the majors. Both starters had their troubles, and the outcome remained up in the air in the eighth inning, when the Twins scored twice to make it 7-6.

With Chris Gimenez on third base and one out, Boston brought in closer Craig Kimbrel, and Mauer pinch hit for Byron Buxton to face the five-time All-Star for the first time.

Mauer fell behind 1-2 but worked the count full. Kimbrel's eighth pitch to Mauer was a breaking ball.

"I saw it right out of his hand," Mauer said. "It wasn't even close. I went back and looked at it. I thought it was a pretty bad pitch."

Iassonga signaled strike three. As many among the announced crowd of 31,763 booed, Mauer complained at length.

Replays showed the pitch being off the plate. Kimbrel added fuel to Mauer's fire, saying: "I thought I got a favorable call there."

The impact of Iassonga's call was substantial. If Mauer walks, the lead run is on base and Kimbrel is in a real jam with one out. Instead, there were two outs and Max Kepler, who pinch hit for Ehire Adrianza, was overpowered by Kimbrel on three pitches to end the inning with Gimenez stranded on third.

Twins manager Paul Molitor would have had Brandon Kintzler pitch the ninth with the score tied. That would have kept Matt Belisle in the bullpen … and probably would have kept Boston from sending 16 batters to the plate in the inning.

The Red Sox scored 10 runs off Belisle and Justin Haley in the ninth — the most runs the Twins have given up in an inning since Oakland scored 10 fourth-inning runs Sept. 11, 2013. That sealed the Twins' second loss of the three-game series and ended their homestand 3-3.

The marquee matchup between Santana and Sale was not as spectacular as hoped. Santana (5-1) gave up two home runs in the first inning to put the Twins in a 3-0 hole, and he tied a career high by giving up four homers in the game.

Sale (3-2) struck out seven of his first nine hitters, but the Twins scored four fifth-inning runs on three singles, two walks, a hit batter and two sacrifice flies to tie the score 4-4.

Santana took the mound for the sixth and but gave up a two-run homer for Sandy Leon — he hit another in the ninth — as Boston look the lead for good.

The Mauer-Kimbrel matchup ended up being the Twins' last stand. "Joe had a heck of an at-bat," Molitor said. "One of those borderline pitches that looks high from the side. [Iassonga] had it on the plate and he [rang] him. So there is not much you can do about that."