Joe Ryan, Bailey Ober roughed up while Twins shut out by Guardians in both ends of doubleheader

On Fan Appreciation Weekend at Target Field, the final home series of the season, the Twins treated Saturday crowds to some history.

The Twins, facing the hottest team in baseball, were shut out in both ends of Saturday’s doubleheader, steamrolled 6-0 in the afternoon and 8-0 in the nightcap against a Cleveland Guardians team that seemingly can’t be stopped from chugging back into the playoff race.

It was just the second time in team history the Twins were shut out in both games of a nine-inning doubleheader. The last time, coincidentally against Cleveland, came on May 21, 1961, at Metropolitan Stadium, the first year the Twins played in Minnesota. They were also shut out in a doubleheader, a set of seven-inning games because of COVID restrictions, at Oakland on April 20, 2021.

“A tough day at the ballpark is what it is,” manager Rocco Baldelli said.

Cleveland has won 10 consecutive games and shaved a 12½-game deficit to Detroit in the American League Central standings to one game in 26 days.

The Twins, meanwhile, were shut out for the 11th and 12th times this year. They’ve lost 15 of their 19 games this month, and they haven’t scored a run over 21 consecutive innings. Cleveland used only two pitchers in each game, but the Twins produced a combined seven hits, 19 strikeouts and they grounded into four double plays.

Kody Clemens belted a seventh-inning pitch from Guardians starter Slade Cecconi in the first game toward the warning track in the right-center gap, and he figured he had a sure hit.

The ball was caught for an inning-ending flyout, and Clemens was stunned. He put his hands on his helmet and then raised his palms to the sky. As Guardians players jogged off the field, Clemens spiked his helmet to the dirt.

“We have to do better,” Baldelli said. “We came into this series scoring a bunch of runs, running the bases real good, flying all over the place, making a lot of different things happen. We didn’t have that today. We couldn’t find it.”

In the first game Saturday, the Twins had only two runners reach second base and one runner reach third. Luke Keaschall opened the second inning with a leadoff double off Cecconi, and they didn’t have another hit until Austin Martin dropped a double into left field with two outs in the ninth.

It was even worse in the second game. Royce Lewis hit a two-out double in the seventh inning and he was the only baserunner who touched second base. Lefthander Logan Allen, facing the Twins for the fifth time in his career, twirled eight scoreless innings.

GAME 1 BOXSCORE: Cleveland 6, Twins 0

MLB standings

Twins starter Joe Ryan, who pitched in the first game, gave up three solo homers to his first seven batters. It didn’t take long before the Guardians spoiled Ryan’s chance to play spoiler.

“I tried to do some things a little bit differently, and I just missed a couple spots,” said Ryan, who didn’t want to divulge scouting report details with more games left in the series. “Yeah, it’s frustrating, for sure.”

It’s been a rough month for Ryan, who reached a single-season career high in innings pitched (166), an even more important milestone considering he finished last year on the injured list because of a muscle strain in his shoulder.

Ryan holds a 7.33 ERA over his past six starts, giving up 22 earned runs across his last 27 innings. That includes a two-inning start in Kansas City this month when he tried to pitch through an illness, and he hasn’t looked quite like his usual self afterward.

José Ramírez crushed a splitter for a 388-foot homer in the first inning, his 30th home run of the season. Ramírez, who has 40 stolen bases, completed a 30-30 season for the third time in his career. He joined Howard Johnson, Alfonso Soriano, Bobby Bonds and Barry Bonds as the only players with at least three 30-30 seasons in MLB history.

After Ryan allowed second-inning homers to Bo Naylor and George Valera, the Guardians pulled away in the fifth inning when four consecutive batters reached base.

Daniel Schneemann hit a one-out homer, depositing a fastball into the first row of seats in right field. With runners on the corners after two more hits, a run scored on a throwing error from Twins catcher Jhonny Pereda’s throw, attempting to toss out Steven Kwan at second base.

Twins starter Bailey Ober looked sharp in the second game, surrendering one hit through his first four innings, but his defense let him down in a six-run fifth inning.

With two runners on base and one out, Kwan bounced a two-run single up the middle. The inning should’ve ended two batters later when Twins first baseman Edouard Julien dropped a line drive for what was ruled an infield hit after Ramírez beat out a throw from second base.