Twins beat Tigers for seventh straight win as Carlos Correa busts out of slump

Remember those last-place Twins who straggled home a week ago, their offense muffled to two runs or fewer seven times in 10 games? They headed to the airport Thursday night a transformed bunch, run-scoring juggernauts, owners of their longest winning streak in a decade, and now solidly in first place.

"I don't know how we can play too much better, collectively," Twins manager Rocco Baldelli said after his team took advantage of four infield hits, four Tigers errors and Carlos Correa's long-awaited breakout to beat Detroit 7-1.

The victory was Minnesota's seventh straight, the longest streak in one season since June 11-21, 2011, and completed its first sweep of a six-game homestand in Target Field history. The Twins outscored the White Sox and Tigers 34-12 during their sweep, and have scored at least five runs in their past five games while allowing their opponents to do so not even once.

There were plenty of other firsts, too, like the first two-hit game of Gilberto Celestino's career, the first save of Griffin Jax's life, and the first two-sacrifice bunt game with Baldelli as manager. But none loomed as big, as promising, as Correa's first three-hit game as a Twin.

"We've been able to win without me helping out there," the All-Star shortstop said. "When I can go out there and be myself, it's going to be a good day for the team."

He's seen signs of that day coming, even as his batting average plunged as low as .161. And Thursday felt like an inevitable change.

"I only swung at strikes. I didn't swing at one ball today. So that's a very positive sign," said Correa, who also started a rally-snuffing 6-5-3 double play. "And then the five barrels today, five balls [with exit velocities] over 95 [mph], that's another positive sign. So hopefully, I can build off that."

He certainly built on the Tigers' defensive meltdown in the fifth inning. After Trevor Larnach beat out a hit that glanced off Tigers starter Tarik Skubal to open the inning, Celestino and Jorge Polanco executed back-to-back sacrifice bunts. "No, I didn't call them," assured Baldelli. "But they were well-executed. We made them make plays; sometimes they're going to make them, sometimes they're not."

The Tigers didn't. Each time, catcher Tucker Barnhart pounced on the ball and threw it into the baserunner's back up the baseline. The back-to-back errors loaded the bases for Correa, in the midst of an 0-for-12 slump but looking confident nevertheless.

"If the team wasn't winning, you'd feel a little bit of pressure, right?" Correa said. "I was saying to the guys, 'Ooo, I feel good today. Something feels right.' That whole at-bat, [Skubal] made some good pitches, I fouled off a couple, but I just felt in control."

Sure enough, Correa pounded a 3-2 fastball in the middle of the plate on a line to deep left field. Willi Castro was slow to get back on the ball, then allowed it to carom over his head and back toward the infield, then mishandled it as he tried to pick it up. By that time, Correa was on third base — credited with a double, his first extra-base hit since April 12, and Castro's error — and his slump was apparently over.

"That was kind of a signature moment, driving them in like that," Baldelli said. "Good at-bats, seeing the ball good. … Those were some well-struck balls today. He can win games for you in a lot of different places. He's a winning player."