The Minnesota Twins react after the game against the Boston Red Sox to extend their winning streak to 12 games at Target Field. Jeffrey Becker-USA TODAY Sports

Recent hot streak could be a good omen for Twins

By Mike Santa Barbara | Last updated 5/4/24

The 2024 MLB season is still in its infancy, and dissecting a team's performance in May is usually a futile exercise. However, the red-hot Minnesota Twins are not only the talk of baseball, but their recent play has fans dreaming of October.

On Saturday, the Twins defeated the Boston Red Sox 3-1, extending their win streak to an astounding 12 games. The last time the franchise had a dozen wins or more in a row was during the 1991 campaign, the same season they won the World Series.

The @Twins have won 12 consecutive games for the first time since 1991!

They won the World Series that year. pic.twitter.com/g0XVGO89yH
— MLB (@MLB) May 4, 2024

Meanwhile, according to Sarah Langs of MLB.com, the Twins' current win streak is the fourth-longest in franchise history, only five away from tying the team record of 17 consecutive wins set in 1912.

Unsurprisingly, Minnesota has been dominant over the past few weeks, sweeping the Chicago White Sox (twice) and Los Angeles before taking the first two games of a three-game set against the Red Sox. Over that period, the Twins have outscored their opponents by a remarkable 84-39 margin.

Likewise, the Twins pitching staff has also come up huge. On Sunday, starter Pablo Lopez posted a solid stat line, allowing only one earned run off five hits while striking out eight over six innings of work. Furthermore, over Minnesota's 12-game win streak, starters Chris Paddack, Joe Ryan and Bailey Ober have each recorded multiple six-inning outings.

As mentioned earlier, the season is still young, but the Twins' hot play lately has completely turned around the team's fortunes. Before the streak began, the Twins were 7-13, wallowing near the basement of the American League Central division. Now, they're 19-13, trailing the Cleveland Guardians (20-12) by only a game for first place.

The Twins will eventually lose a game, but for now, manager Rocco Baldelli's priority is on what the team is doing well and how to keep it going.

"I just want to focus on playing good baseball, pitching well," Baldelli said via Bally Sports North. "And that's what we're really doing."

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