With the Yankees in a rut, it seemed like this Twins game would be now or never. No, they wouldn’t have been eliminated or anything with a loss, but it was against a bad team who they’ve owned. Then, at the outset of the matinee, Minnesota starter John Gant had to leave the game with an injury after just 0.2 innings. It was a chance to get a win to hopefully build something on. After all, the 13-game win streak wasn’t started by the Twins, but it contained a bunch of wins over them.
For most of the game, it felt like the Yankees were taking the “never” option.