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 Fortunately for the right-hander, he didn't have to.
The Twins provided Hughes with more than enough offensive support in
a 9-5 win over the Seattle Mariners at Target Field.
The win snapped a four-game losing streak for the Twins, who control
the second wild card spot above a number of teams in the American
League.
Hughes allowed five runs on 10 hits over five innings but got the
win anyway, thanks to three-hit nights from left fielder Eddie
Rosario and center fielder Aaron Hicks.
Rosario was particularly good on Thursday, finishing only a single
short of the cycle, and nearly getting it, lining out sharply in
each of his final two at-bats of the evening.
On his last one, with one out in the eighth inning, Rosario ripped
an opposite field smash that Mariners shortstop Brad Miller jumped
to corral, much to the chagrin of the more than 30,000 in
attendance, and Rosario, who ripped off his helmet, looked at the
screen on the scoreboard and smiled.
"Cycles are a little bit lucky," said Twins manager Paul Molitor, a
Hall-of-Fame player himself. "How many triples do you get in a year?
And in how many of those games do you get a chance to do the other
three things? But it was still a really good night for him."
Off the bat, Rosario thought it was a hit.
"Oh yeah," Rosario said. "But he had a good play. I feel happy. It's
a good night for me, for my family. It's OK."
Instead, Rosario had to settle for a three-RBI, three-runs scored
evening. It was his three-run homer in the first that gave the Twins
the early lead they wouldn't relinquish.
Hughes was lifted after five innings and 84 pitches, having allowed
five runs on 10 hits with five strikeouts. Hughes has now won five
consecutive decisions and has 10 victories on the year.
"This one just didn't have anything," Hughes said. "Too many cutters
and fastballs found their way over the middle of the plate.
Fortunately, the guys scored a bunch of runs and didn't make it
hurt."
Minnesota kept tacking on from there, adding single runs in the
second, third, fifth and seventh innings.
Hicks had a home run, a pair of singles and reached base on a walk.
Second baseman Brian Dozier also hit his sixth leadoff homer of the
season.
The Mariners scored first, on left fielder Seth Smith's two-run,
first-inning homer over the right-field wall.
The lead was short-lived.
Minnesota clawed back for five runs in the bottom of the inning,
getting a leadoff homer from Dozier, an RBI single by right fielder
Torii Hunter and a three-run blast by Rosario.
For Dozier, the home run was his 22nd of the season, leaving him one
shy of his total from last year. It was his sixth leadoff homer of
the season.
The offensive fireworks were just beginning.
Hicks hit a solo home run in the second inning, giving Minnesota a
6-2 lead.
Each team scored once in the third. The Mariners got within three on
an infield single by first baseman Mark Trumbo, and the Twins
countered with an RBI single by shortstop Jorge Polanco.
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"It was a night for offense," Molitor said. "Both teams came out
swinging. There was no rope-a-dope going on, it was come out and
attack."
Mariners center fielder Austin Jackson came back with a two-run shot
to left-center field in the top of the fourth inning, pulling
Seattle back within two.
Seattle starter J.A. Happ was pulled after just 3 1/3 innings and
took the loss. He allowed nine hits, seven runs (six earned) with a
walk and two strikeouts.
"It was a beating," Happ said. "It seemed like whatever adjustment I
tried to make, they were right on it. I made some mistakes over the
plate and it cost me."
A leadoff triple in the fifth by Rosario paid dividends when he
scored on a fielder's choice, pushing the Twins' lead to 8-5.
The offense slowed to a trickle after that, with Minnesota scoring
on an RBI single by first baseman Joe Mauer in the seventh inning,
which extended his hitting streak to a season-high 10 games.
"It's baseball. The game of baseball at this level is a tough game,"
Mariners manager Lloyd McClendon said.
Seattle has now lost four consecutive games, five of its last six
and dropped a season-high 11 games under the .500-mark.
"It's been a bad run," McClendon said. "We came out of the break
playing good baseball on the road in New York and Detroit. Came home
and played extremely good against Toronto. The last four games have
not been good."
NOTES: The Mariners traded OF Dustin Ackley to the New York Yankees
in exchange for prospects OF Ramon Flores and RHP Jose Ramirez.
Flores and Ramirez will report to Triple-A Tacoma. ... Mariners 2B
Robinson Cano missed his second consecutive game with an abdominal
strain. Manager Lloyd McClendon said he hopes to have Cano back in
the lineup as soon as Friday. ... Twins 3B Trevor Plouffe missed his
second game in a row after the birth of his son. Plouffe, who is on
the paternity list, could return by Saturday. Miguel Sano played
third base Thursday. ... Twins INF Jorge Polanco got the start at
short and batted ninth. It was his first start in the big leagues
since June 10 and his third career major league start. ... The
Mariners and Twins will continue their four-game series Friday at
Target Field. Seattle RHP Taijuan Walker (7-7, 5.03 ERA) will face
Minnesota LHP Tommy Milone (5-2, 3.58 ERA).
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