Buxton, Larnach homer to help the Twins beat the White Sox, 6-3

MINNEAPOLIS, MN — Byron Buxton and Trevor Larnach powered the Minnesota Twins to a 6-3 victory over the last-place Chicago White Sox on Wednesday night, each belting home runs to help secure the team’s second straight win in the series.

Larnach broke a 3-3 tie with a solo homer in the sixth inning — his second long ball in as many games. An inning later, Buxton launched a two-run shot to left-center, a 414-foot blast off reliever Cam Booser, stretching Minnesota’s lead and putting the game out of reach.

All three of Chicago’s runs came in a messy fifth inning that featured a wild pitch and a costly error by Twins second baseman Luke Keaschall. The Twins answered quickly in the bottom half, with Brooks Lee driving in Ty France on a sharp single to even the score.

Minnesota starter David Festa struggled, exiting in the fifth after facing just two batters. He allowed his first runs of the season — two in total — while giving up four hits and three walks over four-plus innings. Justin Topa (1-1) picked up the win with a clean sixth inning, and Danny Coulombe earned his first save of the season by closing it out in the ninth.

White Sox right-hander Bryse Wilson made his first start of the season after nine relief appearances. He allowed one run on five hits over 2 2/3 innings, throwing 55 pitches before being pulled. Jordan Leasure (0-1) was tagged with the loss.

Despite a rough night at the plate — 0-for-4 with three strikeouts before his home run — Buxton came through when it mattered, jumping on the first pitch he saw in the seventh to put the game away.

Keaschall continued to impress on the basepaths, swiping two more bags to bring his total to five in just his first five MLB games — tying a league record for most stolen bases through five career games.

Up Next:
The White Sox will turn to right-hander Shane Smith (0-1, 2.82 ERA) in Thursday’s series finale as they try to avoid a sweep. The Twins will counter with Chris Paddack (0-2, 7.27 ERA), who is coming off his best start of the year in a no-decision.