Joe Ryan fans 5 in 7 strong innings, Carlos Correa slugs 2-run HR as Twins beat Athletics 6-2

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) Joe Ryan struck out five in seven strong innings and Carlos Correa had a two-run homer among his three hits as the Minnesota Twins beat the Oakland Athletics 6-2 on Thursday night.

One day after the Twins had a season-high 24 hits against the Rockies, Minnesota banged out 13 hits - 12 singles and Correa's homer in the seventh inning.

Byron Buxton had three hits and drove in two runs, and Royce Lewis and Austin Martin had two hits apiece as the Twins won for the fourth time in five games.

Ryan (5-5) worked seven innings for the fourth time in five starts and lowered his ERA to 3.24. The 28-year-old right-hander gave up three hits and one walk.

“That’s the focus,” Ryan said about working deeper into games. “I just go into each game looking for a quality start whatever that means, whatever that looks like, I guess.”

Tyler Soderstrom homered for the third time in four games for the A’s, who lost their sixth straight. Luis Medina (0-2) gave up four runs in five innings in his third start of the season for Oakland.

Correa, who went 5 for 6 on Wednesday, singled in his first two at-bats. Then, with Lewis on base and two out in the seventh, he launched a hanging breaking ball from reliever Sean Newcomb 394 feet, into the second deck in left field.

When Correa returned to the dugout he donned a purple vest and grabbed an inflatable purple guitar in honor of Minneapolis music icon Prince, whose legacy was being celebrated at Prince Day at the ballpark

“I’m like, ‘This is creative. I love this,'” Correa said of his reaction to seeing the vest before the game. “I was like, ‘I want to hit a home run so bad!’ It happened in the last at-bat, but it happened. It’s a great idea. I loved it.”

Correa has 14 hits in his last five games, raising his batting average from .255 to .299.

“He’s putting on a show right now. It’s impressive,” said Lewis, who is 11 for 32 with four home runs since he returned June 3 after missing two months with a strained quad.

Injuries have prevented Buxton, Correa and Lewis from playing together. But, with the trio now healthy, manager Rocco Baldelli hopes the recent offensive surge is a sign of things to come.

“It’s a very dynamic trio of guys,” Baldelli said. “Having them all feeling great, playing great at the same time – this is what happens. They play like this and all of a sudden we’re putting runs on the board, we’re making a lot of different things happen.”

Soderstrom opened the scoring with a two-run, 431-foot homer to center field in the second inning.

Buxton’s two-run single in the bottom of the inning tied it for the Twins.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Athletics: Soderstrom and second baseman Zack Gelof collided while chasing a foul popup by Ryan Jeffers in the second inning. Gelof made the catch as his forearm crashed into Soderstrom’s jaw and neck. Soderstrom remained on the ground for a few minutes but stayed in the game after being checked by team trainers.

UP NEXT

The A’s will send RHP Mitch Spence (4-3, 3.68) to the mound for the second game of the series on Friday. Spence has made five starts since joining the rotation in mid-May. He’s coming off his best outing of the season in which he allowed two runs in seven innings against the Blue Jays on June 9. He’ll face Twins RHP Simeon Woods Richardson (2-1, 2.84), who allowed one run in 6 1/3 innings at Pittsburgh on Sunday.

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