On July 23, the Twins lost 5-2 to the Dodgers despite Byron Buxton's leadoff HR. See why Carlos Correa's rough night and David Festa's start doomed Minnesota.
StatPro MLB Beat Reporter
It started with a bang and ended with a whimper. Byron Buxton launched a leadoff home run into the California night, giving Twins fans a fleeting moment of hope. But by the end of the evening, that optimism had evaporated, replaced by the familiar sting of a 5-2 loss to the Dodgers, a night defined by a struggling starting pitcher and a chorus of boos for the beleaguered Carlos Correa.
Carlos Correa, booed relentlessly in his return to Dodger Stadium, finished 0-for-5 with a potential game-tying home run stolen by James Outman in the ninth inning.
On just the second pitch of the game, Byron Buxton did what he's done all year: he crushed a baseball. His 23rd homer of the season gave the Twins an immediate 1-0 lead. The good feelings, however, were short-lived. The Dodgers answered right back, with Shohei Ohtani hitting a two-run shot in the bottom half of the first. Twins starter David Festa couldn't find his footing, ultimately surrendering three home runs over four innings, including two to catcher Will Smith. Festa's final line of four earned runs on six hits was a tough pill to swallow, putting the Twins in a hole they couldn't climb out of.
As expected, the Dodger Stadium faithful gave Carlos Correa a hostile reception, booing him loudly during every plate appearance, a lingering effect of the 2017 Astros scandal. The jeers seemed to get the better of him, as Correa endured a brutal 0-for-5 night at the plate. The cruelest blow came in the top of the ninth. With two runners on, Correa smoked a ball to deep center that looked like a game-tying, three-run homer off the bat, only to have it snatched back by a leaping James Outman. It was a perfect, painful metaphor for Correa's sub-.240 season and the Twins' night as a whole.
While the team result was disappointing, Byron Buxton's incredible season continues to be a must-watch story. His leadoff shot was another display of the raw power and consistent production that has made him one of the American League's elite hitters in 2025. Buck is now hitting .292 with 23 homers, 58 RBI, and a staggering .583 slugging percentage. He and Edouard Julien were the only Twins with multi-hit games, but without more support, even Buxton's heroics aren't enough to carry this offense.
Away from the field, the front office made a minor move, designating catcher Jair Camargo for assignment to clear a 40-man roster spot. While the corresponding move is yet to be announced, it's a reminder that changes are always churning. The loss drops the Twins to 48-52 on the season, a distant 11.5 games behind the first-place Detroit Tigers. Now sitting fourth in the AL Central, the question becomes: what's next? Are the Twins buyers, sellers, or just spectators as the trade deadline approaches?
One game doesn't define a season, but this loss felt significant. It highlighted the team's biggest flaws: a reliance on the long ball, inconsistent starting pitching, and an inability to manufacture runs. With two more games in Los Angeles, the Twins desperately need to find a spark from someone other than Byron Buxton. The clock is ticking, not just on this series, but on the 2025 season itself.
