The Minnesota Twins are now one game away from elimination in the ALDS -- and it wasn't even close in Game 3 against the Houston Astros.
Despite getting to come home to Target Field for Game 3, the Twins were beaten to a pulp by the defending World Series champions. Houston jumped all over Minnesota's starter, Sonny Gray, with four runs in the first inning and that set the tone. Christian Javier continued that, allowing just one hit and no runs over five innings for the Astros.
In the end, the Twins managed just one run while Houston, aided by a three-run final frame, ended up with nine to their credit. Now, Minnesota faces a win-or-go-home situation on Wednesday with another early-afternoon start at Target Field.
To avoid getting bounced after breaking their postseason winless drought in the wild card, though, the Twins need these three players to bring their best in Game 4.
3. Royce Lewis needs to be the Twins star at the plate
In the wild card series win over Toronto, Royce Lewis set the tone for the best-of-three set in Game 1 with a monster performance to continue his stellar rookie campaign. The 24-year-old smashed a pair of home runs against the Blue Jays, leading to a 3-1 win.
Lewis continued to show off his power at the dish, even in a loss, in Game 1 against the Astros as he belted another home run, a solo shot, to cut Houston's lead at the time to 5-4.
On the whole, Lewis had been quite good for the Twins in the postseason coming into Game 3. In 15 at-bats, he was slashing .267/.389/.867, though he did have five strikeouts, with the three homers and four RBI to his credit. He also walked three times. On Tuesday, however, the youngster was held to 0-for-4 with two strikeouts.
One of those Ks was highly consequential as the Twins were threatening to rally down 5-0 in the bottom of the fifth. The rookie came to the plate with the bases loaded and fans surely thought about his three grand slams in 18 days during the regular season. Instead, Lewis went down swinging on a slider well out of the zone, striking out on just four pitches.
Lewis has really been the straw that stirs the drink for the Twins offense this season, a lightning bolt shocking the bats into form. If Minnesota is going to avoid elimination at home in Game 4, then Lewis has to deliver the goods.
2. Edouard Julien must set the tone at top of the Twins order
Depending on who starts for the Astros will likely determine whether or not Edouard Julien is in the lineup for Game 4 on Wednesday. When he has started games in the playoffs for the Twins, though, they've had him in the leadoff spot. Unfortunately, he hasn't delivered quite in the way that you'd want the top of the order to.
Game 3 was a perfect example of that. Julien did draw a pair of walks in five plate appearances on the day against the Astros, but ultimately wasn't protected enough to end up crossing the plate. That's not on him, but it is to his discredit that he ended up going 0-for-3 with three strikeouts in his other three at-bats on the night for Minnesota.
Another rookie who played a big role for Minnesota this season, Julien proved his ability to get on base throughout the year. Walks are indeed part of his game with a .381 OBP for the season, but he was also a much better hitter in the regular season (.267) than he showed on Tuesday.
Make no mistake, though, Julien has proven he can hit in the postseason. He came up with a clutch pinch-hit RBI single in Game 2 en route to a Twins win and had a double and a walk over five plate appearances in the Game 1 loss.
Having said that, particularly if he's once again leading off for this lineup, Julien has to give the team productive at-bats every time at the plate. Even if that doesn't result in him getting on base, a pair of walks and three strikeouts isn't good enough to set the table for the rest of the lineup.
1. Joe Ryan can't put the Twins in a hole with a poor start
While it's easy to criticize the lack of runs -- and deserved given the hapless offensive performance from the Twins overall in Game 3 -- it's always a tough ask for a ball club to overcome an immediate 4-0 hole. But that's the situation that Tuesday's starter, Sonny Gray, put his team in on Tuesday.
Gray got shelled in the first inning, initially giving up an RBI single to Kyle Tucker but then causing real damage against his team when he hung a sweeper to Jose Abreu that the veteran tattooed for a 442-foot three-run home run, putting the Twins at a four-run disadvantage before they ever stepped up to the plate. Not to mention, it also killed the vibes from the home crowd.
Against a lineup as dangerous as the Astros', that's going to happen from time to time. With playoff livelihood hanging in the balance on Wednesday in Game 4, though, it simply can't. So that puts a mountain of pressure on the shoulders of the scheduled starter, Joe Ryan.
After posting a 4.51 ERA and 1.17 WHIP in the regular season, Ryan has yet to take the mound in these playoffs. Thus, he's being called upon in a massive spot starting an elimination game with quite a bit of rust since he last pitched for the Twins. And yet, they need him to deliver more than ever on Wednesday.
Make no mistake, this will be an all-hands-on-deck effort for Rocco Baldelli's team. Ryan likely won't be stretched far before the Twins turn to the bullpen -- the same of which is true at the first sign of trouble. But it would be a massive win for Minnesota if Ryan can come out and deliver a dominant start, which we've seen he's more than capable of. There's just never been a moment wherein the Twins have needed it more.
