Twins 6, Padres 5
Danny Valencia hit a three-run homer and Joe Mauer drove in a run in his first game in over two months as the Minnesota Twins opened with a five-run first and held off the visiting San Diego Padres en route to their fifth consecutive win, 6-5, on Friday.
Michael Cuddyer added an RBI double for the Twins, who have won 12 of their last 14 games.
Minnesota piled on Clayton Richard (2-9) in the first. Valencia provided the big hit, capping the rally with his sixth homer.
Brian Duensing (4-6) continued a string of strong starts for the Minnesota staff, yielding two runs on seven hits in six innings. Twins starters have allowed a total of five runs in 40 innings over the last five games.
But unlike the four who came before him, Duensing was not able to make it past the sixth inning, leaving the seventh for Alex Burnett, who had not appeared in nearly a week. Burnett made it a game when he yielded Ryan Ludwickâs three-run home run.
But Glen Perkins worked a scoreless eighth and Matt Capps set down the side in the ninth for his 10th save.