Zebby Matthews (4-5, 4.28 ERA) took the ball for Minnesota looking to build on a strong turn his last time out, when he went 7 innings and struck out 7 against Houston. New York countered with Brendan Beck, a 26-year-old righty making his first career MLB start after getting the emergency call when Carlos Rodon landed on the IL. Beck came in with a 9.45 ERA and zero big-league starts to his name — not exactly the recipe to slow down a Twins lineup that had been raking.
The math behind Beck's start tells the real story here. Rodon is dealing with left elbow inflammation, Max Fried has been out since spring with an elbow issue of his own, and Gerrit Cole is the only reliable arm left standing in that rotation. Throw in Aaron Judge still sidelined with a stress fracture in his rib and Giancarlo Stanton just now working back from a calf strain, and the Yankees were patching together a lineup and a rotation at the same time. The market noticed — total betting had been drifting toward the over before first pitch, and sharp money had stacked up on New York regardless.
It didn't matter. Minnesota jumped on Beck immediately, then blew the game open late, piling up 4 runs in the 8th inning alone to turn a competitive afternoon into a laugher. The Twins finished with 11 hits and no errors; the Yankees committed 2 errors and never found any rhythm against Matthews, who cruised through the middle innings without much resistance.
This one also snapped right back the other way from the night before, when New York had ended a 7-game losing streak by beating these same Twins 5-2 behind a Trent Grisham homer and a gritty Cole start. That win looked like a step toward stability. Instead, the Yankees dropped right back into the same hole a day later, and with Rodon and Fried both out, there's no obvious fix coming before the All-Star break.
For Minnesota, the win is a nice data point at 42-47, a record that still has them selling-adjacent with the trade deadline approaching. But the Twins have stayed within shouting distance of a wild card spot in a soft AL field, which explains why the front office has been floated as more hybrid buyer-seller than full fire sale this summer. Games like this — a laugher against a division heavyweight missing half its rotation — are exactly the kind of results that keep that argument alive.
- 10-Day-ILRyan Jeffers C — Jeffers (hand) will begin a rehab assignment with Triple-A St. Paul on Friday, Aaron Gleeman of AaronGleeman.com reports.
- 15-Day-ILAnthony Banda RP — The Twins placed Banda on the 15-day injured list Monday with a left lat strain.
- 15-Day-ILBailey Ober SP — Ober (elbow) struck out one batter and allowed three earned runs on seven hits and no walks over 3.1 innings in a rehab start Sunday with High-A Cedar Rapids.
- 15-Day-ILMick Abel SP — Abel will undergo arthroscopic surgery on his right elbow, Aaron Gleeman of AaronGleeman.com reports.
- 15-Day-ILCole Sands RP — Sands underwent an MRI on Friday that showed healing in his injured forearm, though inflammation was still present, MLB.com reports.
- 60-Day-ILGarrett Acton RP — Acton (shoulder) resumed throwing off a mound last week, MLB.com reports.
- 60-Day-ILDavid Festa SP — The Twins announced June 1 that Festa (shoulder) has started a throwing progression, MLB.com reports.
- 60-Day-ILPablo Lopez SP — The Twins placed Lopez (elbow) on the 60-day injured list Thursday.
- 10-Day-ILGiancarlo Stanton DH — Yankees manager Aaron Boone said that Stanton (calf) has restarted a running program and will take live at-bats against rehabbing left-hander Max Fried (elbow) on Tuesday, David Lennon of Newsday reports.
- 10-Day-ILAaron Judge RF — Yankees manager Aaron Boone said Friday that Judge isn't expected to be ready for a re-evaluation later this week, when he'll be at the four-week mark in his recovery from a stress fracture of the first rib on his right side, Gary Phillips of the New York Daily News reports.
- 15-Day-ILCarlos Rodon SP — Rodon said his UCL is intact, but he's dealing with "heavy inflammation" in his left elbow, Chris Kirschner of The Athletic reports.
- 15-Day-ILMax Fried SP — Manager Aarone Boone said Tuesday that Fried (elbow) is scheduled to throw another session of live batting practice Sunday, Chris Kirschner of The Athletic reports.
- 60-Day-ILClarke Schmidt SP — Schmidt (elbow) tossed a side session Wednesday and is "a couple of weeks" away from facing live hitters, per MLB.com.
None of it changes the bigger picture in the Bronx. Judge is still weeks away, the rotation is running on fumes, and the Yankees just found out in real time what happens when they have to throw a call-up out there against a lineup with pop. Minnesota, banged up in its own rotation with Pablo Lopez, Bailey Ober and Mick Abel all out, still had more than enough firepower to make it not close.