• Preview
• Recap
• Bleachers
• Game Tracker

Twins rally to beat Tigers, win series

Sep 18, 2014 - 5:41 AM Minneapolis, MN (SportsNetwork.com) - Brian Dozier had two hits and two RBI, including the go-ahead triple as the Minnesota Twins beat the Detroit Tigers 8-4 on Wednesday night.

The Twins won the last two games in the three-game series to put a dent in Detroit's division title hopes.

The Tigers' lead for first place in the AL Central was trimmed to a half-game over the Royals with a key three-game series between the division foes on tap this weekend in Kansas City.

The Royals beat the White Sox 6-2 on Wednesday.

Danny Santana had three hits, three runs scored and two RBI for the Twins and Joe Mauer added two hits and two runs knocked in.

Kyle Gibson (12-11) pitched six innings for the win -- Minnesota's fourth in its last 13 games. The right-hander gave up four runs, seven hits and three walks for his first victory in six starts.

David Price (14-12) was chased during Minnesota's go-ahead three-run rally in the sixth inning. He was charged with five runs on eight hits and three walks.

"We battled pretty good," said Twins manager Ron Gardenhire. "We made him work."

Miguel Cabrera had four hits for the fifth time this season in the loss.

In the sixth inning, Aaron Hicks hit a one-out double and scored on Santana's double with two outs, which chased Price. Dozier followed with a triple off Al Alburquerque that hit the top of the wall in left-center field, and Mauer hit an RBI double off Kyle Ryan to make it 6-4.

"I'm a better pitcher than this. I've just got to be better," Price said.

Santana and Mauer had run-scoring singles in the eighth inning to push the Twins lead to 8-4.

Earlier, the teams combined to score five runs in the first. J.D. Martinez and Nick Castellanos hit two-out RBI singles for the Tigers, but the Twins took a 3-2 lead sparked by Santana's leadoff triple.

He scored on a single by Brian Dozier, who later came home on Trevor Plouffe's hit. Kurt Suzuki added an RBI double for the one-run lead, which disappeared quickly.

Andrew Romine led off the top of the second with a walk, went to third base on consecutive groundouts and scored the tying run on Torii Hunter's single. Cabrera followed with a double to plate Hunter and give the Tigers a 4-3 edge.

Game Notes

Cabrera, the two-time reigning AL MVP, raised his average four points to .318 ... Gibson had been 0-2 in his last five starts with the Twins losing each of the games. He earned his first win since Aug. 13 in Houston ... The Twins continue a nine-game homestand Friday against Cleveland.