Twins Shut Out Rangers, But Their Season Still Tells a Darker Story
Buxton’s Power Sparks the Night
Byron Buxton has made a habit of opening games with fireworks, and Thursday night in Minnesota was no exception. He launched his second consecutive leadoff homer, setting the tone before the Rangers could even settle in. But he wasn’t finished. In the eighth inning, with two runners aboard, Buxton crushed another towering shot — a 437-foot blast that would have cleared the fences in every ballpark across the majors. It was his tenth leadoff home run of the season, another reminder that even in a broken campaign, his bat remains capable of jolting the crowd to life.
Ober Finds His Best Form
Behind Buxton’s heroics came Bailey Ober’s sharpest outing of the year. Six innings, just two hits, five strikeouts — and, for the first time in 2025, zero runs allowed. The right-hander looked in command from his first pitch, mixing precision with poise. His biggest moment came in the fifth, when the Rangers threatened to claw back into the game. With one on and no outs, Ober struck out Kyle Higashioka, and Alejandro Osuna was gunned down trying to steal second. A strikeout-throw-out double play swung the momentum, and from there, Minnesota never looked back.
The Lineup Spreads the Wealth
It wasn’t just Buxton fueling the offense. Trevor Larnach, Royce Lewis, Edouard Julien, and Christian Vázquez each collected two hits, giving the Twins a balanced attack that out-hit Texas 10-3. Every inning seemed to bring traffic on the bases, and when Buxton returned to the plate in the eighth, the stage was perfectly set. One swing later, the Rangers were staring at a four-run hole that felt insurmountable.
A Bullpen That Finally Held
For one night, Minnesota’s bullpen didn’t waver. Kody Funderburk struck out two in a clean seventh, while Cole Sands closed the ninth with authority. Given how often the relief corps has cracked this season — especially after the midseason fire sale gutted its depth — Thursday’s performance stood out as a rare reminder of what the staff can be when everything works.
Context That Cannot Be Ignored
And yet, context looms larger than the scoreboard. The Twins are staring at their first 90-loss season since 2016. The numbers aren’t kind: a roster stripped down in July, a bullpen exposed night after night, and injuries that cut deep. Pablo López, once expected to anchor the rotation, is done for the year with a forearm strain. Promising rookie Luke Keaschall was shut down with a thumb injury just as he was breaking through. The front office’s midseason trades — 11 players moved off the 40-man roster — left fans questioning the long-term direction.
The Rangers’ Slide Continues
If Minnesota’s story is one of unraveling, Texas is living through its own collapse. The Rangers have now dropped nine of their last ten, a skid that has left their postseason hopes fading fast. Starter Tyler Mahle kept them close for five innings, yielding only a single run, but the bats never solved Ober. And when Buxton went deep again in the eighth, the game — and perhaps their September surge — slipped away.
A Win That Rings Hollow
For the Twins, the victory was crisp, commanding, and for once, mistake-free. But as the final week of the season looms, it feels less like a turning point and more like a reminder of what could have been. Buxton’s bat and Ober’s arm offered a glimpse of possibility, but this 4-0 shutout is just one bright page in a season that will be remembered more for disappointment than dominance.
The calendar reads late September. The standings, however, already spell out the hard truth: the Twins must spend the winter rebuilding not just their roster, but their identity.
About The Author
