MLB playoffs 2023: Minnesota Twins, Texas Rangers advance to ALDS with wild-card sweeps

Just like that, the Rays' and Blue Jays' seasons are over.

The first two series of the 2023 MLB postseason concluded Wednesday, with the Rangers taking back-to-back games against the Rays and the Twins again topping the Blue Jays in their best-of-three wild-card sets.

It's on to the ALDS for Texas and Minnesota, and a long winter ahead for Tampa Bay and Toronto.

No. 6 Toronto Blue Jays at No. 3 Minnesota Twins, Game 2: Twins 2, Blue Jays 0 (Minnesota wins 2-0)

Game summary:

On Tuesday, the Twins snapped an 18-game postseason losing streak with their first playoff win since 2004. On Wednesday, they won a series for the first time in 21 years.

The Twins beat the Blue Jays 2-0 at Target Field to secure a 2-0 wild-card sweep and advance to the ALDS. The win is their second postseason victory since 2004, and it secured their first playoff series win since an ALDS victory over the Oakland A’s in 2002.

The game was locked in a scoreless tie through three innings before Carlos Correa broke the seal with an RBI single in the third. That first run proved to be enough, as Sonny Gray and the Twins' bullpen combined to shut out the Blue Jays and end their season.

Key moment:

Through three innings, Blue Jays starter José Berrios pitched a shoutout while striking out five and allowing three Twins hits. He then walked Royce Lewis to lead off the fourth, and his day was over. Manager John Schneider pulled him after 47 pitches in favor of Yusei Kikuchi.

Kikuchi surrendered an infield single to Max Kepler and walked Donovan Solano to load the bases with no outs. Correa then singled to score Lewis, and a Willi Castro double-play ball scored Kepler. The double-play limited the Twins to two runs, but the damage was done. Minnesota had a 2-0 lead, and Toronto was left to depend on its bullpen after sitting Berrios 47 pitches into a strong start.

José Berríos

SP - TOR - #17

10/4/2023 v. MIN

3

IP

3

H

1

ER

5

K

1

BB

Impact player:

Sonny Gray didn’t make it easy, but he didn’t allow a run in an action-packed five innings that saw the Twins starter grind his way out of several jams.

Sonny Gray

SP - STL - #54

10/4/2023 v. TOR

5

IP

5

H

0

ER

6

K

2

BB

The Blue Jays threatened early when Bo Bichette singled to put runners on first and third with two outs in the first. But Gray struck out Cavan Biggio looking to get out of the inning unscathed.

Toronto then put runners on second and third with two outs in the second. This time, Gray induced a lineout from George Springer to end the inning. Then came the fifth, in which Gray leaned on his and Correa’s defense to get out of yet another jam. The Blue Jays again had runners on second and third with two outs, this time trailing 2-0.

But Vlad Guerrero Jr. gave Gray an opening. With a man on third, Guerrero took too big of a lead off second. Gray then fired a pickoff throw to Correa, who tagged Guerrero out to end the inning.

Gray’s day was finished after that. He struck out six while allowing five hits and two walks in 85 pitches that were far from stress-free, but they kept the Blue Jays off the board, and the Twins’ bullpen did the rest.

What’s next?

Toronto’s season is over. Minnesota gets two days off before facing the Astros in Game 1 of the ALDS on Saturday in Houston. First pitch is set for 4:45 p.m. ET. Starting pitchers are still to be announced.

No. 5 Texas Rangers at No. 4 Tampa Bay Rays, Game 2: Rangers 7, Rays 1 (Texas wins 2-0)

Game summary:

On Wednesday, the Rangers were hitting doubles against the Rays the way Oprah Winfrey used to give out cars on her talk show. Corey Seager and Josh Jung each hit two doubles, and Marcus Semien added another to help Texas win its wild-card series and advance to the American League Division Series against the top-seeded Baltimore Orioles.

This was the Rangers’ first postseason appearance since 2016, and it’s their first playoff series win since they defeated the Detroit Tigers in the 2011 ALCS. Texas came into this matchup having dropped its previous four series in the postseason.

The rout was on early at Tropicana Field, as the Rangers scored seven runs between the fourth and sixth innings. Six players recorded RBI for Texas: team home run leader Adolis García, Jung, Seager, Semien, Evan Carter and Nathaniel Lowe. On the mound, Nathan Eovaldi was outstanding in his 6⅔ innings, allowing six hits and one run while striking out eight without allowing any walks.

Nathan Eovaldi

IL15

SP - TEX - #17

10/4/2023 v. TB

6.2

IP

6

H

1

ER

8

K

0

BB

Tampa Bay flirted with tying the dubious all-time record for longest postseason innings scoreless streak, which sits at 34. The Rays had put up zeros in 33 straight playoff innings before Curtis Mead’s single in the bottom of the seventh brought home Josh Lowe, scoring Tampa Bay’s only run of the wild-card round.

Key moment:

El Bombi has joined the postseason chat. After three scoreless innings, García got Texas’ offensive started with a no-doubt, 416-foot, leadoff home run to put the Rangers ahead.

Reinforcements then arrived after Zach Eflin retired the next two batters. Leody Taveras singled and stole second. Jung scored Taveras and reached third on a fly ball to right field that Josh Lowe narrowly missed. Then Carter launched a 391-foot home run into the stands, giving Texas a 4-0 lead.

Impact player:

If there were an MVP awarded at the end of a wild-card series, the answer here would be Seager. He came into the game with three hits, including a double and a home run, in seven at bats against Elfin. And in Game 2, he immediately showed off his familiarity with the pitcher, hitting a double to deep center field in the first inning.

Corey Seager

SS - TEX - #5

10/4/2023 v. TB

3

H

0

HR

1

RBI

0

BB

1

K

After that, the Rays intentionally walked the shortstop in the third. Still, he wasn’t finished, reaching base in the fifth on a throwing error by second baseman Mead and eventually coming around to score Texas’ fifth run.

Finally, in the sixth, Seager hit his third double of this postseason to score Semien and put the finishing touches on the Rangers’ offensive output.

What’s next?

The Rays' season is over. The Rangers, having clinched their ticket to the ALDS, get two days off before facing the Orioles in Game 1 on Saturday in Baltimore. Game time is set for 1 p.m. ET, and starting pitchers are still to be announced.