Duffey pitches seven shutout innings, leads Twins past Indians
CLEVELAND -- Twins manager Paul Molitor acknowledged he put together an odd lineup Sunday.
Perhaps he should stick with it.
Molitor's hitters -- along with seven scoreless innings from Tyler Duffey -- helped Minnesota win its first road series of the season with a 5-1 victory over the Cleveland Indians.
Eddie Rosario drove in three runs and Jorge Polanco hit his first major league home run, giving the Twins back-to-back wins for only the third time this year.
Polanco started at second base while Brian Dozier got the day off. Third baseman Trevor Plouffe was also out of the lineup.
"We've tried some different things which makes sense to do when you're having trouble winning," Molitor said. "You take out a couple of your regular guys that you rely on almost on a daily basis and give other people an opportunity."
Minnesota (10-26) broke an eight-game losing streak Saturday and has won four of six against Cleveland this season.
Duffey (1-2) allowed six hits and struck out six. The right-hander hopes winning a series away from home will give the Twins some momentum.
"We needed it," he said. "We got one (Saturday) and gave us some breathing room. We came out today ready to roll."
Rosario's RBI single in the second gave Minnesota the lead. He added a two-run double in the ninth.
Polanco's seventh-inning home run came one day after Juan Centeno hit his first big league homer.
"I thought it would hit the wall, so I was thinking triple," said Polanco, who plans on giving the ball to his father.
"It's nice to have those moments in the clubhouse when you're honoring a key moment in a young player's career," Molitor said. "The kid's come up here and hasn't complained. He hasn't had a lot of playing time."
Centeno had an RBI double in the second for Minnesota, which hadn't won a road series since Sept. 28 to Oct. 1 last season in Cleveland.
Trevor Bauer (3-1) allowed three runs in 6 2/3 innings for Cleveland, which has lost four of six.
Byung Ho Park led off the second with a double. Bauer retired the next two hitters before Rosario dropped a single into right field that scored Park. Centeno doubled for a 2-0 lead.
Rosario's double to center field added two runs in the ninth.
Duffey made his fourth start for the Twins after being called up from Triple-A Rochester on April 23. He stranded two runners in the third and fourth.
Jason Kipnis homered off Trevor May in the eighth.
"We weren't able to get guys on early in innings and we didn't get any two-out hits," Indians manager Terry Francona said.
Bauer, who retired 12 straight after Minnesota's second-inning runs, struck out eight.
The Twins won a season-high four straight from April 15-18.
The game-time temperature was 45 degrees with wind at 20 mph. A rain-and-snow mix, accompanied by thunder, fell throughout the morning, but the skies cleared before the first pitch.
GRIND IT OUT
Duffey acknowledged he had to make adjustments throughout the game, even though he didn't allow a run.
"I keep trying to pitch my game," he said. "Guys have seen me. They know what I'm going to do. I just have to go out and execute."
TRAINER'S ROOM
Twins: Molitor said Plouffe and Dozier have been playing at less than 100 percent. Plouffe was on the 15-day disabled list earlier this season with a right intercostal strain. Dozier was hit on the leg by a pitch Saturday.
Indians: Mike Napoli was in the lineup after fouling a ball off his foot Saturday. He was the DH while Carlos Santana played first base.
UP NEXT
Twins: RHP Jose Berrios makes his fourth major league start when Minnesota visits Detroit on Monday night. He's 1-1 with a 6.28 ERA and 19 strikeouts in 14 1/3 innings.
Indians: RHP Cody Anderson (0-3) starts for the sixth time this season Monday night in the opener of a two-game interleague series against visiting Cincinnati.
