Minnesota Twins ride rule 5.06(c)(6) and a lucky bounce to victory over Miami Marlins

MIAMI - It’s always a little heartwarming when a rookie makes a play that changes the outcome of a game, especially when it ends a losing streak. Emil Jimenez was that hero for the Twins on Wednesday.

Who?

OK, Jimenez is not a ballplayer but an umpire, promoted to the majors full-time this spring. His play on Kyle Stowers’ sixth-inning line drive, however, was just as critical to preserving the Twins’ 2-1 victory over the Marlins as anything the guys in Minnesota uniforms pulled off.

“Just like we drew it up,” joked reliever Brock Stewart, his scoreless streak extended to six innings by the freak play. “I don’t think he can accept it, but man, I feel like I owe [Jimenez] a nice bottle of wine.”

While standing on the edge of the infield grass — that’s oddly important, because the rule is different if he’s standing behind the infielders, as umpires do with nobody on base — Jimenez tried to jump out of the way of that hard-hit ball. It barely clipped the top of his right foot as it whizzed by, contact difficult to see even on replays.

As Jesús Sánchez, who had opened the inning with a double, rounded third base and headed for the plate, Jimenez waved his arms and declared the play dead.

Stowers was awarded first base and credited with a single, but Sánchez … well, let’s let rule 5.06(c)(6) explain why the certain game-tying run didn’t count.

“The ball becomes dead when a fair ball touches an umpire before it has passed an infielder other than the pitcher; runners advance, if forced.”

Sánchez wasn’t forced, and though he scored easily, he had to return to second base. The Marlins protested, the sparse crowd at LoanDepot Park booed, but the ruling stood.

And the Twins’ three-game losing streak, not to mention the Marlins’ run of eight straight wins, ended.

“We’ve been talking about how our [batting average on balls in play] as a pitching staff has been so high lately. So maybe the luck is turning?” Stewart said. “I had no idea it was a rule. I figured they had discretion, maybe, and [Sánchez] would get at least one base. But I’ll take it, obviously.”

It took a few more big plays and pitches, but the bizarre break that was Jimenez’s awkwardness on his feet was the most memorable event of the night. Given that reprieve, Stewart struck out Eric Wagaman to end the inning without a run.

It’s the second time in four seasons that a ball striking an umpire has preserved a Twins lead, and the cases are eerily similar. In San Diego on July 30, 2022, with the Twins leading 2-1, a seventh-inning line drive struck veteran crew chief Jerry Layne, forcing the umpires to send C.J. Abrams back to second base.

“Sometimes things lean in your direction. That play saved us,” manager Rocco Baldelli said with a shrug. “You have to take it when they do.”

Harrison Bader saved the Twins, too. An inning later, Louie Varland surrendered three consecutive sharply hit one-out singles in the seventh, but Bader picked up the third one and made a perfect throw, easily beating Brooklyn Park native Connor Norby to the plate to prevent another game-tying run.

“Bader made an awesome play there. That [throw] was a rocket,” Baldelli said. “We needed that.”

Danny Coulombe then walked Heriberto Hernández to load the bases, but Otto Lopez ended the inning with a would-be grand slam that fell just a few feet short, caught by Bader on the warning track next to the foul pole.

All that good fortune allowed the Twins to win despite scoring only twice — though that seems like an offensive deluge after suffering back-to-back shutouts.

BOXSCORE: Twins 2, Marlins 1

MLB standings

Byron Buxton singled to open the game, moved to third base on a wild pitch and Willi Castro’s single and scored on Brooks Lee’s sacrifice fly.

The Marlins tied the score on Stowers’ second home run in two nights, a ball into the right field seats that no umpire could interfere with.

And the Twins bounced back with three straight hits in the fourth inning, Carlos Correa’s single scoring Castro with what turned out to be the decisive run. It made a winner of Simeon Woods Richardson, who allowed only one hit besides Stowers’ homer in five innings, striking out three.

“Sim was great. He kept his stuff, threw a lot of strikes, just did a nice job all around,” Baldelli said. “We needed to make some plays today to get the win, and we got them.”