Twins rout Angels, lose Luke Keaschall to forearm fracture

Pablo López returned on Friday night and so, too, did the Twins’ offense after getting blanked in a rain-shortened game a day earlier. There was a lot to like for the Twins on Friday night in a game in which they scored a season-high 11 runs in their 11-4 victory over the Los Angeles Angels at Target Field. But the excitement of the win was dulled by the news that accompanied it: rookie Luke Keaschall has a nondisplaced fracture of his right forearm.

Keaschall was hit by an 86.8 miles per hour pitch from Angels (12-13) starter Kyle Hendricks in the first inning. He didn’t think much of it at the time and headed down to first base to run.



“Honestly, I thought I was fine,” Keaschall said. “Was running the bases and I’m like, ‘It’s just going to be a little sore. I’ll be good.

’ And then it wasn’t.” Manager Rocco Baldelli said when Keaschall went inside to the batting cage in between innings, it quickly became clear that Keaschall’s injury was serious. Called up last week, Keaschall, one of MLB’s top prospects, has provided a jolt to the Twins, going 7 for 19 (.

368) with five stolen bases through his first seven major league games. Now, the Twins will have to adjust to life without him once more. “Obviously, that’s tough news,” Baldelli said.

“He’s settling in really well here and doing a really nice job for us. ..

. He’ll get it right and he’ll be back. I have no doubt he’ll be running around the bases again soon.

” Even without Keaschall for most of the day, the Twins’ (10-16) offense turned in an impressive showing. Leadoff hitter Edouard Julien started the night off on the right foot, drawing a walk to lead off the bottom of the first. Two more baserunners reached — Keaschall and Trevor Larnach, who walked— before Carlos Correa’s sacrifice fly brought Julien home and gave the Twins their first lead of the game.

It was one of four walks on the day for Julien, who scored three runs. “If your leadoff hitter is just on base for the guys behind him to bring him around, you’re going to score a ton of runs,” Baldelli said. “He was sitting out there waiting for us to score some runs, so that’s going to work every time.

” As a team, the Twins took advantage of their free baserunners with five batters who walked — plus one who was hit by a pitch — coming around to score. There were plenty of hits to speak of, too. Larnach, Byron Buxton and Mickey Gasper collected two apiece.

For Gasper, who came in for Keaschall, his fourth-inning single was the first RBI of his career and came as part of a six-run inning for the Twins. “Eddy and Buck made it really easy tonight,” Gasper, who drove in two runs, said. “They were on base.

They were creating things, and it just gave me a chance to do my job with runners on base.” Julien’s bases-loaded walk forced in a run in the fourth and Buxton’s sacrifice fly brought home another before Gasper’s hit. Larnach then broke open the game with a three-run home run, his third in his past four games.

Buxton also hit a home run in the win, along with a triple. All the run support was more than enough for López, who was pitching in his first game since April 8, when he strained his right hamstring. López (2-1) gave up two runs in his five-inning outing, picking up the win.

“Give me all the run support,” López said. “That’s fun.” And for the Twins, in a season that hasn’t been quite so fun yet, Friday was was a step in the right direction — it just was served with a side of disappointment.

“I was a little angry,” Keaschall said. “But I’ve got to try and think of the big picture. Think about getting healthy as fast as possible and think about just trying to get back as fast as possible.

”.