Pablo López pitched a perfect game until the sixth inning and tied his career high with 14 strikeouts over eight scoreless innings as the Minnesota Twins defeated the Oakland Athletics 3-0 on Sunday in the deciding game of their three-game series.
López (7-6) held Oakland to just two singles and a walk, retiring the first 17 batters he faced before Lawrence Butler broke up the perfect game with a two-out single in the sixth inning.
“I knew about it,” López said of the perfect game. “Any pitcher who says otherwise would be lying. But I focused on one pitch at a time, thinking about how to win that pitch.”
Twins manager Rocco Baldelli praised López, saying, “He was dominant right from the start. His stuff was exceptional throughout the game.”
Byron Buxton hit a home run off Hogan Harris in the second inning and later added an RBI double in the seventh to contribute to the Twins’ offense. Kyle Farmer drove in another run with a fielder’s choice.
“It’s great to see Byron Buxton hit the ball like that because he’s a special player,” Baldelli said. “He can do things that not every player can do.”
Griffin Jax pitched the ninth inning for his seventh save of the season as the Twins continued their recent dominance over the A’s, winning 16 of their last 19 matchups, including six out of seven this season.
Harris (1-1) gave up three runs and five hits with two walks and two strikeouts in just under seven innings. The loss dropped Oakland’s record against the AL Central to 6-17.
“Hogan had a good start until the seventh inning when he ran into trouble,” A’s manager Mark Kotsay said. “But overall, Hogan did a good job today. His continued improvement will lead to more success down the road.”
