Twins designated hitter Ryan Jeffers broke out of a home run slump in a major way on Thursday, knocking two blasts in his first three at-bats to keep the Twins in a key early-season game against the Royals.
His first came in the bottom of the fourth with Kansas City (35-22) leading 4-0 and shortstop Carlos Correa on first after reaching on a fielding error. Jeffers drove the 84-mile-per-hour changeup into the bullpen in left-center.
He hit his second the following inning to pull Minnesota (30-25) within one at 4-3. Jeffers drilled the pitch, which had an exit velocity of 108.4 miles per hour and, like his first, also landed in the bullpen.
Jeffers had a strong start to the season, building on his career-high .276 batting average in 2023. In his first 36 games this year, Jeffers hit .290 and had a .629 slugging percentage.
Jeffers’ most recent home run before his two Thursday blasts was on May 14. Since then, the five-year catcher/designated hitter has appeared in 13 games and totaled five hits in 42 at-bats, a .119 average while slugging .143. The slump dropped his overall average to .247 and his slugging percentage to .506.
Minnesota is looking up to Kansas City in the standings but can win the four-game series 3-1 if it completes the comeback on Thursday.
The Twins won the first two games but lost on Wednesday, 6-1.