MINNEAPOLIS-Robbie Grossman had three hits, including a home run, and Tyler Duffey pitched seven solid innings to lead the Minnesota Twins to a 5-3 win over the Kansas City Royals on Saturday.
Grossman knocked in a run with an RBI single in the first and homered in the fifth as Minnesota snapped a four-game losing streak.
Duffey (8-8) allowed two runs on six hits and a walk while striking out six in seven innings of work. The right-hander has back-to-back quality starts for the first time since early May and has won each of his past three outings. He also became the first Twins starter to complete seven innings since Ricky Nolasco did it on July 29; Nolasco now plays for the Los Angeles Angels.
Ryan Pressly and Brandon Kintzler worked the final two innings in relief, with Kintzler allowing one unearned run in the ninth but securing his 11th save.
Alcides Escobar and Paulo Orlando had two hits apiece for the Royals, who saw their three-game winning streak ended.
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Royals starter Dillon Gee (4-6) was roughed up for five runs on 11 hits and a walk, striking out six, in 5⅓ innings.
Brian Dozier also homered for Minnesota, connecting on the second half of back-to-back homers with Eddie Rosario in the sixth inning. It was Dozier's 100th career home run and marked the 11th time this season the Twins have hit back-to-back homers, tied for second-most in club history.
Dozier led off the bottom of the first inning with a double down the left-field line. Grossman followed with an RBI single that took a funny hop over Royals first baseman Eric Hosmer's glove to give the Twins a 1-0 lead just two batters into the game.
Minnesota loaded the bases for Grossman with two outs in the second, but he looked at strike three.
In the next half-inning, Cheslor Cuthbert tied the score at 1 with his 10th home run over the left-field wall.
Grossman atoned in the fifth, hitting his eighth homer of the season, off the facing of the upper deck in right field to lead off the inning.
