With the Minnesota Twins 7-6 win over the Cleveland Guardians on Thursday night, the American League Central-leading Twins climbed to 30-27 — still just 2½ games ahead of the Detroit Tigers (who are themselves two games under .500) and 4½ ahead of the Guardians.
It was only a small step in fending off ignominy for a division that has quickly gained a reputation as one of the worst in MLB’s divisional era (dating back to 1969).
The Twins are on pace for 85 wins, which would be tied for the seventh-fewest by a division champ over a 162-game season in MLB history.