The four-game series between the Minnesota Twins and Texas Rangers has gotten spicy and Mitch Garver may have stirred the pot with his comments regarding a benches-clearing incident in the Twins' 12-2 victory on Friday night.
Speaking to reporters about the incident after the game, Garver suggested that Ryan Jeffers triggered both benches to clear with his reaction after he was hit in the third inning of Friday night's game.
"It all started with their guy getting hit [and] the way he reacted," Garver said.
Garver's incident occurred one inning later when he was hit by Sonny Gray with nobody out and the bases empty. Garver did not take the plunking kindly and even took a step toward the mound before being restrained by home plate umpire Carlos Torres, but that wasn't enough to keep both benches and bullpens from making their way onto the field.
Although nothing more than a few words were exchanged, it was part of some tension that may have began brewing late in Thursday night's win over the Rangers.
Jeffers was the hero in that game after a two-run, pinch-hit, go-ahead homer and flipped his bat emphatically after his towering blast off of Will Smith in the eighth inning of the Twins' 7-5 victory.
When Jeffers made his first plate appearance in Friday night's game with runners on first and third base, he was hit by Rangers starter Dane Dunning and showed his disdain as he walked to first base.
While Jeffers and the Twins may have thought the plunking was intentional, Garver defended his team stating that they didn't care what happened on Thursday night.
"[With runners on] first and third, we're not trying to hit somebody intentionally to load up the bases for Joey Gallo," Garver said. "We don't care what happened last night. This wasn't about you."
Garver went on to reiterate that Jeffers's reaction initiated the benches-clearing incident the following inning.
"It's just like the way he reacted kind of set the stage for it," Garver said. "Come on. Anybody who has watched a baseball game or two knows what's going on here."
Twins fans may also have an idea of what's going on here. Garver was a member of the Twins from 2017-2021 and set a franchise record with 31 home runs by a catcher in 2019. But the Twins decided to trade Garver to the Rangers in order to clear a path for Jeffers to take the starting job prior to the 2021 season.
With that history, the phrasing of "their guy" may have a different meaning and also imply that Garver wasn't happy with the way things ended in Minnesota. It might also provide context to Garver's decision to delay surgery on an injured flexor tendon in his right forearm to play in a three-game series against the Twins in July 2022.
Whether it's animosity toward the Twins or just frustration from an eight-game losing streak, Garver's disdain was palpable on Friday night and should set up an interesting final two games of the series.
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