CHICAGO — The Twins had lost seven consecutive games to the Chicago White Sox dating to last season, and they picked a dramatic way to end that streak in a 5-3, 11-inning victory Tuesday night.

Brooks Lee, batting with the bases loaded and one out, drilled a three-run double in an 0-2 count against White Sox reliever Tyler Davis for the go-ahead hit in the top of the 11th.

Lee’s hit came after a nearly disastrous 10th inning. Pinch-hitter Orlando Arcia lined a two-out single to right field, and third base coach Ramon Borrego gave an overaggressive wave to Kody Clemens, the automatic runner at second. Clemens was thrown out by 20 feet for an inning-ending out.

In the bottom of the 10th, the White Sox had runners on the corners with one out. Munetaka Murakami, who hit a tying two-run homer off Joe Ryan two innings earlier, stood in the batter’s box against lefty reliever Taylor Rogers. Murakami, in a two-strike count, grounded into an unassisted double play at first base in which Josh Bell tagged the runner and stepped on the bag.

Yoendrys Gómez, who pitched for the White Sox last year, allowed a two-out RBI single in the bottom of the 11th inning before earning a save. The Twins, who have a 2-2 record in extra-inning games, have won 11 of their last 16 overall.

The Twins’ seven-game losing streak to the White Sox was one shy of their longest to the American League Central rival in team history. They lost eight straight games to the White Sox in 1995.

The Twins, leading by two runs in the eighth, were six outs from a victory when manager Derek Shelton was presented with an option: Stick with Ryan or use left-handed reliever Anthony Banda against a part of the lineup that featured three lefty hitters.

Shelton chose Ryan, who had yet to allow a runner to touch third base.

Rikuu Nishida dropped a single into left-center field to open the bottom of the eighth inning, then Ryan struck out Sam Antonacci on three pitches. That brought Murakami to the plate. The AL home run leader was hitless in his first three at-bats against Ryan.

In a 1-1 count, after Murakami unsuccessfully challenged a sweeper that clipped the top of the strike zone, Murakami clobbered a second sweeper into the right-field seats for a tying two-run homer.

Ryan, on the mound, dropped his glove and bent at the waist as he watched the ball’s flight. Once the ball landed, Ryan dropped his head as the announced crowd of 15,432 erupted. The crowd chanted “M-V-P” after Murakami trotted around the bases to celebrate his 19th home run of the season.

It was Ryan’s fourth consecutive quality start, but it came with a bitter ending.

Ryan struck out nine batters while giving up two runs on five hits and zero walks. He generated strikeouts with four different pitch types: four-seam fastball, sweeper, curveball and sinker.

Ryan has made four starts since leaving a game after nine pitches because of elbow soreness. A clean MRI exam gave him peace of mind, and he morphed into one of the best pitchers in baseball this month. His stats, even after Murakami’s homer, have been stellar: 25 2/3 innings, 15 hits, five runs, four walks, 30 strikeouts, 1.75 ERA.

The Twins, hitless through the first three innings against White Sox right-hander Sean Burke, had three straight batters reach base to begin the fourth inning. Trevor Larnach dropped a double in front of a diving Nishida in right field.

Clemens, two pitches later, smacked a triple that landed on the right-field line chalk, and the ball rolled along the outfield wall. It was Clemens’ first triple of the season, and he scored when Austin Martin lofted an RBI single to center.

A couple of feet in a different direction was the difference between the Twins’ first two hits, and runs, versus those balls turning into a flyout and a foul ball.

Burke, who failed to complete five innings in any of his previous three starts, retired his final 11 batters after Martin’s single.

©2026 The Minnesota Star Tribune. Visit at startribune.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.