Pittsburgh Pirates’ Konnor Griffin, left, slides around a tag by Minnesota Twins catcher Victor Caratini, right, to score the go-ahead run in the fifth inning Saturday in Pittsburgh, Saturday, May 30, 2026. (AP Photo/Tom E. Puskar)

Bobby Nightengale | Minnesota Star Tribune

PITTSBURGH – Kody Clemens sat in a chair in the visitor’s clubhouse with ice packs around his back and left ankle after Saturday’s marathon slugfest at PNC Park that lasted 3 hours, 14 minutes.

The Twins lost 10-9 to the Pittsburgh Pirates in a game that featured a combined 27 hits, 10 walks and 32 at-bats with a runner in scoring position. The Twins erased an early six-run deficit, then fell short trying to mount another comeback across the final two innings.

“I’m mentally exhausted,” Clemens said after the Twins lost their fourth game in a row. “That was a grind of a game. Tough ending there.”

There was a lot the Twins did a lot well offensively, but it couldn’t make up for their self-inflicted defensive mistakes.

Left fielder Trevor Larnach lost a fly ball in the sun during the second inning that set up the Pirates for an additional five runs. There was a catcher’s interference call on Victor Caratini that proved costly in the fifth inning, leading to the go-ahead run, and they watched the Pirates steal five bases to add onto their late lead.

It was the seventh time the Twins have given up at least 10 runs in a game this year.

“Not only with the sun ball, but we hurt ourselves,” manager Derek Shelton said. “We gave up free bases. … We can’t have [six] walks. Right now, we just have too many walks.”

The costliest misplay came in the second inning after Twins starter Bailey Ober gave up a homer to Jake Magnum, one of the three home runs he surrendered Saturday. Ober should’ve been out of the inning when he induced a routine fly ball to left field on a clear 72-degree afternoon.

There was a lot the Twins did a lot well offensively, but it couldn’t make up for their self-inflicted defensive mistakes.

Left fielder Trevor Larnach lost a fly ball in the sun during the second inning that set up the Pirates for an additional five runs. There was a catcher’s interference call on Victor Caratini that proved costly in the fifth inning, leading to the go-ahead run, and they watched the Pirates steal five bases to add onto their late lead.

It was the seventh time the Twins have given up at least 10 runs in a game this year.

“Not only with the sun ball, but we hurt ourselves,” manager Derek Shelton said. “We gave up free bases. … We can’t have [six] walks. Right now, we just have too many walks.”

The costliest misplay came in the second inning after Twins starter Bailey Ober gave up a homer to Jake Magnum, one of the three home runs he surrendered Saturday. Ober should’ve been out of the inning when he induced a routine fly ball to left field on a clear 72-degree afternoon.

Larnach held his glove up to block the sun, then, when he lowered his left arm, he winced. The ball dropped about 10 feet in front of Larnach for a two-out single, extending an inning that snowballed on Ober.

Starting with the single in the sun, the Pirates had six consecutive batters reach base. It led to five more runs and 24 extra pitches from Ober, a sequence that included a two-run bloop single from Nick Gonzales and a three-run homer from Oneil Cruz.

Larnach went up to Ober’s locker after the game and apologized.

“I felt like I did my job,” Ober said. “Probably should be out of that inning without any runs scored, just the sun ball and something that is out of my control. I need to do a little bit better job of finishing that inning off, even though we should’ve been out of it from the get-go.”

The Twins trailed 2-1 when Larnach missed the third out of the inning. It was 7-1 when Ober finally ended the 35-pitch inning.

Near the end of a 10-game road trip, the Twins battled back offensively. Clemens, who was a homer shy of the cycle, was awarded an RBI triple in the third inning when Cruz couldn’t corral a ball at the center field wall.

In the fourth inning, the Twins exploded for five runs. Tristan Gray and Josh Bell produced a pair of two-run doubles, Bell’s coming with two outs when he lined a high fastball into the left field corner. Clemens followed with a tying RBI single to right field.

“I’m really proud of our guys to get back in it and make it an interesting game,” Ober said. “I feel like we should have won that game. We put a lot of hard balls in play throughout the entire game and hit some balls right at people. It’s a frustrating loss, for sure.”

Pittsburgh pulled ahead in the fifth inning after Konnor Griffin reached on an infield single. Caratini put another batter on base when he was called for catcher’s interference, his mitt made contact with a swing, and it advanced Griffin to second base.

Magnum, the next batter, lined an RBI single to left field and Larnach’s throw to the plate wasn’t in time to toss out Griffin. Pittsburgh added two more runs in the sixth inning, a rally that started with a leadoff walk and a bunt single.

Down by three runs in the eighth inning, the Twins tried to mount one more comeback in a slugfest. They had four straight batters reach base via two singles and two walks, scoring on a bases-loaded walk drawn by Brooks Lee and a groundout.

Pirates lefty reliever Gregory Soto, entering with two outs while there were runners on second and third base, induced an inning-ending grounder against Clemens to preserve Pittsburgh’s lead.

Soto completed a four-out save with a scoreless ninth inning, surviving an Orlando Arcia screaming line drive that Magnum, the Pirates left fielder caught in the gap.

“What we can do is just control what we can control,” Ober said. “It’s just worrying about what we can handle and doing the best that we can every day that we’re out there and that’s all that we can.”