Kody Clemens Hits Walk-Off Grand Slam to Lead Twins Past Royals 4-3

Kody Clemens delivered a two-out, two-strike grand slam in the ninth inning to secure a 4-3 victory for the Minnesota Twins.

MINNEAPOLIS -- Kody Clemens hit a two-out, two-strike walk-off grand slam in the bottom of the ninth inning to lift the Minnesota Twins to a 4-3 victory over the Kansas City Royals on Thursday. The blast came off an 0-2 slider from reliever Matt Strahm, who entered the game with a 3-4 record. Clemens’ drive landed in the flower box above right-center field, marking his second career slam and the sixth walk-off grand slam in Twins franchise history. The win snapped a 508-game losing streak for Minnesota when trailing by three or more runs entering their final at-bats, a drought dating back to July 2015.

Kansas City starter Noah Cameron dominated the early proceedings, carrying a no-hitter through six innings. He finished with a career-long eight shutout innings, allowing only one hit and two walks while striking out seven batters on 97 pitches. The performance extended Cameron's individual scoreless streak to 16 innings. Ryan Jeffers broke up the no-hit bid with a clean single to right-center field to lead off the seventh inning, the first hit allowed by Kansas City since Bret Saberhagen’s no-hitter in 1991. Despite the dominant start, the Royals suffered their 21st blown save of the season, tying them for the third-most in MLB.

Ninth Inning Collapse and Clemens' Heroics

Royals closer Lucas Erceg began the ninth inning by retiring the first two batters before the sequence unraveled. Erceg hit Jeffers with a 2-0 pitch, surrendered a single to Royce Lewis, and issued a walk to Josh Bell to load the bases. Strahm was summoned to face Clemens, who entered the plate appearance second on the team with 19 home runs. After falling behind 0-2, Clemens capitalized on a pitch he described as being over the middle of the plate. The resulting home run was his first career walk-off in the major leagues. Twins closer Yoendrys Gomez earned the win after pitching a scoreless top of the ninth.

Prior to the comeback, the Royals had won 242 consecutive games when leading by three or more runs entering the ninth inning or later. Clemens noted that the ball was backspun to right-center and he knew it was gone off the bat. The victory moved Minnesota to a 55-55 record. The club has now gone 10-2-1 in their last 13 series dating back to June 12. The Twins currently sit in third place in the American League Central, trailing the Chicago White Sox by three games and the Cleveland Guardians by one game.

Trade Deadline and Roster Strategy

Minnesota is positioned one game behind the Guardians for the third and final American League wild-card spot as the Monday 6 p.m. ET trade deadline approaches. General manager Jeremy Zoll indicated the front office intends to add to the roster rather than subtract, specifically focusing on improving the bullpen. This strategy contrasts with the 2025 selloff, where the team made nine trades and removed 40% of the major league roster, including four high-leverage relief pitchers. Owner Tom Pohlad stated he is not interested in the cost-cutting measures previously initiated by his brother, Joe Pohlad.

Royce Lewis expressed that adding key pieces would provide an emotional boost to a team he described as thriving. One potential trade chip is Ryan Jeffers, who is currently on an expiring contract. The Twins are off on Monday before starting a new series in Kansas City on Tuesday. Their immediate schedule includes a nine-game road trip beginning Friday in Seattle. The front office remains open to creative paths to improve the roster following the departure of former president of baseball operations Derek Falvey.