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Willi Castro had a three-run home run and Royce Lewis hit a two-run shot in a six-run second inning for the 

 on the way to an 8-3 victory over the 

 to open a key series between the division rivals and close wild card competitors on Monday night.

“If we keep playing like this, a game like today, we’re going to be a good spot at the end of the year,” Castro said.

Pablo López (11-8) finished six innings with two earned runs allowed for his third win in four starts for the Twins. He fell behind on a first-inning home run by Bobby Witt Jr. and an RBI single in the second by Kyle Isbel, who had three hits, but the Twins overwhelmed Royals starter Brady Singer (8-8) after that.

The Twins, who improved to 6-2 against the Royals this season, remained 3 1/2 games behind American League Central leader Cleveland after splitting a four-game series with the Guardians during the weekend. The third-place Royals dropped to five games back.

“We pay enough attention to it because it’s everywhere: it’s on social media, it’s in the MLB app, it’s on the scoreboard, it’s in every ballpark when you walk in and the scoreboard has standings,” López said. “So you’re aware of it, but we like to be in the mindset that we control our own destiny.”

The Twins (66-52) occupy the second AL wild card spot. The Royals (65-54) control the third spot, with a two-game cushion above the cut in their refreshing push to return to the playoffs for the first time since they won the 2015 World Series.

Six consecutive batters reached with two outs against Singer, whose first three starts out of the All-Star break were superb before some vulnerability for the fifth-year right-hander in his last two turns.

After Austin Martin started the onslaught with an RBI single, Castro hit his ninth homer to set a career high as his helmet tumbled off on the exuberant turn around second base. Lewis then unloaded to finish an eight-pitch at-bat for his 15th home run — in just 40 games — this season.

“That’s the inning that messed up the whole night," said Singer, who hadn't given up a homer since July 14. "Obviously I would like to have that back.”

Witt was hit by a 95 mph fastball on the forearm by López, but the major league batting leader — who also has the most games, hits and runs in baseball — was able to stay in.

 2B Michael Massey batted leadoff after being scratched from the lineup with tightness in his back two days ago. The team had a rare Sunday off after a two-game series against interleague rival St. Louis. Massey had two different stints on the injured list this season with back trouble.

 CF Byron Buxton departed after the fifth inning with 

 RHP Seth Lugo (13-6, 2.72 ERA) will pitch on Tuesday night. Lugo, who leads MLB in wins and is second in innings, is 8-2 with a 2.37 ERA in 12 starts on the road this season.

 RHP Zebby Matthews, who began the year in Class A, is scheduled to make his major league debut in the middle game of the series as the rotation gets reshuffled following the 

Matthews had yet to be added to the roster but was in the clubhouse on Monday afternoon after being summoned from Triple-A St. Paul. The native of North Carolina, an eighth-round draft pick in 2022, was expecting family and friends in a group of at least 20 people to be at Target Field on Tuesday.

“Most of them were kind of in shock. They couldn’t believe this was actually happening because of where I started, but they’re really excited for me,” Matthews said. "They’ve all played a big piece in my journey along the way, so being able to tell them and then having them up here tomorrow will be special.”

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Willi Castro had a three-run home run and Royce Lewis hit a two-run shot in a six-run second inning for the Minnesota Twins on the way to an 8-3 victory over the Kansas City Royals.

Twins beat Royals 8-3 with home runs by Castro and Lewis in 6-run 2nd inning off Singer

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