CHICAGO — Luis Arraez won the AL batting title, hitting a third-inning double after walking twice to finish the season at .316, and the Minnesota Twins rolled to a 10-1 victory over the Chicago White Sox on Wednesday.
Arraez was all but assured of topping the Yankees’ Aaron Judge for the batting crown when the day began. He removed any doubt by walking in his first two plate appearances and then hitting a drive that barely cleared the glove of right fielder Gavin Sheets before he was lifted for a pinch-runner.
Judge, who sat out the Yankees’ season finale, batted .311 with an AL record 62 homers and a league-leading 131 RBIs.
Arraez, 25, became the fifth Twin to win a batting title, joining joining Rod Carew (seven), Tony Oliva, Joe Mauer (three apiece) and Kirby Puckett (one).
Arraez received a hug at the top of the dugout steps from Carlos Correa, who planned before the game to give him a Louis Vuitton box in recognition of his achievement.
Arraez batted .361 (13-for-36) during a nine-game hitting streak to end the season.
Gary Sanchez and Jermaine Palacios homered during a six-run first inning for Minnesota, which snapped a four-game skid. The Twins finished at 78-84, a six-game improvement over 2021.
The White Sox (81-81), last year’s AL Central champions, had their three-game winning streak snapped and finished 12 games worse than their 2021 record.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
