NEW YORK (Interstat) — Byron Buxton’s two-run homer in the sixth inning erased a three-run deficit and sparked the Minnesota Twins to a 5-3 comeback victory over the struggling New York Mets on Tuesday night at Citi Field.

The Twins, who had lost three straight and four of their last five, rallied from an early hole to snap their skid and improve to 12-11. The Mets, meanwhile, saw their losing streak reach five games, falling to a major league-worst 7-16.

For five innings, the game belonged to Mets starter Nolan McLean and his offense’s lone burst. McLean dominated the Twins’ lineup, striking out 10 while allowing just five hits. His support came in the third inning when Francisco Lindor launched a three-run homer off Twins starter Simeon Woods Richardson. Lindor’s second home run of the season followed a walk to Marcus Semien and a force out by Carson Benge, staking the Mets to a 3-0 lead that felt substantial the way McLean was pitching.

The momentum shifted decisively in the sixth. Matt Wallner led off with a single, and one out later, Buxton stepped in. On a 1-1 pitch from McLean, Buxton connected, sending a towering fly ball to left field that cleared the fence for his fourth homer of the year, cutting the deficit to 3-2. The blast seemed to crack McLean’s armor, and Trevor Larnach followed with another single, ending the right-hander’s night after 6 2/3 innings.

Minnesota tied the game an inning later against reliever Devin Williams. Kody Clemens sparked the rally with a one-out double, and rookie Luke Keaschall delivered a clutch single to center, scoring Clemens to knot the game at 3-3.

The Twins’ bullpen, led by winner Cole Sands, was flawless in preserving the tie. Sands worked two perfect innings of relief, striking out three. Jhoan Duran and Griffin Jax followed with a scoreless eighth, setting the stage for Minnesota’s ninth-inning rally against Williams.

Williams, who took the loss to fall to 0-1, completely lost his command in the ninth. He walked Josh Bell and Ryan Jeffers to start the inning. Clemens then laid down a sacrifice bunt, but Williams’ throw to third in an attempt to get the lead runner was not in time, loading the bases with no outs. Keaschall, again in the middle of the action, grounded a single through the left side off reliever Huascar Brazobán to score pinch-runner James Outman and give Minnesota its first lead at 4-3. Matt Wallner then worked a bases-loaded walk to force in another run, making it 5-3.

Closer Jhoan Duran returned for the ninth and slammed the door, striking out two in a perfect frame to secure the win. Sands earned the victory, improving to 1-1.

The Mets’ offense, after Lindor’s third-inning homer, mustered just one single over the final six innings against the Twins’ bullpen quartet of Sands, Steven Okert, Duran and Jax. New York finished with just four hits total and went 0-for-4 with runners in scoring position.

The announced attendance was 32,798, and the game time was 2 hours, 41 minutes.

The most important part of the game was Buxton’s two-run homer in the top of the sixth inning. It transformed the contest, halving the Mets’ lead and, more critically, breaking the spell of dominance cast by Mets starter Nolan McLean. Prior to that swing, McLean had struck out 10 Twins and allowed only three hits, cruising with a 3-0 advantage. Buxton’s blast provided the Twins their first runs, injected energy into their dugout, and immediately put pressure on a Mets team reeling from recent losses. It shifted the game’s narrative from a potential Mets cruise to a tight contest, directly enabling the subsequent tying and winning rallies. Without that home run, the Twins’ later efforts likely would have been insufficient, making it the pivotal moment that changed the trajectory of the entire game.

The teams continue their three-game series Wednesday night.