The wait, infielder Nick Punto admitted Friday, was long. It had been 356 at-bats since Punto had sent a ball out of the park when he connected with a Paul Byrd fastball Friday for his first home run since June 6, 2007.

"That was nice. It's been awhile," Punto said. "Someone told me it was 356 at-bats. That's a long time, but it felt good, got some good wood on it."

Punto felt good, apparently, for the rest of the game. He added a three-run double in the eighth to bring his RBI total for the night to four. For the infielder, his success at the plate was both satisfying and reassuring.

After batting .210 last season, Punto lost his job as Minnesota's everyday third baseman. He had just started to get his swing together when he strained his hamstring during a five-RBI game in Chicago earlier this season and landed on the disabled list.

Pushing to return to lineup, Punto, now batting .289 this season, came back before his hamstring had healed enough and ended up back on the DL. During his time recovering, Minnesota got hot and manager Ron Gardenhire had a hard time finding a place for Punto in the everyday lineup immediately following his return.

"It's tough because you don't know where you are," Punto said of coming back after his injury. "You don't know how you're swing is going to feel when you get back. It's felt pretty good all year long so far."

TWINS 12, INDIANS 3: RHP Livan Hernandez twice pitched out of two-on jams Friday, and Minnesota battered Cleveland's pitching staff for 15 hits. Nine Twins recorded hits and four Twins had multi-hit games. LF Delmon Young went 3 for 5 with a three-run home run and four RBI.

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