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The well-rested Guardians move on to Minnesota for a three-game weekend set against the first place Twins. The Twins started the season 4-8, then won 14 of their next 17 games before getting swept by the Astros in their last three games.
They are dealing with some injuries right now with eight pitchers on the IR as well as Miguel Sano and Carlos Correa. LF Trevor Larnach, hitting .313/.813 is also out. The G’s seem to be catching them at a great time. The Twins haven’t even determined who will be starting Saturday and Sunday.
The Twins are 20th in runs per game and have been especially bad lately, having scored just 10 runs in their last six games. Byron Buxton has an OPS of .984 and Luis Arraez is hitting .316, but otherwise nobody is putting up impressive numbers. Buxton has 9 of their 30 home runs; Kepler has 5 and nobody else has more than three.
As a team they’re hitting .229/.672 against right-handed pitching. Their Achilles heel has been clutch hitting - with RISP and two out they’re only hitting .186. They’ve scored fewer runs than their numbers indicate. They’re 10th in OPS but only 20th in runs mostly due to the lack of two-out hitting.
By contrast the Guardians are hitting a robust .317 with RISP and two out.
The Twins were swept by Houston in their last three games, being outscored 21-3. In their last game their starting 3B, LF, and C had averages of .128, .172, and .192. Giovanni Urshela, the former Indians, is 3-for-32. There are a lot of soft spots in that batting order.
The Twins have been carried by their pitching as they rank 4th in the majors in team ERA at 3.14, despite all the injuries. Their weakness is the long ball, where they rank 24th in home runs per 9 innings. But they’re 7th in WHIP. It’s tough to get on base against them, but they will make some mistakes.
Sonny Gray, RHP, age 32, goes tonight. Gray has only started three games this year due to a hamstring injury and pitched a total of 10.1 innings. He did pitch four shutout innings in his last start, striking out seven against the A’s. He has a career 3.61 ERA. He's averaged 57 pitches per start this year so he may only go five innings regardless.
Aaron Civale goes for the G’s and this will be a big start as he’s trying to get untracked. Civale has a 9.45 ERA in five starts, but in his last start he did retire 14 of 16 Blue Jays after allowing a first inning HR to Vlad Guerrero. It looked like he was finding his rhythm. Hopefully he can build on that tonight.
Right-handed hitters are batting an obscene .388 against Civale, so Job One is to figure out what’s up with that and fix it. Buxton is the only Twins right-handed hitter who is productive right now, so that should help Civale get going.
Actually, the Twins have a 23-year-old centerfielder named Gilberto Celestino who is hitting .440 in May (but no RBI’s). He bats right-handed so we may see him tonight.
With the Twins struggling offensively at the moment and with two of their main bats out of the lineup, this is a good opportunity for Civale to right the ship. With their pitching injuries the chance is there for the G’s to score some runs as well. The elements are in place for a successful weekend, now they just need to make it happen. A sweep puts the G's in first place.
They are dealing with some injuries right now with eight pitchers on the IR as well as Miguel Sano and Carlos Correa. LF Trevor Larnach, hitting .313/.813 is also out. The G’s seem to be catching them at a great time. The Twins haven’t even determined who will be starting Saturday and Sunday.
The Twins are 20th in runs per game and have been especially bad lately, having scored just 10 runs in their last six games. Byron Buxton has an OPS of .984 and Luis Arraez is hitting .316, but otherwise nobody is putting up impressive numbers. Buxton has 9 of their 30 home runs; Kepler has 5 and nobody else has more than three.
As a team they’re hitting .229/.672 against right-handed pitching. Their Achilles heel has been clutch hitting - with RISP and two out they’re only hitting .186. They’ve scored fewer runs than their numbers indicate. They’re 10th in OPS but only 20th in runs mostly due to the lack of two-out hitting.
By contrast the Guardians are hitting a robust .317 with RISP and two out.
The Twins were swept by Houston in their last three games, being outscored 21-3. In their last game their starting 3B, LF, and C had averages of .128, .172, and .192. Giovanni Urshela, the former Indians, is 3-for-32. There are a lot of soft spots in that batting order.
The Twins have been carried by their pitching as they rank 4th in the majors in team ERA at 3.14, despite all the injuries. Their weakness is the long ball, where they rank 24th in home runs per 9 innings. But they’re 7th in WHIP. It’s tough to get on base against them, but they will make some mistakes.
Sonny Gray, RHP, age 32, goes tonight. Gray has only started three games this year due to a hamstring injury and pitched a total of 10.1 innings. He did pitch four shutout innings in his last start, striking out seven against the A’s. He has a career 3.61 ERA. He's averaged 57 pitches per start this year so he may only go five innings regardless.
Aaron Civale goes for the G’s and this will be a big start as he’s trying to get untracked. Civale has a 9.45 ERA in five starts, but in his last start he did retire 14 of 16 Blue Jays after allowing a first inning HR to Vlad Guerrero. It looked like he was finding his rhythm. Hopefully he can build on that tonight.
Right-handed hitters are batting an obscene .388 against Civale, so Job One is to figure out what’s up with that and fix it. Buxton is the only Twins right-handed hitter who is productive right now, so that should help Civale get going.
Actually, the Twins have a 23-year-old centerfielder named Gilberto Celestino who is hitting .440 in May (but no RBI’s). He bats right-handed so we may see him tonight.
With the Twins struggling offensively at the moment and with two of their main bats out of the lineup, this is a good opportunity for Civale to right the ship. With their pitching injuries the chance is there for the G’s to score some runs as well. The elements are in place for a successful weekend, now they just need to make it happen. A sweep puts the G's in first place.
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