It was good and not as good this weekend against first place Cleveland as the Twins try to claw their way to the top of the AL Central. After a split against the Guardians, the Twins turn to the Kansas City Royals who are right there, just a half game out of second place.
The tight AL Central race set up a pivotal week for the Twins. The four games with Cleveland helped them at least hold position. Now it's three with the Royals at Target Field before a road trip to Texas and San Diego.
Sunday, the Guardians stymied the Twins for 5 2/3 innings then hung on for a crucial 5-3 win that earned Cleveland an important series split at Target Field. It looked like the Twins were ready for a comeback late when centerfielder Byron Buxton his his second home run of the game, a two-run shot that just cleared the left field wall in the 8th to make it 5-3. The Twins threated in the 9th inning but ultimately fell short.
"Come back always on, we never out of the game," Buxton said after the game. "So, it's all about us just going out there taking quality at-bats, which we did. Didn't turn out in our favor, but, you know, it's just one of those things where we got the bases loaded and had the opportunity and things didn't go our way."
After winning both games of a split doubleheader on Friday, Twins bats fell silent over the weekend in 2-1 and 5-3 losses. Still, Manager Rocco Baldelli feels good about how their playing.
"We had several innings where we whacked the ball all around the ballpark and we end up scoring no runs," says Baldelli. "So it's like, you know, stuff that you think it's like almost impossible not to score. And the vast majority of them, it's not like our guys did anything too wrong. They just hit the ball too hard and hit the ball right at people and, if one or two of those runs come into play, we're in a good spot. But they didn't, so we gotta move on."
ROYALS SERIES PREVIEW
Kansas City Royals (65-53, third in the AL Central) vs. Minnesota Twins (65-52, second in the AL Central)
Minneapolis; Monday, 6:40 p.m. Pregame 6:00 p.m. on WCCO Radio and the Audacy app.
PITCHING PROBABLES: Royals: Brady Singer (8-7, 3.03 ERA, 1.19 WHIP, 121 strikeouts); Twins: Pablo Lopez (10-8, 4.74 ERA, 1.16 WHIP, 144 strikeouts)
Tuesday: Sugo (Royals) vs. TBD (Twins)
Wednesday: Ragans (Royals) vs. TBD (Twins)
BETMGM SPORTSBOOK: LINE Twins -159, Royals +135; over/under is 8 runs
BOTTOM LINE: The Minnesota Twins begin a three-game series at home against the Kansas City Royals on Monday.
Minnesota has a 65-52 record overall and a 34-23 record in home games. The Twins have hit 142 total home runs to rank fifth in the AL.
Kansas City is 27-28 in road games and 65-53 overall. The Royals have a 24-10 record in games when they hit at least two home runs.
The teams meet Monday for the eighth time this season. The Twins are up 5-2 in the season series.
TOP PERFORMERS: Carlos Santana has 22 doubles, 15 home runs and 49 RBI for the Twins. Byron Buxton is 9-for-30 with two doubles, four home runs and seven RBI over the past 10 games.
Bobby Witt Jr. has a .347 batting average to lead the Royals, and has 33 doubles, 11 triples and 22 home runs. Salvador Perez is 13-for-37 with two home runs and seven RBI over the last 10 games.
LAST 10 GAMES: Twins: 6-4, .255 batting average, 3.89 ERA, outscored opponents by 13 runs
Royals: 6-4, .286 batting average, 3.65 ERA, outscored opponents by 21 runs
INJURIES: Twins: Joe Ryan: 15-Day IL (tricep), Brooks Lee: 10-Day IL (biceps), Brock Stewart: 60-Day IL (shoulder), Alex Kirilloff: 60-Day IL (back), Kody Funderburk: 15-Day IL (oblique), Carlos Correa: 10-Day IL (foot), Chris Paddack: 15-Day IL (forearm), Justin Topa: 60-Day IL (knee), Daniel Duarte: 60-Day IL (tricep), Anthony DeSclafani: 60-Day IL (elbow)
Royals: Hunter Harvey: 15-Day IL (back), Michael Massey: day-to-day (back), John Schreiber: 15-Day IL (knee), Dan Altavilla: 60-Day IL (oblique), Josh Taylor: 60-Day IL (biceps), Kyle Wright: 60-Day IL (shoulder)