Lightning sent players scurrying off the field in the fourth inning, then rain came down on Rangers Ballpark in Arlington. The game has been delayed - the fourth rain delay for the Twins on this road trip.
But the game should resume by around 7:55, as the rain has stopped and the tarp is coming off.
Righthander P.J. Walters suffered a setback during his rehab stint at Class AAA Rochester, coming down with some soreness in his shoulder after pitching on Friday. So he will wait a couple days and throw in the bullpen before starting another game.
That affects the Twins' plans for their post-All Star break rotation. As of now, Francisco Liriano is scheduled to start on Friday against Oakland. Brian Duensing is scheduled to start on Sunday, and no one is listed for Saturday's game.The Twins could give righthander Samuel Deduno another start or go with someone else.
Both Trevor Plouffe and Justin Morneau enter tonight with a nine-game hitting streak as the Twins try to hit the break with a winning road trip.
The Twins will head home after the game for the All-Star break - except for All-Star Joe Mauer. The team will meet on the field at 3 p.m. Friday for a lengthy workout before they face the A's.
Class AA New Britain outfielder Aaron Hicks has been named Twins minor league player of the week after batting .381 over six games.
Twins (36-48)
1. Denard Span, CF
2. Ben Revere, RF
3. Joe Mauer, DH
4. Josh Willingham, LF
5. Justin Morneau, 1B
6. Ryan Doumit, C
7. Trevor Plouffe, 3B
8. Brian Dozier, SS
9. Jamey Carroll, 2B
Pitching: Cole De Vries, (2-1, 3.91)
Rangers (51-34)
1. Ian Kinsler, 2B
2. Elvis Andrus, SS
3. Josh Hamilton, DH
4. Adrian Beltre, 3B
5. Nelson Cruz, RF
6. Michael Young, 1B
7. David Murphy, LF
8. Mike Napoli, C
9. Craig Gentry, CF
Pitching: Roy Oswalt, (2-1, 7.79)
La Velle E. Neal III has covered baseball for the Star Tribune since 1998 (the post-Knoblauch era). Born and raised in Chicago, he grew up following the White Sox and hating the Cubs. He attended both the University of Illinois and Illinois-Chicago and began his baseball writing career at the Kansas City Star. He can be heard occasionally on KFAN radio, lending his great baseball mind to Paul Allen and other hosts. Mark Rosen borrows him occasionally for WCCO-TV.
Phil Miller covered three seasons of Twins baseball, but that was at a different ballpark for a different newspaper. Now Miller returns to the baseball beat after joining the Star Tribune as the Gopher football writer in 2010, and he won't miss the dingy dome for a minute. In addition to the Twins and Gophers, Miller covered the Utah Jazz and the NBA for six years at The Salt Lake Tribune.
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