Victory sets up White Sox showdown

Francisco Liriano delivered in a game the Twins said they had to win, leading into this week's critical three-game series against Chicago at the Metrodome.

By JOE CHRISTENSEN, Star Tribune

Last update: September 22, 2008 - 12:24 AM

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TWINS 4, TAMPA BAY 1

Up next: Three-game series vs. Chicago White Sox at Metrodome • Game 1 at 7:10 p.m. Tuesday • TV: FSN (1500-AM)

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ST. PETERSBURG, FLA. - The Twins didn't gain any ground on the White Sox on Sunday, but Minnesota turned in a pretty good primer for this week's showdown at the Metrodome.

Twins players openly referred to their series finale with Tampa Bay as a must-win. So in their minds, the stakes were just as high as they will be Tuesday through Thursday against Chicago.

The Twins defeated the Rays 4-1 at Tropicana Field, showing many of the ingredients they'll need for success against the White Sox:

• Starting pitching. After Glen Perkins, Nick Blackburn and Kevin Slowey had pitched 6 1/3 innings combined in the series' first three games, Francisco Liriano (6-3) held Tampa Bay to one run on five hits over seven innings.

• An opportunistic offense. The Twins scored all four runs in the fourth inning, as Redmond, Adam Everett and Carlos Gomez had run-scoring singles. Redmond described the rally best.

"We bunted, we blooped, we did all the stuff that we usually do to win ballgames," he said. "It's not always pretty. I'm sure they're scratching their head, but we love it."

• Sturdy relief. With a three-run lead, Twins manager Ron Gardenhire turned to rookie lefthander Jose Mijares, who pitched a 1-2-3 eighth inning before closer Joe Nathan pitched a 1-2-3 ninth for his 38th save.

The Twins have been searching for a reliable setup man for weeks, and Mijares' emergence could be a major development.

"We couldn't have drawn it up any better," Redmond said. "We all knew the magnitude of this game. We've been getting break after break after break from the White Sox. But we had to go out there and win this game."

The White Sox beat Kansas City 3-0, retaining their 2 1/2-game lead over the Twins. With Chicago's game in the ninth inning, the Twins weren't even watching; they had football on all four of their clubhouse televisions.

"Sundays are tough because of the football," Redmond said. "We had to get that game over as fast as possible so guys could check on their fantasy football stuff. White Sox? Whatever. We'll get an update on them later."

The Twins flew home in good spirits, despite finishing 4-6 on their 10-game road trip to Baltimore, Cleveland and Tampa Bay.

Splitting four games with the Rays felt like an accomplishment considering the Rays have baseball's best home record at 57-24.

The Rays were 21-1 before home crowds of 30,000 or more heading into Sunday, having won 21 in a row since Opening Day, but the Twins ended that streak before an announced sellout crowd of 36,048.

Tampa Bay celebrated its first playoff berth in franchise history Saturday, and manager Joe Maddon rested several regulars for the series finale, making the task a little easier for the Twins.

The Rays will likely play the AL Central winner in the first round of the playoffs. So after the game, Gardenhire gestured toward Maddon in the Tampa Bay dugout.

"I tipped my hat to him," Gardenhire said. "Hopefully, we'll see him in about a week."

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