DETROIT — Paul Molitor said he knew it right away, the moment Miguel Cabrera dropped his bat. "I've seen a couple of guys do that — same kind of motion, same kind of reaction," Molitor said. "Horrible."
Cabrera will require season-ending surgery to repair his ruptured left biceps, a huge blow to the Tigers' chances of remaining in the AL Central race. But the games go on, and the Twins will try to take advantage tonight.
Jose Berrios is on the mound, coming off his complete-game victory over the White Sox last Thursday. "He was on a mission near the end of the game to try to find a way to finish it," Molitor said. "He knows when he goes out there what he needs to do to be successful. He makes adjustments. If some pitches aren't working, he's got enough weaponry to make adjustments on the fly. So he's just trying to pick up where he left off."
A few quick notes about guys who aren't here:
— Jorge Polanco becomes eligible to begin a rehab assignment on Sunday, and the Twins are tentatively planning to send him to Class AAA Rochester. That's 15 days before his 80-game steroid suspension runs out. Barring a rainout between now and then, Polanco will be back on the roster on July 2 in Milwaukee.
— Ervin Santana will throw off a mound Friday in Fort Myers, his first bullpen session since the Twins ended his rehab assignment last month. Santana has been playing catch, and will throw at least two bullpens before the Twins decide where and when to begin another rehab stint.
— The Twins didn't expect Joe Mauer to play both games of Tuesday's doubleheader in Scranton, but gave him the option if he wanted more at-bats. Mauer wound up going 0-for-6 in the two games, but reported no problems. He's playing first base for Rochester tonight, and could rejoin the Twins on Friday in Cleveland.
Meanwhile, Max Kepler is here, but won't be in the lineup tonight. The combination of a lefthander (Matt Boyd) on the mound, and his own 5-for-34 June slump convinced Molitor that tonight is a good time to give Kepler the night off. Here are the lineups for the second of three games at Comerica Park:
