Grossman's on-base prowess keeps Rosario on Twins bench in Baltimore

BALTIMORE — Eddie Rosario had missed just one game all season when the Twins arrived here yesterday. Now he's sitting out two games in a row.

But it doesn't have much to do with the Twins' young left fielder, manager Paul Molitor said. It's more about Robbie Grossman and the way he's been hitting righthanded pitching lately.

Grossman has an .890 OPS against righthanders, and he now ranks third in the American League in on-base percentage with a .417 mark. (Miguel Sano is second at .439, by the way, trailing only the Angels' Mike Trout). And Molitor loves the matchup against Dylan Bundy, the Orioles' starter tonight.

The options, then, were to play Grossman in the outfield again, or make him the designated hitter, a position Kennys Vargas has been occupying lately.

"If I kept Robbie in there, which was pretty much a given for me today, it was either Vargas sits two games in a row, or Rosie sits two in a row.," Molitor explained of his lineup. "It's just a situation where you have to let guys know what you're thinking."

Molitor settled on a lineup nearly identical to Monday night's, and who could blame him? That batting order produced 14 runs and 21 hits, both easily season highs.

"A night like last night, where you get contributions from top to bottom, you hope you come back strong," Molitor said. "We'll try to be patient, get some good pitches, and keep it going."

With a win, the Twins would become the first visiting team to win a series at Camden Yards this season. Here are the lineups for tonight's game:

TWINS

Dozier 2B

Grossman LF

Mauer 1B

Sano 3B

Kepler RF

Vargas DH

Polanco SS

Castro C

Buxton CF

Santana RHP

ORIOLES

Smith RF

Jones CF

Machado 3B

Trumbo DH

Davis 1B

Castillo C

Mancini LF

Schoop 2B

Hardy SS

Bundy RHP