CHICAGO — Max Kepler still wasn't feeling well when he arrived at Guaranteed Rate Field on Tuesday, but the Twins gave him a saline IV in the trainers' room. "That made me feel a lot better," the Twins' right fielder said. And when he woke up Wednesday morning, he was feeling good and ready to play again.
"I [got] a heads-up that Max was on the right track," Twins manager Paul Molitor said. "He's excited to be back in there."
The Twins are, too, because their lineup is already missing Miguel Sano and Robbie Grossman with injuries. Kepler, who sat out two games with symptoms of either the flu or food poisoning — he's not sure which — is batting sixth tonight against White Sox righthander James Shields.
Kepler began to feel lightheaded during Monday's first game, amid the heat and humidity of Chicago. "I was having trouble with my vision, actually. I took some really awkward swings, which at the time, I was like, 'Just one of those days,' " Kepler said. "When the game ended, I sat down, and I felt really bad. Weak, lightheaded." And he just got worse during the night.
He's anxious to get back, though, to join in a remarkable run of power-hitting by the Twins. Kepler has never hit a home run here, but his Twins teammates have piled up 15 in eight games in Chicago, eight just in the past two days alone.
"We're keeping things simple. Just put an easy swing on it. The ball's coming in at 90-something mph — if you square it up with the barrel, it'll go a long way," Kepler said. "It seems like everyone is doing just as much as they have to swing-wise, keeping it simple, not trying to hit it over the fence. It's awesome to see."
Here are the lineups for tonight's fourth game of the series:
TWINS
