Luis Arraez reunion in store as undefeated Twins head to Miami
The Twins haven't played in Miami since 2019, and a familiar face will be at the top of the Marlins' batting order.
Monday, 5:40 p.m. • BSN, 830-AM, 102.9-FM: RHP Tyler Mahle (6-8, 4.40 ERA in 2022) vs. RHP Johnny Cueto (8-10, 3.35 in 2022)
Tuesday, 5:40 p.m. • BSN Extra, 830-AM: RHP Kenta Maeda (6-5, 4.66 ERA in 2021) vs. RHP Sandy Alcantara (0-0, 4.76 in 2023)
Wednesday, 12:10 p.m. • BSN, 830-AM, 102.9-FM: RHP Pablo López (1-0, 0.00 ERA) vs. LHP Jesus Luzardo (1-0, 0.00)
TWINS UPDATE
Coming off their first three-game sweep to open a season since 2017, the Twins (3-0) travel to Miami for the first time since 2019, when they won two of three from the Marlins. The Twins lead the all-time series 9-7. ... This is the first of 16 interleague series for the Twins, as for the first time, this season every team plays every other major league team. The Twins play two series with Milwaukee. ... Mahle is 0-2 with a 3.00 ERA in three career starts against the Marlins. ... Maeda will be making his first regular-season appearance since Aug. 21, 2021. ... López returns to his ballpark of the past five seasons. He is 14-15 with a 3.45 ERA in 50 career starts in Miami.
MARLINS UPDATE
The Marlins went 1-3 in their season-opening series vs. the Mets, including a 5-1 loss Sunday. ... According to the Elias Sports Bureau, the Marlins are the first team since 1900 to acquire the past two batting champions (from either league) in the same offseason. Luis Arraez, who won the AL batting title last season with the Twins with a .316 average and was traded for López, is hitting .563 in four games after going 2-for-4 Sunday. The Marlins also acquired Yuli Gurriel, who won the 2021 AL batting title at .319 with Houston. ... Skip Schumaker is in his first season as an MLB manager after spending last season as St. Louis bench coach.
Souhan: A modest proposal to improve baseball, because the Golden At-Bat rule doesn’t go far enough
We start with a warning to bad pitchers and bad owners: Beware the trap door. And yes, we are considering moats around infielders.