The Twins game will start at 6:35 p.m. tonight, delayed a half-hour for a ceremony that Paul Molitor hopes is inspirational and motivational for his current players. Johan Santana will be inducted into the Twins' Hall of Fame, and Molitor wants his players in the dugout to watch.
"I think it's really good for the current players. It's good to know our club's history, but when you get into the environment of a Hall of Fame ceremony, and you see all the faces, it's meaningful," the Twins manager said. "It's a good way for our organization to bridge generation to generation."
Especially since tonight's starting pitcher, Jose Berrios, has the look, albeit very early in his career, of someone who might one day stand at a similar podium.
"I think he thinks about those things. It's not his priority. He's kind of a day-by-bay, grind-it-out type of kid," Molitor said. "But I know he has high aspirations for what he can do. He's on a good track."
Berrios has won 10 games this season, and held Kansas City to one run over seven innings the last time they met. He's got a 1.92 ERA in his last two starts against the Royals, the AL Central's last-place team.
Once Santana, a two-time Cy Young winner, has accepted the team's highest honor, Berrios will face Royals rookie Burch Smith. Here are the lineups for tonight's game:
ROYALS
Merrifield 2B
Gordon LF
Perez DH
Duda 1B
Herrera 3B
Bonifacio RF
Phillips CF
Escobar SS
Butera C
Smith RHP
TWINS
Mauer DH
Rosario LF
Polanco SS
Morrison 1B
Sano 3B
Kepler RF
Forsythe 2B
Cave CF
Wilson C
Berrios RHP
