Righthander Mike Pelfrey has a chance to gain some points today.
They need to avoid getting swept by a division opponent. And Pelfrey, who lives in Wichita, Kan., should have a few supporters in the stands
Torii Hunter remains in the lineup. He looked and sounded horrible after last night's game, as some sinus problem has been bugging him lately.
The Twins have several players with "numbers" against Royals starter Jeremy Guthrie. Hunter is batting .327 with a home run against him. Joe Mauer is batting .360 with three - THREE - home runs against Guthrie. Kurt Suzuki (.381) and Jordan Schafer (.313) also have hit Guthrie well.
Because of the Wild's playoff run, the Twins-Royals game is on FSN PLUS tonight. And Friday's game between the Twins and Mariners will be on the PLUS,
The Twins shove off to Seattle after this one, and King Felix is waiting. Another reason they need a good outing from Pelfrey.
Twins
Danny Santana, SS
Torii Hunter, RF
Joe Mauer, 1B
Brian Dozier, 2B
Kennys Vargas, DH
Trevor Plouffe, 3B
Oswaldo Arcia, LF
Kurt Suzuki, C
Jordan Schafer, CF
Mike Pelfrey, RHP
Royals
Alcides Escobar, SS
Mike Moustakas, 3B
Lorenzo Cain CF
Eric Hosmer, 1B
Kendrys Morales, DH
Alex Gordon, LF
Salvador Perez, C
Paulo Orlando, RF
Christian Colon, 2B
Jeremy Guthrie, RHP
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La Velle E. Neal III has covered baseball for the Star Tribune since 1998 (the post-Knoblauch era). Born and raised in Chicago, he grew up following the White Sox and hating the Cubs. He attended both the University of Illinois and Illinois-Chicago and began his baseball writing career at the Kansas City Star. He can be heard occasionally on KFAN radio, lending his great baseball mind to Paul Allen and other hosts.
Phil Miller covered three seasons of Twins baseball, but that was at a different ballpark for a different newspaper. Now Miller returns to the baseball beat after joining the Star Tribune as the Gopher football writer in 2010, and he won't miss the dingy dome for a minute. In addition to the Twins and Gophers, Miller covered the Utah Jazz and the NBA for six years at The Salt Lake Tribune.
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