Twins starters have heated up right when the offense needed them.
The last three Twins to take the ball - Phil Hughes, Mike Pelfrey and Tommy Milone - have posted a 1.17 ERA. That kept the Twins within striking distance in games they ended up winning. And many in the clubhouse feel that Thursday's 2-1 win over St. Louis could be the game that gets them on a roll.
It started last night with a 7-2 win over the Cubs as the Twins banged out seven extra base hits.
We'll see today, as the Twins face Jon Lester, who threw a complete-game shutout at the Twins last August right after he was traded from Boston. Trevor May is on the mound for the Twins, coming off an outing at Texas during which he gave up three runs over five innings.
A couple minor league notes. Alex Wimmers struck out 11 over eight innings as Class AA Chattanooga beat Jacksonville 3-2. Wimmers currently has a 21.1-inning shutout streak.
Max Kepler had just one hit in the game, a RBI triple. But he's still batting .684 - not a typo - over his last five games with four triples and a homer. Lookouts manager Doug Mientkiewicz has told people that Kepler has made more progress over the last year than anyone.
Eduardo Nunez hands are sore after a Kyle Hendricks two-seamer rode in on him and caught him on both hands. He's not in the lineup but maanger Paul Molitor said he is available.
Joe Mauer is under the weather but is in the lineup as the desginated hitter.
Cubs
Dexter Fowler, CF
Anthony Rizzo, 1B
Kris Bryant, 3B
Chris Coghlan, LF
Starlin Castro, SS
Kyle Schwarber, DH
Chris Denorfia, RF
David Ross, C
Addison Russell, 2B
Jon Lester, LHP
Twins
Brian Dozier, 2B
Eddie Rosario, LF
Joe Mauer, DH
Trevor Plouffe, 3B
Torii Hunter, RF
Kurt Suzuki, C
Kennys Vargas, 1B
Eduardo Escobar, SS
Byron Buxton, CF
Trevor May, RHP
