Twins-Kansas City series preview

RHP Samuel Deduno (1-1, 5.11 ERA) vs. RHP Luis Mendoza (1-2, 4.63)

RHP P.J. Walters (2-0, 4.50) vs. RHP Jeremy Guthrie (5-3, 3.84)

RHP Mike Pelfrey (3-6, 6.66) vs. RHP James Shields (2-6, 2.83)

Is this the beginning of a June boom for the Twins offense? They have hit eight home runs over their past four games. From his last two at-bats Saturday and first two Sunday, Ryan Doumit hit for the cycle. Chris Parmelee is batting .353 over his past 11 games. Brian Dozier has a seven-game hitting streak during which he's batting .379. … The Twins are encouraged that Pelfrey's fastball touched 94 miles per hour in his last start. Command remains his issue. … The Twins were swept in a three-game series at Kansas City in April.

Kansas City is in a terrible skid, having lost 14 of 17. Hitting has been the main problem, because the Royals have scored only 44 runs in those 17 games. … While it looks as if the Royals can be had, their starters have been tough on the Twins. Mendoza is 2-1 with a 2.67 ERA in five outings (four starts) vs. the Twins. Guthrie is 5-2 with a 3.55 ERA and Shields 4-2 with a 4.08 ERA. … Salvador Perez, one of the best young catchers in the game, is expected to rejoin the team in time for the series after time away on bereavement leave.