Twins pregame: Hoping for a happy ending, and a timetable for Mauer

Good afternoon from Target Field, where the Twins wrap up a misbegotten 10-game home stand they hoped would launch them on the road to relevance. With a 2-7 record thus far, they're simply hoping to leave town on a good note--and avoid being swept in this four-game series against the White Sox. Today's lineups:

TWINS

1--Santana, CF

2--Fuld, LF

3--Dozier, 2B

4--Plouffe, 3B

5--Arcia, RF

7--Parmelee, 1B

8--Fryer, C

9--Escobar, SS

P--Pino (1-3, 4.64)

WHITE SOX

2--Ramirez, SS

3--Abreu, 1B

4--Dunn, DH

5--Viciedo, RF

6--Gillaspie, 3B

8--Beckham, 2B

9--Nieto, C

P--Carroll (4-6, 4.52)

Manager Ron Gardenhire said today that Joe Mauer will begin taking batting practice in the cage on Monday, with a goal of sending him to a rehab assignment by the time the Twins return from a six-day road trip to Kansas City and Chicago. Mauer is scheduled to begin taking batting practice on the field, the next step in the progression, on Wednesday.

"If everything goes according to plan, by the time we get back here, he should be gone on a rehab," Gardenhire said. GM Terry Ryan said he will examine the schedules of the Twins' minor-league affiliates to decide where Mauer will go, but he hopes to send him to Class AAA Rochester for better competition.

Whenever Mauer returns, Gardenhire added, it won't come a moment too soon for a struggling club.

"Getting Mauer back is going to be huge," he said. "We really need him desperately. He's a big cog in our lineup. We need to get him back on the field. That's important for our baseball team, not only because of what he does on the field, but the whole package, him being around the guys and everything. He's a calming influence.

"That would be huge for us, and then kind of get right again. We have to get right again mentally. That's what we're hoping for here. This has been really frustrating for everybody involved. It's no fun to come in this clubhouse after losing game after game."

Enjoy the game!