Rays at Twins
The Minnesota Twins are bucking a common trend as they continue to prove good hitting beats good pitching, and they vie for a three-game sweep of the visiting Tampa Bay Rays on Thursday afternoon. Minnesota, which leads the majors with an average of 5.8 runs, has outscored Tampa Bay and its American League-leading 3.28 ERA 15-8 in the first two contests of the series to extend their winning streak in the all-time series to five games.
The Twins, however, lost an outfielder for the second straight game as Eddie Rosario left Wednesday's contest with an ankle injury - one night after Max Kepler was hit on the right elbow by a pitch. Rosario, who is listed as day-to-day, leads the club with 20 home runs and 60 RBIs while Kepler (19 homers, 51 RBIs) entered as a defensive replacement on Wednesday. Tampa Bay is clinging to an AL wild-card spot after losing for the 11th time in 15 contests and is 2-7 on its 10-game trek after winning its previous eight road trips dating to last season. The Rays on Thursday send out Ryne Stanek to make his 23rd start of the season as an opener and oppose Martin Perez, who has yielded four earned runs in each of his last three outings.
TV: 1:10 p.m. ET, FS Sun (Tampa Bay), FS North (Minnesota)
PITCHING MATCHUP: Rays RH Ryne Stanek (0-1, 2.47 ERA) vs. Twins LH Martin Perez (7-3, 4.28)
Stanek has allowed a run in three of his last four starts (two unearned) while issuing four walks and registering three strikeouts in 3 2/3 innings. The 27-year-old native of Kansas is 0-1 with a 1.85 ERA as an opener with 38 strikeouts in 34 frames. Stanek permitted one run and four hits with two strikeouts in two innings while filling the role in Tampa Bay's 5-3 loss to Minnesota on May 31, raising his ERA to 4.05 in five games (two starts) against the Twins.
Perez has seen his ERA rise 1.33 over his last five starts as he is 0-2 with a 7.50 ERA during that span. The 28-year-old Venezuelan's slide began when he yielded six runs and six hits in 2 2/3 innings of a 14-3 loss to the Rays at Tropicana Field on May 30. Guillermo Heredia is 10-for-23 while Mike Zunino has gone 6-for-15 with three home runs against Perez, who is 0-4 with a 7.49 ERA in nine games (seven starts) versus the Rays.
WALK-OFFS
1. Minnesota DH Nelson Cruz snapped a 5-for-34 funk over his previous seven games by going 3-for-4 with a go-ahead three-run double in the seventh inning of Wednesday's 6-4 victory.
2. Tampa Bay SS Willy Adames, who has homered in each of his last two games and three times in five contests, is batting .299 with nine blasts and 18 RBIs in 40 road games this season while hitting .197 at home.
3. Twins SS Jorge Polanco on Wednesday had his 37-game on-base streak snapped - the fifth-longest run in club history.