Minnesota @ New York preview
Yankee Stadium
Last Meeting ( Mar 31, 2010 ) Minnesota 4, NY Yankees 2
After a rough ending to their road trip, the New York Yankees are hoping that some home cooking can get their bats back on track.
The Yankees will be kicking off a seven-game homestand today when they face the Minnesota Twins.
New York is limping back to the Bronx having dropped four of its last five games, including being shut out twice by the Detroit Tigers.
Leading the American League in runs scored and boasting game-changing talents at nearly every position in the batting order, the Yankees were stymied on back-to-back days by Rick Porcello and Justin Verlander, managing just four hits in each contest.
The shutouts were sandwiched around an 8-0 win, however, as the teams played a day-night doubleheader on Wednesday. But even the win didn't include a broad distribution of offense, with only five players getting hits and the middle of the lineup handling most of the heavy lifting.
One reason for New York's recent slide has been Robinson Cano's unlikely slump. The hottest hitter in baseball in April, Cano was batting .400 on April 30 but watched that average drop to .333 with an 0-for-3 showing on Wednesday.
Cano went 5-for-24 with no homers and one RBI on the road trip, including 2-for-13 while dropping three of four to the Tigers.
Derek Jeter's slump has been even more pronounced. The Yankee captain managed only one hit in the Detroit series and has watched his average slip from .330 to .269 since the calendar turned.
Meanwhile, Mark Teixeira is still batting below .200 while Curtis Granderson and Nick Johnson remain on the disabled list.
But New York is 10-2 at the new Yankee Stadium and starts A.J. Burnett, who has yet to give up an earned run at home this season. The right-hander is coming off his worst start of the season, allowing nine runs - eight earned - and nine hits in 4 1/3 innings to suffer a loss at Boston on Sunday.
Prior to that debacle, Burnett was cruising right along with a 1.99 ERA. In two starts in the Bronx, Burnett has earned a pair of wins while limiting the Texas Rangers and Baltimore Orioles to 13 hits and an unearned run in 14 1/3 frames.
Burnett has fared well against the Twins in the past, going 2-1 with a 3.72 ERA in six starts. He dominated Minnesota in the playoffs last season, allowing one run in six innings as the Yankees went on to win the game, the series and eventually the World Series.
The Twins will counter with right-hander Scott Baker. The 28-year-old is coming off his best start of the season last Saturday, when he allowed one run and three hits in eight innings to earn a win against the Baltimore Orioles. He struck out six and did not walk a batter.
Baker has four quality starts this season and has gotten the better of New York in the past, going 2-1 with a 4.20 ERA in three career starts. Cano and Jeter are a combined 4-for-13 with a pair of RBIs against the Louisiana native.