Minnesota @ Seattle preview
T-Mobile Park
Last Meeting ( Aug 27, 2010 ) Minnesota 6, Seattle 3
In keeping their eyes on winning the AL Central, the Minnesota Twins have focused on shoring up their bullpen.
The Twins continued that trend on Friday by acquiring left-hander Brian Fuentes from the Los Angeles Angels for a player to be named.
Fuentes has been a closer for much of his career with 186 saves, but he will be used as a setup man for closer Matt Capps with the Twins. Fuentes will fill the role of Jose Mijares, who went on the disabled list after surgery on his right knee.
Fuentes has converted 17 of 18 save opportunities and his ERA dropped from 5.93 to 3.31. He allowed three runs – two earned – on Tuesday against the Tampa Bay Rays.
The 35-year-old will join the Twins in Seattle on Saturday in the second contest of a three-game series.
Minnesota will start right-hander Nick Blackburn (7-8, 6.49 ERA) against Doug Fister (4-9, 3.87 ERA) in Saturday afternoon’s game.
The Twins won the opener on Friday night as Joe Mauer continued to torture the Mariners with three hits and two RBIs in a 6-3 victory. Scott Baker won his fifth consecutive start, allowing two runs and five hits in 6 2/3 innings.
Fuentes led the American League in saves in 2009 with 48 and helped the Colorado Rockies to a World Series berth in 2007.
Fuentes is in the second season of a two-year, $17.5 million deal. He was 4-1 with a 3.52 ERA in 39 appearances with the Angels and had 23 saves in 27 opportunities.
The Twins sent left-hander Glen Perkins to Triple-A Rochester to make room for Fuentes.
Blackburn is 1-1 with a 4.08 ERA in five career starts against the Mariners. In his only start against the Mariners this year, Blackburn allowed five runs and 10 hits in 3 2/3 innings in a 7-1 loss on June 1.
Seattle’s top of the order has been tough on Blackburn.
Leadoff hitter Ichiro Suzuki is 6-for-12 with two RBIs and Chone Figgins is hitting .579 (11-for-19) with a homer and two RBIs.
Fister has lost twice to the Twins this season. Fister has a 4.97 ERA in those starts and gave up homers to five Twins.
The right-hander gave up five runs - two earned - over 6 1/3 innings in a 6-3 loss at the Boston Red Sox on Monday. Fister has been better at Safeco Field, going 3-4 with a 3.14 ERA in 12 outings.
Mauer has a .380 batting average and a 1.085 on-base plus slugging percentage (OPS) in 45 career games against the Mariners, but is 0-for-5 against Fister.