Texas @ Minnesota preview
Target Field
Last Meeting ( Sep 4, 2010 ) Texas 4, Minnesota 12
Jim Thome seems to be over his back problems and the Minnesota Twins are reaping the benefits.
The Twins will be looking to sweep the Texas Rangers when they close out a three-game series at Target Field on Sunday.
The Rangers have yet to win in five tries at Target Field this season, and it was Thome who prevented them from doing so on Saturday. The veteran slugger homered twice, moving past Mark McGwire into sole possession of ninth place on the all-time home run list with 584.
Thome, who has had back problems throughout the last few years of his career, was limited to pinch-hitting duty most of the week due to his balky back and had not had a multi-hit game since Aug. 17.
With a division race that could go down to the wire with the Chicago White Sox, Minnesota will need to find ways to rest Thome down the stretch.
He got plenty of help on Saturday from rookie Matt Tolbert, who tripled twice and drove in a career-high five runs, and starter Carl Pavano, who went eight strong innings to save a bullpen that had worked 14 1/3 innings over the previous two games.
Texas owns the biggest division lead in baseball - eight games in the American League West - and has been playing like it lately, dropping six of its last nine while going into cruise control.
Nick Blackburn will get the start in the finale for Minnesota. The right-hander was scheduled to start Friday’s series opener but was forced into relief duty when Thursday’s game went into the 13th inning. Blackburn ended up suffering the loss in that contest after allowing a solo homer to Detroit’s Gerald Laird in the top of the 13th.
While his time in the rotation hasn’t exactly gone smoothly this season, Blackburn is coming off one of his best starts of the season last weekend, when he held the Seattle Mariners to two hits in 8 2/3 scoreless frames while striking out six to earn a win. He turned in a quality start against Texas on Aug. 23, allowing three runs and eight hits in seven innings, but took the loss as Minnesota fell 4-0.
Blackburn has yet to win against the Rangers in three tries.
Texas will counter with left-hander C.J. Wilson. The former reliever has become one of the aces of Texas’ improved rotation this season, leading the group with 14 wins and a 2.88 ERA The 30-year-old has not lost since July 11 against Baltimore, going 7-0 with a 1.99 ERA and a .196 batting average against in his last nine starts.
One of those wins came against the Twins on Aug. 25, when Wilson allowed two earned runs and seven hits in six innings. He was not as good against them on May 29, however, allowing five runs in six innings to suffer a loss at Target Field. That was one of only four starts this season in which Wilson allowed more than three earned runs.