New York @ Minnesota preview
Target Field
Last Meeting ( Mar 16, 2011 ) NY Mets 3, Minnesota 4
After scoring 28 runs over their first six games, the Minnesota Twins struggled to find any consistent offense in their last series. They’ll return home for the first time in over a week on Friday when they begin a three-game weekend interleague series with the New York Mets. The Twins went 4-2 against a pair of playoff teams from a season ago (Detroit Tigers and Baltimore Orioles), but were held to only five runs in a three-game sweep against the Kansas City Royals.
Minnesota will look to get back on track against the Mets, who yielded 15 combined runs – including six homers – over the last two games of their series against a Philadelphia Phillies team that had scored four runs or fewer in five of their previous six games. While Matt Harvey and Friday’s starter, Jon Niese, have combined for a 1.35 ERA in four starts, the other three Mets’ starters carry a combined 6.77 ERA over their five outings.
TV: 8:10 p.m. ET, SNY (New York), Fox Sports North (Minnesota)
PITCHING MATCHUP: Mets LH Jon Niese (1-0, 2.13 ERA) vs. Twins RH Vance Worley (0-1, 5.73)
Niese did not factor into the decision in Saturday’s 7-3 victory over Miami despite allowing two runs – one earned – and eight hits over six frames. The Ohio native dazzled the Twins at home in his only career start against them in 2010, yielding four hits over six scoreless innings to collect the win. No Twin has faced him more often than Worley (1-for-6), but Josh Willingham (2-for-5 with a homer) and Jamey Carroll (3-for-5) are the only other hitters to face him more than twice.
Worley was roughed up for five runs – four earned – and 10 hits over five frames in a no-decision during Saturday’s 6-5 win over Baltimore. Acquired from the Phillies in December, the 25-year-old right-hander is winless in his last four starts against the Mets, going 0-2 with an 8.79 ERA in three outings last season. Worley has allowed New York to bat .329 over his career, with Daniel Murphy (10-for-15), Ruben Tejada (7-for-17) and Lucas Duda (5-for-10) all batting over .400 against him.
WALK-OFFS
1. New York C John Buck has five homers – equaling the number of home runs Mets catchers hit all of last season.
2. Twins LHP Scott Diamond, 12-9 with a 3.54 ERA in his first full season in 2012, is penciled in to come off the disabled list Saturday and start against Mets.
3. New York is 4-0 when Niese or Harvey have started and 1-4 in the other five contests..
PREDICTION: Mets 5, Twins 3