In what can only be described as fitting, Joe Mauer's first Major League game at first base saw him involved early and often. He'd collect a trio of hits on the night and a pair of runs batted in, including his RBI single in the first that nearly took the head off Philip Humber. The bottom of the first gave Joe his first opportunities to make plays at his new position, as he recorded all three outs in the inning thanks in no small part to an unassisted double play.
For his part, Carl Pavano was very good. Apart from Mark Teahen's two-run blast after the Twins were already up 6-0, he looked in control. The White Sox managed just six hits and a pair of walks in seven innings, and this is fun: Pavano didn't record a single out on a fly ball the entire game. Four strikeouts, 12 groundouts, a double play and a couple of catches from his infielders tell the tale.
Michael Cuddyer would add two hits, raising his season average to .296, but the two other offensive stars in this one apart from Mauer were Ben Revere and Tsuyoshi Nishioka. Both stole a base and collected multi-hit games, Nishioka contributing two hits and a run batted in with Revere getting three hits and a pair of runs batted in.
A few nice defensive plays helped out the cause. Mauer made a couple of nice moves at first that might seem routine to an everyday first baseman, but for a guy making his first Major League start there it's easy to see that he's just a natural talent. His reflexes and instincts make him a natural ballplayer, and it's easy to see why people talk about him playing other positions. It's because he could. Danny Valencia made a nice stab and throw from deep behind third base and in foul territory, and Drew Butera followed a popup behind the plate and into the crowd to make a great catch to end the game.
Glen Perkins (nine pitches) and Matt Capps (eight) pitched perfect innings in relief, and that's the story. This one was all Twins, and I'm not ashamed to admit I love beating the White Sox. They're a good team, but they're directly in front of Minnesota in the standings and we all know that this team needs to rack up as many wins as they can as quickly as they can. Great win.
Studs
Revere, Mauer, Cuddyer, Nishioka, Pavano, Tom Kelly in the broadcast booth
Duds
Nobody