Game 81: Twins at Brewers

First Pitch: 7:10 PM CT

TV: FSN

Radio: WCCO 830, TIBN

Know Thine Enemy: Brew Crew Ball

Fun fact, the Twins didn’t play a single Monday game in all of June. That means its been awhile since I’ve written one of these. You probably didn’t miss me.

Anyway folks, we are officially at the halfway point for the season. It may not be the season that we hoped for, but its the one we are getting. The Twins have traveled to Milwaukee to take on the Brewers. They are currently half a game ahead of the Chicago Cubs (you know, that team that just swept us) in the NL Central.

As this is yet another game in a National League park, Kyle Gibson will swing a bat today. He has 17 plate appearances for his career, and exactly two hits. That means his career batting average is a rounding error different than Bobby Wilson’s is this year. Seriously, Gibson has a .125 career average, and Wilson is hitting .132 this season. Doesn’t that just paint a rosy picture.

On the plus side, Gibson is pitching pretty well this season, even if his team has actively tried to sabotage him. Gibson is averaging six innings per start, and still only has the decision in half of his starts. He deserves better than two wins, so hopefully number three is on its way. His ERA is currently 3.48 and he is striking out 8.7 batters per nine innings.

His opponent on the mound is Brent Suter. Like the old Matt Birk commercials said “He went to Harvard.” Suter has a 4.28 ERA in 88 innings this season. As can be said for most pitchers these days, he strikes out some guys, doesn’t issue a ton of walks, but is susceptible to long-balls on occasion. The actual numbers are 7.1 K/9, 2.1 BB/9, and 1.2 HR/9.

There are a couple roster changes for the Twins tonight. Most notably, Jorge Polanco has been activated, and is in the line up. Zack Littell has also been called up to provide a fresh arm to the bullpen. Read more about it here.

Here’s hoping the bats stay lively, and the pitching comes back!