Game 113: Braves at Twins

Designated time that the first pitch is scheduled to be thrown in regulation: 7:10p Central
Glowing picture box: FOX Sports North; MLB Network (out-of-market kiddos); fubo.tv (subscription; i.e. Sling and Dish customers)
Sound box (English): WCCO 830 AM, Treasure Island Baseball Network
Caja de sonido (español): twinsbeisbol.com
Be Cognizant of Thine Foe: Talking Chop

I never thought I’d see this day, but I get to talk about probably my most favoritest Minnesota Twins player - Jose Berrios. I mean, who doesn’t like the guy? I could watch tape of him throwing curveballs and fastballs all day long and probably melt. He’s the future cornerstone of the Twins rotation, in my opinion. Some go as far as to call him the staff ace. I’m not ready to say that yet. Two-time All-Star only three full seasons into his career? 200 strikeouts last year? He’s on his way to becoming an ace. Okay, so maybe I have a little man-crush on him. (Since I said that, this game thread will self-destruct in five seconds.)

La MaKina gets the nod for the Twins tonight. He is on the top-ten leaderboard in the American League in ERA (third, 2.80), WAR (tied for ninth, 3.4), innings pitched (ninth, 141.2), WHIP (sixth, 1.101), and K/BB (ninth, 4.433). He’s been able to get through the seventh inning his last two starts (and let’s be real, he really could have gone the distance against the Miami Marlins). Berríos hasn’t allowed more than three earned runs since May 18 at the Seattle Mariners, and after that, he’s pitched to the tune of a 2.31 ERA, going over six innings on average in each start, and striking out 73 batter (6.08 per start on average). The Twins are going to need Berríos to stymie a hot Atlanta Braves lineup.

Speaking of the Braves, they’ll rely on someone whose name will be the bane of Dick and Bert’s existence tonight: Mike Foltynewicz. After an apparent failed Kevin Gausman experiment that resulted in him being put on waivers and claimed by the Cincinnati Reds, the Braves called up Folty (I’m going to stick with that instead of typing out his last name) to take Gausman’s place in the rotation. An All-Star for Atlanta last year, Folty has not posted the same types of numbers this year: 6.37 ERA in 11 starts, 59.1 IP, 9.7 H/9, 2.4 HR/9, 3.0 BB/9, 1.415 WHIP. However, Folty’s last stint with AAA Gwinnett saw better numbers: 2.67 ERA over six starts, 33.2 IP, 8.6 H/9, 0.0 HR/9, 2.1 BB/9, 1.205 WHIP. Can the Bomba Squad get to Folty tonight? I sure hope so.

GO TWIMS GO