First Pitch: 1:10 pm CDT
TV: FSNO
Radio: 830 WCCO, TIBN, The Wolf 102.9
Know Thine Enemy: Bless You Boys
Thanks to the vagaries of the 2020 baseball season, we are on game four of five in a row (across four days, natch) against the Tigers. Apparently I only draw the game thread short straw when Gardy, et al. are on the slate.
The Twins come into this one technically in third place, but with a chance to change that. They trail Chicago by half-a-game, and are tied with Cleveland (although fewer games played means the Spiders have a slight edge in winning percentage.) Team Dirty Laundry starts playing the Royals five minutes before our first pitch, so it might take a miracle, but it is possible we win and they lose, and by 5 pm, we take first place. Or at least a share of it, depending on if the Brewers can beat the Spiders.
Anyway, the Twins have now won five in a row, after dropping six, which means they are .500 in their last ten games. Rich Hill takes the mound, trying to match the bad streak with the good one. That probably means some work for the bullpen, as he is typically good for about 3 1⁄3 innings before the wheels fall off. This is his first appearance versus the Tigers this year. Overall, Dick Mountain has a 3.94 ERA that outperforms his FIP by a bit over a half-point. He’s not striking out a ton of guys, but also not giving up many big flies. What he is giving up a ton of is walks, and those haunt, so pay attention to his command.
Opposing Hill is Casey Mize, a young man who didn’t have a pleasant time when he last saw the Twins. I mean, he wasn’t bad per se, but he gave up two runs in only three innings, in the game the Twins ultimately used to break their wretched losing streak. Overall, Mize has a 6.75 ERA in three starts, encompassing 10 2⁄3 innings. He’s had some bad luck, with a .355 BABIP and 1⁄3 of fly balls he’s allowed have left the yard. In a small sample, he basically either strikes a guy out, or lets him on base. His K/9 is at 11.0, which bodes poorly for the free-swingers on the Twins roster, but everything else looks like a boon to the bomba squad. He’s at 2.5 HR/9, 3.4 BB/9, and 11.8 hits/9. His WHIP is 1.688. The Twins need to get some guys on and capitalize on early opportunities.
Also, both the Twins catchers are hurt, and although Ryan Jeffers has been an admirable fill-in, today we get LA TORTUGA STARTING!!!!
Go Twins Go!