Game 13: Red Sox at Twins

It may be 13 that is considered unlucky, but it’s the first 12 games of the Twins’ season that have felt unfortunately Minnesotan.

Now on a five-game losing streak and at the bottom of the AL Central, the Twins will attempt to regain their collective balance and light up a sluggish offense that has scored just five runs in the first three games of their series against the Red Sox.

Unfortunately, not only has Boston been cumulatively hot, the Scarlet Hosiery sporting a nine-game winning streak, but the Twins will be without both the hamstring-laden Byron Buxton and the recently-returned Josh Donaldson in their starting lineup.

Despite the pessimism inherent in the first 106 words of today’s write-up, I will remind fans that two weeks of the season have yet to pass, and there are 149 games remaining after today’s tilt. And other Twins teams have come back from later deficits; the 1991 Twins were in last place on Memorial Day, only to end up hoisting a large piece of metal.

Furthermore, the Twins will be sending Michael Pineda to the mound, and the northpaw has allowed just a pair of runs over 11 innings in his first two starts. His hurling opponent, first-year Red Sok Garrett Richards, has lasted just seven innings over two starts, allowing eight runs and 10 hits during that septet of frames.

Will the Twins turn it around today? I certainly hope so, but I’m no seer. The starting squad that will look to get Minnesota in the win column — and that hopes to delay that W for at least one more game — can be seen below.