NewsDuensing a surprise cog for Twins
Minnesota (78-73) at Chicago (73-79), 7:11 p.m. CT
By Kelly Thesier / MLB.com
09/23/09 1:59 AM ET
CHICAGO -- Brian Duensing has shown a tremendous amount of composure since joining the Twins' rotation full-time last month. Yet his toughest test is likely ahead. The rookie left-hander will pitch Wednesday's series finale against the White Sox at U.S. Cellular Field, and his next start will come at Detroit in a likely make-or-break series with the Tigers. It's certainly not an easy task for a rookie, who, at the start of the season, never envisioned that he'd be in this position. Duensing broke Spring Training camp as a member of the Minnesota bullpen. He made one relief appearance in April before getting sent down to Triple-A Rochester, and at the time, Duensing said he hoped just to pitch well enough to just earn a September callup. Now he's one of the pitchers the Twins are relying heavily on in the midst of a pennant chase. "I'm pretty proud of the way I've pitched, and at the same time, I'm pretty surprised that things have been going the way they have been," said Duensing, who is 4-0 with a 1.45 ERA in his past six starts. "When the offense scores runs and the defense is making unbelievable plays behind you, it's a lot easier to pitch." Duensing's modesty hides the fact he's done quite a bit himself in delivering some important outings. This past weekend, he stepped on one big stage at the Metrodome and shut out the Tigers for 6 1/3 innings. But the majority of Duensing's strong outings have come at the Metrodome, so now he'll try to see if he can duplicate the success on the road. Since Duensing joined the rotation full-time Aug. 22, he's pitched into the seventh inning in four of his six starts. The only two starts where he was unable to do that came on the road. The Twins will look to Duensing on Wednesday to try to complete the series sweep over the White Sox. Minnesota currently sits 2 1/2 games behind the first-place Tigers in the American League Central. The pressure will certainly be on Duensing over his next two outings, but he's not shying away from it. "Those kind of games are fun to pitch in," Duensing said. "Obviously every game means something, but when you come down to this point in the season, it's like basically every game seems to be do-or-die. It puts a little extra pressure, but at the same time, you have a little more energy and the crowd is into it a little more. It makes it fun all the way around." Pitching matchupMIN: LHP Brian Duensing (4-1, 3.22 ERA)
In his last start, Duensing allowed just four hits, only one of which went for extra bases, over 6 1/3 innings. As a starter, Duensing is 4-0 with a 1.70 ERA. He has made two starts against the White Sox, the latest coming on Sept. 2, when he pitched seven scoreless innings but didn't factor in the decision. CWS: LHP Mark Buehrle (12-9, 3.84 ERA)
By throwing six-plus innings during Friday's loss to the Royals, Buehrle became the only active hurler to win at least 10 games, make 30 starts and work 200 innings in nine consecutive seasons. Buehrle also slipped to 1-6 over 11 starts since his perfect game against the Rays on July 23, having allowed 89 hits and 38 earned runs over 69 2/3 innings during this stretch. Buehrle is 2-2 with a 5.28 ERA against the Twins this season and has an 8-5 record at U.S. Cellular Field. Tidbits
Both of Matt Tolbert's two home runs this season have come against the White Sox. ... Jesse Crain has not allowed a run in his past 13 2/3 innings. He pitched 1 1/3 scoreless innings in the Twins' win on Tuesday night. Tickets
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• Thursday: Off-day
• Friday: Twins (Carl Pavano, 12-11, 4.82) at Royals (Robinson Tejeda, 4-1, 2.94), 7:10 p.m. CT
• Saturday: Twins (Scott Baker, 13-9, 4.43) at Royals (Lenny DiNardo, 0-1, 8.22), 6:10 p.m. CT
Kelly Thesier is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
