News
Twins seeking help from unlikely source
Minnesota (83-76) vs. Kansas City (65-94), 7:10 p.m. CT
By Kelly Thesier / MLB.com
10/01/09 8:25 PM EST
DETROIT -- For the past four days, the Twins held their own fate in their hands. Now, they must rely on the White Sox for some help. After managing to stave off elimination with an 8-3 win over the Tigers on Thursday afternoon, the Twins are back to scoreboard watching. Trailing by two games with three left to play, Minnesota needs at least two Detroit losses this weekend to even have a shot at forcing a tiebreaker. So as the Twins prepare to host the Royals for three at the Metrodome this weekend, they are not above asking for some help from the White Sox, who will play three games at Comerica Park. The hope is that with a little help from their divisional rival White Sox and manager Ozzie Guillen, the Twins can make the final weekend at the Metrodome one to remember. "We're going to the dome for the last weekend, and we've still got a shot," Twins manager Ron Gardenhire said. "Hopefully we'll go and at least do our part. It's in somebody else's hands -- Ozzie's. C'mon Ozzie." Gardenhire could leave a little note in the visiting manager's office at Comerica Park for the White Sox skipper, asking for a little help. But it seems that Guillen has already provided at least one boost for the weekend. The White Sox will have Jake Peavy on the mound for the series opener at Comerica Park after pushing back his start from Wednesday. Peavy held the Tigers scoreless for seven innings on Sept. 25. Twins catcher Mike Redmond said he might put in a call to his former Marlins teammate Mark Kotsay, who now plays for the White Sox. "I'm definitely going to leave him a message," Redmond said with a laugh. "Tell him to have some fun the next three days and give us a chance." To earn the division outright, the Twins would have to sweep the Royals while the White Sox would need to sweep the Tigers at Comerica Park. To force a one-game tiebreaker for the division title, the Twins would have to sweep Kansas City and Detroit would have to lose two of three, or Minnesota would need to win two of three and have Chicago sweep the Tigers. So the Twins know it will take a lot to pull off a division title, and they are aware that all three of their remaining contests are must wins. Not an easy task, as the Twins will face their own challenges against the Royals. The biggest of those is Kansas City ace and Cy Young candidate Zack Greinke, who is slated to start on Saturday. Minnesota also is having to go with a makeshift starting rotation for the series. Rookie Jeff Manship is headed back into the rotation for Friday's contest, having been skipped last time around. The Twins are planning to bring back Nick Blackburn on three days' rest to pitch Saturday, and while rookie Brian Duensing is currently slated to start Sunday, Gardenhire said that it's possible that Carl Pavano could take the mound in the Metrodome finale if the division is on the line. It's certainly going to be a lively atmosphere, as 45,000 are expected to be at Friday night's game. The Twins are raising the curtain on Saturday and Sunday to allow for more than 50,000 to be there in each of those contests. "It's going to be big," Denard Span said. "I know a lot of old former players are going to be there, and I know a lot of fans are going to be there. There wouldn't be any way better to take the dome out than to take the division." Pitching matchupMIN: RHP Jeff Manship (0-1, 5.81 ERA)
Francisco Liriano made the last turn of the rotation in this spot, but he didn't make it out of the second inning against the Royals. So the Twins will instead turn once again to the man Liriano had replaced in the rotation, Manship. The rookie hasn't been effective in his four previous starts, pitching fewer innings in each one. His best start came against the White Sox on Sept. 1, when he allowed one run over five innings. Manship did pitch 3 2/3 innings of relief after Liriano's early exit vs. Kansas City and gave up one run on three hits with five strikeouts. KC: LHP Lenny DiNardo (0-2, 7.52 ERA)
This will be DiNardo's last chance to make a favorable impression for next year. Since being called up from Triple-A Omaha, he's made four starts. The first two were pretty good; the last two not-so-good. He gave up eight runs in five innings to the Red Sox on Sept. 21 and seven runs in five innings to the Twins on Saturday night. Give him a break in the latter case; an error made only three of those runs earned. DiNardo, a lefty who doesn't throw that hard, needs to keep the ball down and induce ground balls to be successful. Tidbits
Thursday marked the 12th consecutive game that Orlando Cabrera has scored a run -- marking the longest streak in the Majors this season and the longest by a Twins player since Kirby Puckett scored in 14 straight games in 1986. ... Delmon Young finished the series against the Tigers batting .438 (7-for-16). He's batted .375 with seven RBIs in his last 13 games. Tickets
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• TRN 1500, KMNV / KMNQ (Español) Up next
• Saturday: Twins (Nick Blackburn, 11-11, 4.08) vs. Royals (Zack Greinke, 16-8, 2.06), 3:10 p.m. CT
• Sunday: Twins (Brian Duensing, 5-2, 3.69) vs. Royals (Luke Hochevar, 7-12, 6.24), 1:10 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.
