Twins right-hander Carl Pavano is on a personal four-game winning streak.
The AL Central Division-leading
Minnesota Twins and the
Tampa Bay Rays hook up Thursday night in the opener of a four-game series at Target Field, where the Twins have sold out all 49 games en route to a 25-14 ledger.
After slipping out of first place for the first time in 79 days, the Twins jumped back into the AL Central lead by capturing the last two games of a three-game set against the second place Detroit Tigers.
Wednesday afternoon's series finale saw the Twins register a 5-1 victory as a 140 home favorite, with the combined six runs dipping ‘under' the nine-run closing total.
The win lifted Minnesota's overall record to 43-35, which would not be good enough to lead the AL East where the Tampa Bay Rays reside with a 44-32 ledger.
Additionally, the Twins own a plus-52 run differential (366-314) while the Rays were plus-89 (381-292) prior to Wednesday night's contest at Boston.
The Twins are 28-13 against right-handed starters and 13-11 in one-run games. The Rays are 24-13 on the road (compared to 20-19 at home), 25-23 against right-handed starters and 11-12 in one-run games.
The ‘under' is 40-32-5 in Minnesota's first 77 encounters and 38-34-4 in Tampa's first 76 affairs.
The club's split six meetings last MLB season, with the ‘under' going 5-1. Though the Rays are just 7-22 in their last 29 visits to Minnesota, it is important to note those games were played at the Metrodome.
The Rays will send Jeff Niemann (6-2, 2.72 ERA) to the mound in Thursday's opener hoping to improve on their 11-4 record when the 6-foot-9 right-hander gets the starting nod.
Niemann is off last Friday's tough 1-0 loss against Arizona as a hefty 180 home favorite. The Texas native allowed just the one run on seven hits while walking two and fanning eight in 7 1/3 innings spanning 106 pitches.
The one run was scored on a home run, which has been a problem for Niemann lately. He has been tagged for seven long balls in his last five starts spanning 30 2/3 innings. However, Niemann has lasted six innings or more in each of his last 10 starting assignments.
Niemann seems to enjoy pitching on the road better than at his home yard. He is 4-0 with a 3.02 ERA in five road starts compared to 2-2 with a 2.44 ERA in seven home nods. In addition, the ‘over' is 4-1 on the road while the ‘under' is 6-1 at home.
The Twins will counter with Carl Pavano (9-6, 3.33 ERA), who has been their most consistent starter lately.
The 34-year-old right-hander is on a personal four-game winning streak, including back-to-back complete-game victories.
Pavano tossed a three-hit shutout against the Mets in his most recent start last Friday. He walked just one batter and fanned four spanning 110 pitches.
The 6-foot-5 Connecticut native has hurled seven innings or more in nine of his last 10 starts and has yielded three runs or less in seven of his last 10 assignments.
Pavano is 5-3 with a 3.81 ERA in eight starts at Target Field, with the ‘under' also going 5-3. The ‘under' is 10-5 in his 15 overall outings, with the Twins going 9-6 during that span.
Tampa is 13-13 in the opening game of a series, while Minnesota is 16-10.