KANSAS CITY ROYALS NOTES:
WILD THINGS: The Royals snapped a 3-game losing streak with a 3-2 win over the Twins yesterday at Target Field, in which the two teams combined for 12 walks, 3 wild pitches and only 2 hits in scoring situations…Brad Keller issued 5 walks for the 3rd consecutive start, but held the Twins to 1 run in 5.1 innings, lowering his ERA to 3.56 (12 ER in 30.1 IP) in 6 starts…Byron Buxton broke a 1-1 tie in the 7th with a go-ahead, solo home run off Taylor Clarke, but the Royals answered in the 8th when Bobby Witt Jr. drew a walk to begin the frame, stole second base and scored the tying run on an RBI single by Salvador Perez…with the game still tied in the 9th against Twins closer Jhoan Duran, the Royals drew back-to-back walks to begin the frame, and Nicky Lopez sacrificed them both into scoring position with his Majors-most 24th sacrifice bunt since 2021…then with a 1-0 count on Witt Jr., Duran uncorked a wild pitch that scored Edward Olivares from third base, and Scott Barlow pitched into and out of a jam in the bottom half to mark his 4th save of the season and 3rd on this road trip.
Yesterday marked the Royals 4th comeback win of the season and 2nd when trailing after the 7th inning, which is tied for the 3rd-most such wins in the Majors this season, trailing only the Red Sox and Reds (4).
Seven of 9 games on this trip have been decided by 1 or 2 runs, and 4 of the last 7 have been 1-run games.
HBD, KEONI!: Royals Assistant Hitting Coach Keoni DeRenne (kee-oh-nee deh-RENN) is celebrating his 44th birthday today…a native of Hawaii, DeRenne shares a birthday with White Sox starting pitcher Michael Kopech (27) and one-time Royal and former Twins infielder Jeff Reboulet (59)…Keoni is in his 23rd season in baseball, including his 12th season as a coach, 4th in the Royals organization and 2nd on the big league staff.
OLI MOLY!: Edward Olivares has played in 8 of the 9 games on this road trip, and he’s recorded in hit in each game he’s played, a stretch in which he’s batting .375 (12-for-32) with 7 extra-base hits…his 8-game hit streak is tied for the 3rd-longest active run in the Majors, trailing only Robbie Grossman (10) and Masataka Yoshida (9)…it’s also 1 game shy of his career best hit streak of 9 games, which he did twice last season from April 27-June 24 and July 14-Sept. 22, although both of those streaks were interrupted by stints on the Injured List.
In 2 games vs. the Twins in this series, Olivares is 5-for-7 (.714) with 5 extra-base hits, a walk and a hit-by-pitch, for a .778 on-base percentage…he’s the fifth different Royal in the last 15 years to record at least 5 extra-base hits over a 2-game span, following Bobby Witt Jr. (May 27-28, 2022), Alex Gordon (April 11-12, 2019 and July 26-27, 2011), Kendrys Morales (Sept. 19-20, 2015) and Billy Butler (July 7-8, 2009).
THE RUNNIN’ ROYALS: The Royals recorded a season-high 4 stolen bases in yesterday’s win, something they did only twice all of last season, on June 20 at the Angels and Aug. 4 vs. Boston…the Royals have 18 steals in 21 attempts this season and their success rate of 85.7% ranks 3rd in the American League behind the Red Sox (91.7%) and White Sox (90.0%)…they began this season with 13 successful attempts, before being caught in back-to-back games last week in Arizona…their current success rate of 85.7% would mark a single-season franchise record, which is 82.7%, set by the 2013 Royals, who led Major League Baseball with 153 steals.
Bobby Witt Jr. leads the team and ranks tied for 6th in the American League with 7 stolen bases.
RISPY BUSINESS: Through the 1st 19 games of the year, Royals pitchers yielded a .359 average (56-for-156) with runners in scoring position, which was the highest mark in the Majors…but in 9 games on this trip, opponents have hit just .206 (14-for-68) in scoring situations, tied for the 8th-lowest mark in the Majors since April 20…the Royals held the Twins to 0-for-11 in scoring situations yesterday, their most hitless at-bats in a game this season.
WHAT A RELIEF!: One of the few bright spots on this 3-6 road trip has been the Royals bullpen, which has pitched to a 3.09 ERA (12 ER in 35.0 IP) with 43 strikeouts (11.1 K/9) and only 9 walks (2.3 BB/9) allowed…the ‘pen has been even better over the last 7 games, a stretch in which Royals relievers own a 2.16 ERA (6 ER in 25.0 IP), .220 opponents’ average (20-for-91) and 33 strikeouts (11.9 K/9)…Royals relievers have held opponents to 1 run or fewer in 6 of the last 7 games, including yesterday, when four relievers combined to allow 1 run in 3.2 innings.
After ranking 21st in MLB in 2022 with an 8.5 K/9, Royals relievers this year own a 10.6 K/9, which ranks 4th in the AL behind the White Sox (10.7), Astros (10.7) and Blue Jays (10.7) and would set a single-season club record for the ‘pen, whose current best K/9 came during the shortened 2020 year (10.3).
RIDING SOLO: The Royals have hit 6 home runs through 9 games on this trip, after hitting just 2 HR on their previous 6-game homestand…they rank 26th in the Majors with 20 HR in 28 games, but the timing of those homers has been troublesome…of the Royals 20 home runs, 16 of them (80%) have been solo shots, including each of the last 7…while the Royals have allowed 6 homers in the 1st 3 games of this series at Target Field— including a pair of 3-run shots—the Royals haven’t homered with a man on base since April 16 vs. Atlanta, when Vinnie Pasquantino hit a game-tying, 2-run home run in the 7th inning…this run of 7 consecutive solo home runs is the longest such streak by the Royals since Aug. 20-25, 2021, when they hit 7 straight solo shots, a drought that was snapped when the Royals hit a grand slam in 3 consecutive games from Aug. 25-27, 2021.
All 3 of the Royals wins on this road trip have come without the benefit of a home run, and they’re 3-1 in their last 4 games without a homer, after beginning the season with 10 straight losses in homerless games.
VS. TWINS: Yesterday’s win snapped the Royals 5-game losing streak to the Twins, and marked their 1st win at Target Field since May 28, 2022, ending a drought of 9 consecutive losses in this ballpark, which matched their longest skid in the state of Minnesota…with a win today, the Royals would split this 4-game series and would snap a streak of 5 consecutive series losses since their last win from April 7-8 in San Francisco (2-1).
After today, the Royals will have played 7 games vs. the Twins but none vs. their other division opponents.
These two teams won’t meet again until July 3-5 here at Target Field, more than two months from now.
Salvador Perez hit his 21st home run at Target Field Friday night, extending his lead among all visiting players in this ballpark, 4 more than Carlos Santana and Edwin Encarnación (17)…Salvy’s 104 hits here are 2nd among visiting players to Miguel Cabrera (111) and his 60 RBI—including 4 in this series—are tied with José Abreu for 2nd most, only 1 shy of matching Cabrera (61).
SO LONG, APRIL!: The month of April has not been kind to the Royals in recent years, and that trend has continued in 2023…including their Opening Day loss on March 30, the Royals are 7-21 through 28 games, matching the worst 28-game start in club history, previously done in 2018, 2006 and 2005… Kansas City’s 21 losses match 2018 for its most in March/April, and the 20 losses in April alone are 1 shy of the club record for any month, set in August 1999 and matched in August 2005, May 2006 and June 2018…the schedule makers haven’t done the Royals any favors either, as their seven opponents to this point have a combined record of 109-82 (.571), and four of those seven teams are in 1st place, including this weekend’s opponent, the 16-12 Twins.
The Royals will say goodbye to April after today’s game and will fly home tonight to welcome the month of May with an off day tomorrow…that will be their only break during a stretch of 27 days, which began with the start of this trip and will run through May 17…starting Tuesday night, the Royals will begin a season-long, 10-game homestand, in which they’ll host the O’s and A’s for 3 games each, followed by a 4-game set with the White Sox.
TODAY’S STARTERS: RHP BRADY SINGER (2-2, 6.67)
BRADY SINGER is making his 6th start of the season and 69th of his career today vs. the Twins…it’s his 10th career start vs. the Twins and 1st since last May…Singer is in his fourth season in the Majors and was selected by Kansas City in the 1st round (18th overall) of the 2018 First-Year Player Draft out of the University of Florida.
LAST START: Singer earned his 2nd win in a 5-4 victory in Arizona last Tuesday, in which he held the Diamondbacks to 1 run on 5 hits and no walks in 6.0 innings, with 5 strikeouts…the only run scored on a groundout in the 4th inning by Christian Walker, who drove in Corbin Carroll from third after he began the frame with a triple…Singer retired eight of the last nine batters and exited with a 4-1 lead…the D-Backs scored 3 runs vs. the Royals bullpen—although Kansas City held their lead with a run in the 8th—and Scott Barlow recorded the final 5 outs to mark his 3rd save.
WALK THIS WAY: Since the start of last season, Singer has recorded at least 5.0 innings without issuing a walk in 12 of his 29 starts—including 3 this year—which are tied for the 2nd most in the Majors during that span, trailing only Corey Kluber (14).
Since the start of last year, Singer has issued 41 walks in 180.1 innings for a 2.05 BB/9 rate, which ranks 5th in the American League (min. 180.0 IP) behind Kluber (1.39), Kevin Gausman (1.43), Shane Bieber (1.78) and Cole Irvin (2.04).
CASTING CALLS: In 29 starts since his May 17 recall last season, Brady has induced a called strike on 570 of his 2,805 pitches (20.3%), 3rd most in the Majors, trailing only Gerrit Cole (572) and Logan Webb (572)…Singer’s rate of 20.3% called strikes since last May 17 leads the Majors by a wide margin (min. 2,500 pitches), ahead of Alex Cobb (17.0%) and Adam Wainwright (16.6%)…since his 2020 debut season, Singer’s called-strike rate of 21.0% ranks 2nd in the Majors (min. 5,000 pitches), ahead of Rich Hill (20.3%) and Sonny Gray (19.9%) and trails only Wainwright (21.2%).
A STAR IS BORN: Singer pitched a career-best 153.1 innings in 2022 in a career-high-tying 27 appearances (24 starts)…he began the season in the bullpen, but only pitched in 3 of the Royals first 16 games before being optioned to Triple-A on April 28…he returned on May 17 and made a team-high 24 starts from that point on.
Upon joining the starting rotation last May 17, Singer went 10-5 with a 3.11 ERA (51 ER in 147.2 IP), 8th best in the American League from May 17 through season’s end…his 10 wins were the most by a Royal since Jason Vargas tied for the Majors lead with 18 in 2017…Singer’s 3.23 ERA (55 ER in 153.1 IP) for the season was the 5th best by a Royal (min. 150.0 IP) in the Wild Card Era (since 1995), trailing only Zack Greinke in his 2009 Cy Young Award-winning season (2.16), James Shields in 2013 (3.15) and 2014 (3.21) and Yordano Ventura in 2014 (3.20)…the last Royal with a lower ERA than Singer’s and a higher win percentage (.667) was David Cone during his 1994 Cy Young Award-winning season, in which he went 16-5 (.762) with a 2.94 ERA (56 ER in 17.12 IP).
CHANGE OF TUNE: Brady threw 182 changeups in 24 starts last year, which accounted for 8.0% of his 2,273 pitches after returning from Triple-A Omaha last May 17…that total was more than double the 88 changeups he threw in 27 starts in 2021, which equaled 3.8% of his pitches thrown…after returning from Omaha last May 17 with a focus on mixing in the changeup, Singer went 10-5 with a 3.11 ERA (51 ER in 147.2 IP), after going 9-15 with a 4.67 ERA (103 ER in 198.1 IP) in his previous 42 career appearances (39 starts)…from last May 17 through last season’s end, opponents went 8-for-34 (.235) vs. his changeup…through 5 starts this season, the changeup has accounted for 8.6% of his pitches, and opponents are 2-for-7 in at-bats ending on the changeup.
VS. TWINS: Today marks Brady’s 10th career start vs. the Twins, matching the Tigers for his most vs. any opponent…in his 9 previous starts, Singer is 2-5 with a 4.85 ERA (23 ER in 42.2 IP), including a 9-2 loss here at Target Field on Sept. 11, 2021, in which he allowed 5 home runs in 4.2 innings…but in his most recent start vs. the Twins last May 28 here in Minneapolis, Singer earned a 7-3 win with 3 runs allowed in 5.2 innings.
BUMPY ROADS: Singer is 3-3 with a 4.08 ERA (32 ER in 70.2 IP) in 14 road outings (12 starts) since the beginning of last season, and held opponents to 2 runs or fewer in 5 of his 10 road starts in 2022…the Royals have won both of Brady’s road starts this season, including a 6-5 comeback victory on April 8 in San Francisco and a 5-4 win last Tuesday night in Arizona, in which Singer allowed 1 run in 6.0 innings.
MINNESOTA TWINS NOTES:
THE TWINS: Have gone 5-4 through nine games on their current 10-game homestand, going 1-2 against the Nationals last weekend, 2-1 against the Yankees this week, and 2-1 against the Royals…this afternoon, Minnesota will wrap their homestand with the four-game series finale against the Royals…after today’s game, the Twins will travel to Chicago for an off-day on Monday, then begin a six-game road-trip with three against the White Sox from Tuesday-Thursday, then three against the Guardians next weekend…the Twins have gone 9-6 at Target Field and 7-6 on the road.
Twins have gone 5-2 in their last seven games since April 23 after going 1-6 in a seven-game stretch from April 15-22.
RARE LATE LOSS FOR THE TWINS: The Twins lost to the Royals yesterday afternoon at Target Field by a score of 3-2…it marked their fist loss this season when outhitting their opponents (12-1)…Bailey Ober was the starter but did not factor into the decision, allowing one run on four hits in 5.2 innings pitched…Jorge Lopez blew his first save of the season, allowing a run to score and tie the game in the eighth…Jhoan Duran was issued the loss, allowing a run in the ninth inning on three walks and a wild pitch…the offense recorded 10 hits as Byron Buxton hit his sixth home run of the season…the loss snapped a nine-game home winning streak for the Twins, as the Royals won in Minnesota for the first time since May 28, 2022.
IT’S GONNA BE MAY: With one April game remaining, below are the Twins’ March/April hitting and pitching number comparisons since 2018…list excludes the 2020 pandemic season: AVG R H 2B 3B HR BB K OBP SLG OPS
2018 .240 98 203 56 2 26 92 225 .316 .403 .718
2019 .257 141 233 58 4 50 81 190 .325 .495 .820
2021 .241 111 193 40 2 31 74 208 .311 .413 .723
2022 .227 85 154 30 1 23 76 192 .312 .377 .688
2023 .237 126 221 43 6 37 85 261 .310 .415 .724
W L S IP H R ER HR BB K ERA
2018 9 15 3 217.2 224 134 128 36 106 220 5.29
2019 17 10 10 239.0 230 124 116 32 89 226 4.37
2021 9 15 4 206.1 181 109 93 32 64 203 4.06
2022 12 9 3 185.0 152 68 65 23 64 180 3.16
2023 16 12 8 249.2 206 104 97 27 73 275 3.50
SONNY GRAY-TNESS: Through five starts, Sonny Gray has gone 3-0, 0.62 ERA (29.0 IP, 2 ER) with 11 walks and 34 strikeouts, while holding opponents to a .192 (20-for-104) batting average… below are his ranks among AL starting pitchers in a few notable categories:
ERA H SLG HR FIP TB
Gray – 0.62 Ohtani – 11 Ohtani – .185 Gray – 0 deGrom – 1.71 Ohtani – 20
Cole – 1.11 Germán – 19 Cole – .221 H. Brown – 0 Eovaldi – 2.14 H. Brown – 27
Castillo – 1.82 deGrom – 19 H. Brown – .252 Cole – 0 Cole – 2.14 Gray – 28
Ohtani – 1.85 Gray – 20 Castillo – .268 5 Tied – 1 Gray – 2.21 Cole – 30
McClanahan – 2.12 2 Tied – 21 Gray – .269 Castillo – 2.30 2 Tied – 31
ALSO: Sonny has the third-lowest ERA through a pitcher’s first five games of the season in Twins/Senators history since 1913 (min. 20.0 IP), behind only Walter Johnson (0.24 ERA in 1913) and Eddie Matteson (0.55 ERA in 1918).
ROYALTY CHECK: The Twins and Royals are playing the seventh of 13 scheduled meetings in 2023…through six games, the Twins have gone 5-1 and outscored the Royals 28-14.
The Twins are 17-6 in their last 23 against KC since April 21, 2022, including a record of 10-3 at Target Field in that span.
Carlos Correa is hitting .333 (44-for-132) with six doubles, seven home runs, 17 RBI, 20 walks, a .421 on-base percentage and a .959 OPS in 34 games against the Royals since ’19.
Byron Buxton is hitting .326 (30-for-92) with nine doubles, five home runs, 10 RBI, 22 runs scored and a .991 OPS in his last 22 games against the Royals, reaching safely in all 22… in six games this season, he is 9-for-24 and slashing .375/.444/.792.
Trevor Larnach is hitting .338 (24-for-71) with two doubles, four home runs and 15 RBI in 23 career games vs. the Royals, his most RBI against any opponent in his career…in six games this season, he has reached 12 times in 26 plate appearances (.462 OBP).
HE’S GOING THE DISTANCE The Twins have homered in a season-long 12-straight games, since April 18…since that date, they have hit 21 home runs, the most in baseball in that span.
Their current stretch is the club’s longest since May 20-June 5, 2021, when they homered in 16 straight.
The Twins began this homestand on the morning of April 21 ranking tied for 15th in baseball in homers with 21 and now rank tied for fifth overall on the season with 36.
SERIES-LY SPEAKING: A victory today would secure the fifth series win of the season for the Twins…the Twins have gone 4-3-1 through their first eight series this season…series results to the right >>
SPORTIN’ A NEW POLO: Jorge Polanco has hit safely in all eight games since his return from the IL (left knee inflammation) and is hitting .371 (13-for-35) with four doubles, two home runs, nine RBI and a 1.029 OPS…his career-high hitting streak is 14, done from May 27-June 13, 2019.
Since his return on April 21, his 13 hits are tied with five other American Leaguers for most in that span…additionally, his nine RBI are tied for fourth most in the AL in that span.
STARTING PITCHER – SONNY GRAY #54
2023: 3-0 0.62 ERA CAREER: 93-77, 3.50 ERA
Facing Kansas City for the second time this season, 12th in his career; is 8-2, 1.54 ERA (70.0 IP, 12 ER) with 16 walks and 60 strikeouts.
Making his 253rd career appearance, 244th career start.
Making sixth start of the year, fourth at home…is is 6-2, 2.18 ERA (86.2 IP, 21 ER) with 30 walks and 104 strikeouts in 16 starts at Target Field with the Twins.
Acquired by the Twins on March 13, 2022 in a trade with the Cincinnati Reds, along with righthanded pitcher Francis Peguero, in exchange for right-handed pitcher Chase Petty.
LAST START: Earned the 6-1 Twins win in the series opener against New York-AL on April 24 at Target Field, opposite Jhony Brito…pitched 7.0 scoreless innings, allowed three hits, issued two walks and struck out eight batters…the second time Gray has pitched at least 7.0 innings this season (also 7.0 IP on April 7 vs. Houston)…relieved by Griffin Jax in the eighth inning followed by Jovani Moran in the ninth…the lone run allowed by the bullpen was an RBI groundout to Oswaldo Cabrera in the ninth inning…threw 107 pitches, the most pitches Gray has thrown since August 14, 2020 against Pittsburgh when he tossed 110 pitches.
Has tossed at least 5.0 innings and allowed one-or-fewer runs in each of his first five outings of the year, the second-longest such streak in Twins/Senators history (since 1913), behind only Ervin Santana’s six-game run from April 3-May 2, 2017.
Lowered his ERA this season to 0.62, the third-lowest ERA through a pitcher’s first five games of the season in Twins/Senators history since 1913 (min. 20.0 IP), behind only Walter Johnson (0.24 ERA in 1913) and Eddie Matteson (0.55 ERA in 1918).
TWO STARTS AGO: Did not factor into the decision in the series opener against the Red Sox on April 18 at Fenway Park, opposite Chris Sale…pitched 5.0 innings, allowed one run on seven hits, walked two batters and fanned seven…his seven hits were the most Gray has allowed since August 8, 2022 vs. Los Angeles-NL when he also allowed seven hits…the lone run came from an RBI single to Rafael Devers in the first inning…relieved by Jorge López in the sixth inning as the bullpen combined to pitch 5.0 innings…Griffin Jax allowed one run in the eighth…Jovani Moran entered in the 10th inning and took the Twins 4-3 loss after a walkoff RBI single by Alex Verdugo.
AGAINST KANSAS CITY: Gray is facing the Royals for the 12th time in his career, going 8-2, 1.54 ERA (70.0 IP, 12 ER) with 16 walks and 60 strikeouts in his 11 previous appearances…last faced Kansas City on April 1 at Kauffman Stadium…earned the win after pitching 5.0 shutout innings, allowing three hits, walking four batters and striking out one…relieved by Jorge Alcala in the sixth inning as the bullpen combined to pitch 4.0 scoreless innings to secure the Twins 2-0 victory…was the first time in Twins history the season opened with back-to-back shutouts, following Pablo López’s performance the day prior.
Has won his last eight starts against the Royals, dating back to April 16, 2016…is 8-0, 0.90 ERA (50.0 IP, 5 ER) with 12 walks and 46 strikeouts in that span…owns the lowest ERA against the Royals since 2016 (min 50.0 IP)…is tied with Eric Milton from 2000-2004 and Roger Clemens from 1985-1988 for the longest win streak against the Royals.
His 1.54 ERA against the Royals is his second lowest against any opposing team in his career, trailing the Rockies (1.29)…has the lowest ERA and opponent batting average (.204) against the Royals since 2014 (min. 70.0 IP).
His last loss against the Royals came on August 11, 2014 in a 3-2 Oakland loss.
THERE’S NO PLACE LIKE HOME: In three home starts this season, Gray is 2-0, 0.47 ERA (19.0 IP, 1 ER) with five walks and 26 strikeouts…Gray went 4-2, 2.66 ERA (67.2 IP, 20 ER) with 25 walks and 78 strikeouts in 13 starts at home in 2022…is now 52-39, 3.76 ERA (747.1 IP, 312 ER) with 252 walks and 727 strikeouts in his career at home, including 6-2, 2.18 ERA (86.2 IP, 21 ER) in 16 starts at Target Field (Twins are 11-5 in those games).
Among American League pitchers, Gray ranks second in home ERA, trailing Gerrit Cole (0.33)… fourth in home strikeouts, trailing Jacob DeGrom (40), Gerrit Cole (33) and Luis Castillo (29)… ranks sixth in opponent batting average (.156) at home…his .436 opponent OPS at home ranks fourth (min. 15.0 IP).
THIS IS THE (RIGHT) WAY: So far this season, Gray has seen similar success against lefties and righties with a slight edge against right-handers…Gray has held righties to a .190 batting average (12-for-63) with five doubles and 26 strikeouts as opposed to lefties who are batting .195 with three doubles and eight strikeouts.
Ranks 10th among American League pitchers in opponent batting average against righties… is tied for sixth for the most strikeouts against righties (min. 25.0 IP).
Since 2019, is holding left-handed hitters to a .201 (177-for-880) batting average, ranking third among the league (min. 850 AB) in that span, trailing Gerrit Cole (.187) and Zac Gallen (.194).
THE ARSENAL: Gray is currently using a six-pitch mix, per Baseball Savant…continues to use his curveball the most at 26.1 percent…threw 36 cutters and 22 sinkers in his last start, making them his second and third most used pitches respectively…continues to mostly use the slider against righties and his changeup against lefties…here’s a look at his repertoire so far:
PITCH (AVG. MPH) PCT. (# OF PITCHES, VS. RHB/LHB) RESULTS
Curveball (79.0)……………………..26.1% (121 pitches, 44/77)…………………….. .227 (5-for-22),2 2B, 6 K
Cutter (87.7) …………………………..19.0% (88 pitches, 74/14)…………………………… .100 (2-for-20), 5 K
Sinker (92.3) ……………………………16.2% (75 pitches, 66/9)………………… .263(5-for-19), 2 2B, 7 K
4-Seam Fastball (92.7)…………….15.3% (71 pitches, 27/44)………………… .33 (5-for-15), 2 2B, 1 K
Slider (83.1)…………………………….14.7% (68 pitches, 66/2)………………….. .136 (3-for-22),2 B, 3 K
Changeup (87.2)……………………….8.8% (41 pitches, 2/39)…………………………………. .000 (0-for-6)
NO HOME RUNS HERE: Gray is one of only four pitchers in the league who have yet to allow a home run this season (min. 25.0 IP)…is the 12th pitcher in Twins history to allow zero home runs through their first five games (min 25.0 IP)…the longest streak from a Twins starter is Frankie Rodriguez at eight games and 45.1 IP in 1995.
SONNY (SUN)DAYS: Gray will be making his fourth day start this season…is 2-0, 0.53 ERA (17.0 IP, 1 ER) with seven walks and 19 strikeouts in three day starts…is 37-27, 3.22 ERA (530.1 IP, 190 ER) \with 179 walks and 504 strikeouts in 96 day games in his career, 6-2, 2.45 ERA (62.1 IP, 17 ER) with 18 walks and 61 strikeouts in 13 day games since joining the Twins…ranks third in lowest day game ERA, trailing Kevin Gausman (0.00) and Gerrit Cole (0.33) and is tied for fourth in opponent batting average (min. 3 GS).
