MINNESOTA TWINS NOTES:

THE TWINS: After completing their three-game homestand/weekend series with a three-game series sweep of the Diamondbacks, the Twins began their seven-game roadtrip with a win over the Tigers last night…tonight, the Twins will continue the series and trip with the second of four in Detroit…after this series, they will travel to Philadelphia for three against the Phillies over the weekend…the Twins have gone 33-24 at home and 27-30 on the road.

Of the Twins’ 48 remaining games, they have an opponent winning percentage of .482, tied for fifth-lowest strength of schedule.

TWINS POUNCE ON TIGERS EARLY: The Twins beat the Tigers last night at Comerica Park by a score of 9-3, earning their season-high fifth-straight victory…Pablo López (7-6) was the starter and winner, pitching 7.0 shutout innings, with no walks and eight strikeouts…Minnesota scored eight runs in the first three innings, including four in the first and three in the second… the offense recorded 12 hits, 10 coming off Tigers starter Joey Wentz, their most hits off a lefty starter since September 13, 2022 vs. Kansas City, when they recorded 10 off Kris Bubic… Jordan Luplow had three hits in his first start as a Twin…Carlos Correa (13) and Ryan Jeffers (9) each had three-run homers as Correa finished the night with four RBI and Jeffers with three.

PICK SIX: The Twins are seeking their sixth-straight win tonight, which would extend their season-high and mark their longest since May 18-24, 2022 (also 6)…during the current streak, Twins have outscored their opponents 34-12 and have a .930 OPS with 13 home runs.

CAUTION, HIGH WATER: The Twins enter today six games over .500, matching their high-water mark of 2023, done twice previously…the other two times they have been six games over was through their game of July 24, when they were 54-48 and through their game of April 14, when they were 10-4…a win tonight would give the Twins their most games over .500 since being seven games over through August 19, 2022 (62-55).

MOTOWN SHOWDOWN: The Twins and Tigers are playing the ninth of 13 meetings in 2023…the Twins have gone 4-4 vs. Detroit this season, going 1-3 at Target Field and 3-1 at Comerica Park.

Christian Vázquez is hitting .330 (31-for-94) with nine doubles, three home runs, 17 RBI and an .887 OPS in 27 career games vs. the Tigers.

Carlos Correa is hitting .309 (25-for-81) with six doubles, four home runs, 14 RBI and an .895 OPS in his last 20 games vs. the Tigers…in his last 15 games at Comerica Park, he is hitting .355 (22-for-62) with two doubles, one triple, six home runs, 18 RBI, 11 runs scored, a .388 on-base percentage and a 1.098 OPS in that span.

Jorge Polanco is a career .295 (115-for-390) hitter with 21 doubles, four triples, 12 home runs, 55 RBI, 30 walks, 53 runs scored and an .807 OPS in 100 games against the Tigers…in 51 career games at Comerica, he is hitting .302 (60-for-199) with 10 doubles, one triple, six home runs, 21 RBI, 29 runs scored and an .805 OPS.

WE WERE ON A BREAK: The Twins have gone 15-8 since the All-Star break, going 4-2-1 in series play in that span…below are the team wins leaders since the break:
TEAM WINS-LOSSES WINNING PCT
Baltimore Orioles…………………………………………16-7…………………………………………………………… .696
Chicago Cubs……………………………………………..16-8…………………………………………………………… .667
Minnesota Twins…………………………………………15-8…………………………………………………………… .652
Seattle Mariners………………………………………….15-8…………………………………………………………… .652
Texas Rangers…………………………………………….15-7…………………………………………………………… .682

Below are the offensive numbers and MLB ranks pre-All-Star break vs. post-All-Star break:
AVG R/G H HR BB OBP SLG OPS TB ISO
PRE: .232 (25) 4.2 (24) 708 (22) 115 (8) 297 (16) .309 (25) .400 (20) .709 (22) 1219 (20) .167 (10)
POST: .264 (7) 5.7 (4) 210 (6) 40 (2) 83 (T-9) .343 (7) .487 (3) .831 (4) 388 (2) .245 (3)

DIVISION SIGNS: The Twins have gone 22-15 against the AL Central this season, going 3-4 vs. the Guardians, 9-4 vs. the Royals, 6-3 vs. the White Sox and 4-4 vs. the Tigers…Twins have gone 8-3 in their last 11 in the division (3-game sweep at KC 7/28-30 being lone blemish)… the Twins 5.5 game lead on the Guardians is the largest division lead among the AL divisions and second best in baseball (Atlanta – 10.0+ in NL East)..the last time the Twins had a division lead as big as 5.5 games was to end the 2019 season, 8.0+ on Cleveland…below are the Twins pitching numbers compared to other AL divisions/NL:

W-L ERA BAA K/BB K/9.0 WHIP OPS
CENTRAL 22-15 3.13 .223 3.57 9.0 1.10 .632
EAST 12-17 4.49 .240 3.40 9.3 1.22 .707
WEST 11-8 4.58 .239 3.81 10.8 1.21 .736
NATIONAL 15-14 3.58 .234 3.35 9.9 1.21 .699

THE LEFTORIUM: The Twins have faced five left-handed starters since the All-Star break, going 4-1 in those games: Oakland’s Ken Waldichuk (5-4 win on 7/14), Oakland’s JP Sears (5-4 win on 7/16), Kansas City’s Ryan Yarbrough (2-1 loss on 7/30), St. Louis’ Matthew Liberatore (5-3 win on 8/3) and Joey Wentz (9-3 win last night at DET).

In their last six games vs. lefties, they are hitting .316 (31-for-98) with a .966 OPS and eight home runs — seven of which have come in their last three games.

Jordan Luplow has a career OPS vs. left-handed pitching of .840…31 of his 45 career homers have come off lefties…he is hitting .556 (5-for-9) with two walks in his last four games vs lefties.

Carlos Correa is hitting .370 (10-for-27) with three doubles, one home run, seven RBI, a .414 on-base percentage, a .593 slugging percentage and a 1.006 OPS in his last 13 games vs. left-handed pitching…Correa is 6-for-13 (.462) with five walks lifetime vs. Rodriguez.

Donovan Solano is hitting .545 (6-for-11) with a 1.182 OPS in his last four games vs. lefties.

LAND OF 10,000 RAKES: The Twins have homered in six-straight games, hitting 14 total in that span…the streak is tied for fifth-longest active streak in baseball Braves lead with 11)…Minnesota has hit 155 home runs on the season, fifth most in the AL and eighth most in baseball.

After two more three-run homers last night, the Twins now have 23 three-run jimmy jacks, tied with Atlanta for most in baseball.

WONDER WALL: Since his recall from Triple-A St. Paul in mid-July, Matt Wallner has posted an OPS of .905 (.333 OBP/.571 SLG), including six home runs and 12 RBI in 20 games…in fact, since July 25, he has 12 RBI, which ranks third most in the AL since that date, trailing only Bobby Witt Jr. (17) and Eugenio Suárez (14).

STARTING PITCHER – SONNY GRAY 54
2023: 5-4, 3.18 ERA CAREER: 95-81, 3.53 ERA

Making his 270th career appearance and 261st career start…also his 23rd start/appearance this season.

Snapped his 15-game winless streak in his last start on August 3 at St. Louis…marked the third-longest winless streak in Twins’ history (since 1961).

Facing Detroit for the second time this season and the 10th time in his career…is 4-1, 2.64 ERA (47.2 IP, 14 ER) with 16 walks and 48 strikeouts in his previous nine appearances (including 8 starts).

Acquired by the Twins on March 13, 2022 in a trade with the Cincinnati Reds, along with right-handed pitcher Francis Peguero, in exchange for right-handed pitcher Chase Petty

LAST TIME OUT: Snapped his career-high 15-game winless streak in his last start on August 3 at St. Louis…pitched a season-high-tying 7.0 innings and allowed two runs on five hits (1 HR), with no walks and eight strikeouts in a 5-3 Twins’ victory…tossed a 1-2-3 first inning…yielded an RBI double to Dylan Carlson in the second inning…retired 13 of the next 15 batters he faced before allowing a solo home run to Alec Burleson in the sixth inning…pitched a 1-2-3 seventh to finish his outing… relieved by Griffin Jax, who pitched a scoreless eighth inning…Jhoan Duran replaced Jax and allowed an RBI groundout to Carlson in the ninth inning.

In his 15-game winless streak, dating back to May 6 at Cleveland, Gray went on a career-high tying four-game losing streak, with a 4.26 ERA (82.1 IP, 39 ER), 32 walks and 74 strikeouts.

TWO STARTS AGO: Did not factor into the decision despite recording a quality start on July 28 against Kansas City at Kauffman Stadium…pitched 6.0 innings and allowed three runs on five hits (1 HR), with no walks and five strikeouts in a 10-inning 8-5 Twins’ defeat…picked off Bobby Witt Jr. at first base after allowing a single in the first inning…tossed a 1-2-3 second inning…yielded a solo home run to Kyle Isbel to lead off the third inning, marked the first home run Gray has allowed to a Royals batter since August 1, 2014 (Raúl Ibañez), snapping a 73.2 IP homerless streak…pitched 1-2-3 fourth and fifth innings…permitted an RBI double to Witt Jr. and an RBI single to MJ Melendez in the sixth inning…relieved by Emilio Pagán in the seventh inning…Dylan Floro replaced Jovani Moran in the eighth inning in his Twins debut; allowed an RBI single to Witt Jr. (run charged to Moran)… Griffin Jax pitched a scoreless ninth inning…Jhoan Duran entered in the 10th inning and yielded a walk-off grand slam to Witt Jr.

Allowed more than two runs against Kansas City for the first time since April 17, 2015 (4 runs), snapping a streak of nine-consecutive starts vs. the Royals in which he pitched at least 5.0 innings and allowed two-or-fewer runs…tied Nolan Ryan (September 21, 1972-July 25, 1974) for the third-longest streak, trailing Teddy Higuera (10 starts, June 5, 1985-June 22, 1989) and Roger Clemens (11 starts, August 21, 1984-April 8, 1989).

AGAINST DETROIT: Gray is facing Detroit for the second time this season and for the 10th time in his career, going 4-1, 2.64 ERA (47.2 IP, 14 ER) with 16 walks and 48 strikeouts in his nine prior appearances (including eight starts)…last faced the Tigers on June 15 at Target Field, when he did not factor into the 8-4 Twins’ loss after pitching a season-low-tying 4.0 innings and allowing two runs on three hits with a season-high-tying four walks and three strikeouts…pitched a 1-2-3 first inning…permitted his first run on an RBI single to Matt Vierling in the second inning…allowed his final run on ground ball double play by Miguel Cabrera…relieved by Jovani Moran in the fifth inning, who yielded an RBI triple to Javier Báez and an RBI groundout to Eric Haase…Emilio Pagán pitched scoreless sixth and seventh innings…Jorge López pitched a scoreless eighth inning before allowing consecutive RBI doubles (two runs by Spencer Torkelson and one run by Zack Short).

Currently holds a three-game win streak against the Tigers, dating back to July 24, 2020; owns a 1.57 ERA (23.0 IP, 4 ER) with eight walks and 29 strikeouts in the four-game span…has not taken a loss against the Tigers since April 27, 2016 as a member of the Oakland Athletics.

Owns the third-lowest opponent batting average against the Tigers (.154) since 2020 (min. 4 GS), trailing Michael Kopech (.134) and Triston McKenzie (.144)…also owns fourth-lowest ERA, trailing McKenzie (0.93), Gerrit Cole (1.31) and Patrick Sandoval (1.46).

Tonight is his ninth start against an American League Central opponent this season…is 3-1, 2.89 (43.2 IP, 14 ER) with 15 walks and 33 strikeouts in his previous eight starts…is 9-3, 2.95 ERA (100.2 IP, 33 ER) with 27 walks and 93 strikeouts in 19 starts against the AL Central since joining the Twins.

THE ARSENAL: Gray has used a six-pitch mix this season, per Baseball Savant…currently uses his 4-seam fastball the most at 24.8 percent…recorded six of his eight strikeouts using his sweeper in his last start on August 3 at St. Louis…has allowed a home run on a fastball in two-consecutive starts…primarily uses his curveball (254 pitches) and changeup (124 pitches) against lefties and his cutter (221 pitches), sinker (289 pitches) and sweeper (282 pitches) against righties…here’s a look at his repertoire so far:

PITCH (AVG. MPH) PCT. (# OF PITCHES, VS. RHB/LHB) RESULTS
4-Seam Fastball (92.8)………….24.8% (489 pitches, 169/320)… .342 (39-for-114), 6 2B, 1 3B, 3 HR, 7 K
Curveball (79.4)……………………18.9% (374 pitches, 120/254)… .263 (21-for-80), 6 2B, 1 HR, 18 K
Sweeper (84.1)………………………18.4% (364 pitches, 282/82)……….. .118 (14-for-119), 4 2B, 63 K
Sinker (92.7)………………………………16.6% (328 pitches, 289/39)…. .247 (19-for-77), 2 2B, 1 3B, 1 HR, 24 K
Cutter (87.5) …………………………14.7% (290 pitches, 221/69)…………… .226 (12-for-53), 4 2B, 9 K
Changeup (87.5)……………………..6.5% (129 pitches, 5/124)………. .185 (5-for-27), 1 2B, 1 3B, 2 K

Owns a .199 (71-for-356) opponent batting average across all of his secondary pitches (curveball, sweeper, sinker, cutter and changeup).

RIGHT WAY: Gray has seen more success against right-handed hitters as opposed to left-handed hitters this season…Gray has held righties to a .217 (54-for-249) batting average with 76 strikeouts as opposed to lefties who are batting .253 (56-for-221) with 47 strikeouts…allowed four hits to lefties while righties went 1-for-14 in his last start on August 3 at St. Louis…since becoming a Twin, lefties are slashing .229/.280/.337 against him while righties are batting .230/.308/.339.

ON THE ROAD: Gray is making his 12th road start of the season; is 2-2, 3.38 ERA (61.1 IP, 23 ER) with 25 walks and 56 strikeouts in his 11 prior road outings…is 6-5, 3.49 ERA (113.1 IP, 44 ER) with 36 walks and 95 strikeouts in 22 road starts since becoming a Twin.

Making his fourth career start at Comerica Park…is 2-1, 2.81 ERA (16.0 IP, 5 ER) with six walks and 16 strikeouts in his three previous starts…owns lowest opponent batting average (.111) and fourth-lowest OPS (.448) at Comerica Park since 2015 (min. 3 GS).

Making his third-consecutive road start…is 1-0, 3.46 ERA (13.0 IP, 5 ER) with no walks and 13 strikeouts over his last two games.

DETROIT TIGERS NOTES:

TIGERS DROP SERIES OPENER TO TWINS: The Tigers suffered a 9-3 loss to the Twins on Monday night. Nick Maton drove in all three runs for Detroit with a three-run homer in the ninth inning, his eighth of the season. Kerry Carpenter and Riley Greene each had two hits for the Tigers. Joey Wentz started for Detroit and took the loss, allowing eight runs on 10 hits with one walk and two strikeouts in 3.0 innings. Beau Brieske worked 2.0 scoreless innings in relief, while Tyler Holton and Jason Foley each pitched 1.0 shutout frame.

ROSTER MOVES: The Tigers have announced the following roster moves:
*Following last night’s game, optioned LHP Joey Wentz to Triple A Toledo

*Recalled RHP Alex Faedo from Triple A Toledo

A CARPENTER AND HIS TOOLS: Kerry Carpenter was on base three times in last night’s game, going 2×3 with a hit by pitch. Carpenter has hit safely in four straight games, including three consecutive multi-hit performances. In 35 games at Comerica Park this season, Carpenter is batting .353/.405/.526 with six doubles, a triple,
four home runs and 15 RBI.

HUNGRY LIKE THE WOLF: Nick Maton helped the Tigers avoid the shutout last night with a three-run homer in the ninth inning, his eighth of the season. Since being recalled from Triple A Toledo on July 14, Maton has posted an .827 OPS with two doubles, two home runs and nine RBI.

MIGGY NEARING GWYNN ON ALL-TIME HITS LIST: Miguel Cabrera enters tonight’s game with 3,140 hits in his big league career, just one hit shy of tying Tony Gwynn (3,141) for 20th on the all-time list. Cabrera has hit safely in 27 of his last 38 games, slashing .311/.382/.420 with 10 doubles, a home run and 12 RBI. Among American League players with at least 100 plate appearances in that span, he ranks ninth in batting average.

AT COMERICA PARK: The Tigers are 1-3 on their current seven-game homestand, which includes three games vs. Tampa Bay (1-2) and four games vs. Minnesota (0-1). Detroit is 23-33 at Comerica Park this season. As a team, the Tigers are hitting .241/.306/.372 at home, while the pitching staff has a 4.83 ERA (514.0IP/276ER).

TIGERS AND TWINS: The Tigers and Twins continue their season series tonight. The two teams have split their first eight meetings this season. The Tigers are looking to win the season series from the Twins for the first time since 2016.

AGAINST THE AL CENTRAL: The Tigers continue divisional play tonight against the Twins. Detroit is 18-13 against American League Central teams so far this season. The Tigers have won seven of the nine series they have played against divisional foes.

TIGERS ON THE IL:

• LHP Tyler Alexander (left lat/shoulder strain, 60-day IL on July 4, retroactive to July 3)
• LHP Matthew Boyd (left elbow sprain, 60-day IL on June 27)
• RHP Mason Englert (left hip tightness, 15-day IL on July 24, retroactive to July 23)
• OF Austin Meadows (anxiety, 60-day IL on April 8, retroactive to April 7)
• RHP Casey Mize (right elbow sprain, 60-day IL on February 17)
• RHP Freddy Pacheco (right elbow sprain, 60-day IL on March 27)
• RHP Spencer Turnbull (neck discomfort, 60-day IL on May 12, retroactive to May 7)
• RHP Will Vest (right lower leg strain, 15-day IL on June 27)

TONIGHT’S TIGERS STARTING PITCHER

57 Eduardo Rodriguez • 7-5, 2.96 ERA (94.1IP/31ER

• Rodriguez will make his 17th start of the season tonight at Minnesota.
• Picked up his seventh win of the season on Wednesday at Pittsburgh, allowing two runs on seven hits with a walk and five strikeouts in 6.0 innings.
• Has faced the Twins eight times in his career, compiling a 4-1 record with a 3.38 ERA (48.0IP/18ER) and 53 strikeouts…in 19 career starts at Comerica Park, he has an 8-6 record with a 3.47 ERA (103.2IP/40ER) and 101 strikeouts.
• Among American League pitchers with at least 90.0 innings pitched, he ranks fourth in ERA (2.96) and FIP (2.94), seventh in WHIP (1.05) and ninth in opponent batting average (.222).
• Had six consecutive starts with at least 5.0 innings pitched and one run-or-less allowed from April 12-May 10, the longest streak of his career, and tied with Michael Fulmer (May 21-June 17, 2016) and Al Benton (April 19-May 20, 1945) for the second-longest streak in franchise history…over that stretch, he compiled a 4-0 record with a 0.43 ERA (41.2IP/2ER) and 41 strikeouts.
• Since 2018, he has a .663 winning percentage, which ranks eighth among all active Major League pitchers over that span (min. 100 starts).