Series Preview (MIL 6/13 & 6/14): Border Battle Part 1 at Target Field

The Twins road trip to Tampa Bay and Toronto left a lot to be desired, but it wasn't a complete waste of time. The Rays continued to rip through any opponent placed in front of them, and of the losses in Tampa, Pablo Lopez showed impressive signs for growing into the pitcher that the Twins traded a potential .400 hitter for. They salvaged two of three in Toronto, and could have easily left Canada with a sweep if not for a mess of a game on Sunday.

Minnesota still comes into Tuesday's game with a game and a half lead over Cleveland, and holding steady at 33-33. Milwaukee sits a game behind Pittsburgh in the NL Central, after a nasty sweep at the hands of the A's, trending towards sub-.500 baseball now at 34-32. Can the Twins help them on that journey downward? Or will the Brewers be out to get some revenge on baseball in general after their embarrassment over the weekend?

Interesting Fact: The Twins lost the season series in 2022, going 1-3 against the Brewers. They had won the rivalry series in 2021 and 2020 each by a 4-2 margin. The lone win last season came off the bat of rookie Jose Miranda, who launched a mammoth 9th inning walk-off home run against the previously immortal Josh Hader. Neither player will take part in any potential heroics this week since Miranda is at Triple-A, and Hader is now a Padre.

Weather Factor: Target Field couldn't receive more beautiful summer weather for this series, with high 70's for Tuesday night, and upper 80's for Wednesday afternoon. Will it be Brewers or Twins fans packing the stands? 

Pitching Probables
Game 1 - Tuesday, June 13, 2023 – 6:40pm CDT – It's Pablo Day yet again to open a series at Target Field! Seriously, this happens a lot. Pablo Lopez (3-3, 4.25 ERA) will match up against Brewers ace RHP Corbin Burnes (5-4, 3.36 ERA). Both pitchers' records don't scream "number 1 starter" material, but Tuesday should be a low-scoring affair regardless.

Michael A. Taylor is the only Twin to have a home run off of Burnes, and needless to say we could see another Twins strikeout record, even though Burnes' legendary strikeout rate per nine innings has decreased from 12.6 in 2021, to 10.8 in 2022, to 8.7 this season.

Game 2 – Wednesday, June 14, 2023 – 12:10pm CDT – The Twins will send RHP Bailey Ober (3-3, 2.61) to the mound for the afternoon tilt, and the Brewers (as of Monday night) have yet to announce their intentions for a starter. RHP Colin Rea (3-3, 4.87 ERA) is next in line theoretically, and he has pitched well of late, winning three of his last four outings and giving up zero runs over five innings in a no-decision against the Orioles most recently.

Prediction Time!
What's your prediction for this series?  Can the Twins maintain their lead in the AL Central throughout this series? Who do you see being the biggest impact player during this border battle? Let us know in the comments! Go, Twins!

AL Central Standings (through June 12)
Minnesota 33-33  
Cleveland  31-34   1.5 GB
Chicago     29-38  4.5 GB
Detroit       27-37   5.0 GB
KC              18-47   14.5 GB