• Preview
• Recap
• Bleachers

Twins-Cardinals Preview

Jun 27, 2009 - 6:29 AM By MATT BEARDMORE STATS Writer

Minnesota (38-37) at St. Louis (40-35), 1:10 p.m. EDT

Playing in NL ballparks has been good to the Minnesota Twins. So has been sending Kevin Slowey to the mound.

The Twins look for their second straight win over the struggling St. Louis Cardinals on Saturday afternoon at Busch Stadium, where the well-rested Slowey will try to become the major league's first 11-game winner.

Minnesota (38-37) opened the three-game interleague set Friday with a 3-1 victory over the Cardinals. The Twins improved to 11-5 against the NL, including 5-2 on the road.

Since June 26, 2005, Minnesota has won 25 of its 35 interleague games away from the Metrodome.

"We've been spoiled," Twins closer Joe Nathan said Friday after recording his 18th save. "This year has been unbelievable for us, the cities we've got to visit and the players we've got to play against."

Minnesota won two of three at the Chicago Cubs from June 12-14, then defeated the host Milwaukee Brewers two of three in a series that ended Thursday.

Slowey (10-2, 4.04 ERA) is 7-1 with a 2.48 ERA in 10 career starts against the NL, including 3-0 with a 2.79 ERA in 2009.

The 25-year-old right-hander was supposed to start in Thursday's series finale at Miller Park, but was pushed back after suffering tightness in his ribcage in his last outing - a 5-2 win over Houston on June 19.

"I didn't feel it at all when I was throwing, which I think is one of the reasons why I continued to throw," Slowey said.

Slowey allowed just one run and three hits over six innings as he joined Toronto's Roy Halladay as the major league's only 10-game winners.

"It's nice and it certainly comes after my name, but the fact that I have 10 wins I think means a whole lot more because we have 10 more wins as a team," said Slowey, who has yielded two earned runs or fewer in eight of 14 starts.

This is his first start against St. Louis. Slowey will face a Cardinals club that's scored just three runs during its three-game skid. After batting .327 in a three-game sweep in Kansas City from June 19-21, St. Louis (40-35) is hitting only .206 while losing four of five.

"Offensively, we've got to do more," said Cardinals manager Tony La Russa, whose team is in a virtual tie with Milwaukee (39-34) for the NL Central lead. "We've hit the ball decent at times, but we're capable of stringing together better at-bats, tougher at-bats."

Right fielder Ryan Ludwick went 0 for 4 on Friday and mired in a 1-for-15 slump.

Albert Pujols had a double in four at-bats in the series opener. He is hitting .385 (15 for 39) with seven homers and 15 RBIs versus the AL.

Todd Wellemeyer (6-7, 5.53) gets the start Saturday. The right-hander surrendered five runs and 10 hits over 5 2-3 innings of Monday's 6-4 loss to the New York Mets.

"The way I see it, it's a cross between bad pitching and bad luck. That's not a good combination," Wellemeyer said.

He is 1-3 with a 6.52 ERA in five June starts.

Wellemeyer makes his first career start against the Twins after going 0-2 with a 2.38 ERA in seven lifetime relief appearances.

Minnesota catcher Joe Mauer is 1 for 2 with a double lifetime versus the St. Louis right-hander. Mauer is batting .393 (22 for 56) with four homers and 12 RBIs against the NL.

A win Saturday gives Minnesota its second series victory in St. Louis. The Twins won two of three in the Gateway City from July 18-20, 1999.