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White Sox-Twins Preview

Jul 27, 2009 - 4:21 AM By MIKE LIPKA STATS Writer

Chicago (50-48) at Minnesota (48-50), 8:10 p.m. EDT

Neither the Minnesota Twins nor the Chicago White Sox helped their cause in the AL Central race in their most recent series, but each club is hoping its struggles are over after a victory Sunday.

The teams begin a key series against each other starting Monday night at the Metrodome, as struggling left-handers Glen Perkins and John Danks both look to get back on track in the opener.

The White Sox (51-48) entered their weekend series at Detroit tied with the Tigers atop the division, but they were swept in a doubleheader Friday before losing a third straight game Saturday.

They finally responded Sunday night, winning 5-1 to move within two games of Detroit. Paul Konerko shook off a 1-for-22 slump, going 2 for 4 with a double and a first-inning two-run homer.

"People didn't realize how big this game was," White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen said. "We didn't play well here, and if we lose this one, we're four games out. Now it is just two. That's big.

"It gives us some momentum mentally."

The Twins (49-50) are four games out of first place, but they snapped a four-game losing streak and salvaged the finale of a four-game set with a 10-1 win over the Los Angeles Angels on Sunday.

Minnesota's embattled pitchers were 1-6 with an 8.29 ERA in the previous seven games, with the bullpen pitching 30 innings over that span, but the staff was picked up by a strong start from rookie Anthony Swarzak in Sunday's victory.

The team also got two home runs from Justin Morneau and four RBIs from leadoff man Denard Span.

"We needed it for ourselves, for our confidence," Morneau said. "They beat us around pretty good for the last three days, so it was good to come back and do that to them - for one game, anyway."

Perkins (5-6, 5.55 ERA) probably wasn't feeling great about himself after allowing eight runs Wednesday at Oakland and not retiring a batter in the second inning. His manager, Ron Gardenhire, said he "didn't have anything."

The southpaw is 1-2 with a 13.94 ERA in his last three outings, and he has allowed 20 first-inning runs in 15 starts this year. The White Sox scored one run in the first and chased him in the fifth on July 11 in Minneapolis, scoring five of their runs off Perkins in an 8-7 win.

The Twins still took two of three in that series after Chicago went 1-8 at the Metrodome last season.

Danks (8-6, 3.98) has struggled in the dome, with a 6.23 ERA in four career starts there. He walked five - including the first four batters of the game - and allowed four runs in 5 2-3 innings of the White Sox's 6-4 loss July 10, although he wasn't tagged with the defeat.

He also had efficiency problems in his last start on July 17, but earned the win against Baltimore after allowing three runs, seven hits and three walks in five innings of a 12-8 victory. This will be Danks' first start in 10 days after he was scratched from his previous start due to a blister on his index finger.

"Everything is fine, and hopefully I'll have a good game Monday," Danks told the White Sox's official Web site. "At no point was I concerned about missing too much time."