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Twins-White Sox Preview

Apr 9, 2010 - 7:11 AM By KATE HEDLIN STATS Writer

Minnesota (3-1) at Chicago (1-2), 8:10 p.m. EDT

The Chicago White Sox passed on a chance to re-sign Jim Thome in the offseason.

Having joined division rival Minnesota, the 39-year-old slugger showed what his former team may be missing during his last game.

Thome returns to U.S. Cellular Field on Friday night when the Twins open a three-game series against the White Sox.

Thome played three-plus seasons with Chicago before being shipped to the Dodgers on Aug. 31 when the White Sox fell out of contention in the AL Central. A native of Peoria, Ill., Thome expressed a desire to return to Chicago, but the White Sox chose not to bring him back despite his 564 career home runs - a total he increased Thursday.

Manager Ozzie Guillen said he still receives e-mails about the team's choice.

"Do we miss him? Yes, but we're going a different direction," he said. "I talked to Jimmy about why he can't be here. I don't have enough at-bats for him. At least I was honest with him."

The Twins (3-1) signed Thome to a one-year, $1.5 million contract in February. After pinch-hitting in the season opener, he started the last two games as the designated hitter, and recorded his first hit Thursday with a single in the fifth, then added a three-run homer in the eighth as Minnesota routed the Angels 10-1.

The Twins recorded 15 of their 34 hits in the series for extra bases, including a major league-best nine home runs.

"To be a part of this is hopefully going to be very special," Thome said. "So for me, it'll be fun to kind of learn and go about this process - because they definitely play the right way and they've played the right way for years."

Minnesota will hand the ball to Francisco Liriano, who will try again to regain the form he had in 2006 when he went 12-3 with a 2.16 ERA before undergoing Tommy John surgery.

After missing all of 2007, Liriano went 6-4 with a 3.91 ERA in 2008, and 5-13 with a 5.80 ERA last year. Still, the Twins kept him in the rotation, choosing not to shift him to a closer's role after losing Joe Nathan for the season with an elbow injury.

"I was very happy with it," Liriano told the Twins' official Web site. "I want to be a starter and they give me the chance."

Liriano is 0-3 with a 7.52 ERA in three starts and three relief appearances against the White Sox. In two starts last season, he allowed 12 runs and walked seven over 8 2-3 innings.

Chicago counters with John Danks, who went 13-11 with a 3.77 ERA last year. The left-hander was 1-2 with a 5.17 ERA in five starts against the Twins.

He will try to get the White Sox (1-2) back on track after losing a series to the Indians. Chicago won the opener 6-0, but dropped the next two by 5-3 scores, falling in 11 innings Thursday.

Paul Konerko, who homered the first two games, went 0 for 5 as the White Sox hit .154 in the series. They struck out 12 times Thursday and stranded 11.

"We don't have the luxury to strike out with people on base," Guillen said. "I know they're trying to do better, I know it's only the third game of the season, I know it's cold, but we have too many strikeouts."

Chicago has lost four straight at home over the Twins.