• Preview
• Recap
• Bleachers
• Game Tracker

Twins wrap up series with Texas at Target Field

Jun 12, 2011 - 3:28 PM (Sports Network) - Despite being 10 games out of contention in the American League Central, the Minnesota Twins try for their ninth win in the last 11 outings today as they close out a four-game set at Target Field against the Texas Rangers.

On Saturday the Twins picked up their third win in four tries with an 8-1 triumph versus the Rangers and still the squad is all alone at the bottom of the division standings with the Chicago White Sox and the San Diego Padres set to arrive in Minneapolis over the next week.

Yesterday Scott Baker struck out seven as he notched his fourth career complete game for the Twins, allowing just five hits and no walks for his first complete game since the 2009 campaign.

"You throw a handful of games and have a good game plan out there and when we score five runs in the first, that doesn't hurt either." Baker said of his team's efforts. "A good game overall, I'm pretty happy with it."

Offensively the hosts were led by Delmon Young, who had three hits and two RBI and Alexi Casilla, who also delivered three hits for the Twins as they won for just the eighth time in 24 home dates this season.

David Murphy posted an RBI single and Adrian Beltre accounted for a double for the Rangers, who managed to produce a total of only five hits on the day. In the midst of a lengthy 10-game road jaunt, Texas is still the top team in the AL West at the moment, 2 1/2 games ahead of the Seattle Mariners.

Texas starter Colby Lewis was hammered by the Minnesota bats, making it through only 1 1/3 innings and giving up six runs on seven hits. Reliever Dave Bush had his own issues as he exited the meeting prematurely in the seventh inning with a leg injury.

Now in his sixth season in the big leagues, Francisco Liriano is slated to take the mound for the Twins this afternoon. The lefty began 2011 with three consecutive setbacks, but since then he's broken with three up and three down.

On Tuesday Liriano suffered his sixth loss of the campaign despite allowing just a single run on three hits and three walks, while striking out seven over the course of five innings. The 27-year old currently boasts a 2-1 record in his career versus the Rangers.

As for Texas, it is handing the ball to Matt Harrison, who is shooting for his sixth win of the season. The lefty was last in action on Tuesday when he surrendered four runs on eight hits and a pair of walks, while fanning five through four innings in an 8-1 loss to Detroit. The defeat for Harrison snapped a personal two-game win streak.

Now in his fourth season, Harrison has a record of 0-1 with a lofty 9.64 ERA in his career versus Minnesota.

Even though they came up rather short on Saturday, the Rangers are still the second-best hitting team in the AL at the moment with a collective average of .266. Getting Michael Young back in the lineup should certainly give the squad a boost today, after he took the day off for some rest on Saturday.

Young, who is hitting .310 and has knocked in 40 runs this season, is on the verge of setting the club record for games played and is currently sitting at 1,572 games, trailing only Rafael Palmeiro.