Minnesota Twins Game 68: Lineups and First Impressions

The Minnesota Twins find themselves coming off a series loss to the AL Central division rival, Detroit Tigers.  As they head to Fenway Park, the Twins will be looking to win a second series against the Boston Red Sox this year.

With Kevin Correia on the mount, the Twins veteran pitcher will be looking to turn in another strong performance following his first scoreless start of the year.  Opposing Correia and the Twins will be the young Boston Red Sox pitcher Rubby De La Rosa.

Minnesota will be looking to continue the dominance they have displayed over the AL East thus far this season as they head into Fenway.  Danny Santana will be making his first career start in Fenway Park, and the Twins will be looking for Joe Mauer to pepper the Green Monster as he works to improve upon his batting average.

Here’s how both teams will line up:

Minnesota Twins (32-35)

1. Danny Santana SS

2. Brian Dozier 2B

3. Joe Mauer 1B

4. Josh Willingham LF

5. Kendrys Morales DH

6. Oswaldo Arcia RF

7. Kurt Suzuki C

8. Eduardo Escobar 3B

9. Sam Fuld CF

Boston Red Sox (31-38)

1. Brock Holt LF

2. Xander Bogaerts 3B

3. Dustin Pedroia 2B

4. David Ortiz DH

5. Mike Napoli 1B

6. Daniel Nava RF

7. Stephen Drew SS

8. A.J. Pierzynski C

9. Jackie Bradley Jr. CF

First Impressions:

• Danny Santana starting at shortstop tonight with Escobar at third and Sam Fuld in center looks like a much more normally aligned infield.  Santana continues to project as a potential long term shortstop answer while Fuld and Escobar are both capable in their respective spots.
• Brock Holt continues to see starts all over the field for the Red Sox as he has been on a tear and is so multi dimensional for Boston.
• Despite being called up to take Trevor Plouffe‘s spot on the active roster, Predro Florimon will likely continue to be anything more than a bench level replacement player.
• As Correia toes the rubber tonight, regardless of his scoreless last outing, he is likely to be continuing to pitch for his rotation spot.  As Alex Meyer and Trevor May continue to throw well for Triple-A Rochester, they are pushing further to be bumped up into the big league rotation.

Game Time:

Tonight’s first pitch will be at 6:10pm CST and the game will be televised on Fox Sports North.

Should you not be able to view the game on TV, or you’d like to listen while watching the US National team in the World Cup, the game will be on the Twins Radio Network.