The Minnesota Twins return home to take on the Detroit Tigers after going 5-4 on their nine-game road trip. They remain one game back of the Texas Rangers for the second Wild Card spot in the American League.
The Tigers lead the season series 8-5 against the Twins, but the Twins took three of four against the Tigers the last time the two teams faced off.
Three players to watch:
1. Phil Hughes returns to the rotation Tuesday after missing the past five weeks. Hughes is 1-1 with a 6.19 earned run average against the Tigers in three starts this season. However, Hughes is 8-2 with a 3.91 earned run average at Target Field.
2. Torii Hunter had a horrible month of August, hitting .130 with 21 strikeouts and just nine hits. The 40 year old veteran is off to a great start in September, hitting .290 with three doubles. In his last seven games he’s hitting .381. Nobody expected the Twins to be in contention when Hunter signed with the Twins during the winter, but it’s safe to say that the veteran can smell post-season baseball.
3. Trevor Plouffe is red hot. He’s hitting .421 in his last seven games with two home runs and four RBIs. Plouffe, like Hunter struggled in August, but is off to a hot start in September.
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