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Minnesota Twins seek revenge in road series with Chicago White Sox

By Chris Schad

CHICAGO, ILLINOIS - JULY 28: Nelson Cruz #23 of the Minnesota Twinshits a single in the 1st inning against the Chicago White Sox at Guaranteed Rate Field on July 28, 2019 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images)
CHICAGO, ILLINOIS - JULY 28: Nelson Cruz #23 of the Minnesota Twinshits a single in the 1st inning against the Chicago White Sox at Guaranteed Rate Field on July 28, 2019 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images) /
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MINNEAPOLIS, MN – AUGUST 06: manager Rocco Baldelli #5 of the Minnesota Twins pulls starting pitcher Jose Berrios #17 from the interleague game against the Atlanta Braves during the sixth inning on August 6, 2019 at Target Field in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Photo by Hannah Foslien/Getty Images)
MINNEAPOLIS, MN – AUGUST 06: manager Rocco Baldelli #5 of the Minnesota Twins pulls starting pitcher Jose Berrios #17 from the interleague game against the Atlanta Braves during the sixth inning on August 6, 2019 at Target Field in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Photo by Hannah Foslien/Getty Images) /

Thursday (1:10 p.m. CT)

Jose Berrios (10-7, 3.53 ERA) vs. Dylan Cease (3-6, 5.76 ERA)

The latest chapter of the “What’s wrong with Jose Berrios” saga will take place on Thursday afternoon as the right-hander will take the mound looking to find his early-season form. The good news is that Berrios has regained the velocity on his fastball, but his effectiveness remains something to be desired.

Whereas the one-time ace was dominant at the beginning of the season, opposing hitters have seemed to figure Berrios out recently, as he’s posted an 8.44 ERA in five starts during the month of August. As one of the key reasons why the Twins didn’t pull the trigger on a deadline deal to acquire a starter, the Twins need to work quickly to fix Berrios as they head down the stretch.

Once again, the Twins will run into a plus matchup at the plate as they’ll face Dylan Cease. One of the White Sox’ top prospects had a difficult time with the Minnesota lineup the last time he saw them, as he completed five innings, but also allowed five runs in a 6-2 Twins victory on July 26.

One of the key blows in that game was a three-run homer by Max Kepler, which helped the Twins take an early lead and hold on for the victory. The key for the Twins will be to strike early and hope that Berrios has a get-right start to fuel momentum down the stretch.

Outlook

If there is one game where there is confidence the Twins will pick up the victory it will be Wednesday night’s game against Ross Detwiler. With the Twins’ collective success against the right-hander, they should be able to score some runs and at the very least avoid a sweep in Chicago.

Next. 5 Twins prospects that can impact September. dark

The key for the Twins will be the other two games as they’ll obviously need a better performance against Giolito on Tuesday and a better performance from Berrios on Thursday night. If the Twins can get just one of those outings to happen, they have a chance of taking two-of-three from the White Sox. They’ll just need to buck some recent trends to make that happen.

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