Apr 29, 2019; Minneapolis, MN, USA; Minnesota Twins pinch hitter Nelson Cruz (23) hits a double in the eighth inning against the Houston Astros at Target Field. Photo Credit: Jesse Johnson-USA TODAY Sports
On pace to shatter the major league record for home runs in a season and owners of the best record in baseball, the Minnesota Twins are expecting three sellout crowds for their series with the Kansas City Royals that begins Friday night in Minneapolis.
Right-hander Kyle Gibson (6-3, 4.14 ERA), who is 7-5 with a 3.84 ERA in 19 career starts against the Royals, will oppose right-hander Brad Keller (3-8, 4.29), who has dropped his past three starts, in the opener. Keller is 1-0 with a 3.94 ERA in three career starts against the Twins.
A big reason for the large crowds is a Prince Night purple jersey giveaway on Friday, and the retirement of Joe Mauer’s No. 7 jersey in a special ceremony on Saturday night. But a 21-10 home record and a major league-leading 132 home runs also has been key to a recent uptick in crowd size at Target Field.
“The crowds are great,” Minnesota manager Rocco Baldelli said after Thursday afternoon’s 10-5 victory over Seattle. “I think a lot of people are looking forward to this weekend too with Joe being here and everything going on around the ceremony and everything. I think it will be very cool for everyone involved just to be a part of. Having a full stadium (and) the energy associated with that, the players, the staff, everyone here will be feel that.”
The Twins, who are averaging a home run every 17.6 at-bats, hit two more homers in Thursday’s win and are on pace to hit 319 this season, which would shatter the single-season mark of 267 set by the Yankees last season. The franchise record is 225 set in 1963.
Somewhat surprisingly, the Twins have done it even though the man expected to lead the way – designated hitter Nelson Cruz – missed 19 games with a strained left wrist.
Cruz went 3-for-4 with three RBIs and his 12th homer in 43 games in Thursday’s victory. After going 0-for-4 in his first game back off the injured list on June 4, Cruz is 11-for-28 (.393) with five home runs and nine RBIs in seven games since.
“Not too many guys can do things like that,” Baldelli said. “He has a very unique skill set. That’s why he’s one of the best hitters in the game.”
“I guess it’s contagious,” Cruz told the (Minneapolis) Star-Tribune. “Everyone is hitting, so the best thing is to hit too. You don’t want to fall behind. It’s fun to be around a great lineup.”
Kansas City will be playing a game in its third city in three days after defeating Detroit, 7-3, on Thursday night at TD Ameritrade Park in Omaha as a prelude to the College World Series. It was the first major league game ever played in Nebraska. The victory gave the Royals a series victory over the Tigers after splitting the first two games in Kansas City.
Second baseman Nicky Lopez, who played at nearby Creighton, hit his first major league home run and Homer Bailey pitched six shutout innings to lead the Royals.
“It was really neat to come and play a good game for our fans,” Royals manager Ned Yost told kansascity.com. “I just wanted us to put on a good show for our fans, and luckily we did.”
