Homer Bailey and Rich Hill are on the disabled list, Jake Odorizzi underwhelmed in his debut, Devin Smeltzer was so-so in his previous start, which means Kenta Maeda and Randy Dobnak are the standout starters for the Twins, and I don’t think anyone expected those two to carry the load this season.
And on top of that, Jose Berrios turned in another mediocre start on Sunday to extend the Twins’ losing streak to four games. The Twins lost 4-2 on Sunday and were swept by the Kansas City Royals.
Berrios fell to 1-2 with an ERA of 5.31 after he allowed four runs, all earned, on eight hits over five-plus innings. He also walked three, struck out four and served up a home run.
Randy Dobnak gets the ball on Monday against the Milwaukee Brewers. Will the Dobber snap the losing streak? He’s 2-1 on the season with a 0.60 ERA.
Extra innings…
-After starting the season 10-2, the Twins are now 10-6, a half game ahead of the… Detroit Tigers? That’s right. Gardy’s guys are 8-5, including 5-1 on the road. The Twins are 7-1 at home and 3-5 on the road. They have three games at Milwaukee, then come home for a week before hitting the road again.
-Max Kepler had the only extra-base hit in Sunday’s game, a double in the third inning.
-Former pitcher and current Chicago White Sox broadcaster, Steve Stone, tweeted about the Royals’ sweep of the Twins, pointing out the AL Central is much more competitive this season than last season.
I heard so much from Twins fans when they won 2 of 3 from our Sox. I thought they felt the Twins were going to go 59 and 1. The same team that our Sox swept in KC swept the Twins. This is an unpredictable game. Any team can beat any team. The Central is tougher. KC sweeps Twins
— Steve Stone (@stevestone) August 9, 2020
-MLB.com says the Twins are one of five teams in the majors that can already be considered a lock to make the postseason.
And writer Will Leitch added:
And honestly, the best news for the Twins is that with the new playoff format, there is almost no way that they are going to face the Yankees in the first round of the postseason.