Josh Willingham Open To Extension With Twins

The Minnesota Twins have outfielder Josh Willingham signed through 2014 at $7 million per season. Minnesota likes what he brings to the table and might be in the market to get him signed beyond 2014 in the future. They're not in any hurry though, but someone is: Willingham. He is hoping to get another year or so added to his contract, and according to Darren Wolfson from KSTP.com, he'd be willing to take the extra year at below market value.

Twins outfielder Josh Willingham is open to a one-year contract extension. Currently signed through 2014 at $7 million per season, he's searching for a bit more long-term security and is willing to accept below market value. Even so, don't expect the Twins to approach him until after next season, if at all.

Willingham is worth the $7 million per season he's making now, but he's 33 years old and has already played eight years in MLB. The Twins are currently in a poor situation, sitting at the bottom of the AL Central, and they likely want to see how the next couple years play out before they commit more money to some of the older players.

Still, Willingham is batting .261 on the season and has 33 home runs. He's also got 102 RBIs and sports a .368 on-base percentage.

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Twins Vs. Indians Final Score: Samuel Deduno Deals In 7-2 Win

Samuel Deduno allowed two runs over seven innings in the start as the Twins downed the Indians 7-2 in Minnesota on Monday night.

Deduno gave up three hits and three walks and struck out six to move to 6-3 on the season. A sac fly from Justin Morneau scored the first run of the game in the fourth inning. The Indians tied the game in the sixth, but the Twins scored two in the bottom frame. Minnesota broke the game open in the seventh with three runs, capped by an RBI single from Joe Mauer.

Mauer went 2-for-4, while Pedro Florimon went 2-for-4 with an RBI and two runs scored and Morneau went 1-for-3 with two RBIs. The win moved the Twins up into a tie with the Indians for fourth place in the AL Central.

Indians Vs. Twins Lineups: Chris Parmelee Scratched; Matt Carson In

The Minnesota Twins have scratched outfielder Chris Parmelee from the lineup for Monday night's series finale against the Minnesota Twins with right groin soreness, according to Rhett Bollinger. Matt Carson will start in Parmelee's place. Parmelee is just day-to-day at this point.

The Twins, behind Samuel Deduno, are looking for the series victory over the Indians, who have lost two straight entering the finale. Deduno has been very effective for Minnesota this season, posting a 5-4 record with a 3.66 ERA. He has allowed three earned runs or less in 9 of 11 starts in 2012.

Here are the full lineups:

Indians

1. Shin-Soo Choo RF
2. Michael Brantley CF
3. Carlos Santana DH
4. Russ Canzler LF
5. Casey Kotchman 1B
6. Lonnie Chisenhall 3B
7. Cord Phelps 2B
8. Brent Lillibridge SS
9. Lou Marson C

Twins

1. Ben Revere CF
2. Alexi Casilla 2B
3. Joe Mauer C
4. Justin Morneau 1B
5. Josh Willingham DH
6. Ryan Doumit LF
7. Trevor Plouffe 3B
8. Matt Carson RF
9. Pedro Florimon SS

Cleveland will send Justin Masterson, who owns an 11-12 record and a 4.84 ERA, to the mound as it tries to salvage a split.

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Indians Vs. Twins Preview: Samuel Deduno Looks To Take Series From Cleveland

Samuel Deduno takes the mound for the Minnesota Twins as they look to take three of four from the Cleveland Indians in Monday's series finale.

The 29-year-old right-hander has pitched well as of late. Deduno (5-3, 3.66) has allowed only two total runs in his last two starts, including a nine- strikeout performance against the Seattle Mariners Aug. 29. A win would move Minnesota out of last place in the AL Central.

Justin Masterson (11-12, 4.84) takes the mound for a Cleveland team looking to split the four-game series in Minnesota. Masterson is coming off a win against the Detroit Tigers in which he allowed only two runs on four hits in six innings.

Minnesota pulled out a victory Sunday in a back-and-forth game capped off by a Justin Morneau walk-off home run. It was Morneau's second homer of the day. Morneau is hitting .277 with 19 HR and 73 RBI on the season.

Check out Twinkie Town for more Twins coverage. Head over to Let's Go Tribe to find more news on the Indians. Be sure to visit Baseball Nation for more news and analysis from around major league baseball.

Indians Vs. Twins Final Score: Justin Morneau Walk-Off Homer Finishes Wild Game

The Minnesota Twins put a fun exclamation point on the weekend by defeating the Cleveland Indians, 8-7, on Sunday thanks to a walk-off home run by Justin Morneau in the ninth inning.

The afternoon did not get off to a good start for the Twins, with the Indians jumping out to a 4-0 lead. Twins starter Esmerling Vasquez only made it through three innings, allowing four runs on three hits and walking five.

The Twins started to chip away at the deficit, scoring five unanswered runs between the third and fourth innings. Leading the charge was Joe Mauer, who went 3-for-5 on the afternoon and fell just a home run short of the cycle.

The teams would exchange the lead twice in the later innings, with the Twins battling back from a 6-4 deficit to tie the game at 6-6 before blowing a 7-6 lead to the Tribe.

Morneau's walk-off was his 19th home run of the season, with his 18th coming earlier in this same game.

Check out Twinkie Town for more Twins coverage. Head over to Let's Go Tribe to find more news on the Indians. Be sure to visit Baseball Nation for more news and analysis from around major league baseball.

Twins Vs. Indians Game Preview: Esmerling Vasquez Tries To Give Twins 2nd Straight Win

The Minnesota Twins and Cleveland Indians have split the first two games of their four-game series, but Esmerling Vasquez (0-1, 7.94 ERA) is hoping to give the Twins their second straight win at 1:10 p.m. CT Sunday and have a better outing in his second start of the season.

Vasquez gave up 5 runs, 7 hits and 3 walks in 5.2 innings in his first start, a 6-4 loss to Kansas City on Sept. 2. The Indians counter with Corey Kluber (1-3, 4.79 ERA). After going winless in his first six starts of the season, Cluber picked up his first win of the year Sept. 3, giving up two runs in six innings in a 3-2 win over Detroit.

The Twins got strong pitching out of Cole De Vries in a 3-0 win over the Indians last night. The Twins could tie the Indians in the standings with wins Sunday and Monday.

Check out Twinkie Town for more Twins coverage. Head over to Let's Go Tribe to find more news on the Indians. Be sure to visit Baseball Nation for more news and analysis from around major league baseball.

Indians Vs. Twins Final Score: Twins Win 3-0 Behind De Vries And Perfect Bullpen

Cole De Vries pitched six strong innings and allowed only four hits en route to winning his fifth game of the season. Those four hits would be it for the Indians, as Brian Duensing, Jared Burton, and Glen Perkins combined throw three perfect innings of relief to close out the win for the Twins.

Joe Mauer got the Twins on the board in the third as he drove in Ben Revere. Josh Willingham came to the plate next and drove in Jamey Carroll to put the Twins up by a pair. Revere scored again in the fifth as Justin Morneau took an RBI walk to put the Twins up 3-0. That would be all of the scoring, as the Twins win pulls them to within two games of Cleveland in the AL Central cellar.

The Twins and Indians will face off again tomorrow at 1:10 p.m. CT. Corey Kluber will be on the hill for the Indians, while Esmerling Vasquez will toe the rubber for the Twins.

Check out Twinkie Town for more Twins coverage. Head over to Let's Go Tribe to find more news on the Indians. Be sure to visit Baseball Nation for more news and analysis from around major league baseball.

Twins Vs. Indians Game Preview: De Vries Set To Face Off Against Fellow Rookie

Rookie hurler Cole De Vries (4-5, 4.41 ERA) will look to get the Minnesota Twins back on a winning streak against fellow rookie Zach McAllister (5-6, 4.26 ERA) and the Cleveland Indians on Saturday at Target Field.

The Twins opened the four-game series Friday with a 7-6 loss, just their third in the last 10 games against the Tribe.

De Vries allowed only one run over 6 2/3 innings against the Kansas City Royals in his last start to pick up his second straight win. Saturday will mark his first start against the Indians.

McAllister gave up seven runs on a career-high 11 hits against the Texas Rangers in his last start. He has struggled against the Twins, going 0-1 with a 10.80 ERA.

Game Date & Time: Saturday, Sept. 7, 6:10 p.m. CT

TV: FS-N

Check out Twinkie Town for more Twins coverage. Head over to Let's Go Tribe to find more news on the Indians. Be sure to visit Baseball Nation for more news and analysis from around major league baseball.

Indians Vs. Twins Final Score: Minnesota Drops Opening Game

The Minnesota Twins found themselves down 7-to-4 heading into the bottom of the eighth of Friday night's game, but were only able to put up a single run in each of the final two frames, falling 7-to-6. The Indians distanced themselves in the top of the seventh, scoring three runs. What was ultimately the game winning run when reliever Alex Burnett walked Cleveland pinch hitter Cord Phelps.

Twins starter Liam Hendriks threw five innings, giving up eight hits and four earned runs while walking three and striking out two. Josh Willingham brought the score to 7-to-5 with an RBI double in the bottom of the eighth, and Ben Revere narrowed Cleveland's lead to one with a groundout to third in the ninth inning. Indians closer Chris Perez struck out pinch hitter Matt Carson to end the game, though.

The two teams will continue the series tomorrow night at 7:10 p.m. ET.

Head over to Twinkie Town for more Twins coverage, and be sure to visit Baseball Nation for more news and analysis from around the league.

Indians Vs. Twins Preview: Liam Hendriks Looks For First Career Win

Liam Hendriks looks for his first career big league victory on Friday night as the Twins face the Indians.