If the Twins are going to pull out of their August nosedive and stabilize, they’re going to have to do it against a team that they have a a next to impossible time beating.
With last night’s win against the Good Guys, the Evil Empire now has won 20-23 games against the Twins, and their task doesn’t get any easier tonight.
Is it because of the Yankees starter, A.J. Burnett? No, he’s been fairly pedestrian this year, going 9-9 with a 4.61 ERA. Is it because the Yankees are one of the best teams in baseball? Yeah, that’s part of it, but that’s only part of the answer.
The other half is the Twins themselves—they have been their own worst enemy all year, and the biggest violator of shooter-in-the-foot-itis is Francisco Liriano, tonight’s scheduled starter.
Liriano has been a paranoid schizophrenic on the mound this year. He has an 8-9 record with a 5.12 ERA this season, and has just been befuddling as a starter this year. When he’s good, he’s awesome, as his early season no-hitter will attest, and when he’s bad, he’s awful…like most of his starts have been, unfortunately.
First pitch tonight is 6:05 from Target Field.