With a chance to pull themselves out of last place in the American League Central, the Minnesota Twins came up short on Saturday in a 7-3 loss to the Kansas City Royals.
Separated by just a half-game in the divisional standings heading into Saturday's game two, the Twins and Royals combined for 24 hits as both squads took turns knocking opposing pitchers around throughout the evening. Taking the loss to fall to 8-4 on the year, Minnesota lefty Scott Diamond went six innings of four-run ball to conclude one of his poorest starts as of late. Diamond served up 10 hits to Royals hitters in the lackluster outing, marking the highest total he's yielded all season.
Aside from the sheer amount of base hits racked up, both teams still managed to kill off their own rallies on numerous occasions by hitting into double plays, as Minnesota tallied three while the Royals picked up four. In the end, first baseman Chris Parmelee was the only Twins player to put forth a multi-hit performance (2-for-3), while outfielder Denard Span finished 0-for-4 with a pair of strikeouts after sitting Friday's game out.
Right-hander Samuel Deduno will get the ball for manager Ron Gardenhire on Sunday with an eye on taking the three-game series, as the 29-year-old Dominican pitcher will hope to improve upon his 8:8 K:BB ratio through two starts.
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