Two Twins All-Stars Return in AL Central Showdown with the Royals
It’s a tight race for the AL Central, the best team in baseball. The Detroit Tigers sit atop the division, but only five and a half games back sits a three-team clump that includes the Twins, Royals, and Guardians. The Twins just finished splitting a rain-delayed series with Cleveland 1-1, and now it’s the Royals’ turn to step into Target Field. The series kicks off Friday, May 22nd, for three matchups over the weekend. Additionally, both Byron Buxton and Carlos Correa are set to come off the seven-day injured list on Friday after missing time due to the outfield collision they had against the Orioles.
Getting the duo back into the lineup can pay massive dividends for the squad. Byron Buxton has the highest slugging percentage on the team and is third in batting average for players who have appeared in at least 20 games. He’s also leading the team in home runs with 10 despite the missed time. While Correa has not been lighting it up from the plate, hitting .236 with a .274 on-base percentage, it will be great to get stability back at the shortstop position on defense.
For the Royals series, Friday night will see Pablo López return to the mound for the Twins. Lopez is coming off a six-inning gem against the Brewers, only allowing two hits and striking out six on his way to a shutout. Countering for Kansas City will be Noah Cameron, in 12 innings of work in 2025, he’s only given up one earned run and three total hits. The Twins will look to extend at-bats against Cameron, who did walk five batters in his first appearance against Tampa Bay.
Jonah Bride and Kody Clemens will try to extend recent hot streaks. Both batters are hitting above .400 over the last seven days. Plus, they’ve gotten it done in the clutch. Both recorded hits in the bottom of the ninth in Wednesday’s first game against the Guardians, with Clemens also being the walk-off hero. Willi Castro and Ryan Jeffers both boast on-base percentages north of .400 over the last week as well which has helped buoy the Twins’ offense while Buxton and Correa were out.
On Saturday, the Twins will send out Zebby Matthews for his second start in 2025. He struggled against the Brewers, only going three innings, giving up four runs on five hits while walking three as well. On the other side, Michael Wacha takes the mound. He’s no stranger to allowing hits, giving up seven or more in four of his last six starts. Yet in that same time frame has only once allowed more than two runs. Twins will need to focus on finishing innings and taking advantage of runners in scoring position.
Finally, the series closes on Sunday with Bailey Ober versus Kris Bubic. Ober is coming off a shortened start for the Twins after a weather stoppage finished his day after only three innings. Ober has pitched well this season, only allowing more than one earned run twice in his last nine starts. Meanwhile, Bubic has pitched 25 innings over his last five starts and has only surrendered one run. The Twins will need their best stuff on Sunday to break through his pitching arsenal. It’ll be an exciting weekend of baseball and an important one for the tight race in the AL Central.
