The Chicago White Sox and Minnesota Twins are headed in opposite directions.
The Twins have one game left in the series to try to make a U-turn.
Chicago will look to complete a three-game sweep over Minnesota when the teams square off in the series finale Sunday afternoon in Minneapolis. The White Sox are coming off a 3-2 win on Saturday afternoon, which followed a 7-4 win in Friday’s series opener.
All told, the White Sox have won four games in a row and hold a 4 1/2-game lead for first place in the American League Central division. They are nine games over .500, the most on the season.
Meanwhile, the Twins have lost four in a row and now sit eight games below .500. They are clinging to fading hopes of securing a wild-card playoff berth but have only 26 games to go.
Minnesota started August a game above .500 and in second place in the Central, three games behind the White Sox in the division but holding the third and final American League wild card. An 8-17 record in August has sent the Twins plummeting to 8.5 games behind the White Sox and four games out of the wild card.
“The vibes in here are completely fine,” Twins second baseman Kody Clemens said after the game on Saturday. “Obviously, it’s frustrating right now, given the game is just finished. But we’ve just got to continue to grind and get back to winning games.”
The White Sox have figured out that formula exceptionally well as of late.
Andrew Benintendi has been a big reason for Chicago’s success against the Twins this weekend. He went 2-for-4 with a double and two RBIs in Friday’s series opener. On Saturday, he finished a triple shy of the cycle and had three hits and two RBIs.
His three hits were the only three the White Sox had on the day.
“I’m seeing it pretty well,” Benintendi said. “Everybody on the field (and) off the field enjoys each other’s company, and that always makes it better.”
White Sox manager Will Venable said Benintendi, who reached 10 years in the majors earlier this season, provides steady leadership at the plate.
“Every one of our guys can learn from Benny and how he approaches it with runners in scoring position,” Venable said. “It’s about his experience. It’s about his understanding of his own strengths. And he’s been on the field in every type of situation that there is.”
Twins right-hander Zebby Matthews (8-8, 4.86 ERA) will try to help his team stave off the sweep. Matthews is set to make his 19th start of the season and the 44th of his brief career.
The 26-year-old Matthews is red hot after winning each of his past four outings. His latest victory came against the Athletics, whom he held to one run on six hits in seven innings of a 9-6 road win on Monday.
This will be Matthews’ fourth career start against the White Sox. He is 0-1 with a 4.32 ERA in his first three outings, including a start on May 25 in which he took the 3-1 loss after allowing three runs on five hits in six innings. He walked one and struck out six.
Chicago will counter with right-hander Jordan Hicks (2-1, 3.83), who will serve as the opener. Hicks has started 38 games in his career but only one this season.
In three career appearances (one start) against the Twins, Hicks is 1-2 with a 6.14 ERA.
Twins outfielder Walker Jenkins will aim for a strong finish to his first series in the big leagues. He singled in his debut on Friday night and notched his first career RBI on Saturday afternoon.
-Field Level Media
