Following a dramatic win on Wednesday for the New York Yankees, they’ll get back at it as they hope to beat up on the worst team in baseball.
- Minnesota Twins (23-49)
- New York Yankees (35-36)
- American League, 7:05 PM ET, YES Network
- Yankee Stadium, Bronx, NY
Last time they reached the plateau of having the same amount of wins as losses were when they won five straight to reach 31-30. Then on June 11 they followed the streak by losing four consecutive contests to fall back to 31-34.
Before then, it was May 24 when the Yankees evened their record up at 22-22 thanks to a shutout win over the Toronto Blue Jays. Many figured they were ready to turn their early slump around but instead they lost eight of their next 12 to fall to back below .500 at 26-30.
They were close to falling three games back in what appeared like a dreary afternoon loss to the lowly Rockies but Starlin Castro’s walk-off home run brought the Yankees within one game of .500 for the eighth time in the last month.
Here’s the chance for the Bombers to reach .500 again and have the opportunity to restore themselves as a legitimate threat with a sweep of the Twins.
Pitching Matchups:
Masahiro Tanaka will get a second chance to take care of the Twins after giving New York one of his best efforts of the season against them a week ago by holding them to a run on seven hits over eight innings of work.
In his career against the Twins, Tanaka is 3-0 with a 1.96 ERA featuring a WHIP of 0.96 in three starts.
Opposing him will be Tommy Milone who was recalled from Triple-A Rochester in order to take the roster spot of Pat Dean. In seven Minor League starts, Milone owned a 4-0 record with a 1.66 ERA including 41 strikeouts compared to four walks.
The Yankees will look to continue last week’s success against the Twins as Tanaka takes the mound pic.twitter.com/ENzNzBSApp
— NYYANKEENATION (@nyyankeenation) June 24, 2016
Lineups:
6/24 @Twins lineup at NYY
Nunez 3B
Grossman LF
Mauer 1B
Dozier 2B
Kepler RF
Escobar SS
Park DH
Suzuki C
Buxton CF
Milone P— MLB Lineups (@mlblineups) June 24, 2016
Yankees vs. Twins tonight at 7:05pm on @YESNetwork and @WFAN660 pic.twitter.com/vk89KpJ1Q1
— Yankees PR Dept. (@YankeesPR) June 24, 2016
Players To Watch:
- Alex Rodriguez experienced a two-home run game against Milone on July 25 of last year by hitting a solo shot and a two-run homer in an 8-5 Yankees win at Target Field.
- Last time the Twins faced off against Tanaka, Eduardo Escobar smacked a second-inning double and singled in the fourth inning. In that same contest, he ripped a home run off Nick Goody as the Twins fell 8-2.
- Since June 7, Didi Gregorius has been nothing short of amazing for the Bombers. Not only is he slashing .367/.415/.612 with an OPS of 1.027, but he is coming through time and time again when his team needs him the most.
Bold Prediction:
Tanaka, despite surrendering two home runs, works a quality start as Alex Rodriguez drills his ninth home run of the year. Additionally, Carlos Beltran rips his seventh home run in 14 games.
