The Giants host the Minnesota Twins for a three game interleague series this weekend.
The Twins have gotten off to a surprisingly good start after many experts picked them to finish at the bottom of the AL Central.
This series is the first of a six game home stand for San Francisco, where they own a 14-8 record to date.
The Minnesota-San Francisco matchup will be one of rare occurrence, as the Giants will face the Twins for just the third time since 2005.
Minnesota's previous series: The Twins swept a quick two game series with San Diego.
Starters Kevin Correia and Phil Hughes stifled the Padres offense, allowing just three combined runs in the series.
With Thursday's off-day, the Twins are now 23-21 as of May 23rd – the latest into a season the team has been over .500 since 2010.
San Francisco's previous series: The Giants split two games in Colorado, with the rubber match currently suspended due to inclement weather.
That game will not be made up until the Giants return to Colorado in September.
Sergio Romo blew the save on Tuesday, but the bullpen pitched six solid innings in relief of the injured Cain for a victory on Wednesday.
The Giants sit atop the NL West with a 29-18 record.
Minnesota's probable starters: 5/23 – Kyle Gibson (4-3, 4.20 ERA), 5/24 – Ricky Nolasco (2-4, 5.50 ERA), 5/25 – Samuel Deduno (1-2, 3.53 ERA)
San Francisco's probable starters: 5/23 – Tim Lincecum (3-3, 4.74 ERA), Ryan Vogelsong (2-2, 3.62 ERA), Madison Bumgarner (5-3, 3.38 ERA)
Three things to know for the series:
Quietly good offense for Minnesota: The Twins aren't one of the first teams that comes to mind when you think offense, but this lineup has been able to score more often than not this year.
They currently rank ninth in the majors with 202 runs scored, and while they haven't hit for much average (just a .248 team average), their on-base percentage is a strong .330 (sixth in all of baseball).
Propelled by Brian Dozier's hot start (11 home runs, 25 RBI's, 12 steals), the Twins have done just enough to win games offensively.
The rest of the contributions have come from all over the place – Kurt Suzuki (.303 batting average), Chris Colabello (30 RBI's), Joe Mauer (.373 on-base percentage), and Trevor Plouffe (18 doubles, 29 RBI's).
This lineup doesn't boast any household names outside of Mauer, which is why they've been underestimated to this point.
Still, there are a number of bats that can do some damage, so the Giants can't afford to make mistakes in this series or they'll be surprised with how quickly the Twins can take advantage.
Quietly bad pitching: On the flip side, Minnesota has been terrible on the mound this year.
The starting rotation currently holds a 5.00 ERA (third worst in MLB).
Outside of Phil Hughes (5-1, 3.15 ERA), the Twins rotation has been a mess so far.
Free agent acquisition Ricky Nolasco has disappointed with a bloated 5.50 ERA, ex-Giant Kevin Correia has been up and down, but has a 6.52 ERA overall, and Mike Pelfrey had an ERA of nearly eight before being replaced by Samuel Deduno.
The back-end of the bullpen is solid with closer Glen Perkins (14 saves) and setup man Casey Fien (nine holds, 1.89 ERA), but it's been difficult to keep the lead long enough for them to pitch in meaningful situations – though they've been on point when given the opportunity.
Minnesota has allowed more runs than they've scored so far, and their projected win/loss record is actually 21-23, meaning the offense has carried the team to a slightly better record than expected despite the pitching.
Giants are bruised but not broken: After several more injuries popped up during the trip to Colorado, Dave Groeschner and the training staff are working so much, they'll start asking for overtime soon.
Although Angel Pagan (shoulder) returned for the final two games, Buster Posey missed the first two with a back injury – though his presence in Thursday's lineup suggests he will be fine moving forward.
Matt Cain and Santiago Casilla both left Wednesday's game with hamstring injuries, and while Cain may be on track for his next start, Casilla has already been placed on the disabled list.
Tim Hudson (hip) returned to the mound on Thursday and looks to be fine after missing his previous start.
Brandon Belt remains out with a broken thumb, and still appears at least a month away from a return.
The Giants have just three off-days in the next four weeks, including two stretches of 13 consecutive games, meaning they can't afford for too many more injuries to pile up – especially to the pitching staff.
Despite the seemingly weekly injuries, the team has set the pace in the NL West so far.
Final Note: The Giants are a combined 14-2 against AL Central teams since the start of the 2011 season.
That record includes the 4-0 sweep of the Tigers in the 2012 World Series, and the 3-0 record so far this season.
They're 2-1 against the Twins during that run, winning the most recent series in 2011.
For more content by Chris Kersevan, check out his writer’s page and on Twitter @cker7
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