Pittsburgh Pirates look to finish homestand strong against the Twins

After taking two of three against the Los Angeles Dodgers, the Pittsburgh Pirates will hope to make it a winning homestand this weekend as they take on the American League Central’s Minnesota Twins.

The Twins come to Pittsburgh losers of four of their last five games after being swept out of New York by the Yankees over the course of the midweek. The Twins were outscored in the series 22-11.

On the season, the Twins are 33-29, sitting in third place in the AL Central. The Twins have been quite consistent over the first two months of the season, going 14-12 in April before picking up a 16-12 record in May. So far in June, they’re 1-4.

Notably, the Twins have been a bit better at home this season than on the road, holding a 16-13 record at Target Field while posting a 17-16 record when wearing their road greys.

Last season, the Pirates fell in their only series against the the Twins in mid-August, losing two of three matchups in Minneapolis.

As previously mentioned, the Pirates are now 29-33 on the season, and are coming off an encouraging series win against the Los Angeles Dodgers, as young star pitchers Jared Jones and Paul Skenes shut down the Dodgers’ dangerous lineup.

While the Twins on paper are not as dangerous as the mighty Dodgers, this is still a Twins lineup that the Pirates will have to be careful with this weekend.

Let’s take a look at this weekend’s pitching matchups and Twins to watch at the plate.