One way the Twins can get back to being themselves again is for Kyle Gibson to start pounding the strike zone.
Granted, Gibson is 8-4 with a 4.03 ERA, which isn't shabby, but this is the time for him to step forward with strong outing. He lasted just 32/3 innings in his last outing, on Friday in Cleveland. When Gibson is going good, he's throwing all four of his pitches to all four quadrants of the strike one, which makes him difficult to hit. He has struggled to harness his stuff in recent outings.
Again, his season has been far from a disaster, but there's plenty of room for him to be more effective. He's only pitched seven innings four times all season, his longest outing was the eight shutout innings he threw at Kansas City on June 14. Since then, he has a 5.09 ERA.
It just so happens that his last quality start came at Oakland on July 3, when he held the A's to two earned runs over six innings.
The Twins are coming off a clunker game on Wednesday and bring a three-game losing streak into tonight's game against Oakland. But there were not signs of stress in the clubhouse this afternoon. They are sticking to their schedule and are keeping Jorge Polanco and Eddie Rosario out of the starting lineup. Polanco needs a break and Rosario is working his way back from a sore ankle.
Ehire Adrianza is a short. He's 3-for-10 with a homer off of A's starter Mike Fiers.
Athletics
Marcus Semien, SS
Robbie Grossman, LF
Matt Olson, 1B
Mark Canha, RF
Ramon Laureano, CF
Khris Davis, DH
Jurickson Profar, 2B
Chad Pinder, 3B
Josh Phegley, C
Mike Fiers, RHP
Twins
Max Kepler, CF
Mitch Garver, C
Nelson Cruz, DH
Marwins Gonzalez, Lf
C.J. Cron, 1B
Luis Arraez, 2B
Miguel Sano, 3B
Jake Cave, RF
Ehire Adrianza, SS
Kyle Gibson, RHP
