Series preview: Cleveland Indians at Minnesota Twins

Earlier this season, whenever the Cleveland Indians faced the Minnesota Twins, at least I could play up the fact that Max Kepler and Keplettes were inexplicably great against the Tribe, but that fun little faux narrative is no longer true. They swept the Twins in their last matchup at the tail end of August, outscoring the Twins, 14-8, in the process.

Brian Dozier is good, though, so that's fun.

Pitching matchups

• Friday, 8:10 p.m. ET: Danny Salazar (RHP) vs. Tyler Duffey (RHP)
• Saturday, 7:10 p.m. ET: Mike Clevinger (RHP) vs. Hector Santiago (LHP)
• Sunday, 2:10 p.m. ET: Corey Kluber (RHP) vs. Jose Berrios (RHP)

The big news here is Mike Clevinger officially taking over Josh Tomlin's fifth starter spot, at least for now. This will be his second-straight start, but he likely will not pitch a full starter's worth of innings, considering he has not "started" (not including Monday's bullpen day) since August 13.

Sunday's matchup could also be fun, with Corey Kluber continuing his Cy Young campaign and youngster Jose Berrios flashing his nasty arsenal. The Indians made Berrios look like a grizzled veteran in his first outing, but he has looked distinctly like a rookie since. In 10 total starts, Berrios has a 9.21 ERA with a 5.91 FIP.

Upcoming schedule

From here on out it's all AL Central, all the time. The Indians will wrap up this brief road trip with a four-game series against the Chicago White Sox then return home for a pivotal three-game set against the Detroit Tigers before their last off day of the season.

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Team in a box

Minnesota Twins		Offense		AL Rank	Pitching		AL Rank
Record	52-88	R/G	4.65	7th	ERA	5.27	15th
AL Central	5th	OBP	.321	9th	HR/9	1.44	15th
Last 10	3-7	SLG	.432	7th	BB/9	2.91	6th
Home	28-44	Steals	83	4th	SO/9	7.36	13th

A middle-of-the-road offense with absolutely atrocious pitching. Not much has changed since the last time the Indians faced the Twins.

Minnesota Twins roster

• 25-man roster
• Depth chart

Position players

Brian Dozier is crazy good and he is on a home run marathon lately. The 29-year-old second baseman has 39 on the season and nine homers in his last nine games.

Starting pitchers

Ugh.

Bullpen

Agh.