Minnesota Twins manager Rocco Baldelli was not surprised to hear the statistics showing just how good Royce Lewis is at home.
Baldelli offered an additional point. Lewis is good everywhere, the manager said, and by that he truly meant everywhere.
“I think you’d see him putting up pretty good numbers if he was playing in outer space,” Baldelli said. “He’d figure out a way to put up some well-struck balls.”
Lewis will look to stay hot on planet Earth — and, more specifically, in Minneapolis — when the Twins play the Chicago White Sox on Saturday night. It will be the second installment of a three-game series between the teams.
In the series opener on Friday, Lewis went 2-for-4 with a double, a home run and four RBIs to lead the Twins to a 10-2 rout of the White Sox. The performance gave Lewis seven homers and 15 RBIs in 11 home games this season.
Meanwhile, the White Sox continue to make history for all of the wrong reasons.
Chicago dropped its 18th game in a row, which extended its franchise record. The White Sox have not won since July 10, and they remain on pace to break the modern regular-season record for losses (120), set by the 1962 New York Mets.
During the 18-game losing streak, the White Sox have been outscored 112-39.
Pedro Grifol, the embattled manager of the careening club, continues to try to tweak his lineup in an effort to snap the epic skid. He put recent acquisition Miguel Vargas into the leadoff spot for the series opener.
Vargas responded well. He hit a two-run homer, his first hit with the team since it acquired him from the Los Angeles Dodgers as part of a three-team trade on Monday that also involved the St. Louis Cardinals.
Grifol explained why he wanted to see Vargas atop the batting order.
“Why not?” the manager said. “He’s an on-base guy. He has pretty good plate discipline. This is the time to look at those things. …
“A lot of new faces out there. Hopefully, they’re hungry to make an impression and take advantage of this opportunity.”
The Twins will turn to right-hander Bailey Ober (10-5, 3.76 ERA) to start the second game of the series. Ober is looking to win a third straight start.
In his last outing, he fired eight scoreless innings and allowed only one hit in a 5-0 win over the Detroit Tigers on Sunday. He walked two and struck out 11.
Ober owns a 4-2 record with a 3.71 ERA in 12 career starts against Chicago. He is 1-1 with a 5.25 ERA in two outings vs. the White Sox this year.
Chicago will counter with its ace, Garrett Crochet (6-8, 3.23 ERA). The left-hander is looking to bounce back after giving up five runs (three earned) on six hits in three innings of a 6-3 loss to the Seattle Mariners on Sunday.
In 13 career appearances (two starts) against the Twins, Crochet is 1-2 with a 4.19 ERA. He faced Minnesota twice in April, going 0-1 with a 7.00 ERA.
