Twins' aims: sweep of White Sox, first 3-game win streak

Trevor Larnach has rediscovered his power stroke.

The Minnesota Twins hope they have rediscovered their production at the plate, too.

The Twins will go for a three-game sweep when they face the Chicago White Sox on Thursday afternoon in Minneapolis. Minnesota is aiming for its first three-game winning streak of the season, immediately after dropping three games in a row against the Atlanta Braves.

Minnesota manager Rocco Baldelli praised his team for its patience at the plate after the Twins drew six walks and struck out seven times on Wednesday in a 6-3 victory.

"It's hard not to like the at-bats," Baldelli said. "It's hard not to like loading the bases up over and over again. Obviously, we want to bring them home early on, but we didn't (on Wednesday). But it ended up not mattering because we just kept pushing forward."

Larnach has helped push the Twins forward in recent games. He has belted three homers in his past five games, including a go-ahead solo shot in the sixth inning on Wednesday.

"He's doing a little bit of everything," Baldelli said. "I think you could say that's a quality of a good hitter. He's a guy that can drive the ball hard the other way and grab some hits but can also turn on the ball and do some good things."

Larnach boosted his season totals to three home runs and nine RBIs in 23 games. A 2-for-3 effort boosted his average to .218.

"So far this season hasn't been going exactly how you want it, but that's baseball," Larnach said.. "You just keep grinding away. Just like tonight, I think we fought and clawed and grinded away, and we got a (win). ...

"Anytime you're in the big leagues and you're hitting homers or doing something for the team, it's awesome. I'm blessed."

The White Sox will try to salvage the series finale behind right-hander Shane Smith (0-1, 2.82 ERA), who will make his fifth start of his rookie campaign. The Wake Forest product has struck out 15 batters in 22 1/3 innings to start his career.

Smith faced the Twins in his big-league debut on April 1, and he allowed two runs on two hits in 5 2/3 innings while finishing the game with a no-decision.

Chicago right-hander Bryce Wilson, who stepped in to start Wednesday in place of injured veteran Martin Perez, did his best to eat up innings and keep the bullpen fresh for the series finale. However, he lasted just 2 2/3 innings while throwing 55 pitches.

"I kind of put them in a tough spot," Wilson said. "I was on a pitch count, but I was still hoping to get ... at least into the fourth inning, if not through the fourth inning."

The Twins plan to give the ball to Chris Paddack (0-2, 7.27 ERA), who also is slated to make his fifth start of the season. The 29-year-old right-hander is coming off an impressive start against the Atlanta Braves on Friday, when he received a no-decision but limited opposing hitters to one run on three hits in five innings.

Paddack is 1-1 with a 6.46 ERA in three career starts against the White Sox.

Minnesota is 6-5 at home this season. Chicago is 1-11 on the road.

--Field Level Media