The Minnesota Twins and Philadelphia Phillies continue their weekend series in Philadelphia on Saturday afternoon. The interleague matchup pits two teams with playoff aspirations in 2023 with the Twins atop the AL Central Division standings and the Phillies currently in line for a wildcard berth in the National League. The pitching matchup on Saturday will feature Twins' righty Pablo Lopez (7-6, 3.81) taking on the Phillies' Taijuan Walker (13-4, 3.98). The first pitch is scheduled for 6:05 PM EST.
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The Minnesota Twins continue to pace the AL Central Division but still haven't gotten enough separation to feel comfortable. Minnesota led the AL Central Division last year at the All-Star Break before collapsing and finishing well behind eventual division-winner Cleveland. This year, the Twins once again have the Guardians breathing down their backs but have held them off thus far. The Twins came into this series after splitting a four-game set against the third-place Tigers in Detroit. On Friday night in game one of this interleague matchup with the Phillies, the Twins scored the game's first two runs in the second inning and watched as the Phillies scored the next 13 in a 13-2 loss.
Chipping away! #MNTwins pic.twitter.com/UaBomltOp1
— Bally Sports North (@BallySportsNOR) August 10, 2023
The Twins will give the ball to righty Pablo Lopez on Saturday against the Phillies. Lopez has had a stellar first season with the Twins thus far. He is 7-6 in 23 starts including a team-leading 14 quality starts this season. He has allowed 120 hits in 141.2 innings of work with an ERA of 3.81. Lopez has an impressive K/9 rate of 11.0 and his WHIP stands at 1.10. In his last five starts, Lopez is 2-1 with a 3.52 ERA in his last five starts with 35 strikeouts in 30.2 innings pitched. On the road this season, he is 4-4 with an ERA of 3.09.
Key Injuries: 1B Alex Kiriloff and DH Byron Buxton are out.