NewsMillwood seeks breakthrough vs. Twins
Texas (72-56) at Minnesota (64-65), 1:10 p.m. CT
By T.R. Sullivan / MLB.com
08/29/09 10:45 PM ET
MINNEAPOLIS -- Kevin Millwood had a shot to beat the Twins earlier this month in Arlington. He had a 4-0 lead going into the fifth inning but allowed one run there and four more in the sixth. The Twins went on to beat the Rangers, 5-4, that night and Millwood is still looking for his first career victory against them. He pitches against the Twins on Sunday afternoon at the Metrodome. Millwood is 0-7 with a 6.18 ERA in 11 starts against the Twins. That's his second-highest ERA against any American League team next to a 7.23 ERA in four starts against the Rays. But Millwood has beaten the Rays once. He has never beaten the Twins. "I'm aware I haven't pitch well against them," Millwood said. "I really don't know what the deal is. If I did, I'd change it. It's a combination of bad luck and bad pitching." His 0-7 record is tied for the second-most losses by an active pitcher without a win against any Major League team. Sidney Ponson is 0-9 against the Indians. Glendon Rusch is 0-7 against the Yankees and Danys Baez is 0-7 against the Mariners. Millwood is also 0-6 while pitching against the Braves with a 9.91 ERA that is his highest against any Major League team. Millwood is 0-4 with a 4.03 ERA in six starts against the Twins at the Metrodome. Two of those losses came against Johan Santana. Two years ago, he lost a 1-0 duel with Santana, allowing one run in seven innings. In 2005, the two matched up again with Santana winning, 3-2, while Millwood allowed two runs in seven innings. "They're not a bad offensive team either, but I've beaten some good offensive teams," Millwood said. "I guess the odds are going to switch in my favor at some point. It just hasn't been a whole lot of fun." Pitching matchupTEX: RHP Kevin Millwood (10-8, 3.63 ERA)
Millwood, despite giving up four runs in the first, made it through 5 2/3 innings against the Yankees on Tuesday to get his first victory since July 20 and only his second in his last nine starts. Millwood was 4-1 with a 1.30 ERA in June but is 2-3 with a 5.96 ERA since then. He is 3-6 with a 4.56 ERA in 12 starts on the road. MIN: RHP Scott Baker (12-7, 4.47 ERA)
Baker put together his third win in as many starts with a seven-inning, one-run performance in Minnesota's 2-1 victory over Baltimore on Monday. Baker gave up just four hits while striking out five. His only troublesome inning came in the third, when the Orioles strung together a pair of hits to jump out to a 1-0 lead. Following his latest victory, Baker continues to be the Twins' most consistent starter, having now gone 10-1 since the beginning of June. He's 2-0 against Texas this year, earning the win last Wednesday in Arlington with a 5 1/3-inning performance. Tidbits
The Rangers did not walk a batter in Friday's loss to the Twins. It's the 17th time in the past two years that they did not walk a batter in a game and only the third time they have lost. ... Ian Kinsler, with two steals Friday, became the fifth player in Rangers history to have at least 25 home runs and 25 steals in a season. The others were Toby Harrah (27-27 in 1977), Bobby Bonds (29-37 in 1978), Ivan Rodriguez (35-25 in 1999) and Alfonso Soriano (36-20, 2005). ... Reliever Pedro Strop became the fifth Rangers player to make his Major League debut in 2009. He is also one of eight rookies on the current 25-man roster. ... The Rangers' signing of Ryan Freel on Friday did not come with the promise of a September callup. Club officials said they have not finalized who will be the September callups. Tickets
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• Monday: Rangers (Derek Holland, 7-8, 4.95) vs. Blue Jays (Brett Cecil, 5-3, 4.96), 7:05 p.m. CT
• Tuesday: Rangers (Dustin Nippert, 4-2, 4.02) vs. Blue Jays (Mark Rzepczynski, 2-3, 3.58), 4:05 p.m. CT
• Tuesday: Rangers (Brandon McCarthy, 5-2, 4.92) vs. Blue Jays (Scott Richmond, 6-7, 4.32), TBD CT
T.R. Sullivan is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
