Toronto Blue Jays (66-70, fifth in the AL East) vs. Minnesota Twins (72-61, third in the AL Central)
Minneapolis; Friday, 8:10 p.m. EDT
PITCHING PROBABLES: Blue Jays: Kevin Gausman (12-9, 4.10 ERA, 1.22 WHIP, 141 strikeouts); Twins: Pablo Lopez (12-8, 4.26 ERA, 1.14 WHIP, 161 strikeouts)
BETMGM SPORTSBOOK: LINE Twins -155, Blue Jays +131; over/under is 8 runs
BOTTOM LINE: The Minnesota Twins host the Toronto Blue Jays on Friday to open a three-game series.
Minnesota is 37-29 at home and 72-61 overall. The Twins have hit 162 total home runs to rank ninth in MLB play.
Toronto has a 32-37 record in road games and a 66-70 record overall. The Blue Jays have a 53-9 record in games when they scored at least five runs.
The teams meet Friday for the fourth time this season.
TOP PERFORMERS: Willi Castro leads the Twins with a .255 batting average, and has 29 doubles, five triples, 11 home runs, 44 walks and 51 RBI. Trevor Larnach is 13-for-35 with three home runs and 10 RBI over the past 10 games.
Vladimir Guerrero Jr. has 38 doubles, a triple and 27 home runs while hitting .324 for the Blue Jays. George Springer is 7-for-38 with five home runs over the past 10 games.
LAST 10 GAMES: Twins: 2-8, .266 batting average, 4.75 ERA, outscored by eight runs
Blue Jays: 7-3, .236 batting average, 3.17 ERA, outscored opponents by 10 runs
INJURIES: Twins: Joe Ryan: 60-Day IL (tricep), Byron Buxton: 10-Day IL (hip), Brooks Lee: 10-Day IL (biceps), Brock Stewart: 60-Day IL (shoulder), Alex Kirilloff: 60-Day IL (back), Kody Funderburk: 15-Day IL (oblique), Carlos Correa: 10-Day IL (foot), Chris Paddack: 15-Day IL (forearm), Justin Topa: 60-Day IL (knee), Daniel Duarte: 60-Day IL (tricep), Anthony DeSclafani: 60-Day IL (elbow)
Blue Jays: Alek Manoah: 60-Day IL (elbow), Jordan Romano: 60-Day IL (elbow), Bo Bichette: 10-Day IL (calf)
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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.
