Minnesota faces Washington, aims to build on Berrios' strong showing
Washington Nationals (79-64, second in the NL East) vs. Minnesota Twins (89-55, first in the NL Central)
Minneapolis; Wednesday, 7 p.m. EDT
PITCHING PROBABLES: Nationals: Stephen Strasburg (16-6, 3.50 ERA) Twins: Martin Perez (10-6, 4.75 ERA)
LINE: Nationals -138; over/under is 10 runs
BOTTOM LINE: Minnesota heads into the matchup after a strong showing by Jose Berrios. Berrios threw seven innings, surrendering zero runs on two hits with four strikeouts against Washington.
The Twins are 41-31 in home games. Minnesota has hit a league-leading 276 home runs this season, Max Kepler leads the team with 36 homers.
The Nationals have gone 38-35 away from home. Washington's team on-base percentage of .336 leads the National League. Anthony Rendon leads the team with an OBP of .409. The Twins won the last meeting 5-0. Jose Berrios earned his 12th victory and Mitch Garver went 1-for-3 with a home run and two RBIs for Minnesota. Anibal Sanchez took his eighth loss for Washington.
TOP PERFORMERS: Kepler leads the Twins with 67 extra base hits and is batting .252. Garver is 7-for-18 with six home runs and nine RBIs over the last 10 games for Minnesota.
Juan Soto leads the Nationals with 33 home runs and is batting .295. Asdrubal Cabrera is 9-for-23 with two doubles, two home runs and eight RBIs over the last 10 games for Washington.
LAST 10 GAMES: Twins: 6-4, .237 batting average, 4.10 ERA, outscored opponents by one run
Nationals: 4-6, .251 batting average, 4.71 ERA, outscored opponents by two runs
Twins Injuries: Sean Poppen: (elbow), Sam Dyson: (biceps), Max Kepler: (chest), Marwin Gonzalez: (abdominal), Jake Cave: (groin), Byron Buxton: (shoulder), Miguel Sano: (back).
Nationals Injuries: Austen Williams: (shoulder), Jonny Venters: (shoulder), Koda Glover: (forearm), Roenis Elias: (hamstring), Adrian Sanchez: (illness), Kurt Suzuki: (elbow), Spencer Kieboom: (elbow).
