It's time for the annual border battle between the Minnesota Twins and Milwaukee Brewers, who begin a stretch of four games starting Monday with a two-game series at Miller Park in Milwaukee. The two teams will then head west across the border for two more games at Target Field in Minneapolis.
It was a similar scenario last year when the Twins and Brewers played a home-and-home series last May. Minnesota swept the season series against Milwaukee last year. The Brewers enter this year's matchup with the third-most wins in baseball, while the Twins are hoping to get back to .500.
FOX Sports North's Twins writer Tyler Mason and FOX Sports Wisconsin's Brewers writer Andrew Gruman cover these teams and offer their take on the game in a five-question point-counterpoint.
1. Who is your team's MVP this season?
GRUMAN: Carlos Gomez. While the Brewers have had many players contribute to their 34-23 record, Gomez has been one of the best players in baseball. The center fielder is hitting .313 with 11 home runs, 15 doubles, two triples and 31 RBI and has stolen 11 bases. Gomez is also becoming much more patient at the plate and has already drawn 19 walks. He was successful hitting leadoff and has continued to thrive after being moved to the cleanup spot. Aside from his big offensive numbers, Gomez continues to play center field as well or better than anyone in baseball. He'll likely be amped up to face his former team this week.
MASON: Brian Dozier emerged as the team's everyday second baseman last year after transitioning from shortstop. His 18 home runs in 2013 were tops on the team and the most in team history for a second baseman. Already through 54 games, Dozier has a team-high 11 homers, and his 27 RBI are fourth on the team. Dozier has not only solidified the Twins' leadoff spot in the lineup, but he has yet to miss a game -- he's the team's the only position player who has played in all 54 games this year. On top of what he's done offensively at the top of Minnesota's lineup, Dozier has turned in a handful of highlight reel plays at second base as he's transformed himself into the Twins' second baseman of the future.
2. Why should the Brewers scare the Twins?
GRUMAN: Milwaukee comes into the series with the third-best record in baseball, and the Brewers seem to be hitting their offensive groove. The starting pitching carried the Brewers through a 20-8 April and certainly wasn't bad in May, but the bats are averaging 6.2 runs over the last 11 games. The offense will receive a nice boost when Aramis Ramirez likely returns to the lineup Wednesday in Minnesota. Milwaukee has also taken care of business against the American League this season, going 7-2 and winning series from the Yankees, Red Sox and Orioles.Why should the Twins scare the Brewers?
MASON: Minnesota's offense was clicking in April but started to cool off in May. However, over the last week or so, the Twins saw the returns of outfielders Josh Willingham and Oswaldo Arcia to the lineup. Both sluggers missed significant time this season with injuries, and Arcia also spent time in Triple-A Rochester after he was reinstated from the disabled list. In the seven games since his return, Arcia is batting .367 (11-for-30) with two home runs and four RBI. Willingham has been equally impressive in his returning, hitting three home runs with six RBI in his seven games since returning. With those two bats back in the heart of the batting order, Minnesota's offense looks more formidable than it did two weeks ago. Willingham has hit well at Miller Park during his career, too: .308 with six homers and 17 RBI in 21 games at the Brewers' home stadium.
3. What weakness of the Brewers could the Twins expose?
GRUMAN: The Brewers don't have any glaring weaknesses, as they are in the top half of baseball in runs scored, team ERA and fewest errors committed. That makes it hard to point to one thing the Twins can expose. Matt Garza goes against his former team Monday, and the right-hander has yet to get on track for the Brewers. He's pitched well in outings of late but has been hurt by a couple of bad innings. Minnesota will then see Yovani Gallardo and Marco Estrada on Tuesday and Wednesday, two pitchers who haven't been bad but also haven't been sharp.What weakness of the Twins could the Brewers expose?
MASON: Minnesota's starting rotation was the worst in all of baseball last year in terms of ERA, and things haven't improved much through two months of the 2014 season. The Twins' starters have a collective ERA of 4.86, second-worst in the majors. While Minnesota's rotation hasn't served up many home runs -- 30 in 54 games -- the Brewers' offense has been one of the highest-scoring in baseball. The 240 runs Milwaukee has scored are 11th in baseball, while its .414 slugging percentage is the eighth-best in the majors. If the Brewers jump on Minnesota's starting pitching early, it could spell trouble for the Twins.
4. Is Milwaukee coming into the four-game set hot, cold or treading water?
GRUMAN: The Brewers have won six of their last nine games since hitting a bit of a lull in mid-May. While they aren't as hot as they were in April, the Brewers are playing good baseball and are starting to click up and down the lineup offensively. Ever since manager Ron Roenicke mixed up the lineup, the top five have been all hitting well.
Is Minnesota coming into the four-game set hot, cold or treading water?
MASON: At this point, the Twins continue to tread water as they're attempting to get back to the .500 mark. Minnesota has stayed right around .500 all season, never falling more than three games below it or climbing more than two games above that mark. The Twins have had a few four-game losing streaks, but unlike last year, they've avoided a skid longer than that. On the flip side, though, Minnesota hasn't put together anything more than a three-game winning streak. After winning two of three against the Yankees in New York, Minnesota does enter this week's four-game series with a bit of momentum.
5. Compare the pitching matchups
GRUMAN: Garza has thrown the ball better than his numbers show, as the right-hander has pitched well in stretches lately. He went through a period of a couple of starts in which he gave up runs early and then settled in. Lately, Garza has been marred by a big inning late. It feels like it is only a matter of time before he puts a complete effort together. The Brewers have never faced Gibson, as Lyle Overbay is the only one on the roster with at-bats against the 26-year-old (1-for-3). Gibson has alternated his good starts with a bad one in May, and the Brewers are hoping the trend continues.
Gallardo has had a lot of success against the Twins in his career, posting a 2.63 ERA in six career starts against Minnesota. The right-hander had a very good April but struggled a bit in May. He bounced back from a sprained ankle suffered in Atlanta on May 20 to allow three earned runs in 6 2/3 innings against Baltimore in his last start. The Brewers were shut down by Deduno at Miller Park last May, as they managed just one run in seven innings in the only time they've faced the right-hander.
Like Gallardo, May wasn't too kind to Estrada. His ERA has jumped from 2.87 to 4.03 over his six starts, as allowing home runs has hurt Estrada. He's allowed 17 long balls this season, by far the most in the major leagues. 21 of the 30 earned runs given up by Estrada have come via the home run, meaning he'll usually pitch well if he keeps the ball in the yard. Estrada has a 6.11 ERA in five career outings against Minnesota, including allowing four earned runs over seven innings in a start last season. Milwaukee has had great success against Nolasco over his time with the Marlins and Dodgers. The Brewers have scored 32 earned runs in 38 innings (7.58 ERA) against the veteran, as Ryan Braun, Carlos Gomez, Jonathan Lucroy and Rickie Weeks are a combined 16-of-35 against Nolasco in their careers.
A couple of two-run home runs sent Peralta to his worst start of the season Saturday, but the young right-hander has been one of the best pitchers in the National League early on. He's allowed more than two earned runs in a start just twice this season but hasn't had a lot of run support. Peralta allowed three earned runs in five innings in a start against the Twins last season, but he's a much better pitcher in his second full season than he was at that time. The Brewers have seen plenty of Correia in his career, as he has 82 2/3 career innings against Milwaukee. Correia has a 4.57 career ERA against the Brewers, as a good portion of the current lineup has plenty of experience facing the veteran.
MASON: The series opener Monday pits an inexperienced Kyle Gibson against a former Twin and nine-year big league veteran Matt Garza. This will be Gibson's 21st career major league start, while Garza will be starting his 203rd career game. Garza spent his first two seasons with Minnesota in 2006 and 2007 and then bounced around the league with several other teams before landing in Milwaukee. Despite the discrepancy in experience, Gibson appears to have the edge in this matchup. He's pitched relatively well this season, as he enters with a 4-4 record and 4.18 ERA. However, Gibson has failed to put together back-to-back quality starts since mid-April. He pitched six scoreless innings in his last start and will look to follow that up with another strong outing.
Tuesday's matchup could go either way, as Minnesota's Samuel Deduno and Milwaukee's Yovani Gallardo face off at Miller Park. It's just Deduno's sixth start of the season after beginning the year in the bullpen. In his five starts, Deduno is 1-2 with a 4.50 ERA, striking out 17 batters and walking nine in 28 innings. Given his wildly effective nature, Deduno continues to remain a bit of a mystery every time he takes the mound. Gallardo has been better at home (2-1, 3.11 ERA) than he's been on the road this year (1-2, 4.18 ERA).
Minnesota's starters will have a more veteran presence for the Twins' two games against Milwaukee at Target Field. Ricky Nolasco (3-5, 5.70 ERA) spent eight years in the National League and has plenty of experience against the Brewers -- although he hasn't fared well against them. Nolasco is 2-3 with a 7.58 ERA in eight career starts against Milwaukee. He'll face off against Marco Estrada, who enters with a 5-2 record and 4.03 ERA.
Meanwhile, Kevin Correia pitches in the series finale on Thursday for Minnesota. He's been better over his last three starts, lowering his ERA from 6.80 to 5.87 during that stretch. Correia has faced the Brewers 21 times (12 starts) in his career, the fifth-most appearances against any team. He's 5-6 with a 4.57 ERA lifetime against Milwaukee.
6. Give an "edge" at each position
First base: Mark Reynolds/Lyle Overbay vs. Joe Mauer
Second base: Scooter Gennett/Rickie Weeks vs. Brian Dozier
Shortstop: Jean Segura vs. Eduardo Escobar
Third base: Mark Reynolds/Aramis Ramirez vs. Trevor Plouffe
Catcher: Jonathan Lucroy vs. Kurt Suzuki
Left field: Khris Davis vs. Josh Willingham/Jason Kubel
Center field: Carlos Gomez vs. Aaron Hicks
Right field: Ryan Braun vs. Oswaldo Arcia
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