Few people were expecting the 26-54 Minnesota Twins to put up much of a fight heading into the second game of a three-game series against the AL West-leading Texas Rangers back on July 2.
A whopping 13 hits later the Twins had picked up their largest win of the season, blasting the Rangers 17-5.
And while the Twins aren't racking up 17 runs on a nightly basis, the win was a sign of things to come.
The Twins are 20-12 since that win, trailing only the Toronto Blue Jays for the league's best record over that span.
Best record since July 2, MLB
| Team | Record | Winning % |
| Toronto Blue Jays | 20-10 | .667 |
| Minnesota Twins | 20-12 | .625 |
| Detroit Tigers | 19-12 | .613 |
| Los Angeles Dodgers | 17-12 | .586 |
| Chicago Cubs | 18-13 | .581 |
Their record has coincided with the resurgence of a pair of Twins veterans, as first baseman Joe Mauer and second baseman Brian Dozier have emerged from the All-Star break as crucial pieces of Minnesota's offense, each seeing a big improvement at the plate over their last 23 games.
Most improved BA post All-Star break
*American League, minimum 3.1 PA per team game
| Player | Team | Pre-ASB | Post-ASB | Improvement |
| Miguel Cabrera | Detroit Tigers | .293 | .375 | +.082 |
| Brad Miller | Tampa Bay Rays | .241 | .320 | +.079 |
| Brian Dozier | Minnesota Twins | .246 | .323 | +.077 |
| Jose Altuve | Houston Astros | .341 | .414 | +.073 |
| Joe Mauer | Minnesota Twins | .271 | .319 | +.048 |
Mauer and Dozier will look to continue Minnesota's history of success against the Houston Astros.
The Twins have 23 wins in 41 meetings with the Astros all-time, and have an extra-base hit in all of them, a run that dates back to 1997.
Most consecutive games with XBH vs. Astros
| Team | Games | Start Date |
| Philadelphia Phillies | 42 | 4/14/07 |
| Minnesota Twins | 41 | 6/13/97 |
| Chicago Cubs | 39 | 9/6/10 |
| Cincinnati Reds | 37 | 9/30/10 |
Statistics courtesy of STATS LLC
