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Cleveland Guardians at Minnesota Twins

3:10 PM CT74°Minneapolis, MN
By JR·2 min read
Cleveland GuardiansCLE
Minnesota TwinsMIN
AT
3:10 PM CT
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One of these teams is still fighting for October. The other is just trying to be a problem for somebody on the way out the door.

SAT SEP 12, 3:10 PM
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Guardians
Twins
1st pitch74°
Guardians
  • Gavin Williams pitching like a Cy Young contender
  • Alive for a wild card spot in September
  • Took 2 of 5 vs. Detroit and Baltimore recently
  • DeLauter (wrist) day-to-day, already missing games
  • Holderman lost to 15-day IL, bullpen thinner
  • Hoskins still hasn't resumed baseball activity
Twins
  • Won last time out before this series
  • Nothing to lose, can play loose as a spoiler
  • Showed pop with a 10-run outburst on White Sox
  • Four rotation arms lost for the season
  • No named starter for Saturday yet
  • Buxton and Martin both out, lineup shorthanded

Gavin Williams (13-7, 3.78 ERA) gets the ball for the Guardians on Saturday at Target Field, and the Twins still haven't named a starter. Williams has turned into one of the best arms in the American League down the stretch, punching out 13 in a start against Toronto and cracking 200 strikeouts on the season before September even started.

Cleveland's lineup isn't fully healthy behind him. Rookie outfielder Chase DeLauter is day-to-day with a sore right wrist that knocked him out of the lineup in Baltimore, and reliever Colin Holderman just went on the 15-day IL with wrist inflammation of his own. Minnesota's issues run deeper — the Twins have lost four different pitchers for the season, including Pablo Lopez and David Festa, and are still waiting on Rhys Hoskins-caliber production from a lineup missing Byron Buxton and Austin Martin.

Both clubs still have a game to play before this one even starts. Cleveland is at Baltimore Wednesday, Minnesota hosts Detroit, and then the two meet again Friday in the middle game of this set — the outcome of which will shape exactly who's playing Saturday and how tired the bullpens are by the time first pitch rolls around at 3:10 PM CT.

Cleveland Guardians
Minnesota Twins

The gap between these two teams isn't about talent on a given night — it's about what's at stake. Cleveland is fighting for a wild card spot in the season's final stretch, which means every start from Williams and every healthy bat matters. Minnesota is playing out a season that's already gotten away from it, with a rotation gutted by injury and nothing but pride and roster evaluation left to play for. That kind of mismatch in motivation has burned plenty of favorites in September.

Cleveland Guardians
(0)
Fully healthy — no injuries to report
Minnesota Twins
(0)
Fully healthy — no injuries to report

None of that makes Minnesota an easy out. Spoiler teams with nothing to lose have a way of playing loose, and a Twins club that's already shown it can hang 10 runs on someone (see: the White Sox) isn't dead just because the standings say so. Cleveland just can't afford to treat this like a formality.

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