- Day-To-DayMaikel Garcia (3B) — Garcia (hamstring) remains out of the lineup for Thursday's contest versus the Twins.06/04
- Day-To-DayAnthony Simonelli (SP) — no05/08
- Day-To-DayJavier Vaz (2B) — Vaz (fingers) has produced a .238/.304/.262 slash line with zero home runs and three stolen bases in 10 games since being activated from Double-A Northwest Arkansas' 7-day injured list April 22.05/08
- Day-To-DayTyson Guerrero (RP) — no05/08
- bereavementStephen Kolek (SP) — Kolek took a no-decision Wednesday against the Reds, allowing two runs on six hits and two walks in seven innings. He struck out eight.06/04
- 15-Day-ILCole Ragans (SP) — Ragans (elbow) resumed playing catch Monday, MLB.com reports.06/02
- 15-Day-ILNick Mears (RP) — Mears (2-3) was tagged with the loss in relief Friday against the Mariners after allowing two runs on one hit and one walk over one inning.05/29
- 15-Day-ILKris Bubic (SP) — Bubic (elbow) is still dealing with general left arm fatigue, MLB.com reports.05/28
- 15-Day-ILCarlos Estevez (RP) — Estevez (shoulder) began playing catch Wednesday, MLB.com reports.05/28
- 60-Day-ILJonathan India (2B) — no06/04
- 60-Day-ILJames McArthur (RP) — McArthur (elbow) underwent surgery Friday to help combat continued soreness and inflammation, MLB.com reports.05/25
- 60-Day-ILAlec Marsh (SP) — The Royals placed Marsh (shoulder) on the 60-day injured list Thursday.05/08
- Day-To-DayWalker Jenkins (CF) — Twins manager Jeremy Zoll said Saturday that Jenkins (shoulder) is "reporting improvements daily" and could begin light baseball activity in about a week, Bobby Nightengale of The Minnesota Star Tribune reports.05/18
- Day-To-DayJulian Merryweather (RP) — Merryweather (hamstring) will begin a rehab assignment with the Twins' rookie-level Florida Complex League affiliate Tuesday, Theodore Tollefson of ZoneCoverage.com reports.05/08
- Day-To-DayMatt Canterino (SP) — Canterino (shoulder) will be with the Twins in big-league spring training but isn't expected to pitch during camp as he continues to recover from shoulder surgery, Aaron Gleeman of The Athletic reports.05/08
- 10-Day-ILRyan Jeffers (C) — Jeffers had the cast and stitches removed from his surgically repaired left hand and has resumed throwing, Matthew Leach of MLB.com reports.06/03
- 15-Day-ILMick Abel (SP) — Abel (elbow/triceps) is expected to throw live batting practice Thursday and could soon start up a rehab assignment, MLB.com reports.06/03
- 15-Day-ILKendry Rojas (RP) — Rojas (elbow) could begin throwing as soon as Tuesday or Wednesday, reports Dan Hayes of The Athletic.06/01
- 15-Day-ILBailey Ober (SP) — Ober has a mild flexor strain and will be shut down for 10-14 days, reports Dan Hayes of The Athletic06/01
- 15-Day-ILCole Sands (RP) — Twins manager Derek Shelton said Monday that Sands (forearm) will begin a rehab assignment with Triple-A St. Paul on Tuesday, Theodore Tollefson of Zone Coverage reports.06/01
- 60-Day-ILGarrett Acton (RP) — no05/19
- 60-Day-ILDavid Festa (SP) — Twins general manager Jeremy Zoll said Saturday that Festa is unlikely to return before the All-Star break after experiencing a setback in his recovery from a right shoulder impingement earlier this month, Bobby Nightengale of The Minnesota Star Tribune reports.05/18
- 60-Day-ILPablo Lopez (SP) — The Twins placed Lopez (elbow) on the 60-day injured list Thursday.05/08
Kansas City has its own pitching headaches — Cole Ragans and Kris Bubic are both on the 15-day with elbow stuff, and Stephen Kolek is away on bereavement after his last solid outing. But the lineup is rolling. Four wins in their last five, including last night's 8-6 punch-out in this same building, with Josh Rojas dropping a 2-run pinch-hit single in his Royals debut. Maikel Garcia (hamstring) remains day-to-day and is still out.
Minnesota's bats haven't been the problem in the macro — Byron Buxton sitting on 16 homers, Josh Bell leading the club with 30 RBI — but the team has dropped 3 of 5 and just gave up 8 to a Royals team that averages 3.9 runs a night. When the rotation behind Joe Ryan looks like this, every Wacha-vs-Matthews script tilts toward the visitor.
Pinnacle has the Twins at -113 with a total of 7.5, which is basically a coin flip with a slight lean home. Given how thin Minnesota's pitching depth looks and how Wacha has historically handled this lineup, the Royals number (+102) is the more interesting one on the board. The under has juice for a reason — Wacha doesn't give up much when he's on, and Matthews is one good outing away from looking like a real big-league starter again.