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MINNEAPOLIS (AP) –The Minnesota Twins broke out of a season-long offensive slump in a 10-3 victory over the Cleveland Indians on Saturday.

Justin Morneau had a big two-run single at Target Field and the Twins scored more than five runs in a game for the first time this season. 

Morneau was back in the Minnesota Twins’ lineup after missing the previous five games with a nasty bout of the flu. Before last night, Morneau hadn’t played since April 16th and was probably scratched before Friday night’s rain out. He missed the last three months of the 2010 season with a concussion.

Delmon Young has also been fighting the flu and a rib injury. Young was scratched for the fourth straight game Saturday. The Twins were hoping to have Young back for their series finale against Cleveland on Sunday.

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As of last Friday, there was a pretty clear separation atop the AL Central with the Indians and the Kansas City Royals riding high and every other team in the early-season dust.

Now all that has changed, the Detroit Tigers have vaulted into a tie for second with the Royals, and the Minnesota Twins — who at one time trailed by seven games — have climbed to within four games of first-place Cleveland.

Welcome to this edition of the MLB Standings Update.

 

American League Central -

Cleveland Indians  13-8  .619  0 Games Behind — The Indians lost an abbreviated two-game set in Minnesota over the weekend yet still lead the Central by a game and-a-half after the Royals dropped three straight in Texas. The Tribe now welcomes Kansas City for a three-game set in Cleveland beginning Tuesday.

Detroit Tigers  12-10  .545  1.5 Games Behind — The Tigers swept three games from the White Sox over the weekend and vaulted into a tie with Kansas City. Before a series next weekend in Cleveland, Detroit will entertain Seattle for three games in a series beginning tomorrow night in Detroit.

Kansas City Royals  12-10  .545  1.5 Games Behind — The Royals came from far behind to make a game of it yesterday in Texas, but the Rangers hung on to sweep the three-game set and drop Kansas City into a tie with Detroit. The Royals now go to Cleveland for three games starting Tuesday night, in a rematch of the four-game set that was split in Kansas City last week.

Minnesota Twins  9-12  .429  4 Games Behind — The Twins, after Friday’s game was rained out, beat the Indians both Saturday and Sunday to creep closer in the Central. Minnesota now takes on Tampa Bay for three games at home starting Tuesday.

Chicago White Sox  8-14  .364  5.5 Games Behind — The White Sox have landed in the cellar hard, losing their last three games to the Tigers and watching the Twins sail right past. Chicago’s reward? A four-game series in the Bronx against the Yankees, beginning tonight.

 

American League East -

New York Yankees  12-6  .667  0 Games Behind — The Yankees opened up some separation over the weekend, winning twice in Baltimore in a rain-shortened series. New York now entertains the White Sox in four straight starting tonight in New York.

Tampa Bay Rays  11-11  .500  3 Games Behind — The Rays have come back from their dreadful start, and after winning two of three in Toronto over the weekend, now move on to Minnesota for three games with the Twins in a series that will start on Tuesday.

Boston Red Sox  10-11  .476  3.5 Games Behind — Boston has rebounded from a 2-10 start, and in a most-impressive fashion. The Sox won four straight from the Angels in Anaheim over the weekend to get within a game of .500, and will now travel to Baltimore for three with the Orioles.

Toronto Blue Jays  9-12  .429  4.5 Games Behind — After losing the last two games of a three-game series with the Rays at home, Toronto now gets the unenviable task of going to Texas to play four straight against the West-leading Rangers.

Baltimore Orioles  8-12  .400  5 Games Behind — The Orioles have finished their plunge to the bottom of the AL East after beginning the season 6-1. Losing two to the Yankees over the weekend gives Baltimore 11 losses in their last 13 games. Baltimore has a day off today, before welcoming the red-hot Red Sox for three starting tomorrow.

 

American League West -

Texas Rangers  14-7  .667  0 Games Behind — Although having the same winning percentage as New York, the Rangers lead the Yankees by a half-game for the best mark in the AL after sweeping three from the Royals at home. Texas will remain in the friendly confines for a four-game series against Toronto, beginning tonight.

Los Angeles Angels  12-10  .545  2.5 Games Behind — The Angels were riding high atop the AL West preparatory to a four-game home set with the (at the time) struggling Red Sox. It looked good for Los Angeles — until they lost all four games to Boston. The Angels will try to regroup in a three-game series against Oakland, beginning tonight in Anaheim.

Oakland Athletics  11-11  .500  3.5 Games Behind — The Athletics just finished a four-game split in Seattle wherein they lost the first two games to the Mariners before bouncing back and winning on Saturday and Sunday. Oakland now travels to visit the Angels for three games starting tonight.

Seattle Mariners  8-15  .348  7 Games Behind — Owners of the worst record in the major leagues, the Mariners lost the last two games of four with Oakland over the weekend to split that series. Seattle now goes on the road to take on red-hot Detroit for three games, beginning on Tuesday night.

 

In the National League East, the Philadelphia Phillies have now claimed the best mark in the majors with a record of 15-6 after winning five in a row. Philadelphia leads the Florida Marlins by a game and-a-half, the Washington Nationals by 4.5, the Atlanta Braves by five full games and the New York Mets by six and-a-half.

In the NL Central the St.Louis Cardinals poked their beaks into first place yesterday, with a record of 12-10. The Milwaukee Brewers sit in second, a half-game back, with the Cincinnati Reds a full game behind and the Cubs 1.5 games back and in fourth place. The Pittsburgh Pirates are next, two and-a-half games behind, and the Houston Astros bring up the rear in the only six-team division in the majors, four games behind the Cardinals.

In the National League West, the Colorado Rockies are still on top at 14-7, and have a three-game lead over the Los Angeles Dodgers. The defending World Series’ champion San Francisco Giants are third in the West, four games out, while the Arizona Diamondbacks trail the Rockies by 5.5 games, and the San Diego Padres find themselves last, six and-a-half games behind.

 

And there you have it as we proceed through the last week of April. Be sure to check back on Friday, when the next edition of the standings will be found right here.

April 24, 2011

By JON KRAWCZYNSKI, AP Baseball Writer

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) – Ever so gradually, the Minnesota Twins are finally starting to show signs of the team that was expected to contend for a third straight division title.

Jason Kubel had a two-run double in the seventh inning that lifted the Twins to a 4-3 victory over the Cleveland Indians on Sunday, Minnesota’s third straight win after a putrid start.

Carl Pavano (2-2) gave up three runs on six hits in seven innings and Justin Morneau added two hits and two RBIs for the Twins, who took both games of the rain-shortened series to win their first series of the season.

Joe Mauer (leg weakness), Tsuyoshi Nishioka (broken leg) and Delmon Young (ribs) are still out with injuries, but the Twins have won five of their last seven games after a 4-10 start.

“We needed some wins, absolutely,” manager Ron Gardenhire said. “You still try to stay on an even keel as much as you possibly can, figure out what’s right and wrong and try to work your way through it.”

Right fielder Shin-Soo Choo kept the Indians in it by throwing two Twins out at the plate in the third inning. Michael Brantley hit what appeared to be a three-run homer in the fourth, but it was overturned on review and he was given a two-run double.

Rafael Perez (2-1) took the loss after giving up an unearned run on the double by Kubel and Matt Capps picked up his fourth save in five tries for the Twins.

Indians starter Carlos Carrasco left after three innings with tightness in his right elbow. He will be re-evaluated when the team gets to Cleveland.

Kubel, Jim Thome and Alexi Casilla each had two hits for the Twins, who are finally starting to swing the bats after struggling mightily at the plate for most of the season. They scored 10 runs on Saturday to beat Cleveland, then pounded out 10 more hits Sunday for the mini-sweep.

“These guys have been playing really well,” Kubel said of the first-place Indians. “It’s not a big series if you look in the long run, but it’s a big series for now and we got that first one out of the way. Hopefully we can just keep rolling.”

They trailed 3-2 in the seventh inning when Orlando Cabrera committed a costly error at second base, giving the Twins runners at first and second with nobody out. The lefty Kubel drove a changeup from the lefty Perez high off the wall in right-center field for a 4-3 lead.

Grady Sizemore doubled in the ninth to put the tying run on second base, but Asdrubal Cabrera flew out to the warning track in left field to end the game.

The Indians stayed in it thanks to Choo’s cannon left arm in the third inning. With one out and runners on first and second, Kubel came through with a hard-hit single to right field. Casilla ran right through third-base coach Steve Liddle’s stop sign and Choo, who led the league in outfield assists last year, threw him out by 5 feet.

Morneau followed with a two-run double, and Carrasco was again on his heels. Michael Cuddyer then delivered a soft single to shallow right and Liddle first waved Morneau home before putting up a stop sign when Morneau was halfway down the line. Choo’s throw easily beat Morneau to the plate to end the inning.

“If he wins a Gold Glove, we’ll probably have Steve hand it out,” Gardenhire quipped.

The Indians came back with three runs in the top of the fourth. But Brantley was called back out of the dugout when umpires ruled that his hit bounced off the corner of the limestone facade in right field and caromed back into the ballpark. If it had hit the top of the wall, it would have been ruled a home run.

“They made the right call,” Brantley said. “I watched the replay two innings later and it definitely wasn’t a homerun, it hit the corner of the wall and came back. It was unlucky for us, but that’s the way the game goes.”

Pavano got Jack Hannahan to pop out to center field and struck out Sizemore to strand Brantley at second base and escape trailing by just one run, 3-2.

“Saved us a run and we got a win, so that’s even better,” Pavano said.

(Copyright 2011 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

MINNEAPOLIS – Ever so gradually, the Minnesota Twins are finally starting to show signs of the team that was expected to contend for a third straight division title.

Jason Kubel had a two-run double in the seventh inning that lifted the Twins to a 4-3 victory over the Cleveland Indians on Sunday, Minnesota’s third straight win after a putrid start.

Carl Pavano (2-2) gave up three runs on six hits in seven innings and Justin Morneau added two hits and two RBIs for the Twins, who took both games of the rain-shortened series to win their first series of the season.

Joe Mauer (leg weakness), Tsuyoshi Nishioka (broken leg) and Delmon Young (ribs) are still out with injuries, but the Twins have won five of their last seven games after a 4-10 start.

“We needed some wins, absolutely,” manager Ron Gardenhire said. “You still try to stay on an even keel as much as you possibly can, figure out what’s right and wrong and try to work your way through it.”

Right fielder Shin-Soo Choo kept the Indians in it by throwing two Twins out at the plate in the third inning. Michael Brantley hit what appeared to be a three-run homer in the fourth, but it was overturned on review and he was given a two-run double.

Rafael Perez (2-1) took the loss after giving up an unearned run on the double by Kubel and Matt Capps picked up his fourth save in five tries for the Twins.

Indians starter Carlos Carrasco left after three innings with tightness in his right elbow. He will be re-evaluated when the team gets to Cleveland.

Kubel, Jim Thome and Alexi Casilla each had two hits for the Twins, who are finally starting to swing the bats after struggling mightily at the plate for most of the season. They scored 10 runs on Saturday to beat Cleveland, then pounded out 10 more hits Sunday for the mini-sweep.

“These guys have been playing really well,” Kubel said of the first-place Indians. “It’s not a big series if you look in the long run, but it’s a big series for now and we got that first one out of the way. Hopefully we can just keep rolling.”

They trailed 3-2 in the seventh inning when Orlando Cabrera committed a costly error at second base, giving the Twins runners at first and second with nobody out. The lefty Kubel drove a changeup from the lefty Perez high off the wall in right-center field for a 4-3 lead.

Grady Sizemore doubled in the ninth to put the tying run on second base, but Asdrubal Cabrera flew out to the warning track in left field to end the game.

The Indians stayed in it thanks to Choo’s cannon left arm in the third inning. With one out and runners on first and second, Kubel came through with a hard-hit single to right field. Casilla ran right through third-base coach Steve Liddle’s stop sign and Choo, who led the league in outfield assists last year, threw him out by 5 feet.

Morneau followed with a two-run double, and Carrasco was again on his heels. Michael Cuddyer then delivered a soft single to shallow right and Liddle first waved Morneau home before putting up a stop sign when Morneau was halfway down the line. Choo’s throw easily beat Morneau to the plate to end the inning.

“If he wins a Gold Glove, we’ll probably have Steve hand it out,” Gardenhire quipped.

The Indians came back with three runs in the top of the fourth. But Brantley was called back out of the dugout when umpires ruled that his hit bounced off the corner of the limestone facade in right field and caromed back into the ballpark. If it had hit the top of the wall, it would have been ruled a home run.

“They made the right call,” Brantley said. “I watched the replay two innings later and it definitely wasn’t a homerun, it hit the corner of the wall and came back. It was unlucky for us, but that’s the way the game goes.”

Pavano got Jack Hannahan to pop out to center field and struck out Sizemore to strand Brantley at second base and escape trailing by just one run, 3-2.

“Saved us a run and we got a win, so that’s even better,” Pavano said.

Notes: The Indians now head home, where they have won seven in a row for the first time since 2007. They’re off Monday and open a series against Kansas City on Tuesday. … Twins LF Delmon Young missed his fifth straight game with a rib injury. Manager Ron Gardenhire says he is hoping Young will be ready for the series opener against Tampa Bay on Tuesday after a day off on Monday.