The Milwaukee Brewers (11-11, 9-5 away) and Minnesota Twins (16-9, 11-3 home) take on each other in the rubber match of a three-game set on Thursday night, August 20th. The teams split the first two games of the series, with the Twins winning 4-3 in extra innings on Tuesday and the Brewers with the bounce-back win on Wednesday, 9-3.
Thursday’s matchup will showcase a pair of 2019 All-Stars on the mound. First pitch is scheduled for 7:10 p.m. EST at Target Field in Minneapolis, Minn. The Twins open as the favorite (-121), according to oddsmakers.
What to Know – Milwaukee Brewers
The Brewers have won four of their last five contests, including a three-game sweep over the Cubs. Milwaukee sits in second place in the National League Central, 4.0 games behind Chicago.
Brandon Woodruff (1-1, 3.16 era, 1.05 whip) takes the mound for the Brewers. The right-hander has had a solid season in five starts. Woodruff has tossed 25.2 innings, allowing nine earned runs with 30 strikeouts.
Offensively, Milwaukee has one of the worst team batting averages in the majors at .214 and statistically ranks in the lower half of the league in all offensive categories. Christian Yelich’s average hovers just over the Mendoza Line at .205, but he is tied for the team-lead in home runs with six and leads the team with 14 RBI. Keston Hiura’s .247 batting average is highest on the team.
What to Know – Minnesota Twins
Minnesota sits atop the American League Central standings with a narrow 0.5 game cushion over the Cleveland Indians. The Twins have gone 3-2 over their last five contests. Aside from a rare sweep by the Royals, Minnesota has won every other series this season.
The Twins go with Jose Berrios (1-3, 5.92 era, 1.64 WHIP) on Thursday. Berrios has had a tough start to the 2020 season, allowing four or more earned runs in three of his five starts. Over 24.1 innings pitched, the right-hander has allowed 16 earned runs with 24 strikeouts.
Minnesota’s offense sits in the upper half of the league in home runs, runs, and runs batted in. Veteran Nelson Cruz leads the Twins in home runs (8), runs batted in (23), hits (30), and batting average (.337). Eddie Rosario (6 home runs, 19 rbi) and Max Kepler (6 home runs, 15 rbi) also has had positive starts to the season offensively.
The Pick Is In
Milwaukee at Minnesota is an entertaining matchup that features a pair of star arms and two efficient offenses. Woodruff and Berrios should be able to contain the opposing offenses during the early innings. Like many of the league games this year, it will come down to which guys come out of the bullpen and how they perform. We give the slight edge to the Twins in this one, with our pick being the Twins -121 moneyline.
