Julian Tavarez Topic Page

The Twins gave Julian Tavarez the best start of his season on Saturday night, but still managed to win the low-scoring game 2-1. Johan Santana allowed 1 run, but was forced out after just five innings due to hight pitch count. Matt Guerrier, Jesse Crain, Pat Neshek and Joe Nathan didn't allow a hit in four innings of relief to hold on to the game and give Santana his fourth win of the season.

The Twins failed to score a run against Tim Wakefield and the Boston bullpen of J.C. Romero, Brendan Donnelly and Jonathon Papelbon. The story Friday night wasn't so much about missed opportunities as it was lack of hits. The Twins managed just four hits on the night and additionally had three batters reach on walks.

The Twins have had an up-and-down past couple of weeks. They struggled against KC and Cleveland before looking pretty good last weekend against Detroit. They went on to lose the final two games of the series against Tampa Bay. The toughest stretch of their schedule so far begins this weekend against the Red Sox. Boston comes to the dome with the best record in the AL at 18-9.