Tim Wakefield Topic Page

Yesterday Philip Humber cleared waivers and was outrighted to the AAA Rochester Red Wings. This means that all 29 other MLB teams had no interest in putting Humber on their active roster. Humber will move into Rochester's starting rotation, which is beneficial for both him and the Twins. The Twins have very few clear options if any of their top 5 go down over the course of the season, so it's possible Humber could see a return as a starter, that is if he can get on track.

Scott Baker will try to bounce back from his rough debut last Wednesday where he surrendered 6 runs in 4 innings against the Toronto Blue Jays. Pitching for the Red Sox will be knuckleballer Tim Wakefield who is coming off a complete game, 2 run effort against Oakland. Wakefield can be somewhat of a coin toss; his success largely depends on how his knuckleball is working. Last season he allowed 5 or more runs in 7 appearances, however still ended the season with a respectable 4.13 ERA. He's had 2 pretty good starts, so hopefully the Twins have found him on one of his down days.

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.

Nobody could've guessed that the Twins would sweep the Red Sox, but they pulled it off Thursday night as they continue to play their best baseball of the season. The sweep was a crushing blow to the Sox who came into the series neck-and-neck with the Yankees. This week has by far been the biggest week of the season for the Twins. They have not only won 4 straight and 6 of their last 7, but they've also ridded themselves of Tony Batista and Juan Castro. Juan Castro was traded Thursday to the Cincinatti Reds for a low-end prospect. Also, young players like Jason Kubel, Joe Mauer and Justin Morneau have shined and Jason Bartlett is now getting his chance.

Boston's pitching pretty much handed the game to the Twins on Wednesday night. Boston issued 10 walks and hit a batter in the game. The Twins had at least one baserunner in every inning but the eighth. The Twins could've actually scored a few more runs in the game. Matt Clement walked the bases loaded in the 3rd and was showing that he had no control. Hunter, for some reason, opted to swing at the first pitch he saw and hit into an inning-ending double play.