MINNESOTA TWINS TICKETS

Twins answer with five-spot of own
The Twins tagged the Indians' bullpen for five runs in the sixth inning, earning a 9-6 victory over Cleveland on Saturday night at the Metrodome.

Twins will search for better luck vs. Lee
The 2008 season has been mostly disappointment for the Indians, who have watched their postseason aspirations disappear before the first half has ended. But while the Indians have struggled, the Twins will face one of Cleveland's lone bright spots this season when left-hander Cliff Lee takes the mound in Sunday's series finale at the Metrodome.

Add third base to positions for Harris
Twins infielder Brendan Harris has already spent time at second base and shortstop this season, and on Saturday, he added third base to that growing list of positions played.

Punto, Young help Twins rout Tribe
Livan Hernandez got a second crack at Cleveland on Friday night, and this time, he put together a much better performance. The Twins right-hander gave up just three runs on five hits over six innings in the club's 12-3 victory over the Indians at the Metrodome.

At-bats even harder to find for Lamb
Mike Lamb signed with the Twins this offseason for the chance to be the club's everyday third baseman. But now, Lamb has been officially relegated to bench duty. Manager Ron Gardenhire has spoken with Lamb recently about his decreasing role. And he did so again Friday, making clear to the infielder his current situation.

Casilla day-to-day with finger issue
Twins second baseman Alexi Casilla was scratched from the Twins' lineup Friday with soreness in his left middle finger.

Veteran honored to throw out first pitch
On Friday night, National Guard Senior Master Sgt. Charisse Stickney got the opportunity to represent all the men and women she's helped deploy overseas by throwing out the first pitch before the Twins-Indians game at the Metrodome.

Gardenhire a master of his craft
Exactly three weeks ago, the Twins were leaving Cleveland having dropped six of seven games on a 10-game roadtrip. Three of those losses were by nine runs or more.

Punto's dive ignites Twins' offense, win
On Wednesday afternoon, it was a key defensive play by the Twins in the top half of the third inning that ignited them to a 7-0 victory over the Tigers.

Gomez adventurous, but learning, too
Gomez adventurous, but learning

Robertson, Miracle blank Yankees
Robertson, Miracle blank Yankees

Nathan, on All-Star bubble, wants in
Joe Nathan isn't one to concern himself much with All-Star talk. This year, though, is a little different, as the Twins' closer grew up near New York City and still has family and friends there.

Monroe presses Tigers in Central battle
A three-run homer by Craig Monroe off Tigers starter Nate Robertson in the fourth inning Tuesday helped give the Twins their first lead of the game, which, despite some challenge from Detroit, they held for a 6-4 win.

Span adjusting to both sides of the plate
Denard Span has discovered that the challenges in right field aren't limited to just the baggie. The outfielder will now have plenty of chances to work on fielding the spot, where he will get most of the playing time during Michael Cuddyer's absence.

Miracle's Guerra hurls three-hitter
Miracle's Guerra hurls three-hitter

Mixed intentions carry over into Tuesday
This week's Tigers-Twins series already figured to be intense. But boy, did it get testy quickly. On Tuesday, the talk in both clubhouses was still focused on events of Monday night's series opener and exactly which team was intentionally thrown at in the game.

Facing lefties, Punto, not Harris, at third
The Twins have struggled against left-handed pitching all season, hitting just .251 as a club. Manager Ron Gardenhire has been seeking solutions to fix the problem.

Twins' 'pen falters in Central hit show
Minnesota had won 12 of its last 13 games while the Tigers had taken 15 of 18 to get over the .500 mark, but after having not allowed a single earned run in their last 24 1/3 innings, the Twins bullpen faltered in a 5-4 loss to Detroit.

Gardenhire standing pat with lefty bats
Michael Cuddyer's finger injury has forced Ron Gardenhire to shift his lineup once again. This time, he's gone with three lefties in a row in the Nos. 3-5 spots -- Joe Mauer, Justin Morneau, and designated hitter Jason Kubel.

Mailbag: How will Twins fare in division?
In this edition of the mailbag, Twins beat reporter answers questions about Francisco Liriano, Juan Rincon and why the Twins don't try to switch the National League.