Twins-White Sox Preview

5/8/2008 1:08 AM

By KATE HEDLIN
STATS Writer

The Minnesota Twins have had some big offensive outbursts in Chicago over the last two seasons. One of the newest Twins, Carlos Gomez, got into the action in their last game.

Gomez and the Twins close a three-game series against the White Sox on Thursday afternoon, a day after their highest scoring game of the season.

Gomez hit for the cycle on Wednesday in the Twins' 13-1 rout of the White Sox (15-17). The center fielder, acquired from the Mets in an offseason trade for Johan Santana, homered on the third pitch of the game, tripled in the fifth inning, doubled in the sixth and singled in the ninth to become the eighth Minnesota player to hit for the cycle and the first since Kirby Puckett on Aug. 1, 1986.

"It's amazing," Gomez said. "Kirby Puckett, I saw the video of the player. He is an All-Star and I can't explain it to you. That's unbelievable."

Gomez and Mike Redmond each drove in three runs while Nick Punto added a career-high five RBIs on a three-run double in the sixth and a two-run triple in the ninth. A night after being held to one hit in a 7-1 loss to Chicago, the Twins (17-15) had 16 hits, including seven for extra bases.

The Twins have averaged 8.0 runs in their last 11 games at U.S. Cellular Field, and Wednesday was fifth time during that stretch they've scored at least 10 runs.

The loss was Chicago's seventh in the last eight games. The White Sox have been held to one or fewer runs four times during that span and are batting just .202. They avoided being shut out on Wednesday on Jermaine Dye's ninth-inning homer.

"If we continue to swing at bad pitches, we are going to be real bad on offense," manager Ozzie Guillen told the White Sox's official Web site before the loss. "We have to be patient, take the pitches and look for one pitch they can handle."

The White Sox, who begin a 10-game West Coast road trip Friday, look to begin turning things around Thursday when they face Kevin Slowey (0-1, 8.10 ERA), who came off the disabled list on Wednesday.

Slowey, taking the spot of the injured Scott Baker, has been on the disabled list recovering from a strained right biceps since his last start on April 3.

"It's just exciting to be back and even more it's exciting to be healthy," Slowey said.

In Slowey's only start this season, he allowed three runs and four hits in 3 1-3 innings against the Los Angeles Angels on April 3.

In the right-hander's only start against the White Sox, he gave up one run and four hits in seven innings last season in a 7-1 victory.

The White Sox counter with John Danks (2-3, 3.12), who is trying to avoid losing his third straight start. He's pitched well in each of his last two outings, allowing two runs in each, but the White Sox failed to provide him with any run support in those games.

Danks pitched 4 2-3 innings against Toronto on Saturday, yielding seven hits while striking out five before he was pulled after throwing a season-high 107 pitches in a 5-2 loss.

Danks has struggled against the Twins, going 1-3 with an 8.35 ERA in four starts. He pitched a season-low 2 1-3 innings against them in Chicago on April 9, giving up seven runs and seven hits in a 12-5 loss.