{"id":30868,"date":"2017-05-29T10:58:14","date_gmt":"2017-05-29T10:58:14","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.biphoo.com\/bipnews\/?p=30868"},"modified":"2017-05-29T10:58:14","modified_gmt":"2017-05-29T10:58:14","slug":"road-wins-key-far-surprising-twins-brewers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.biphoo.com\/bipnews\/sports\/road-wins-key-far-surprising-twins-brewers.html","title":{"rendered":"Road wins key so far for surprising Twins, Brewers"},"content":{"rendered":"

\n\tRoad wins key so far for surprising Twins, Brewers<\/span><\/strong><\/span>
\n<\/h2>\n

\n\tThe Minnesota Twins and Milwaukee Brewers are both in first place, meaning the season has been a surprising success so far.<\/span><\/span>\n<\/p>\n

\n\tIf only their home fans had been able to enjoy it a little more often.<\/span><\/span>\n<\/p>\n

\n\tThe Twins and Brewers are in this position because of their performance on the road. Minnesota is 14-5 away from home, and Milwaukee is 13-8. Both are below .500 at home.<\/span><\/span>\n<\/p>\n

\n\tThey played at home Sunday, with the Brewers beating Arizona and the Twins losing to Tampa Bay . Although they haven't always put on a great show in front of their season-ticket holders, Milwaukee and Minnesota are leading the divisions that include last year's World Series participants.<\/span><\/span>\n<\/p>\n

\n\tThe Chicago Cubs figured to be formidable in the NL Central, obviously, but they trail the Brewers (27-23) by 1 ½ games. The Cleveland Indians were a clear favorite in the AL Central, but they're two games behind the Twins (26-20).<\/span><\/span>\n<\/p>\n

\n\tThose are small leads, and the outlook could be a lot different for Minnesota and Milwaukee in a month or so, but after losing a combined 192 games in 2016, any signs of progress were welcome.<\/span><\/span>\n<\/p>\n

\n\tThe Twins' ERA is down from an American League-worst 5.08 last year to 4.14. They're first in the league in defensive efficiency ratio, a stat that measures the number of outs a team records in its defensive opportunities, and young right-hander Jose Berrios looks capable of giving Minnesota's rotation another boost.<\/span><\/span>\n<\/p>\n

\n\tFor Milwaukee, the unexpected slugging of Eric Thames has been well documented, but Travis Shaw has also made a real contribution with a .290 average and nine home runs.<\/span><\/span>\n<\/p>\n

\n\tNext up for the Brewers is a series in New York against the struggling Mets. The Twins, on the other hand, host a Houston team with the best record in the major leagues.<\/span><\/span>\n<\/p>\n

\n\tHere are a few other developments from around baseball:<\/span><\/span>\n<\/p>\n

\n\tSURGING<\/span><\/span>\n<\/p>\n

\n\tThe Boston Red Sox are starting to look more like the team many expected. Although their six-game winning streak was snapped Sunday, they trail the New York Yankees by only three games atop the AL East.<\/span><\/span>\n<\/p>\n

\n\tFive Boston pitchers combined for 20 strikeouts against Texas on Thursday, with closer Craig Kimbrel fanning four in the ninth. Kimbrel has struck out 40 and walked two this year.<\/span><\/span>\n<\/p>\n

\n\tAnd now the Red Sox get David Price back from an elbow injury Monday in Chicago against the White Sox.<\/span><\/span>\n<\/p>\n

\n\tSLIPPING<\/span><\/span>\n<\/p>\n

\n\tThe Atlanta Braves turned heads when they acquired two pitchers in their 40s — Bartolo Colon and R.A. Dickey — early in the offseason. The moves haven't worked out well so far. Colon is 2-5 with a 6.96 ERA, and opponents are hitting .321 off him. Dickey is 3-4 with a 4.65 ERA and leads the team in walks.<\/span><\/span>\n<\/p>\n

\n\tThe two have combined to allow 20 homers.<\/span><\/span>\n<\/p>\n

\n\tHIGHLIGHT<\/span><\/span>\n<\/p>\n

\n\tBilly Hamilton belongs on any list of the game's most exciting players, and he scored from first on a single to lift Cincinnati to a 4-3 win at Cleveland on Wednesday. Hamilton was running on the pitch, and it took left fielder Michael Brantley a moment to locate the ball after he was unable to make a diving catch. Hamilton kept running and scored without a throw.<\/span><\/span>\n<\/p>\n

\n\tSource:- https:\/\/www.usatoday.com\/story\/sports\/mlb\/2017\/05\/29\/road-wins-key-so-far-for-surprising-twins-brewers\/102282036\/<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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