The Red Sox are 20-11, but they really, really need a win right now. After taking three straight losses on the road, their lead on the division is down to a precarious 1.5 games over the Orioles and Yankees alike. And while watching the standings this early on is rarely worthwhile, you get the feeling the last thing this team needs right now is the morale hit that could come from falling even to just second place after such a short slide.
The good news is that the Twins aren't great. The bad news is they're not exactly proving to be pushovers just yet. Vance Worley, on the other hand, kind of is. A 7.22 ERA is the stuff of 2011 John Lackey, even if he's got a good few innings to go before he matches the ignominity of that.
It's the full lineup, our best pitcher against their worst. The Sox shouldn't let this one get away from them.
Go Sox!