Minnesota Twins Team Report - April 21st

(Sports Network) - Having lost six of their first nine games at the Metrodome this season, compared to a 6-3 record on the road, the Twins are having a tough time breaking out of the middle of the pack in the American League Central.

On Sunday the club was beaten for the 12th straight time by the visiting New York Yankees, 8-2. A.J. Pierzynski and Chris Gomez each had two hits in the losing effort for the Twins.

Kyle Lohse got hit hard and gave up seven runs on 10 hits in just 4 1/3 innings for the Twins, who have lost the first three games of the four-game set. He had given up only eight hits in his previous 21 1/3 innings coming into the contest.

Rick Reed will head to the mound for the Twins today, trying to build upon his first win of the year in his last outing and keeping the Yankees from gaining their first-ever four-game sweep at the Metrodome. Reed, 1-2 with a 3.94 ERA, allowed two runs on six hits with a walk and five strikeouts over six innings against Detroit on Wednesday.

The 37-year-old righty is 0-4 with a 6.29 ERA in nine career starts against the Yankees. He lost to New York earlier in the season after he allowed two runs on six hits over four innings, before leaving with a groin injury.

With just 12 home runs, Minnesota is second to last in the league, ahead of only Detroit which has produced five through 17 contests.

Torii Hunter may lead the team in RBI with 11, but he is still batting a meager .172 and has struck out a team-high 15 times.

The Twins have been an all or nothing team so far in 2003, sweeping the Blue Jays once and the Tigers twice in three-game series, while being swept by Toronto at home and New York in the Bronx already.

04/21 11:15:14 ET