BOSTON — Denard Span will lead off and play center field today, with Twins manager giving the slumping Carlos Gomez a mental break.

Gomez is in an 0-for-10 skid.

“He’s pressing a little bit, fighting it a little bit,” Gardenhire said. “He’s still battling. He plays hard, all those things. That’s why we’ve just got to take a mental blow and let him sit back for a minute.”

Mike Lamb is getting the start at first base, with Justin Morneau as the designated hitter. That was expected, since Lamb is 4-for-5 in his career against Josh Beckett.

Joe Mauer is back in the lineup, even with a day game after a night game. That’s a sign how badly the Twins want this one. According to weather.com, it’s 86 degrees here and feels like 91.

Update (10:45 a.m.): Red Sox closer Jonathan Papelbon is unavailable today, after pitching in three straight games. … The Twins would prefer not to use Matt Guerrier, too, after he threw 22 pitches Tuesday, in his fourth appearance in five games. … I read this morning that Cleveland is ready to promote Juan Rincon to the big leagues. … Even in this heat, the Twins took batting practice on the field, though it appears they have cut that short. The players can use the indoor cage.

It’s sweltering on the field. The Twins will be wearing their dark blue uniform tops. Mauer explained it this morning, saying the mesh fabric is more breathable than the grays.

Note: The Twins will travel to Detroit after the game. Thursday’s game is at 12:05 p.m. (Central), which is strange. Apparently, the Tigers are holding Senior Day and Christmas in July promotions. All that means for the Twins’ players is a quirky sleep schedule. The four-game series will feature starting times of 12:05, 6:05, 2:55 and 12:05.

Twins (50-40)

1. Denard Span, CF

2. Alexi Casilla, 2B

3. Joe Mauer, C

4. Justin Morneau, DH

5. Jason Kubel, RF

6. Delmon Young, LF

7. Mike Lamb, 1B

8. Nick Punto, SS

9. Brian Buscher, 3B

Red Sox (54-39)

1. Jacoby Ellsbury, CF

2. Dustin Pedroia, 2B

3. Kevin Youkilis, 1B

4. Manny Ramirez, LF

5. Mike Lowell, 3B

6. Sean Casey, DH

7. Jason Varitek, C

8. Brandon Moss, RF

9. Julio Lugo, SS

Starting pitcher: RH Josh Beckett

Fenway Park. First pitch: 12:05 p.m.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, July 9th, 2008 at 10:39 am and is filed under Twins thoughts. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.