The Twins received so much production from the rest of their lineup Tuesday, it was easy to overlook their first two hitters — Denard Span and Alexi Casilla — going 0-for-10 without hitting a ball out of the infield.

(Span might have been thrown off by Bob Davidson’s strike zone, as Davidson made two bad calls in Span’s first at-bat, calling two pitches for strikes that clearly looked like balls. Span was called out on strikes twice and grounded to second in his other three ABs.)

How Span and Casilla respond tonight against White Sox lefthander Mark Buehrle will be a critical element to Game 2, I think.

There’s a lot on rookie Nick Blackburn’s shoulders, too, as mentioned in today’s notebook. The Twins are 1-7 in his past eight starts, but during this stretch, he pitched two solid games at the Metrodome (8 IP/3 ER vs. Oak on Aug. 18; 7 IP/2 ER vs. KC on Sept. 9).

Blackburn is 7-3 with a 2.92 ERA at home this season.

Assuming Buehrle is on his game, the Twins will need bounce-back efforts from Span, Casilla and Blackburn to keep their success going in this series.

I’ll post the lineups now and send any pregame updates as we get them.

Update (6:25 p.m.): Manager Ron Gardenhire said Michael Cuddyer will play Wednesday, when the Twins face White Sox lefthander Mark Buehrle. Cuddyer told Gardenhire his left foot feels much improved.

But today, it’s Jason Kubel’s turn at DH.

“Kubel’s our guy,” Gardenhire said. “He’s been our DH all year. Cuddy’s been banged up and beat up. We’ve gotta run Kubel out there and see what happens. … I’m not going to sit my DH that’s been there all year long in probably the biggest game of the year. No way. He’s got a chance to put one over the baggie, and he’s in there.”

Twins (84-72)

1. Denard Span, RF
2. Alexi Casilla, 2B
3. Joe Mauer, C
4. Justin Morneau, 1B
5. Jason Kubel, DH
6. Delmon Young, LF
7. Brian Buscher, 3B
8. Nick Punto, SS
9. Carlos Gomez, CF

Starting pitcher: RH Scott Baker (9-4, 3.69 ERA)

White Sox (86-69)

1. Orlando Cabrera, SS
2. A.J. Pierzynski, C
3. Jermaine Dye, RF
4. Jim Thome, DH
5. Paul Konerko, 1B
6. Ken Griffey, Jr., CF
7. Alexei Ramirez, 2B
8. Dewayne Wise, LF
9. Juan Uribe, 3B

Starting pitcher: RH Javier Vazquez (12-14, 4.32 ERA)

Metrodome. First pitch: 7:10 p.m.

The key for the Twins tonight in Game 1 of this Chicago series will be how their hitters handle the pressure of the moment against Chicago’s Javier Vazquez, who has struggled in big games himself.

Justin Morneau is 14-for-39 (.359) with six homers, four doubles, six walks and 13 RBI against Vazquez. But Morneau has struggled of late, batting just .212 since Sept. 14.

Joe Mauer (a career .321 hitter against Vazquez) is riding an 11-game hitting streak and has a .417 OBP this year, so Morneau should get chances with runners on base. But Morneau will see better pitches to hit if Vazquez sees a threat waiting behind him.

The DH decision likely comes down to Jason Kubel vs. Michael Cuddyer. Kubel is 2-for-21 (.095) against Vazquez, and Cuddyer is 12-for-35 (.343) with two homers and six RBI.

Delmon Young, is 5-for-14 (.357) against Vazquez, so the Twins can feel confident in many of these numbers. It’s just a matter of applying themselves in the biggest regular season series these players have ever played.

Most readers are looking ahead to the White Sox series. So are we. While we crank out our preview material, here are a couple leftover items from the road:

(*) The Twins have scored 801 runs with six regular season games remaining. That’s notable because 801 equals the most they’ve scored since 1996, when a team led by Chuck Knoblauch, Paul Molitor, Marty Cordova and Ron Coomer combined for a club record 877 runs, finishing 78-84.

The Twins scored 801 runs in 2003 and 2006. This year, they’re on pace to finish with 832.

(*) The Twins finished with a 35-46 (.432) road record. They are 49-26 (.653) at home.

The main difference is the pitching. The Twins have a 3.25 ERA at home and a 5.17 ERA on the road.

ST. PETERSBURG, FLA. — After clinching a playoff spot Saturday, the Rays are giving several of their key players a rest for today’s series finale against the Twins.

All-Star catcher Dioner Navarro and middle infielders Akinori Iwamura and Jason Bartlett are among those getting a break.

Meanwhile, the Twins are giving Joe Mauer a chance to DH today, with Mike Redmond moving behind the plate. Mauer caught the previous seven games.

The Twins are off Monday before beginning their showdown with the White Sox on Tuesday at the Metrodome. Do the Twins need to sweep that series to win this division? We’ll have a better idea after today.

Update (1:10 p.m.): The pitching matchups for the White Sox series have been set:

Tues: Scott Baker (9-4, 3.69 ERA) vs. Javier Vazquez (12-14, 4.32)
Wed: Nick Blackburn (10-10, 4.15) vs. Mark Buehrle (14-11, 3.87)
Thurs: Kevin Slowey (12-11, 3.85) vs. Gavin Floyd (16-8, 3.84)

Twins (83-72)

1. Denard Span, RF
2. Alexi Casilla, 2B
3. Joe Mauer, DH
4. Justin Morneau, 1B
5. Jason Kubel, LF
6. Mike Redmond, C
7. Brian Buscher, 3B
8. Adam Everett, SS
9. Carlos Gomez, CF

Starting pitcher: LH Francisco Liriano (5-3, 3.62 ERA)

Rays (92-61)

1. B.J. Upton, CF
2. Ben Zobrist, SS
3. Carlos Pena, DH
4. Evan Longoria, 3B
5. Willy Aybar, 2B
6. Rocco Baldelli, RF
7. Dan Johnson, 1B
8. Michel Hernandez, C
9. Fernando Perez, LF

Starting pitcher: RH Andy Sonnanstine (13-7, 4.33)

Tropicana Field. First pitch: 12:40 p.m.