KANSAS CITY, MO. — The Twins are 10-1 in their past 11 games, and Scott Baker takes the mound tonight against the Royals, opposite lefthander Lenny DiNardo.

On paper, this looks like another mismatch, much like last Sunday’s matchup between Baker and Tigers lefty Nate Robertson. Of course, the Twins lost that one, so nothing can be taken for granted. The pressure on the Twins to win tonight is even greater because they’re facing Royals superstar Zack Greinke, countering with embattled lefty Francisco Liriano.

(*) Brendan Harris is getting the start at DH tonight, with Jose Morales on the bench. On Friday, Manager Ron Gardenhire said he likes Morales better as a left-handed hitter, and while he does like Morales as a righty, as well, he likes giving Harris a chance against lefthanded pitchers.

Harris is batting .301 against lefties (43-for-143). In a much smaller sample size, Morales is batting .412 against lefties (7-for-17).

(*) With David DeJesus sick and Mark Teahen battling back issues, the Royals are without two of their regulars again tonight. That’s in addition to others on the DL, including Coco Crisp and Jose Guillen.

Update: Gardenhire said he’s tentatively planning to have Morales catch Liriano on Sunday, allowing Joe Mauer to DH.

TWINS (80-73)

1. Denard Span, CF
2. Orlando Cabrera, SS
3. Joe Mauer, C
4. Jason Kubel, RF
5. Michael Cuddyer, 1B
6. Delmon Young, LF
7. Brendan Harris, DH
8. Matt Tolbert, 3B
9. Nick Punto, 2B

Starting pitcher: RH Scott Baker (13-9, 4.43 ERA)

ROYALS (63-91)

1. Willie Bloomquist, RF
2. Mitch Maier, LF
3. Billy Butler, 1B
4. Mike Jacobs, DH
5. Alberto Callaspo, 2B
6. Brayan Pena, C
7. Alex Gordon, 3B
8. Yuniesky Betancourt, SS
9. Josh Anderson, CF

Starting pitcher: LH Lenny DiNardo (0-1, 8.22 ERA)

Kauffman Stadium. First pitch: 6:10 p.m. TV: FSN

KANSAS CITY, MO. — In many ways, the Royals handed the Twins a 9-4 victory on Friday night.

Robinson Tejeda issued a career-high seven walks, and two of those came with the bases loaded. Juan Cruz relieved Tejeda and issued another bases-loaded walk. Three in a row for goodness sakes.

The error that Royals shortstop Yuniesky Betancourt made earlier in that fifth inning on Matt Tolbert’s potential double play grounder “changed the whole outcome of the game,” Twins starting pitcher Carl Pavano said.

But sprinkled in that mess, the Twins did some good things, too, as they climbed within two games of first-place Detroit.

Nick Punto scored from second base on Tejeda’s third-inning wild pitch, giving the Twins a 1-0 lead. To that point, Tejeda hadn’t given up a hit.

“With two outs and two strikes [on Orlando Cabrera], I thought it was worth the risk,” Punto said. “And it paid off for us.”

It certainly electrified the Twins bench. Then, after Michael Cuddyer smashed his 30th home run in the fourth inning, Jose Morales drew a leadoff walk to open the fifth. Next came Betancourt’s error, and Punto advanced both runners with a sacrifice bunt.

Afterward, Manager Ron Gardenhire mentioned that bunt amid the flurry of positive things he saw from his team. Tejeda walked Denard Span to load the bases, Orlando Cabrera made it 3-1 with an RBI single, and then Tejeda came unglued.

PAVANO NOT PLEASED

Pavano held the Royals to four runs over six innings, but he was disappointed with himself. After a long half-inning, while the Twins batted around, Pavano gave up a leadoff double to No. 9 batter Josh Anderson before walking Mitch Maier, setting the table for Billy Butler’s three-run homer.

“I’m not really happy I go out there with a 6-1 lead in the fifth and give up [three runs],” Pavano said. “That’s not the way you want to pitch with a lead. You’ve gotta be aggressive and let these guys put the ball in play, and I was a little defensive there.”

Pavano is now 4-3 with a 3.84 ERA in 10 starts for the Twins.

PADDING THE LEAD

Give the Twins credit for adding to their lead, taking pressure off their bullpen and giving closer Joe Nathan another night of rest. They refused to be complacent.

Span had a two-out bunt single in the sixth and stole second base, moving to third on Cabrera’s infield single. That put runners at the corners for Joe Mauer, who finally got a pitch to hit after three walks and grounded to second base.

After Cuddyer singled in the seventh, Delmon Young made it 7-4 with an RBI triple, just his second triple of the season. With two outs that inning, Matt Tolbert made it 8-4 with a bloop single to left field, scoring Young, and Young added his ninth homer the next inning.

Pavano knew his outing might have meant a loss on a lot of nights. “Fortunately, I had some runs to work with,” he said.

Notes: The Twins have never had four players with 90 RBI, but they are getting very close. Justin Morneau has 100, Joe Mauer and Jason Kubel both reached 90 on Friday, and Michael Cuddyer reached 88. … On Saturday, the Twins will send Scott Baker (13-9, 4.43 ERA) to the mound, opposite Royals lefty Lenny DiNardo (0-1, 8.22). First pitch is at 6:10 p.m., so check back here for the starting lineups.

KANSAS CITY, MO. — Denard Span is back in the starting lineup for the Twins tonight for the first time since getting hit in the back of the helmet on Monday in Chicago.

The Twins open a three-game series with the Royals and face a stiff test in RHP Robinson Tejeda, who has won each of his past three starts, including two against the first-place Tigers.

The Royals are 12-5 in their past 17 games.

Updates to come…

Update: Manager Ron Gardenhire said Francisco Liriano will indeed make Sunday’s start for the Twins. They’ll wait to see how he looks, but Liriano could throw between 60-80 pitches.

“[Jeff] Manship was a little bit overwhelmed,” Gardenhire said. “I don’t think Frankie will be overwhelmed at all. He’s going to let it fly. I don’t think the game itself is going to get to him.

(*) An interesting note about Tejeda is that he throws exclusively out of the stretch. In relief he showed a 97-mph fastball, but as a starter, he has reigned that in a bit, keeping it 93-94 mph, but with better command.

(*) Span stood in on Liriano’s bullpen session today to get himself re-acclimated to live pitching.

Span hadn’t had many days off since his stint on the disabled list, so this gave his body a three-day break.

“I didn’t raise my hand to get hit in the head just to get a couple days off,” he said, smiling.

(*) The Royals scratched Mark Teahen, who has been bothered by a sore back. Revised lineup below.

TWINS (79-73)

1. Denard Span, CF
2. Orlando Cabrera, SS
3. Joe Mauer, C
4. Jason Kubel, RF
5. Michael Cuddyer, 1B
6. Delmon Young, LF
7. Jose Morales, DH
8. Matt Tolbert, 3B
9. Nick Punto, 2B

Starting pitcher: RH Carl Pavano (12-11, 4.82 ERA)

ROYALS (63-90)

1. Willie Bloomquist, RF
2. Mitch Maier, LF
3. Billy Butler, 1B
4. Mike Jacobs, DH
5. Alberto Callaspo, 2B
6. John Buck, C
7. Alex Gordon, 3B
8. Yuniesky Betancourt, SS
9. Josh Anderson, CF

Pitching: RH Robinson Tejeda (4-1, 2.94)

Kauffman Stadium. First pitch: 7:05 p.m. TV: FSN

I’m heading to Kansas City this morning. Short on time — just like the Twins — so here’s a quick update on that team they’re chasing:

1) Verlander vs. Carrasco turned into a nail biter Friday. A 6-5 win for Detroit that was antacid close, John Lowe writes in the Detroit Free Press. That win extended the Tigers’ lead to three games. (Corrected)

2) LHP Bobby Seay will have an MRI exam on his left shoulder. This is a sizable development because Seay is the Tigers’ top lefthander in the bullpen, and counted on to handle the Twins lefthanded threats, specifically Joe Mauer and Jason Kubel. After Seay, the Tigers best lefthanded relief option is Fu-Te Ni.

3) The Tigers play at Chicago’s U.S. Cellular Field tonight, with RHP Eddie Bonine (0-0, 5.96) making the start opposite RHP Jake Peavy (1-0, 5.40).

Note: Check back here later for tonight’s starting lineups, as the Twins open a three-game series in Kansas City. For a series preview, click here.

1) With the Twins off today, the Tigers are in prime position for a three-game sweep of hapless Cleveland, which would push the Twins three games back in the AL Central. The Indians have lost 10 straight, and at 6:05 p.m. (Central), it’s Justin Verlander (16-9, 3.44 ERA) vs. Carlos Carrasco (0-2, 9.64).

2) Rick Porcello, who is scheduled to pitch opposite Twins righty Nick Blackburn (corrected) on Monday in Detroit, held Cleveland to one run over five innings in Wednesday’s 11-3 victory. Porcello, only 20 years old, is 5-2 with a 3.38 ERA since Aug. 1.

Carlos Guillen, a switch-hitter who did not hit righthanded for two months because of a sore shoulder, had a breakthrough Wednesday. Batting righthanded, he hit a HR and a 2B off former Twins farmhand, LHP Mike Gosling. Manager Jim Leyland had said Guillen wouldn’t start against a LHP the rest of the way, but that performance could change things.

2.5) The Tigers are 13-4 against Cleveland this year, while the Twins finished 10-8 against the Indians. On Friday, the Tigers are scheduled to face Jake Peavy, when they open a three-game series against the White Sox in Chicago.