The Angels (12-12) begin a five-game road trip — three games in Minneapolis and two in Seattle — after going 3-3 in a six-game homestand, which concluded with a 4-3 victory over Pittsburgh on Thursday. The Angels won two of three from the San Francisco Giants before losing the first two games of the series with Pittsburgh. ... The victory was just the fourth in the past 12 games for the Angels, who opened the season with eight victories in their first 12 games. ... OF Mike Trout, a three-time A.L. MVP and 11-time All-Star, is healthy after appearing in more than 100 games just once since 2021. Trout, who played in just 29 games last season, is making his first appearance at Target Field since Sept. 25, 2022, when he went 3-for-4 with two doubles and a home run in the Angels’ 10-3 victory. Trout has appeared in all 24 games for the Angels and is hitting .172 with 8 home runs (tied for fourth in MLB) and 16 RBI. In 25 career games at Target Field, he is batting .303 with 5 HR and 21 RBI. Against Twins last season, Trout was 1-for-9 with four walks and an RBI in three games in Anaheim. He played just one more game after the Twins series before missing the rest of the season with a knee injury. ... Kikuchi is 1-2 with a 3.12 ERA in six career starts against the Twins. ... 3B Yoán Moncada (right thumb sprain) has been the 10-day injured list since April 10. ... RHP Ben Joyce (right shoulder inflammation) has been sidelined since April 11.
The Twins (9-16) are coming off a 3-0 loss to the Chicago White Sox on Thursday in the finale of a three-game series. The loss dropped the Twins to 0-13 when they score three or fewer runs. They are 9-3 when the score four or more runs. ... The Twins were 5-1 against Angels — outscoring the Angels, 50-28, in 2024. The Twins won two of three from the Angels Sept. 9-11 at Target Field. The Twins swept a three-game series April 26-28 at Anaheim. The Twins won, 5-3, 16-5 and 11-5. ... The Twins are 0-3 against left-handed starters this season. ... The Twins placed IF Willi Castro (right oblique strain) on the 10-day injured list on Thursday. To replace Castro, who hadn’t played since April 17, the Twins recalled IF Mickey Gasper, who started the season with the Twins but was optioned to Triple-A St. Paul on April 18. ... IF Royce Lewis (left hamstring strain), who has been sidelined since mid-March, is on a rehab assignment in St. Paul.
