An Exciting Stat if You're a Fan of the Minnesota Twins as the Second Half Begins
![](https://www.si.com/.image/t_share/MTk5MzEwNTA2NDMzOTc5ODA2/usatsi_21014817_168388303_lowres.jpg)
Like the rest of the American League Central this year, the Minnesota Twins have been frustrating.
The Twins held the top spot in the division for much of the first half of the year, but were always hovering just right around .500.
They begin the second half of the season in second place at 45-46, 0.5 games behind the Cleveland Guardians.
But if you're a Twins fan looking for optimism, here it is...
Per SKOR North: The Twins have the easiest remaining strength of schedule in all of baseball. The opponents of the Twins have a combined winning percentage of just .466.
It's no surprise that the Twins have an easy schedule by virtue of the division they play in. The White Sox and Tigers have the next easiest schedules after Minnesota, per Tankathon.com.
The Twins most difficult remaining matchups are as follows:
Three games with the Tampa Bay Rays, three with the Arizona Diamondbacks, seven with the Texas Rangers, three with the Cincinnati Reds, three with the Philadelphia Phillies and two with the Milwaukee Brewers.
By contrast, they also have six games with the Oakland A's, three with the Kansas City Royals, three with the Colorado Rockies, seven with the White Sox and three with the Cardinals.
Minnesota certainly has the schedule to make a run, now they just need some of their highly-paid performers to step up for it.
Byron Buxton is hitting just .208 and Carlos Correa is hitting just .225. Joey Gallo is also hitting just .186.
The Twins start the second half on Friday against the Athletics at 9:40 p.m. ET.
Follow Fastball on FanNation on social media
Continue to follow our Fastball on FanNation coverage on social media by LIKING us on Facebook and by following us on Twitter @FastballFN.
You can also subscribe to "The Payoff Pitch" podcast on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.