Chicago @ Minnesota preview

Chi. Cubs at Minnesota

Last Meeting ( Jun 10, 2012 ) Chi. Cubs 8, Minnesota 2

Several of baseball's top young prospects will be on display Friday when the Chicago Cubs open a three-game set against the host Minnesota Twins. The Cubs and their bevy of talented youngsters hope to break through against a Minnesota pitching staff that has allowed only one run in each of its consecutive victories and a total of 11 in the past five contests.

Rookie Kyle Schwarber sparked the Cubs with a two-run homer in his second major-league start Thursday, but Chicago batters struck out 13 times in a 4-3 defeat at Cleveland. Schwarber, the latest arrival in a parade of top prospects for the Cubs, had four hits in Wednesday's 17-run outburst. The Twins recently called up a high-profile rookie of their own, but outfielder Byron Buxton went 0-for-3 Thursday and is 2-for-16 with six strikeouts in his first five big-league games. Cubs right-hander Kyle Hendricks will make his first start against the Twins, opposing Twins righty Phil Hughes, who will face the Cubs for the first time.

TV: 8:10 p.m. ET, WGN (Chicago), FSN North (Minnesota)

PITCHING MATCHUP: Cubs RH Kyle Hendricks (2-2, 3.80 ERA) vs. Twins RH Phil Hughes (4-6, 4.79)

The Cubs have won five of the last six games Hendricks has started. The 25-year-old allowed just one run over five innings with seven strikeouts in his last turn before having his night cut short by a three-hour rain delay. Hendricks is 0-1 with a 7.04 ERA in two career interleague starts.

Hughes has shown signs of turning around his rough start to the season, recording consecutive quality starts despite going winless in his last three outings. The 28-year-old limited Texas to three runs over six innings in a no-decision last time out. Hughes is 3-2 with a 4.85 ERA in six home starts this season.

WALK-OFFS

1. Cubs 3B Kris Bryant is 20-for-57 during a 14-game hitting streak, the longest active streak in the majors.

2. The Twins are 22-12 at home and 13-9 in one-run games.

3. Minnesota has not committed an error in its past seven games, its longest streak since a nine-game stretch last July.

PREDICTION: Cubs 6, Twins 4