Minnesota @ Chicago preview

Last Meeting ( Jul 7, 2011 ) Minnesota 6, Chi. White Sox 2

THE STORY: The Minnesota Twins look to continue their dominance of the host Chicago White Sox on Friday when the American League Central rivals tussle in the second of their four-game series. Minnesota has won eight straight meetings with Chicago, its longest run of dominance in the all-time series since capturing nine in a row from Sept. 24, 2000-June 27, 2001. The Twins also have won 13 of 15 at U.S. Cellular Field. The White Sox have dropped three in a row and four of five both overall and at home.

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

PITCHING MATCHUP: Twins RH Nick Blackburn (6-6, 4.02 ERA) vs. White Sox RH Gavin Floyd (6-8, 4.17 ERA).

Blackburn is coming off his second rocky outing in which he escaped with a no-decision after allowing six runs over four innings against Milwaukee on Sunday. In his previous start, the 29-year-old was battered by the Los Angeles Dodgers for eight runs – seven earned – and 13 hits in 4 1/3 frames. Prior to the rough performances, Blackburn had gone 5-1 while yielding more than two earned runs just once in 10 outings.

Floyd has lost three straight decisions and is 1-5 over his last eight starts. The 28-year-old suffered a loss to the Cubs at Wrigley Field on Sunday despite allowing three runs over seven innings. Floyd has not fared well against Minnesota over his career, going 4-9 with a 5.20 ERA in 14 outings.

ABOUT THE WHITE SOX (43-46): 1B Paul Konerko's error in the fourth inning of Thursday's loss ended Chicago's streak of games without a fielding miscue at seven. DH Adam Dunn's nightmare season continued as he went 0-for-4 with three strikeouts. The slugger is hitting just .163 (42-for-257) and has struck out an AL-leading 113 times. The White Sox have gone 13 home games without scoring more than five runs, their longest such streak since 1989, when they had a 14-game stretch from May 19-June 12.

ABOUT THE TWINS (39-47): Thursday's win ended Minnesota's five-game road losing streak and improved it to 27-6 in its last 33 contests against the White Sox. Joe Mauer's first major league start at first base went off without a hitch. The former AL MVP made several nice plays in the field while going 3-for-5 at the plate with two RBIs. Scott Baker will miss his scheduled start on Sunday after an MRI exam showed the righthander has a mild flexor strain.

FINAL PITCH: Konerko will make his fifth career All-Star appearance after winning the Final Vote. Konerko will join Carlos Quentin as representatives of the White Sox after beating out Detroit's Victor Martinez, Kansas City's Alex Gordon, Baltimore's Adam Jones and Ben Zobrist of Tampa Bay.