It has been a rough season for the Minnesota Twins, but Byron Buxton continues to produce.

Buxton will look to build upon his success when the Twins open a four-game series against the Chicago White Sox on Monday afternoon in Minneapolis.

The Twins are coming off a series win at home over the San Diego Padres, which included a 7-2 victory Sunday in the rubber match. Buxton started the scoring with his 29th home run, which surpassed his previous single-season high of 28 homers in 2022.

Next, Buxton will set his sights on his first career 30-homer campaign. Considering how he has bashed the White Sox over the years, it feels almost like a fait accompli.

In 363 career plate appearances against the White Sox, Buxton has drilled 23 homers. That’s eight more than he has hit against any other MLB team. He owns a .281/.345/.584 slash line in 96 games against Chicago.

“Almost every day, you come in and he’s doing something even more impressive, or setting some new mark and doing something great,” said Twins manager Rocco Baldelli. “He had great at-bats all day long.”

The White Sox also are feeling good after posting a 3-2 win at home over the New York Yankees on Sunday afternoon. The victory helped the White Sox dodge a sweep and featured home runs from infielders Colson Montgomery and Lenyn Sosa.

Sosa, 25, is hitting .269 with 18 homers and 61 RBIs in 119 games this season.

“It’s been really cool to see the progression of his year, where it was like on ‘go’ all the time early to where he’s done a really nice job being patient early in the count and being more selective,” said White Sox manager Will Venable. “He’s obviously put himself in a really good position, statistically, where he’s been able to be very productive.”

Montgomery said he and his White Sox teammates benefited from seeing the Yankees up close over the weekend.

“You see teams like that, and they have difference-makers and guys who put the ball in the seats,” Montgomery said. “We have guys who can do that, too. In the second half of the season, we are putting the ball in the seats a lot more. They are momentum-changers and get the guys going.”

Twins right-hander Bailey Ober (4-7, 5.14 ERA) will make his 23rd start of the season. He is looking to snap a 15-start winless streak and earn his first victory since May 3 against the Boston Red Sox.

During his winless drought, Ober is 0-6 with a 5.83 ERA over 80 1/3 innings. He has allowed 22 homers during that span while walking 17 and fanning 65.

Ober has made 14 starts against the White Sox during his career. He is 6-2 with a 3.43 ERA, and he has racked up 78 strikeouts in 76 innings.

Aaron Civale was scheduled to start for the White Sox, but he was placed on waivers Sunday and picked up by the Chicago Cubs. The Sox officially are undecided on their starter, but they promoted journeyman right-hander Bryse Wilson from Triple-A Charlotte in the wake of Civale’s departure. Wilson posted an 0-2 record and a 6.95 ERA in 19 appearances for the Sox before being sent down in early June.

Minnesota is 35-32 at home this season. Chicago is 19-46 on the road.

–Field Level Media