Not only will Cole De Vries be making his major league debut this evening for the Twins, but the home-grown talent will get a chance to make it a meaningful debut.
The 27-year-old looks to pitch Minnesota to a series victory over the Chicago White Sox in the finale of a three-game set.
De Vries was signed as a non-drafted free agent in 2006 and made 178 appearances in the minor leagues, 89 of those starts. He is 32-42 with a 4.01 earned run average over his minor league career, including 1-4 with a 4.24 ERA in eight starts this year at Triple-A Rochester.
The right-hander was born in Minnesota, attended the University of Minnesota and will make his debut in front of a collection of family and friends.
"I just can't say enough about how great this moment is for myself," De Vries told Minnesota's website. "Just with all the hard work I've put in, this being my sixth year of pro ball and finally getting my opportunity is unbelievable. It really is."
While De Vries is no doubt enjoying a personal high, White Sox starter Philip Humber is still trying to find the win column for the first time since adding an incredible achievement to his major league resume.
Humber, set to make his eighth start of the year tonight, is 0-2 in five starts since throwing a perfect game at Seattle on April 21. He has not factored into the decision of his past two outings, allowing just a total of three runs since getting drilled for eight over 2 1/3 frames of a loss at the Indians on May 7.
The right-hander held the Cubs to a pair of runs on five hits and two walks over 6 1/3 innings on Friday in game his team eventually won 3-2.
Humber, 29, is 1-2 with a 5.31 ERA this year and 2-1 with a 4.73 ERA in three career meetings, including two starts, lifetime versus the Twins.
Chicago drew even in this series on Wednesday with a 6-0 victory. Alex Rios hit a two-run homer to back seven scoreless frames by Chris Sale, who gave up two hits and a pair of walks while throwing 64 of his 97 pitches for strikes.
Paul Konerko added three hits, including solo shot, and scored three times for the White Sox, who had a four-game win streak snapped with Tuesday's series- opening 9-2 setback. Adam Dunn and A.J. Pierzynski added an RBI apiece for the victors.
"These guys are resilient and always find a way to bounce back," said Chicago manager Robin Ventura. "The offense was there tonight and the pitching was solid all the way through."
Scott Diamond was rocked for five runs -- two earned -- on nine hits over six full frames for the Twins, who committed three errors in the game and suffered just their second loss in their last seven.
"I haven't had problems throwing strikes, but I think I need to expand my zone," said Diamond. "It's nothing I'm worried about, it's just something that I have to work harder at."
Minnesota split its nine overall matchups with the White Sox last season, but has won 18 of the last 24 on the road in this series.
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