Worth noting

• Justin Morneau was out of Thursday's starting lineup as Gardenhire continued to shuffle players around. Brian Dozier was back in the leadoff spot, followed by Jamey Carroll and Joe Mauer, with Trevor Plouffe batting cleanup as the designated hitter. Chris Parmelee started at first base with Morneau sitting.

• On Wednesday night, Morneau picked up the 1,276th hit of his career, which tied Gary Gaetti for seventh on the Twins' all-time list.

• While the Twins haven't had much success offensively this series, Mauer has continued his assault upon the Rays' pitching staff. The All-Star catcher entered Thursday a .375 (63-for-168) career hitter against Tampa Bay, the highest in baseball among active players. Mauer has been even better here at Tropicana Field, hitting .422 (38-for-90) in 23 career games in St. Petersburg, also the highest among active players.

• Chris Colabello was named the Topps International League Player of the Month for June after hitting .362 with eight homers and 26 RBIs for Triple-A Rochester. He led the league with a .451 on-base percentage and a 1.111 OPS while hitting safely in 20 of 25 games last month.