Turnaround time? Twins' remaining April schedule sets up favorably

The Twins have an opportunity to get back near .500 by taking advantage of some winnable series for the rest of this month.

Apr 1, 2025; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Minnesota Twins outfielder Harrison Bader (12) celebrates with Minnesota Twins outfielder Byron Buxton (25) after they scored on Bader’s three run home against the Chicago White Sox during the eighth inning at Guaranteed Rate Field. | Matt Marton-Imagn Images

If the Twins are going to turn their season around and recover from an awful start, now has to be the time to do it. The schedule for the rest of April sets up favorably for Minnesota to continue a push towards .500 that may have begun this week.

After a pair of big wins over the Mets, the Twins have won three of their last four games to go from 4-11 to 7-12. Starting with this weekend's series in Atlanta, here are the next four teams they face:

• April 18-20: at Braves (5-13, -17 run differential)
• April 22-24: vs. White Sox (4-14, -22)
• April 25-27: vs. Angels (9-9, -11)
• April 28-May 1: at Guardians (9-9, -11)

That's 13 games against teams with run differentials of -11 or worse through their first 18 contests (though, of course, Minnesota's is -13). If the Twins can manage to go 8-5 in that stretch, they'd end the day on May 1 with a 15-17 record. 9-4 would get them to .500 at 16-16. It's doable, but it'll require better execution at the plate, on the mound, and in the field.

The Braves, who have made seven straight trips to the postseason, probably aren't as bad as their current record indicates. The Twins are sending Chris Paddack and Simeon Woods Richardson to the mound in the first two games of the series — and SWR will be going against reigning NL Cy Young winner Chris Sale on Saturday — so it would be impressive if Minnesota can take two of three games on the road.

The expectation should then be to sweep the White Sox and take the series against the Angels at Target Field. The lesser LA team is off to a decent start to this season, but they haven't had a winning record since 2015. The Twins wrap up April with a four-game set in Cleveland that should tell us a lot about Minnesota's chances of being relevant in the AL Central this year.

There's no denying that it's been an ugly start to the season for the Twins. But all hope is not lost. They've still got quality starting pitchers — Pablo Lopez is expected back from injury fairly soon — and a bullpen that should be good once Griffin Jax returns to form. Byron Buxton has been wreaking havoc on the bases with his speed. Ty France and Harrison Bader look like excellent low-cost additions to the lineup. Young players Luke Keaschall and Brooks Lee could provide a spark while Matt Wallner (and maybe Carlos Correa and Willi Castro) are injured.

There are still reasons for optimism. And if the Twins are going to turn things around, they need to take advantage of a soft stretch of schedule and do it now.