(Best E Casino) - It's a good thing the Minnesota Twins don't play in the American League East.

The Twins ventured into Yankee Stadium this week and got swept right out of town by the Bronx Bombers. It was the seventh straight time Minnesota has lost a series at Yankee Stadium, as they've lost 19 of 22 there during that span.

Just prior to the All-Star break they went into Fenway Park for a three-game set with the Boston Red Sox, and got swept.

"You wanted to show yourself a little better in this series, and we didn't," Twins manager Ron Gardenhire said after Wednesday's 5-1 loss. "We played terrible baseball pretty much the whole way through. Funny things happen here to us. I don't know why."

In three games against New York, the Twins were outscored, 25-7. And with their fourth straight loss, they now trail the division-leading Chicago White Sox by 2 1/2 games. Meanwhile, the Detroit Tigers have reeled off four straight wins and are suddenly within three games of Minnesota.

Things sure do change fast in the AL Central.

All season long, the Twins have been able to generate runs with situational hitting and with timely hitting. Consider, they rank last in the AL in homers, but only four teams have scored more runs. The offense has gone stagnant over the last four games, however it's possible that problem could vanish now that the Twins have left Yankee Stadium.

On more than one occasion this year, the team has made a habit of bouncing back from these types of setbacks to go on lengthy winning spurts. Gardenhire can only hope the same trend holds true this weekend as the Twins get set to square off with the Indians.

"We've got to figure out something when we get to Cleveland to get our mojo back, because we lost a little bit of it here," Gardenhire said. "It's not a good feeling right now."

HELP WANTED?

The Adrian Beltre rumors have quieted a bit lately, but that doesn't change the fact that Minnesota could really use a third baseman with some pop.

General manager Bill Smith maintains he is confident with the current roster. And given the Twins' recent history at the trade deadline, there may not be much to read between the lines.

But in the spirit of wishful thinking, one other area the team could certainly stand to address is getting a setup man to replace the injured Pat Neshek.

Gardenhire has mixed and matched different relievers in the eighth, but none have provided any consistency. Factor in that Minnesota relievers have logged the fifth-most innings in the AL, and the need for another piece at the back end of the bullpen is magnified.

LIRIANO NOT TRYING TO BE ON THE ALL-MINORS TEAM

For the sake of outmatched hitters throughout Triple-A, can someone please convince Twins management to pull the string on Francisco Liriano? While the front office insists Liriano will be a key component of the team's second half run, the young left-hander is putting up ridiculous numbers in the minors.

On Tuesday, he pitched seven scoreless innings, allowing only two hits while striking out 10. The 24-year-old has racked up nine straight wins and has posted a 0.26 ERA over his past five starts. His fastball is averaging in the low 90-mph's and he has command of his slider and changeup, according to reports.

"I'm ready," Liriano told the Rochester Democrat after Tuesday's start.

Question is, are the Twins? While Liriano's agent has asked the players' union to investigate why his client is still in the minors, the Twins feel there is no room in the rotation for him. There may be 29 other teams that would beg to differ.

WHO'S HOT

Delmon Young has come out of the break by going 9-for-18.

WHO'S NOT

Carlos Gomez had logged just five hits in 57 at-bats prior to Tuesday night's game, when he found himself out of the leadoff spot for the first time all season. Gomez's new home in the batting order: ninth.

A LOOK AHEAD

Livan Hernandez (10-6, 5.29) will try to get the Twins back on track when they square off with Cliff Lee (13-2, 2.29) and the Indians on Friday. On Saturday, it will be Scott Baker (6-3, 3.26) against Fausto Carmona (4-2, 3.10). And on Sunday, Nick Blackburn (7-6, 3.83) will close out the series against Jeremy Sowers (1-5, 7.33).