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The Minnesota Twins head into the weekend riding high after taking consecutive series from Cleveland and Boston but could be shorthanded Friday night when they open a three-game set with the Texas Rangers at Target Field.

Eduardo Escobar left in the fourth inning of Minnesota’s 9-2 loss to the Red Sox Thursday after he took a Rick Porcello fastball to the right elbow.

The AL leader with 32 doubles this season [url=http://www.authenticsindianapoliscolts.com/cheap-nyheim-hines-jersey]Nyheim Hines Color Rush Jersey[/url] , Escobar has been red-hot this month, batting .386 with an .800 slugging percentage in 70 June at-bats.

Manager Paul Molitor said Escobar would be re-evaluated Friday.

“He’s sore and swollen,” Molitor said. “I think it got the bottom of the triceps more than on the elbow. We tried to see if he was able to continue, and he gave it a go, but you could tell he was having trouble swinging in that second at-bat.”

Eddie Rosario was scratched prior to the game Thursday with soreness in his right shoulder. He leads the team with 16 homers this season and has been having a good month as well, batting .357 with a .757 slugging percentage.

Rosario said he’d be back in the lineup against Texas and Molitor admitted resting the 26-year-old was a precautionary move.

“I just think we’re trying to keep the big picture in mind,” Molitor said. “So, we’re gonna back him off. It’s just one of those things where you think what you’re doing is best for the player for the long term.”

The Twins are already without second baseman Miguel Sano, who was optioned to Class A Fort Meyers to work on hitting the slider, and center fielder Byron Buxton, whose fractured toe has shown improvement but not enough to return from a minor league rehab assignment.

Missing all that firepower will leave right-hander Fernando Romero a much smaller margin for error as he takes the mound for his 10th career start.

Romero has cooled off since going 2-0 with a 1.66 ERA through his first four big league outings, going 1-2 with a 6.46 ERA over his last five. That number is somewhat skewed by an eight-run disaster at Kansas City back on May 30, but Romero’s strikeout rate has plummeted from 9.11 per nine innings to 5.95 over his last four starts.

“Gosh, there’s still a lot to like,” Molitor said. “The way that he’s been able to get the ball on the ground pretty consistently [url=http://authenticlosangeleschargers.com/cheap-derwin-james-jersey]Derwin James Color Rush Jersey[/url] , especially the way he can get in on righties.”

In his first start against Texas, Romero will face a Rangers’ lineup that is feeling good after sweeping the Royals earlier in the week and has won five in a row overall.

Rougned Odor has been a catalyst for the Rangers’ recent success. He was hitting .169 exactly one month ago but has batted .267 with a .761 OPS in the 26 games since to raise his average to .226.

“I believe he’s progressively gotten better,” Rangers manager Jeff Banister said. “He’s showed progress where we need him to show progress. Odor has been a significant player on this team and will continue to be a significant player.”

Left-hander Mike Minor gets the start for Texas.

He held the Rockies to two runs over seven innings in his last outing, giving him a second consecutive quality start for the first time since earning six in a row for the Braves back during the 2014 season.

Friday will mark Minor’s first career start against the Twins.

Luke Weaver’s best start of the season came last month against the Philadelphia Phillies. Weaver will try to emulate that success Tuesday night as the Phillies face the St. Louis Cardinals in the middle of a three-game series at Citizens Bank Park.

The 24-year-old Weaver (4-6, 4.52 ERA) allowed just one run and four hits and notched six strikeouts in seven innings against the Phillies on May 17. Weaver has gone seven innings in just one of his 13 other starts this season.

Weaver, who has a 3.00 ERA and 1.167 WHIP in two career starts against Philadelphia, struggled in both of his last two appearances. He allowed eight runs, 16 hits and six walks in the two outings (10 1/3 innings), including four runs and nine hits in 5 1/3 innings of his last game against the San Diego Padres.

“He used everything. Thought he had a real nice changeup, he was smart with the breaking ball,” Cardinals manager Mike Matheny said of Weaver after his last start. “But that last inning, there were a lot of hard hit balls.”

Weaver has lost four straight decisions, a streak that dates to his previous start against the Phillies.

Vince Velasquez, who will oppose Weaver again on Tuesday, picked up the win in that game last month.

Velasquez (5-7 [url=http://authenticlosangeleschargers.com/cheap-uchenna-nwosu-jersey]Uchenna Nwosu Color Rush Jersey[/url] , 4.74) held the Cardinals scoreless for 6 1/3 innings and struck out five in a 6-2 Phillies win. He had a 6.30 ERA in four starts after that game, but the hard-throwing right-hander was dominant the last time he was on the mound.

Facing the Colorado Rockies last Thursday, Velasquez carried a no-hitter into the seventh inning. He gave up just one hit and two runs before exiting after 6 2/3 innings and 105 pitches.

“I thought that was as confident as I’ve ever seen him,” Phillies manager Gabe Kapler told MLB.com about Velasquez. “But most notably for me was how comfortable he looked in his own skin today. It was a breath of fresh air, and I think when things aren’t going that smoothly for him, if he can maintain that composure, maintain that easiness and maintain that confidence, that’s when he’s going to reach his true potential.”

Velasquez is 1-1 with a 3.65 ERA and 1.297 WHIP in two career starts against St. Louis.

The Phillies are going for their fourth straight win after getting an unlikely walk-off victory in the 10th inning Monday night. Aaron Altherr hit a game-winning, two-run double that bounced past a diving Marcell Ozuna in left field.

Philadelphia’s 6-5 win came after its bullpen gave up two runs with two outs in the ninth inning and the go-ahead run on a Tommy Pham homer in the 10th.

“They came back in the ninth against us, but we still thought we could win this game,” Altherr told NBC Sports Philadelphia after his heroics. “It shows how resilient this team is. We never give up and always fight.”

The Cardinals, meanwhile, have dropped six of their last eight games.