(My Sportsbook) - The Minnesota Twins have a chance to sweep the Chicago White Sox right out of first place in the American League Central division tonight, when the two ballclubs wrap up a three-game series at the Metrodome.

Minnesota has won three in a row, including the first two tests of this set, and recorded a 3-2 victory on Wednesday. Joe Mauer knocked in a pair of runs and Denard Span added the other RBI, as the Twins pulled within a half game of the White Sox for the top spot in the Central standings.

Delmon Young contributed three hits and Brendan Harris went 2-for-3 for Minnesota, which got a solid effort from starting pitcher Nick Blackburn. Blackburn collected the win after allowing two runs on eight hits in five innings of work. Four relievers then combined to allow just one hit and one walk the rest of the way, with Joe Nathan notching his 39th save in the ninth.

The Twins will roll the dice with Kevin Slowey on the mound Thursday and he has dropped two straight and three of his last four starts. Slowey last pitched on Saturday at Tampa Bay and was rocked for five runs and nine hits in 4 1/3 innings, falling to 12-11 with a 3.85 earned run average this season.

Slowey, though, is 7-1 in his last eight starts at the Metrodome. The last time he faced the White Sox was at home on July 28, when he recorded his second career shutout and allowed six hits and fanned five batters in a 7-0 victory. The righty is 2-2 with a 4.39 ERA in five career games (four starts) versus Chicago.

The White Sox will try to avoid the sweep tonight and have lost three of four and five of their last seven games. In Wednesday's 3-2 setback to the Twins, Ken Griffey Jr. homered again while Orlando Cabrera, A.J. Pierzynski and Alexei Ramirez each had two hits.

Starter Mark Buehrle was saddled with the loss after he surrendered three runs on eight hits in seven frames.

Chicago hopes Gavin Floyd can continue his 2008 success against the Twins, as he owns a 3-1 mark with a 1.86 ERA in four meetings with Minnesota. Floyd has held the Twins' bats to a .168 batting average and last faced them on July 30 at the Metrodome. He allowed one run in 7 2/3 innings of an 8-3 victory.

Floyd, though, has lost two of his last three starts, including a September 20 performance against Kansas City in which he allowed five runs and eight hits over 6 1/3 innings of his team's 5-2 defeat. The young right-hander fell to 16-8 with a 3.84 ERA in 31 trips to the mound this season.

Minnesota leads the season series with Chicago by a slim 9-8 margin, but is 7-1 versus the Pale Hose at the Metrodome. The Twins have won five of their last six contests against the White Sox -- all in Minneapolis.