Twins at the break: Not half bad

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) -- Halfway into a season they almost didn't play, the Minnesota Twins hold the biggest lead in any of the three divisions of the American League.

That comes despite a dropoff by their entire infield and injuries to key players. Yet the Twins are up by 7 1/2 games, with the rest of the AL Central not putting up much of a fight. The White Sox and the Indians are under .500.

"We have played pretty good ball and stayed in almost every game even when we lost," said center fielder Torii Hunter, one of three Twins in Tuesday's All-Star game. "That's what we want to do. That's the plan for the second half. Don't try to change anything."

The injuries have given Ron Gardenhire more stress than he bargained for. But the first-year manager is confident the lineup patching will pay off come August and September.

"We ought to be ready for the second half," Gardenhire said.

"Our bullpen was probably the best part of our game," Gardenhire said. "The bullpen was unbelievable the whole first half. "