Hughes: 'Things are going good at the moment'

Whatever the translation may be, that's what Twins fielder and Australia native Luke Hughes is this past week. His hot streak since being recalled from Triple-A Rochester on Aug. 18 was punctuated in Sunday's 11-4 against Detroit, as he went 2-for-4 with two home runs and five RBIs. This came a day after homering off Tigers ace Justin Verlander on Saturday.

In 10 games since being recalled, Hughes is batting .321 with three homers and nine RBIs.

"We know he can do it. We're just happy he's starting to do it now," said outfielder Jason Kubel, who also homered Sunday. "We can expect a lot more of that from him this year and next year."

Hughes has seen his playing time increase as of late with regular second baseman Alexi Casilla on the disabled list with a hamstring injury. Hughes has taken advantage of the recent opportunity to get some regular at-bats.

"It makes things a little bit easier when you're out there every day, seeing pitches every day instead of trying to play once a week," Hughes said. "But, hey, that's the way you start off up here. Start off the bench and you try and make your way into the starting lineup and you try to stay there. Things are going good at the moment."

Hughes isn't the only young player who's seen his playing time increase as a result of injuries. The list also includes shortstop Trevor Plouffe, who's filling in for the injured Tsuyoshi Nishioka. Both continue to gain confidence at the plate.

"You just hope you see improvement and better at-bats and you see them relax a little bit," Twins manager Ron Gardenhire said. "When they're not playing every day, they fight it. They press themselves. That's the norm for kids that come up here. They're getting out right now; they're having some fun. They've been swinging."