Erickson: Winning's a lot more fun

Before that game, the Twins were lucky to be 7-14. Their starting pitching and several fielders had looked inept, and their hitters, none of whom will challenge for a home-run title, looked overwhelmed.

Since Erickson pitched his no-hitter, Twins starters have gone 10-5 with a
4.46 ERA. Before that, the starters were 4-10 with an 8.46 ERA. "Weird things make weird things happen," Erickson said of his no-hitter and its effect.

Meanwhile, the team has gone 13-5 since then, and will take a five-game winning streak into this weekend's series with the Boston Red Sox. Erickson will start tonight against Red Sox lefthander Joe Hesketh.

Erickson was asked if he considers himself a leader. He has gone 3-1 with a 3.82 ERA since April 27, and other Twins have credited him with snapping the team out of its doldrums.

"Who's to say?" he said. "It depends on your definition of a leader. I'm definitely not a vocal leader, if it's anything like that. It's impossible to say any one position player or pitcher can have that much of an impact on a team. It's a strange game."

On the eve of Opening Day, Erickson questioned management's commitment to winning this year, a bold statement that impressed a few people in the clubhouse. Asked how he felt about the Twins' resurgence, he said: "I'm very happy. This is much more fun."

Asked if he noticed a difference in the clubhouse, Erickson said: "I wouldn't say the attitude has changed.  I would say the atmosphere has changed."

So has the pitching.

The stats

- The Twins have had seven quality starts in their past 11 games. They had five in their first 28 games.

- The omens aren't good for the Red Sox. Erickson has an ERA of 2.74 at the Metrodome, the eighth-best home ERA in the AL, and is 5-4 with a career 2.42 ERA against Boston. He has an ERA of 7.36 on the road.

- Erickson has an ERA of 4.21 when pitching to Matt Walbeck, and an ERA of 7.88 when pitching to backup catcher Derek Parks. Twins pitchers overall have a 6.33 ERA pitching to Walbeck, 6.83 pitching to Parks.

- Erickson has a 3.86 ERA pitching during the day, and 6.32 at night, despite the fact that his no-hitter was at night.

- Opponents are hitting .351 against Erickson in the first inning, and .292 overall.