Minneapolis ? Eric Milton’s timing was perfect. If only his manager’s trip to the mound could have waited a little longer.

Milton pitched 72/3 innings the longest outing by a Twins starter this year and Torii Hunter hit his fifth home run Thursday to give Minnesota a 4-1 victory over the Royals.

Kansas City's Mike Sweeney reacts to striking out against Minnesota's Eric Milton as Twins catcher A.J. Pierzynski tosses the ball back to the pitcher. KC fell, 4-1, Thursday at Minnesota.

“For the first time as a manager, I walked out to the mound and got a staredown,” Ron Gardenhire said with a grin. “I honestly was a little scared. I almost became the first manager to be knocked out.”

Milton (3-1) allowed one run and four hits, striking out four and walking none.

He’s 11-2 against the Royals in his career, and his continued mastery of Kansas City came at just the right time for the Twins: one day after Minnesota’s worst loss in eight years and a day before a big series against division-leading Cleveland.

Plus, it gave the Twins’ surprisingly successful bullpen some much-needed rest.

“We needed a strong performance,” said Milton, who was removed for J.C. Romero with two outs in the eighth after Dave McCarty’s homer cut Minnesota’s lead to 2-1.

“I’d like to finish the eighth. I’m not a big believer in pitch counts,” Milton said. “But we got the win, that’s all that matters.”

Eddie Guardado struck out the side in the ninth for his seventh save in as many chances.

“Probably the main objective today was to give the bullpen some rest,” Milton said. “I felt the same in the eighth as I did in the first. I could’ve thrown 150 pitches and it really wouldn’t have mattered. But you know the guys behind you are going to do their job.”

The Twins rebounded from their most lopsided loss in eight years, 16-3 on Wednesday, and improved to 5-1 at home entering this weekend’s series against division-leading Cleveland.

Minnesota (10-6) is 10-2 against everybody but the Indians. Still, the Twins weren’t revealing any excitement for Cleveland’s arrival.

“I’m still thinking about how well Milton threw,” Gardenhire said. “We’re just going to play another game. We didn’t do too well last time. Hopefully we’ll do better this time.”

Jeff Suppan (1-2) allowed four runs and seven hits in 71/3 innings, striking out four and walking one. Suppan has pitched at least six innings in all four of his starts.

“I feel sad for him, because he always gives a good effort,” Royals center fielder Carlos Beltran said. “But we don’t always win for him.”

Suppan was tough early, retiring seven straight after David Ortiz’s single put runners on first and third with one out in the first.

But Corey Koskie led off the Twins’ fourth with a triple that bounced off the top of the center-field wall, inches above Beltran’s glove, and scored on Ortiz’s sacrifice fly.

Hunter, whose five home runs are one more than Kansas City has, made it 2-0 with a homer into the bank of folded-up football seats in right field.

Suppan escaped further harm in the fifth inning when A.J. Pierzynski was thrown out at home by first baseman McCarty on Guzman’s bunt. But the Twins added insurance in the eighth when Jones reached on a bunt, took second on Suppan’s throwing error and scored on Koskie’s single to center.

Brian Shouse relieved and yielded a run-scoring single to Ortiz, that made it 4-1.

“Suppan was tough on us,” Gardenhire said. “Milty did everything he possibly could do.”

Notes: David Ortiz, normally the Twins’ DH, gave Doug Mientkiewicz a break at first base but had to leave in the eighth after straining his knee running out a base hit. He’s day-to-day. … Hunter has 16 hits in his last 31 at-bats. … Kansas City’s game against the Indians last Sunday, which was rained out, will be rescheduled as part of a day-night doubleheader May 18 in Cleveland. … The Royals, who still have not officially made a move to replace LHP Darrell May on the roster, announced their starting pitchers for this weekend’s series at home against Boston: Chris George tonight, Bryan Rekar on Saturday and Dan Reichert on Sunday. George and Rekar are currently in the minors, so one of them will be brought up to take the place of May, who has a strained left groin, and a move will have to be made to accommodate the other.