Heading into the month of June, the Minnesota Twins were the talk of the 2019 MLB season. Driven by shrewd offseason acquisitions and a penchant for the home run ball, the Twins raced out to a big lead in the weak American League Central while the Cleveland Indians struggled just to stay above .500 thanks to injuries and poor performances.

In addition to a high-powered offense that was amongst the leaders in runs scored as well as a pitching staff bolstered by a breakout performance from Jake Odorizzi and a deep bullpen, the Twins instantly established themselves as legit contenders in the American League.

But after a sterling 21-8 record in May helped them race to the top of the division, a mediocre 15-12 record in June and a 5-6 record through the first 11 games of July has made the situation more tenuous. As the Twins stumbled through June, the Indians went 17-9 in the month and have since gone 9-2 in July.

Whereas they once appeared to be shoe-in candidates to sell guys like Trevor Bauer and Brad Hand, Cleveland now finds themselves just four games back of the Twins entering play on Thursday.

What looked like a runaway in the AL Central has turned into a dogfight, and things could get even stickier should the Indians elect to buy at the deadline and acquire a sweet-swinging outfielder.

The gap has closed in the division. And given the uncertainty of what the next couple weeks will bring, the Twins need to get aggressive before the July 31 trade deadline.

Although the starting rotation has arguably exceeded expectations, Rocco Baldelli's club could use an impact starter to put them over the top.

With that in mind, here are three reasons that the Minnesota Twins need to acquire San Francisco Giants ace Madison Bumgarner:

3. Another left-handed starter

One of the reasons the Twins should try to acquire Bumgarner is that they currently have just one left-handed starter in Martin Perez. Paired with the fact that they have just one left-handed reliever, the Twins are susceptible to opposing managers stacking their lineups with lefty bats.

Not only would Madison Bumgarner solve this issues, but he dominates left-handed hitters, who are hitting just .190 with a .531 OPS against the 11-year veteran.

Adding Bumgarner to the rotation would give the Twins a ton of flexibility in terms of moving someone like Kyle Gibson to the bullpen for more of a long relief role.

2. Strikeout pitcher/Innings eater

The Twins have guys that can rack up strikeouts. Odirizzi has a 9.4 K/9, and Gibson has a 9.1 K/9. This season, Bumgarner has the third-highest K/9 rate of his career (9.3) while also boasting the third-lowest BB/9 rate of his career (1.9).

As a left-hander with stuff that is wholly different from the likes of Odirizzi, Gibson and Jose Berrios, Bumgarner would supply opposing hitters with a new challenge.

The other component that would make Bumgarner an excellent fit is his tendency to go deep into ballgames. Through his first 20 starts this season, Bumgarner was averaging close to six innings per start, and he traditionally has been a guy that can battle through seven innings of work even if he gets touched up early.

Considering Minnesota's starters rank towards the bottom of the league in terms of innings pitched, Bumgarner would be a boon for a club that relies so heavily on their bullpen. As good as he has been, Odirizzi is averaging just over five innings per start.

Madison Bumgarner simply offers a new look and a more assured “innings eater.”

1. Postseason pedigree

It would be absurd to expect Bumgarner to come in and pitch up to the level of his 2014 postseason. That said, Bumgarner has an unrivaled reputation as one of the best “big game” starters in baseball. For a young team that seems to be arriving ahead of schedule, that kind of experience is invaluable.

Even though hypotheticals can be redundant in sports and especially in baseball, consider this: should the Twins lose their grip on the division and be forced to play the likes of the Boston Red Sox or Oakland Athletics in a potential Wild Card game, is there anyone that you would rather have on the mound than Bumgarner?

He has not been to the postseason since 2016, yet Madison Bumgarner competes each and every single time that he takes the hill for the Giants. Who is to say that he would not be supremely motivated by getting traded to a team with a chance to contend for a pennant?

The Twins have the offensive firepower and the bullpen to compete, but they need the kind of veteran ace that can help them make a run at a World Series title.

Minnesota has a number of top prospects in the farm system. The time is now to get aggressive and make the play for one of the most definitive pitchers of the generation.