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I was originally going to write about the Twins "June Swoon", but the news of Vargas' demotion followed by word that Miguel Sano would assume his spot on the roster makes last month's struggle old news. The Twins are above .500 so by loose definition they are contenders to make the playoffs. They have promoted three of their top prospects within the last month and it looks like this won't be the end of the moves. First, a look at positions, followed by a look at players. Center Field: The Twi
The Minnesota Twins dropped yet another series today, this time at the hands of the NL Central Cincinnati Reds. Looking to take the rubber match against staff ace, Johnny Cueto, runs seemed as though they would be few and far between. With a lackluster lineup to start, Minnesota did themselves no favors throughout the contest. At the end of the game it was Kennys Vargas who took the fall with a demotion to Double-A Chattanooga. But really, is Vargas to blame at this point? Following an impress
Before there was Ervin Santana, there was Phil Hughes. Before the 2014 season, the Minnesota Twins double-dipped and signed two starting pitchers. Although it was Ricky Nolasco that received the bigger contract, it was always Hughes that should have been looked like as a better fit. Leaving New York and the Cracker Jack box known as Yankee Stadium, he should have been expected to succeed. 2015 was always going to be a tough act to follow after a strong 2014, and so far that's proven true. In his
Over at Twins Daily, we have been counting down the Twins system's top prospects as part of our midseason update. This allows for players like recent first round pick Tyler Jay to fit into the Twins overall prospect rankings. There is plenty of depth in the Twins system so there are some very good players outside the top 10 rankings. Some players like Byron Buxton and Eddie Rosario will likely use up their rookie eligibility this season and graduate out of the rankings. This means other player
Going into the 2015 season, few Twins prospects brought more intrigue than that of Jose Berrios. The 2012 1st round pick (32nd overall), has flown through the minor leagues, and sights were set even higher. Suggesting he wanted to make a splash in spring training, Berrios is now staring his final hurdle in the face. As I reported late last night, Berrios has received the promotion to Triple-A Rochester. After pitching to the tune of a 3.08 ERA along with a 9.18 K/9 ratio, Minnesota decided a new
Why is there a need for a Metrodome baggie wall in right field? Do we have to remember that the Twins played 27 years in the Teflon Palace? For fans, there is nostalgia and of course two World Series titles, where the Twins won all 8 World Series games at home. Target Field ushered in a new era of outdoor baseball, modern day amenities, the iconic Minnie and Paul Logo in centerfield, a green batter’s eye with 14 spruce trees and slightly similar dimensions of the Metrodome. Those dimension and t
The Minnesota Twins had one of the greatest months in franchise history in May, going 20-7 and putting themselves in the conversation for the American League Central Division. Unfortunately, they've gone 10-16 since then with only a couple games left in June and now see themselves 5.5 games back of the Kansas City Royals in the division and 1 game back of an American League Wild Card spot. The bats have quieted down in June and the bullpen has come back down to earth. A big reason for the 20-w
In just a few more days, the Minnesota Twins will be afforded the opportunity to see their $55 million free agent acquisition in action. After serving his performance enhancing drug related suspension, Ervin Santana will rejoin the 25 man roster, and the starting rotation for the Twins. With the Twins pitching staff being where it is in 2015, what the Twins should expect from Santana remains somewhat of a mystery. After four years of futility from their starters, the Twins have seemingly turne
There was plenty of action on Sunday, as both the Rochester Red Wings and Elizabethton Twins played double-headers. There was a walk-off blast in one game, a few stellar pitching performances, and an ongoing winning streak on the line. There was also an incredible display of power from the middle of the lineup for one affiliate (I’ll let you guess which one…), as the players involved continue to one-up each other. There was so much action I couldn't limit the players of the day to just one n
Over the weekend, I got to enjoy a couple GCL games of the GCL Minnesota Twins and GCL Boston Red Sox. Best part of these games are the closeness to the action you can get as well as VIPs lurking around. This weekend, Top Scout Mike Ratcliff was seen timing and evaluating the new talent. The following links are Youtube Videos that I took over the weekend of the prospects. The following are the pitching lines and charts for the 6/26/15 game, followed by video on Travis Blankenhorn, Trey Ca
When you ask ballplayers about their outside interests, it’s not unusual for them to express an interest in hunting. In that regard, Kernels’ pitcher Randy LeBlanc fits in with the crowd. It’s when you ask what he hunts that LeBlanc begins to vary from the norm. He’ll tell you he spent most of his offseason fishing and duck hunting, with a little deer hunting thrown in. Although, “my dad does more deer hunting than I do,” he says. After a pause though, he adds the kicker. “I’ve been gato
Brian Dozier put the Minnesota Twins out front 1-0 immediately in the series opener with their cross-state rival Milwaukee Brewers, leading off the game with his fifteenth home run of the season. It was the eleventh time in his career he has led off a game in such fashion. Four of their six minor league teams also jumped out to leads after the first inning, but what happened next for the parent club after Dozier’s home run was telling throughout the MiLB action on the night. To find out how
As we tip toe to July, we know that inevitably Twins fans will start to imagine all manner of favorable scenarios, dream sequences and wishful thinking that leads the GM Terry Ryan to make all the right moves and deliver a winner to Target Field. We Peanuts from Heaven are nothing if not imaginative, but rather than prognosticate any remotely feasible trade scenarios, allow us to write another in our on-going series of creative scenes played against a backdrop of the Twins 2015 season (apologi
You can download the new Talk to Contact (<a href="https://twitter.com/talktocontact">@TalkToContact</a>) episode via <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/talk-to-contact-podcast-about/id556784825?mt=2">iTunes</a> or by clicking <a href="http://talk2contact.podomatic.com/entry/2015-06-25T19_11_50-07_00" target="_blank">here</a>, and if you want to add the show to your non-iTunes podcast player, <a href="http://talk2contact.podomatic.com/rss2.xml">
The time is now for the Minnesota Twins and Alex Meyer. On the heels of his recent promotion to the big leagues, Minnesota will now get to experience their return for Denard Span. With Meyer set to make his major league debut, there's no doubt that he wants to stick after his long awaited promotion. The good news, he should be expected to do just that. Heading into the season, Baseball Prospectus ranked Alex Meyer as their 14th best prospect. At that time, he was still a starting pitcher, and th
-SHTICKBALL- Twins firstbaseman Joe Mauer had gotten off to a pretty rough start in 2015, and even though there were many theories as to why, Joe thinks he has the problem solved. Joe started a daily milk drinking regiment a few weeks ago, and he believes that it is paying off. “Earlier this season I wasn’t hitting very good, and I wasn’t exactly sure why. Then I realized for whatever reason I hadn’t been drinking nearly as much delicious Kemps milk this year, so I decided to try drinking mor
What a strange season. I didn't think the Twins would be playing decent baseball as the calendar switched to July. I didn't think that Byron Buxton would be up, after his essentially lost 2014 season. I didn't think Trevor May would be (as of late) the team's most dominant starting pitcher. And I sure didn't think this proverbial ragtag bunch of misfits would -- if the season ended today -- be a wild card playoff team. I thought 2015 would be the season where players like Oswaldo Arcia, Aa
The Twins enjoyed an off-day on Thursday and traveled to Milwaukee for a three-game boarder-battle with the Brewers, starting on Friday evening. It was announced on Thursday that the Fort Myers Miracle will host the 2016 Florida State League All-Star Game. RED WINGS REPORT Rochester @ Pawtucket PawSox Box Score Ervin Santana ran his record to 2-0 with a seven inning, 97 pitch, outing. Santana struck out three, walked two, gave up seven hits, including a pair of home runs. Santana was relie
In just a few more days, the Minnesota Twins will have a pitching issue on their hands. This time, it isn't about whether or not Minnesota will have options, but in fact, that they will simply have too many. Although he isn't yet going to come into play, Jose Berrios has made himself the gold standard among minor league options for the Twins, and their pitching depth is all the better for it. After blitzing the Twins system last season, starting at High-A Fort Myers and ending with a start for T
With Tonkin being optioned back to the minor leagues, the Twins have created a hole in the lineup in advance of a 10-game road trip, with the first six of those games in National League ballparks. Some people have suggested that Oswaldo Arcia could return, or a utility player such as Doug Bernier. However, it has appeared to me that the Twins have tried to introduce new prospects during road series, in order to avoid the double-edged nerve-sword of a simultaneous major league and home debut.
The Midwest League’s Eastern Division All-Stars took two hours and forty-four minutes to top their Western Division counterparts 5-0 in Peoria Tuesday night, but any Cedar Rapids fans who made the trip hoping to watch the Kernels’ representatives had to be careful with the timing of any trips to the concession stand. Pitchers Felix Jorge, Jared Wilson, Trevor Hildenberg and Cam Booser spent less than a combined 15 minutes on the mound while throwing a total of two and one-third innings for the
June 14, 2015 a day that will forever go down as one of the most highly anticipated days in all of Minnesota Twins history. Byron Buxton, the Twins second overall pick, joined the big leagues to an exorbitant amount of fanfare. With only three Twins picks ever drafted higher (Tim Belcher, Johnny Ard, and Joe Mauer went first overall), Buxton was seen as the superhero the Twins needed. But what exactly are his superpowers? Now having spent just over a week in the big leagues, there has been mixed
Though the Twins' offense has struggled to generate many runs in the month of June, their tremendous success in May and the method of their outburst against the White Sox yesterday reminds us all of what has worked for the team all year: Hit Clusters. Now, the Twins, along with local business partners in the breakfast cereal industry are out to share the secret of their winning ways with the populace at large in this new advertisement for a special Twins Centric Cereal! [Our first shot is of
Start #3 for the 21-year-old went well again. He tossed three scoreless innings with no walks. He gave up one hit and had three strikeouts. In 8 IP through 3 starts, he's given up 0 runs, 1 hit, 3 walks, and 13 strikeouts.
I am not a follower of Donald Trump. I have participated in several no kings rallies and am disgusted with what he and his followers have done to our country and the world. I would like to know what most Brazilians feel about the United States now and about the folks our citizens have elected to represent us.
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hello Seth......you'll wanna correct the date in headline of today's minor league report. :-) Brad· 0 replies
I am not a follower of Donald Trump. I have participated in several no kings rallies and am disgusted with what he and his followers have done to our country and the world. I would like to know what most Brazilians feel about the United States now and about the folks our citizens have elected to represent us.· 1 reply
