Twins Minor League Report (9/16): Cedar Rapids Kernels Fight To Stay Alive in Midwest league Championship Series

TRANSACTIONS
With most of the affiliates season’s over, there were no transactions in the Twins system over the last two days.

SAINTS SENTINEL
St. Paul 6, Memphis 7
Box Score
The last time Saints starter Andrew Morris had given up more than two runs in a game, is all the while back on June 12th. In his seven games since (including five starts), Morris has pitched to a 2.42 ERA with 32 K’s in 26 total innings. You can add another five innings with just a lone earned run to that streak as Morris continued to be excellent in this one.

He retired the first nine he faced in this one before a leadoff single in the fourth finally gave the Redbirds a baserunner. A stolen base and a couple of fly balls got them their first run of the game to pull within one.

The Saints were ahead at that point as DaShawn Keirsey Jr. led off the game with a double, and came around to score after singles from Gabriel Gonzalez and Kyler Fedko in the first. They added a second run in the fourth when Kyler Fedko and Jonah Bride each doubled.

In the top of the sixth the Saints seemed to break it open. Walker Jenkins got it started with a one-out single, stole second bases, and then advanced to third on the error throw. Fedko and Payton Eeles followed with walks to load the bases, before Bride brought in the first run of the inning with an RBI single. Jose Miranda followed with a grounder toward third but the throw went awry allowing two to score for a 5-1 lead.

Morris finished a scoreless fifth inning to end his outing. The Redbirds got just the one run against him, on just one hit and one walk. He struck out two and 48 of his 76 pitches went for strikes (63%).

Big left-hander Christian MacLeod came on to start the sixth inning, but it quickly went pear-shaped. A leadoff walk and pair singles loaded the bases before he got an out on an RBI groundout. A sac fly made it 5-3, before Blaze Jordan clubbed his 27th home run of the season to tie it at five. A double and second home run followed for a 7-5 Memphis lead before MacLeod got out of the inning.

In the top of the eighth Jenkins reached base as the leadoff man on an error, and Fedko followed with a single to put the tying runs on base. A wild pitch and a stolen base put them both in scoring position, but only Jenkins made it home on a grounder from Bride to make the final of 7-6.

Jarret Whorff finished the final two innings for the Saints bullpen, allowing one hit and striking out two.

On the hitting front Gonzalez (2-for-5, R, K), Fedko (3-for-3, 2 R, 2B, RBI, BB, 2 SB), and Bride (2-for-4, 2B, 3 RBI) each had a pair of hits. Jenkins finished 1-for-4 out of the third spot in the lineup, scored two runs, and stole his third base with the Saints.

KERNELS NUGGETS
Midwest League Championship Series
Game 2: West Michigan 3, Cedar Rapids 1
Box Score
After going with Garrett Horn in game one against the Whitecaps, the Kernels sent out right-hander Ty Langenberg to keep their championship hopes alive. Langenberg pitched the entire season in the Midwest League, making 21 starts and pitching over 100 innings. He faced West Michigan once during the regular season, taking the loss in a 3-2 game where he pitched into the seventh inning.

He had to do a bit of work in every of his innings in this one, as the Whitecaps had runners in scoring position in each of the first three innings. West Michigan used a leadoff walk and a single in the third to put up their biggest threat. But thanks to a big strikeout and a double-play ball, Langenberg limited the damage to just a single run.

In the top of the fifth he gave up a leadoff single, then the baserunner stole West Michigan’s fourth base of the game to put another runner in scoring position. Langeberg retired the next two hitters, but with that runner on third the Kernels went to the bullpen and Brennen Oxford, who struck out the final batter of the inning to keep the score 1-0.

Langenberg finished 4 2/3 innings, allowing the one earned run on five hits and three walks, while striking out four. He threw 81 pitches, with 51 of them going for strikes (63%).

The Kernels offense got a good start to the game from Kyle DeBarge, who led off the bottom of the first with a triple. Unfortunately, a grounder from Eduardo Tait two batters later ended with him being thrown out at home. A leadoff double from Poncho Ruiz ended with the same scoreless result, as Cedar Rapids couldn’t string any hits together early.

Spencer Bengard came on from the bullpen to start the sixth inning, and he quickly retired the first two hitters, including a strikeout. But the next batter clubbed a triple over the head of Misael Urbina in left field to give the Whitecaps another threat. A walk put a second runner on bases, before an RBI double was sent into right-center field. It took a bit for the ball to get back to the infield, so the trailing runner got sent home as well, where an awkward relay throw and athletic tag play from Ruiz was ruled as an out to end the inning. But West Michigan still had a 2-0 lead.

In the bottom half the Kernels finally put some things together. A one-out single from Tait, a two-out single from Danny De Andrade, and a walk to Urbina loaded the bases and chased the Whitecaps starter from the game. Unfortunately, the home team still didn’t get the clutch hit as Caden Kendle went down swinging.

Bengard retired the side in order in the seventh, but found himself in trouble again in the eighth after a single and double to start the frame. He struck out his third batter before the Kernels went to the bullpen and Ruddy Gomez. Gomez also got a strikeout on his first batter, but the strikeout pitch was buried in the dirt and got past Ruiz, allowing the Whitecaps third run of the game to score. Gomez got out of the inning without any more damage, but the Kernels had work to do.

In the bottom of the eighth Billy Amick and De Andrade got the rally started that they needed, opening with back-to-back singles to bring a tying run to the plate. A groundout moved them both into scoring position before Kendle was hit-by-a-pitch to load the bases. A wild-pitch finally got the Kernels on the scoreboard and they had life with one out. A walk from Ruiz again loaded the bases for Jaime Ferrer, but his grounder turned into a double-play to end the inning, and any of the Kernels chances.

Gomez struck out two in a one-two-three top of the ninth, but the same fate awaited the top of the order for the home team in the bottom-half, and they fell 3-1 to the Midwest League Champion, West Michigan Whitecaps of the Detroit Tigers organization.

The Kernels had their opportunities to force a deciding game, but as a team finished 0-for-10 with runners in scoring position, and left 11 men on base in the contest. De Andrade (2-for-4) and Ruiz (2-for-3, 2B) each had two hits.

While they weren’t able to hoist the trophy in the end, it’s no small feat to reach the Championship Series and challenge a team that finished with a winning percentage over .700 on the season, which equated to a 20.5 game lead over the Kernels in the standings. The Whitecaps led the league in runs per game (almost one run more per game than the Kernels, who finished third), OPS from their lineup (Kernels were second), and ERA (over a full run better).

Congrats to Cedar Rapids on another great season!

TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY
Pitcher of the Day – Andrew Morris, St. Paul Saints (5 IP, H, ER, BB, 2 K)
Hitter of the Day – Kyler Fedko, St. Paul Saints (3-for-3, 2 R, 2B, RBI, BB, 2 SB)

PROSPECT SUMMARY
Check out the Prospect Tracker for much more on our Twins Top 20 prospects after seeing how they performed on Tuesday.

#1 – Walker Jenkins (St. Paul): 1-for-4, 2 R, SB (3) (played CF)
#4 – Eduardo Tait (Cedar Rapids): 1-for-5, 2 K (played DH)
#10 – Gabriel Gonzalez (St. Paul): 2-for-5, R, K (played DH)
#12 – Marek Houston (Cedar Rapids): 0-for-4, BB, 2 K (played SS)
#16 – Andrew Morris (St. Paul): 5 IP, H, ER, BB, 2 K
#17 – Kyle DeBarge (Cedar Rapids): 1-for-4, 3B, BB, 2 K (played 2B)
#19 – Kyler Fedko (St. Paul): 3-for-3, 2 R, 2B, RBI, BB, 2 SB (10) (played LF)

WEDNESDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS
St. Paul @ Memphis (6:05 PM CDT) - RHP John Klein (0-4, 5.82 ERA)

Please feel free to ask questions and discuss Tuesday’s games, and the end of the season for the Cedar Rapids Kernels!

Interested in learning more about the Minnesota Twins' top prospects? Check out our comprehensive top prospects list that includes up-to-date stats, articles and videos about every prospect, scouting reports, and more!