Matt Braun

TRANSACTIONS C Willians Astudillo optioned to AAA Rochester RHP Ryan Eades contract selected by Minnesota RED WINGS REPORT Rochester 6, Pawtucket 2 Box Score Randy Dobnak: 6 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 5 K, 61.1% strikes (55 of 90 pitches) HR: Drew Maggi (6), Wilin Rosario (7) Multi-hit games: Willians Astudillo (3-for-4, RBI, BB), Wilin Rosario (2-for-3, HR, 2B, R, 2 RBI, BB), Drew Maggi (2-for-2, HR, 2 R, 2 RBI, BB) The Red Wings pushed their win streak to six games thanks to a consistent offensive attack and a great start from Randy Dobnak who now holds a 2.55 ERA in his time at AAA. Fan favorite Willians Astudillo was demoted to AAA yesterday and apparently took the news in stride as he collected three hits and somehow walked in his first game back in the minors. Four Red Wings hitters (Astudillo, Rooker, Rosario, Maggi) reached base multiple times and all but three hitters reached base at least once during the game. Trevor Hildenberger was called on in the ninth to end the game and gave up a homer in his sole inning of work. His AAA ERA now sits at 8.44 and I truly hope that he can put it back together soon as he has shown that he can be a dominating reliever in the majors. BLUE WAHOO BITES Pensacola 2, Biloxi 5 Box Score Charlie Barnes: 4 IP, 5 H, 2 ER, 2 BB, 4 K, 60.3% strikes (44 of 73 pitches) HR: Jaylin Davis (9) Multi-hit games: Michael Davis (2-for-4, 2B) Despite great showings from the Davis brothers (note: Michael and Jaylin are not actual brothers to the best of my knowledge), the Blue Wahoos fell to the Shuckers by a score of 5-2. It was a close 2-1 affair until the Shuckers were able to break through with three runs off Jeff Ames in the bottom of the eighth inning. A Travis Blankenhorn RBI double in the top of the ninth would trim the lead to just three, but the Blue Wahoos were unable to score again by the time their outs ran out. Side-arming reliever Tom Hackimer came into the game in relief of Charlie Barnes and threw a pair of scoreless innings to bring his AA ERA down to a microscopic 1.08. In the end, the Blue Wahoos' inability to get a hit with RISP helped do them in as they went a combined 1-for-8 in opportunities where a man was in scoring position. MIRACLE MATTERS Ft. Myers 4, Jupiter 2 Box Score Cole Sands: 5 ⅓ IP, 4 H, 2 ER, 1 BB, 7 K, 62.2% strikes (51 of 82 pitches) HR: Lewin Diaz (13), Jose Miranda (4), Trey Cabbage (2) Multi-hit games: Lewin Diaz (2-for-3, HR, R, RBI, BB), Trevor Larnach (2-for-4), David Banuelos (2-for-4, RBI) Lewin Diaz continued to make an absolute mockery of the very concept of A+ by launching his 13th homer of the year in support of yet another multi-hit game for the slugging first baseman. The only reason why he hasn’t been promoted to AA is because his bus ticket to Pensacola was lost in the mail (or probably some actual legit reason, who knows). Perhaps the Twins want to give Alex Kirilloff that playing time at first base. In any case, it seems like Diaz will be moving up sooner rather than later because A+ pitchers cannot stop him, they can only hope to contain him. Not to be outdone by Diaz, the baby bombas, Jose Miranda and Trey Cabbage, both launched home runs of their own as every Miracle run came off a hot, fresh, and piping tater. Cole Sands was dealing early in the game but was removed after the first out in the sixth because of a cut in his pitching hand. Hopefully it is more precautionary than anything and Sands can get back out there soon. Aaron Whitefield swiped his 19th base of the season which puts him just behind Vidal Brujan for the FSL lead (Brujan has 21 steals). You also may or may not be surprised by this little tidbit from Marshall Kelner: https://twitter.com/MarshallKelner/status/1137521185296658432 KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 8, Peoria 7 (10 innings) Box Score Josh Winder: 7 IP, 3 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 7 K, 63.6% strikes (63 of 99 pitches) HR: Wander Javier (2) Multi-hit games: Andrew Bechtold (3-for-4, R, 2 RBI, BB), Gabe Snyder (2-for-5, 2B, R), Estamy Urena (2-for-3, RBI) The Kernels won quite the game this Saturday that took an extra inning to end and went berserk in the bottom of the eighth. Josh Winder was nothing short of outstanding in his start as he went seven full innings without surrendering so much as an extra-base hit, much less a run. The game was a seemingly normal 2-0 affair heading into the bottom half of the eighth but the Chiefs took advantage of Brian Rapp’s wildness by scratching four runs across thanks in part to a hit-by-pitch, walks, and some singles. All seemed lost heading into the ninth but the Kernels were able to put some men on before Gabriel Maciel singled one of them home, giving the Kernels a deficit of just one run. Jacob Pearson struck out, Gilberto Celestino walked, and the bases were loaded for Wander Javier. What did Wander Javier do with those loaded bases? He unloaded them along with himself as he blasted a grand slam to give the Kernels a 7-4 lead. But, the baseball gods were not done as the Chiefs took advantage of some wildness this time from Alex Schick in the bottom of the ninth and tied the game right back. The 10th started with a man on second base and the Kernels were able to take advantage thanks to an Andrew Bechtold RBI single. The Chiefs were not able to capitalize like the Kernels did as Derek Molina slammed the door shut and ended the inning without even allowing the free runner to advance. TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day – Josh Winder Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day – Drew Maggi PROSPECT SUMMARY Here’s a look at how the Twins Daily Top 20 Twins Prospects performed: #1 - Royce Lewis (Ft. Myers) - 0-for-4 #2 - Alex Kirilloff (Pensacola) - Injured list #3 - Brusdar Graterol (Pensacola) - Injured list #4 - Trevor Larnach (Ft. Myers) - 2-for-4 #5 - Wander Javier (Cedar Rapids) - 1-for-4, HR, R, 4 RBI, BB, K #6 - Brent Rooker (Rochester) - 1-for-3, 2B, R, 2 BB, K #7 - Jhoan Duran (Ft. Myers) - Did not pitch #8 - Lewis Thorpe (Rochester) - Did not pitch #9 - Blayne Enlow (Ft. Myers) - Did not pitch #10 - Akil Baddoo (Ft. Myers) - Tommy John surgery, out for year #11 - Nick Gordon (Rochester) - Did not play #12 - Stephen Gonsalves (Rochester) - Injured list #13 - Ryan Jeffers (Ft. Myers) - Did not play #14 - Ben Rortvedt (Pensacola) - 1-for-3, 2B, BB, 2 K #15 - Yunior Severino (Cedar Rapids) - Injured list #16 - Gilberto Celestino (Cedar Rapids) - 0-for-4, R, BB #17 - Zack Littell (Rochester) - With the Twins-did not pitch #18 - LaMonte Wade (Rochester) - Did not play #19 - Jorge Alcala (Pensacola) - Did not pitch #20 - Jose Miranda (Ft. Myers) - 1-for-4, HR, R, RBI SUNDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Rochester @ Pawtucket: (12:05 P.M.) - RHP Chase De Jong Pensacola @ Tennessee (2:35 P.M.) - RHP Jorge Alcala Fort Myers @ Lakeland (12:00 P.M.) - RHP Edwar Colina Peoria @ Cedar Rapids Game 1 (1:00 P.M.) - RHP Andrew Cabezas Please feel free to ask any questions and discuss Saturday’s games.

TRANSACTIONS DH Nelson Cruz transferred to A+ Fort Myers on a MLB Rehab Assignment OF Mark Contreras transferred to A+ Fort Myers from AA Pensacola OF Albee Weiss transferred from A+ Fort Myers to Rookie ball Elizabethton OF Brent Rooker reinstated from the injured list at AAA Rochester OF Tanner English transferred to AA Pensacola from AAA Rochester RED WINGS REPORT Rochester 7, Buffalo 2 Box Score Sean Poppen: 5 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 3 BB, 5 K, 56.5% strikes (52 of 92 pitches) HR: Zander Wiel (8) Multi-hit games: Randy César (2-for-4, R), Drew Maggi (2-for-4, R) The Rochester Red Wings’ pitching was absolutely on point tonight as Sean Poppen, Fernando Romero, and Ryan Eades combined for just one earned run over all nine innings with 11 punchouts in total. But the Red Wings did not forget to bring the offense with them as well as they slugged four total extra-base hits that helped them put together seven runs in the game. All but two hitters got a hit for the Red Wings. Brent Rooker was activated from the IL and quickly made his presence known by hitting an RBI double in the seventh to extend the lead to 6-2 in the Red Wings favor. Here is video evidence of Zander Wiel’s homer that tied the game in fifth: https://twitter.com/RocRedWings/status/1134993025225109504 A Jake Cave bases-clearing double: https://twitter.com/MorrieSilver8/status/1135009751547486208 The Brent Rooker RBI Double: https://twitter.com/MorrieSilver8/status/1135008846198562816 BLUE WAHOO BITES Pensacola 4, Mississippi 8 Box Score Jeff Ames: 3 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 4 K, 61.9% strikes (26 of 42) HR: Jimmy Kerrigan (4), Alex Kirilloff (2) Multi-hit games: Alex Kirilloff (3-for-3, HR, 2B, R, RBI, BB) The Blue Wahoos ran a bullpen game against the Braves and the Braves pounced all over each pitcher the Blue Wahoos sent out by putting up at least a single earned run on all five Blue Wahoos’ pitchers that pitched today. The major offensive performance for the Blue Wahoos came from a decent hitter named Alex Kirilloff who was more than just a phantom menace to the Braves as he reached base in every plate appearance this game along with slapping a homer and coming just a triple short of the cycle. He has turned it on the last few weeks and has been hitting more like the Alex Kirilloff we all know and love. Outside of Kirilloff’s performance and an eighth inning Jimmy Kerrigan two-run homer, the Blue Wahoos were unable to do much against the Braves offensively and fell to them by a score of 8-4. The Alex Kirilloff homer: https://twitter.com/TFTwins/status/1135012914652418050 MIRACLE MATTERS Ft. Myers 0, Lakeland 1 Box Score Jhoan Duran: 7 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 8 K, 65.7% strikes (67 of 102) HR: None Multi-hit games: None It was a good old fashioned pitchers duel as Jhoan Duran and Johan Quezada combined for just a single earned run on the day yet Duran was saddled with the tough-luck loss as the Miracle offense failed to score in the game. Duran unfortunately moves to 0-5 on the year but still holds a good ERA and excellent peripherals, he’ll continue to be a fun player to keep track of all season. Hotshot prospect Nelson Cruz went 1-for-4 with a single and a pair of strikeouts in his first rehab game. He’ll play in the game on Sunday too and will probably be re-evaluated then. The Miracle offense in total could only scatter four singles and three walks against Lakeland’s pitching and the offense had only two chances to hit with a runner in scoring position. https://twitter.com/MarshallKelner/status/1134910183992365056 KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 6, Beloit 2 Box Score Josh Winder: 6 IP, 5 H, 1 ER, 3 BB, 4 K HR: None Multi-hit games: Yeltsin Encarnacion (2-for-4, BB), Wander Javier (2-for-5, 2 R), Andrew Bechtold (2-for-3, 3 R, 2B, BB), Gabriel Maciel (2-for-4, RBI) The Kernels were all over the Snappers today as they bested them with both their arms and their bats. Kernels pitchers combined for just a single earned run over the entirety of the game as Moises Gomez and Alex Schick picked up right where Josh Winder left off and refused to allow the Snappers to score even a single run more than they did off Winder. A bases-clearing double from Gabe Snyder in the fourth inning proved to be the boost the Kernels needed to topple the Snappers as Beloit could only answer with a sacrifice fly in the bottom half of the inning before not scoring for the rest of the game. All but two Kernels hitters reached base safely at least once during the game and five Kernels batters reached base multiple times. TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day – Jhoan Duran Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day – Alex Kirilloff PROSPECT SUMMARY Here’s a look at how the Twins Daily Top 20 Twins Prospects performed: #1 - Royce Lewis (Ft. Myers) - 0-for-4, 4 K #2 - Alex Kirilloff (Pensacola) - 3-for-3, HR, 2B, R, 2 RBI, BB #3 - Brusdar Graterol (Pensacola) - Injured list #4 - Trevor Larnach (Ft. Myers) - 0-for-3, BB #5 - Wander Javier (Cedar Rapids) - 2-for-5, 2 R #6 - Brent Rooker (Rochester) - 1-for-4, 2B, RBI K #7 - Jhoan Duran (Ft. Myers) - 7 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 8 K #8 - Lewis Thorpe (Rochester) - Did not pitch #9 - Blayne Enlow (Ft. Myers) - Did not pitch #10 - Akil Baddoo (Ft. Myers) - Tommy John surgery, out for year #11 - Nick Gordon (Rochester) - 1-for-3, R, RBI, BB, K #12 - Stephen Gonsalves (Rochester) - Injured list #13 - Ryan Jeffers (Ft. Myers) - 0-for-3, BB, K #14 - Ben Rortvedt (Pensacola) - 0-for-4, K #15 - Yunior Severino (Cedar Rapids) - Injured list #16 - Gilberto Celestino (Cedar Rapids) - 0-for-5, 2 K #17 - Zack Littell (Rochester) - With the Twins-did not pitch #18 - LaMonte Wade (Rochester) - 0-for-3, BB, 2 K #19 - Jorge Alcala (Pensacola) - Did not pitch #20 - Jose Miranda (Ft. Myers) - 1-for-4, K SUNDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Buffalo @ Rochester Game 1: (1:05 P.M.) - RHP Kohl Stewart Pensacola @ Tennessee (1:05 P.M.) - LHP Bryan Sammons Fort Myers @ Lakeland (12:00 P.M.) - RHP Cole Sands Peoria @ Cedar Rapids (2:00 P.M.) - RHP Andrew Cabezas Please feel free to ask any questions and discuss Saturday’s games.

TRANSACTIONS -RHP Melvi Acosta promoted from A+ Fort Myers to AA Pensacola -RHP Randy Dobnak promoted from AA Pensacola to AAA Rochester -INF Wander Javier activated for A Cedar Rapids Injuries: https://twitter.com/DanHayesMLB/status/1132354488663183360 https://twitter.com/DanHayesMLB/status/1132354794339872769 https://twitter.com/DanHayesMLB/status/1132356067210518528 https://twitter.com/SethTweets/status/1132471728939180036 RED WINGS REPORT Suspended vs Pawtucket The Red Wings got out to a quick 6-1 lead vs Pawtucket in support of Randy Dobnak’s first AAA start before the rain came in and forced a suspension in the bottom of the second. The game will be made up as a doubleheader tomorrow and the first game will continue as normal as a nine inning game while the second game will be a seven inning affair. The Red Wings were wearing Hustlers jerseys which became a feature on ESPN and the clip can be found here: https://vimeo.com/338423235 BLUE WAHOO BITES Pensacola 1, Tennessee 5 Box Score Melvi Acosta: 4 IP, 8 H, 5 ER, 1 BB, 3 K, 70.8% strikes (46 of 65 pitches) HR: Travis Blankenhorn (7) Multi-hit games: Alex Kirilloff (2-for-4), Ernie De La Trinidad (2-for-3) The Blue Wahoos could not get much going offensively outside of a leadoff home run from Travis Blankenhorn and fell to the Tennessee Smokies. The only other extra-base hit was a double from Jaylin Davis. After Melvi Acosta made his AA debut by throwing four innings to start the game, Adam Bray came in and continued his excellent season by firing off four scoreless innings that came with three punch outs and just one hit. Alex Kirilloff had a multi-hit game which was good to see, hopefully he’ll be back doing Alex Kirilloff things very soon. MIRACLE MATTERS Ft. Myers 2, Daytona 0 Box Score Jordan Balazovic: 7 IP, 3 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 3 K, 66.3 % strikes (59 of 89 pitches) HR: Lewin Diaz (9) Multi-hit games: Lewin Diaz (2-for-4, HR, R, RBI), Aaron Whitefield (2-for-3, R, BB) Two weeks ago when I last wrote one of these, I typed in that Lewin Diaz had hit his third homer of the season, today he hit his ninth, that is quite the progression and it is great to see. In fact, Diaz tied the Miracle record for home runs hit in a single month. https://twitter.com/AndrewBern12/status/1132452002062118912 Jordan Balazovic took the mound for his fourth A+ start and the Daytona hitters most likely did not sleep the night before in terror of who was waiting for them on the mound today. The good news for Daytona is that they only struck out three times against him but the bad news is that they forgot to score and so Balazovic ended with seven shutout innings. Anthony Vizcaya took over after Balazovic and finished off the game with a pair of scoreless and hitless innings that came with two punch outs and it put a nice bow tie on the shutout for the Miracle pitching. Earlier on Saturday, the FSL All-Star rosters were announced and the Miracle had eight selections-the highest for any team in the FSL. Those players can be found here: https://twitter.com/Brandon_Warne/status/1132330902317674496 KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 9, Peoria 8 Box Score Cole Sands: 5 IP, 8 H, 4 ER, 1 BB, 3 K, 64.8% strikes (59 of 91 pitches) HR: Gilberto Celestino (2), Ben Rodriguez (3) Multi-hit games: Jared Akins (2-for-5, 2 2B, 2 R), Gilberto Celestino (3-for-5, HR, 2 R, 3 RBI), Andrew Bechtold (3-for-3, R, RBI, BB), Gabe Snyder (2-for-3, 2 RBI, BB) Wander Javier made his 2019 professional debut along with his first game above of rookie ball today in the Kernels game vs the Chiefs. He started his day out with a HBP (stop hitting him please) and finished his day without a hit. The Kernels offense was popping all day as only three innings ended without the Kernels offense scoring a run and six different players collected at least one RBI in the game. The Kernels headed into the bottom of the eighth down a run but knotted the game at eight thanks to a Gilberto Celestino single before Ben Rodriguez launched the walk-off homer in the ninth to give the Kernels the win. TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day – Jordan Balazovic Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day – Gilberto Celestino PROSPECT SUMMARY Here’s a look at how the Twins Daily Top 20 Twins Prospects performed: #1 - Royce Lewis (Ft. Myers) - 0-for-4, K #2 - Alex Kirilloff (Pensacola) - 2-for-4, K #3 - Brusdar Graterol (Pensacola) - Injured list #4 - Trevor Larnach (Ft. Myers) - 1-for-4, 3 K #5 - Wander Javier (Cedar Rapids) - 0-for-4, R, 2 K #6 - Brent Rooker (Rochester) - 0-for-3, 3 K #7 - Jhoan Duran (Ft. Myers) - Suspended game #8 - Lewis Thorpe (Rochester) - Did not pitch #9 - Blayne Enlow (Cedar Rapids) - Did not pitch #10 - Akil Baddoo (Ft. Myers) - Tommy John surgery #11 - Nick Gordon (Rochester) - Suspended game #12 - Stephen Gonsalves (Rochester) - No IL yet but needs rest #13 - Ryan Jeffers (Ft. Myers) - 0-for-4, 2K #14 - Ben Rortvedt (Pensacola) - Did not play #15 - Yunior Severino (Cedar Rapids) - Injured list #16 - Gilberto Celestino (Cedar Rapids) - 3-for-5, HR, 2 R, 3 RBI, K #17 - Zack Littell (Rochester) - With the Twins-did not pitch #18 - LaMonte Wade (Rochester) - Did not play #19 - Jorge Alcala (Pensacola) - Did not pitch #20 - Jose Miranda (Ft. Myers) - 0-for-4, K SUNDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Pawtucket @ Rochester Game 1: (4:05 P.M. Game 2 will start 30 minutes after the conclusion of game 1) Pensacola @ Tennessee (1:00 P.M.) Fort Myers @ Daytona (5: 35 P.M.) - RHP Jhoan Duran Peoria @ Cedar Rapids (2:05 P.M.) - RHP Josh Winder Please feel free to ask any questions and discuss Saturday’s games.

My connections to Kepler run a bit deeper too. My last name implies a strong German heritage (Braun means “brown” in German), so naturally I stuck to Kepler. Of course, the similarities pretty much end there as he can hit major league pitching and my baseball career ended once the breaking balls were introduced to me. Anyways, Kepler ended that year with a modest 93 wRC+ and a 1.3 fWAR over 113 games. Passable numbers for sure, but the potential for Max seemed higher thanks to his top prospect status, great athleticism, and low BABIP which seemed to be signs that a breakout season was coming soon. Kepler put up the same wRC+ in 2017, a somewhat baffling occurrence as a breakout seemed all but inevitable that year. Of course, there is always next year and the Kepler celebrations were paused until 2018 where he hit for a wRC+ of … 97. Scientists and baseball writers were bewildered as his walk rate jumped 3.3% while his strikeout rate dropped 4.4%, both things that would suggest a breakthrough, yet it didn’t quite occur. Kepler’s defensive numbers were better in 2018 so his fWAR jumped from 1.4 to 2.6, but this was not quite the way everyone wanted Kepler to improve. Between his start in 2016 and the end of the 2018 season, Kepler’s BABIP (batting average on balls in play) sat at an astonishingly low .257. Among those with 1500+ plate appearances in that time period, he comes in with the fifth-lowest BABIP in all of baseball. Some of the names that come in around him are Todd Frazier, Jose Bautista, Albert Pujols, Carlos Santana, Maikel Franco, Curtis Granderson, and Salvador Perez. There’s a general theme here of slow, lethargic and (mostly) guys who would no longer be considered “athletic” by MLB standards. But then there’s Kepler, who BaseballSavant has in the 59th percentile for sprint speed, an above average level. Why his BABIP is so low remains beyond me as looking into his batted ball profile leaves me even more confused than before. His soft/med/hard hit % slash line is almost identical to George Springer from 2016-2018, yet Springer holds a BABIP .049 points above him. His pull/center/oppo % slash line resembles Victor Martinez’s from 2016-2018, yet even old man V-Mart was able to put up a .281 BABIP. And to top it all off, his FB/GB/LD % slash line over 2016-2018 matches up well with Rougned Odor, yet the small stink was able to out BABIP him by .017 points. Now, every player has a BABIP that is unique to them and their batted-ball profile. Some can hold higher numbers than others while some just naturally have lower ball in play ability, but Kepler’s BABIP will always remain perplexing to me, what is making it so that this guy cannot get a hit to save his life? But enough about the past, we can’t change it anyways. What about Kepler so far this year? Well thank you so much for asking, Kepler is holding a respectable 118 wRC+ in 2019 as he continues to usually bat lead off in an extremely potent Twins lineup. His average exit velocity of 91.4 MPH is higher than his career average of 89.2 and the MLB average of 87.4. What is probably the least shocking about a hitter in 2019 is that he also now has a career high pull rate of 56.2% which is 11.4% higher than his average and his average launch angle is currently 15.7 degrees, a number that is actually lower than his 2018 launch angle average, but a mark that is above the MLB average of 11.0 degrees. Or, to put it simply, he’s pulling the ball in the air more, which is a good thing. Oh and by the way, he’s also swinging way more than usual, which is probably a good thing for him. His swing rate is at 51.9%, a number that would place him in the top 20 of qualified free swingers in baseball last year and is also 9.3% higher than his swing rate last year. The return is that his walk rate is slightly down (but still great) while his K rate is slightly up (but still very manageable) yet because he’s hitting the ball hard I don’t think he or the Twins care too much. At the start of spring training, the Twins inked Kepler to a five-year, $35 million extension that would make him a free agent in 2025. The deal basically ensured that Kepler would be paid a guaranteed amount of life-altering money while the Twins hedged their bets that the still young Kepler could break through and make a $7 million AAV deal look like a steal. And even if he never improved over his 2018 self, $7 million a year for a solid OFer is still pocket change. The next major sign of confidence has come in his nearly daily placing at the very top of the Twins lineup, a move that has been questioned less and less as the year has started but was a somewhat puzzling play when it was first announced. Nonetheless, the budding star (and yes, I do mean star) has started to flash the offensive capabilities that the Twins believed he had in him thanks to some changes in his approach at the plate and if he holds it over a full season with his 2018 level of defense, you are looking at a legitimate top-five right fielder in all of MLB.

TRANSACTIONS INF Miguel Sanó transferred from AA to AAA for his MLB rehab assignment RHP Kohl Stewart recalled by Minnesota RHP Tyler Duffey recalled by Minnesota (26th man for the DH) Update: Following the game, Stewart and Fernando Romero were optioned to Rochester. Martine Perez was actvated from the paternity list. Willians Astudillo will be activated from the Injured List on Sunday morning. Also, as the 26th man, Tyler Duffey was sent back to Rochester, as well. RED WINGS REPORT Red Wings 0, Durham 1 Box Score Devin Smeltzer: 8 IP, 4 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 6 K, 68% strikes (68 of 100 pitches) HR: None Multi-hit games: None The talk so far about AAA has been the offensive explosion that seems to have come as a result of the MLB ball being implemented at the AAA level. Evidently, no one told Devin Smeltzer that this is an offense-heavy environment because he fired off eight impressive shutout innings to continue his absolute tear through the minors to start the season. So far, he has surrendered just two earned runs through his forty-five innings of work at AA and AAA combined. He may be at the majors sooner rather than later if this keeps up. Unfortunately for the Red Wings, the Bulls pitching was just as good and were able to hold the Red Wings to two hits on the day. Old friend Oliver Drake served as the opener for Durham (they are the affiliate for the Rays after all, they have to get crafty somewhere) and in total, all but two outs thrown by the Bulls came from pitchers with major league experience. Miguel Sanó went 0-for-4 with 3 strikeouts in his first AAA rehab game but played some nifty defense in the process. https://twitter.com/MorrieSilver8/status/1127366401805770753 https://twitter.com/RocRedWings/status/1127324773602795525 BLUE WAHOO BITES Pensacola 1, Chattanooga 5 (5 innings, ended due to rain) Box Score Sean Poppen: 3 IP, 5 H, 4 ER, 3 BB, 2 K, 49.2% strikes (29 of 59 pitches) HR: None Multi-hit games: None While the Miracle had to finish game that started the day before due to rain, the Blue Wahoos saw their game cut short for the same reason. Someone needs to find whatever voodoo doll or prayer would finally allow the teams to play games without unnecessary comments from Mother Nature. No Blue Wahoos hitter reached base twice, but Jordan Gore was the only one who saw more than two plate appearances in the game. Despite only playing five innings, the basepaths were an active highway as there were five stolen base attempts combined in the game. The Blue Wahoos only attempt was unsuccessful while the Lookouts were successful on three with a single caught stealing. MIRACLE MATTERS Game one: Ft. Myers 2, Tampa 5 (continued from yesterday, 7 innings) Box Score Tyler Watson: 4 ⅔ IP, 4 H, 5 ER, 4 BB, 5 K, 61.7% strikes (58 of 94 pitches) HR: Lewin Diaz (3), Ryan Costello (4) Multi-hit games: Akil Baddoo (2-for-4), Royce Lewis (2-for-4, 2B) This game was suspended yesterday due to heavy rain because Mother Nature’s wrath on the Twins minor league teams refuses to end. Because of this, they started in the bottom of the fifth inning and would play until the end of the seventh. Fort Myers flexed their muscles as Lewin Diaz launched another home run and Ryan Costello decided to join in on the fun and hit his own homer in the fifth. Royce Lewis added another multi-hit game to his season total, a good sign as he struggled to start the year but appears to be turning it around. More strong hitting performances will punch his ticket to Pensacola eventually. There were no runs scored today after play was resumed and despite out hitting the Tarpons, the Miracle eventually lost. https://twitter.com/MiracleBaseball/status/1126956368462741505 https://twitter.com/MiracleBaseball/status/1126951322794778624 Game two: Ft. Myers 3, Tampa 4 (7 innings) Box Score Charlie Barnes: 1 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 0 K, 53.3% strikes (8 of 15 pitches) HR: None Multi-hit games:Jose Miranda (2-for-4, RBI), Ryan Jeffers (2-for-3, R, BB), Trey Cabbage (2-for-3, 2B, RBI) The second game of the doubleheader proved to be quite the match as it came down to the wire in the bottom of the seventh. The Miracle were able to put up some runs in the sixth thanks to an RBI double from Trey Cabbage and some wild pitch shenanigans. A Jose Miranda single in the seventh plated Royce Lewis and brought the game within a run, but Lewin Diaz and Ryan Jeffers both flew out to end the game. The Miracle ran with somewhat of a bullpen game as Charlie Barnes only went for an inning before Hector Lujan, Joe Record, and Johan Quezada combined afterwards to end the game. Trey Cabbage continued to sting the ball as his 2-for-3 effort raised his A+ average to .350 and his OPS to .909 (that’s high-A average to be clear, but a .350 is also worth an A plus so I guess it works). The Miracle out-hit the Tarpons again but the team went 2-for-14 with RISP and that proved to be part of their downfall for the game. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 4, West Michigan 7 Box Score Cole Sands: 5 ⅓ IP, 7 H, 4 ER, 1 BB, 8 K, 65.0% strikes (63 of 97 pitches) HR: Gabe Snyder (2) Multi-hit games: Gabe Snyder (2-for-5, HR, R, RBI), Yeltsin Encarnacion (2-for-4, RBI) A game that was played in full without any rain interference? I didn’t know that was allowed. Anyways, despite getting hit for four runs in his start, Cole Sands was encouraging by punching out eight hitters while only walking a single batter, some better luck will result in a cleaner line eventually. Gabe Snyder hit his second homer of the season and is now holding an OPS of .930 at A ball. Some more games like the one today will put his name in the conversation for a promotion. The Kernels as a whole struck out fourteen Whitecaps despite only throwing eight innings today, an impressive total indeed. TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day – Devin Smeltzer Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day – Gabe Snyder PROSPECT SUMMARY Here’s a look at how the Twins Daily Top 20 Twins Prospects performed: #1 - Royce Lewis (Ft. Myers) - 3-for-8, 2 2B, R, 2 K (2 games) #2 - Alex Kirilloff (Pensacola) - 0-for-2 #3 - Brusdar Graterol (Pensacola) - Did not pitch #4 - Trevor Larnach (Ft. Myers) - 1-for-5, 2B, 3 BB (2 games) #5 - Wander Javier (EST) - Season has not started #6 - Brent Rooker (Rochester) - 0-for-3, 3 K #7 - Jhoan Duran (Ft. Myers) - Did not pitch #8 - Lewis Thorpe (Rochester) - Did not pitch #9 - Blayne Enlow (Cedar Rapids) - Did not pitch #10 - Akil Baddoo (Ft. Myers) - 2-for-7, BB, 3 K (2 games) #11 - Nick Gordon (Rochester) - 1-for-4, 2 K #12 - Stephen Gonsalves (Rochester) - Injured list #13 - Ryan Jeffers (Ft. Myers) - 2-for-3, R, BB #14 - Ben Rortvedt (Ft. Myers) - 0-for-3 #15 - Yunior Severino (Cedar Rapids) - Injured list #16 - Gilberto Celestino (Cedar Rapids) - 1-for-3, R, BB #17 - Zack Littell (Rochester) - Did not pitch #18 - LaMonte Wade (Rochester) - 0-for-4, K #19 - Jorge Alcala (Pensacola) - Did not pitch #20 - Jose Miranda (Ft. Myers) - 2-for-6, RBI, K (2 games) SUNDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Durham @ Rochester (12:05 P.M.) - Pensacola @ Chattanooga (1:15 P.M.) - RHP Jorge Alcala (The other leagues are off for Mother’s Day, which is in fact tomorrow) Please feel free to ask any questions and discuss Saturday’s games.

TRANSACTIONS RHP D.J. Baxendale reinstated from the injured list INF Adam Rosales traded to the Cleveland Indians for cash considerations RED WINGS REPORT Red Wings 10, Pawtucket 8 Box Score Lewis Thorpe: 1 IP, 6 H, 5 ER, 1 BB, 0 K, 65% strikes (26 of 40 pitches) HR: Brent Rooker (5) Multi-hit games: Nick Gordon (2-for-5, 2 R, 2 RBI), LaMonte Wade (2-for-3, R, RBI, 2 BB), Luke Raley (3-for-6, 2 R,), Zander Wiel (2-for-5, R), Jordany Valdespin (3-for-5, R, 3 RBI), Drew Maggi (2-for-5, R, RBI) Lewis Thorpe ran into trouble in the first inning and was forced to throw 40 pitches. Because of the Twins 35 pitch in an inning limit, Thorpe was forced to leave the game after the first inning. Despite being down in a hole early, the Red Wings offense took action by scoring seven unanswered runs during the second through fourth innings. Going into the ninth knotted at eight a piece, Drew Maggi hit a leadoff double which was backed up by a Nick Gordon double immediately after which gave the Red Wings the lead. Two wild pitches from Jenrry Mejia allowed Gordon to move to third and then subsequently score to give the Red Wings a 10-8 lead. Despite only getting one inning from the starter, the Red Wings bullpen, made up of efforts from D.J. Baxendale, Austin Adams, Andrew Vasquez, and Preston Guilmet, was able to fire off eight innings of two-run ball that came with 11 punchouts and probably a solid pat on the back from the manager. BLUE WAHOO BITES Pensacola 11, Biloxi 2 Box Score Randy Dobnak: 4 IP, 5 H, 2 ER, 2 BB, 5 SO, 63.6% strikes (49 of 77 pitches) HR: Travis Blankenhorn (2), Mitchell Kranson (3) Multi-hit games: Luis Arraez (2-for-4, 3 R, RBI, BB), Alex Kirilloff (2-for-4, 2 RBI, BB) The Blue Wahoos had already made their mark by having some ridiculously good starting pitching, but now they have a hot Luis Arraez and Travis Blankenhorn, a healthy Alex Kirilloff, and backup from another up-and-coming hotshot named Miguel Sano. Good luck trying to beat that. Randy Dobnak had a solid Double-A debut outing and he would have gotten the win had he reached the five-inning mark but that honor went to Adam Bray who fired off a pair of scoreless innings to continue his absolute tear so far this year. Tyler Jay finished off the game with three scoreless innings of his own. The Blue Wahoos bats were at it all game as they scored in every inning except for the fourth and eight where they finally decided to show a bit of mercy to the Shuckers. Miguel Sano went 0-for-2 with a walk and two strikeouts along with a sacrifice fly in the fifth and he also apparently hit an absolutely monster foul ball home run. Also of note, Alex Kirilloff made his start at first base, something he had not done in his professional career yet. The Twins had talked about getting him playing there in anticipation of whenever he joins the major league club as the Twins outfield is currently pretty set in stone. https://twitter.com/billvilonaPNJ/status/1124832775788486656 https://twitter.com/billvilonaPNJ/status/1124839813667016704 https://twitter.com/billvilonaPNJ/status/1124853320458428417 MIRACLE MATTERS Ft. Myers 7, Palm Beach 5 Box Score (https://www.milb.com/gameday/miracle-vs-cardinals/2019/05/04/572995#game_state=final,lock_state=final,game_tab=box,game=572995) Charlie Barnes: 5 1/3 IP, 9 H, 5 ER, 4 BB, 6 K, 66% strikes (62 of 94 pitches) HR: Lewin Diaz (1), Aaron Whitefield (2) Multi-hit games: Royce Lewis (2-for-4, R, BB), Trevor Larnach (3-for-5, 2 R, RBI), Lewin Diaz (2-for-3, 2 R, 3 RBI, 2 BB) Another Saturday start for Charlie Barnes, I believe this is now the third time that I have written about a game that he started this year so far, this is frankly bordering on stalking and I am going to have to ask him to pick a different day to start (I’m kidding of course. I’ll write about Charlie with glee.) Anyways, the Miracle played quite the thriller of a game this Saturday. The scoring was kicked off early by the Cardinals as they put a run across in both the first, second, and fourth innings respectively. Luckily for the Miracle, Aaron Whitefield hates baseballs as much as he hates three-run deficits, so he launched his second homer of the year in the fifth inning to make it a 3-1 game. The Cardinals answered back with two more runs in the sixth, but it could have been worse had Trevor Larnach not gunned down the hopeful third run at the plate to keep the score 5-1. The Miracle scratched two runs together in the eighth thanks to some wild pitch and passed ball shenanigans to make the game a close 5-3 affair. The top of the ninth started with a Ryan Costello single but unfortunately, the next two batters would get out. Now with two outs in the ninth, Royce Lewis would work a walk to move Costello to second. Trevor Larnach then would single him home to make it just a one-run game. Now facing a chance to tie the game, Lewin Diaz decided to give the Miracle the lead outright as he blasted a heroic three-run homer to give the Miracle a 7-5 lead that they would not relinquish. https://twitter.com/MiracleBaseball/status/1124834090337951746 KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 2, Dayton 4 Box Score (https://www.milb.com/gameday/dragons-vs-kernels/2019/05/04/577193#game_state=final,game_tab=,game=577193) Tyler Palm: 4 2/3 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 0 BB, 8 K, 73.2% strikes (41 of 56 pitches) HR: Jacob Pearson (2) Multi-hit games: Andrew Bechtold (2-for-3, RBI, BB) Donning some awesome Yoda jerseys, the Kernels took on the Dragons in a game that ended in the same way that an actual fight between a dragon and a kernel of corn would end. https://twitter.com/MiLBPromos/status/1124781257077022721 Despite giving up four runs, Kernels pitchers combined for 15 strikeouts, a number that gave them the higher ground over the Dragon’s pitchers who could only muster eight. Kernels pitchers also only surrendered four hits total in the game, but the Dragons were opportunistic as they took advantage of an error in the fourth and a balk in the fifth to help with their scoring. Jacob Pearson had a big day offensively as he blasted his second homer of the year and walked twice along with scoring both of the runs for the Kernels. Hopefully this game will be the launching point of his season and he starts to improve his .503 OPS on the year. TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day – Tyler Palm Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day – Trevor Larnach PROSPECT SUMMARY Here’s a look at how the Twins Daily Top 20 Twins Prospects performed: #1 - Royce Lewis (Ft. Myers) - 2-for-4, R, BB, K #2 - Alex Kirilloff (Pensacola) - 2-for-4, 2B, 2 RBI, BB, K #3 - Brusdar Graterol (Pensacola) - Did not pitch #4 - Trevor Larnach (Ft. Myers) - 3-for-5, 2 R, RBI, K #5 - Wander Javier (EST) - Season has not started #6 - Brent Rooker (Rochester) - 1-for-6, HR, R, 2 RBI, 2 K #7 - Jhoan Duran (Ft. Myers) - Did not pitch #8 - Lewis Thorpe (Rochester) - 1 IP, 6 H, 5 ER, 1 BB, 0 K #9 - Blayne Enlow (Cedar Rapids) - Did not pitch #10 - Akil Baddoo (Ft. Myers) - 0-for-5, 3 K #11 - Nick Gordon (Rochester) - 2-for-5, 2 2B, 2 R, RBI #12 - Stephen Gonsalves (Rochester) - Injured list #13 - Ryan Jeffers (Ft. Myers) - 1-for-4, 2 K #14 - Ben Rortvedt (Ft. Myers) - 1-for-4 #15 - Yunior Severino (Cedar Rapids) - Injured list #16 - Gilberto Celestino (Cedar Rapids) - 0-for-4 #17 - Zack Littell (Rochester) - Did not pitch #18 - LaMonte Wade (Rochester) - 2-for-3, R, RBI, 2 BB #19 - Jorge Alcala (Pensacola) - Did not pitch #20 - Jose Miranda (Ft. Myers) - Did not play SUNDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Rochester @ Pawtucket (12:00 P.M.) - RHP Kohl Stewart Biloxi @ Pensacola (1:05 P.M.) - RHP Griffin Jax Fort Myers @ Palm Beach (12:00 P.M.) - RHP Jordan Balazovic Dayton @ Cedar Rapids (2:05 P.M.) - RHP Cole Sands Please feel free to ask any questions and discuss Saturday’s games.

TRANSACTIONS -RHP Tanner Howell promoted from Rookie Ball Elizabethton to A+ Fort Myers -RHP Kohl Stewart activated at AAA after being optioned on 4/25 -RHP D.J. Baxendale placed on the injured list at AAA with a left ankle sprain RED WINGS REPORT Postponed, game to be made up as a doubleheader on May 24th. There is more regarding the Red Wings, however. They were recently featured on ESPN for their upcoming “Deaf Culture Day” at the ballpark. The video clip of the segment can be found below: https://vimeo.com/332834920 BLUE WAHOO BITES Pensacola 4, Jackson 3 Box Score Brusdar Graterol: 5 IP, 5 H, 2 ER, 2 BB, 4 K, 64% strikes (57 of 89 pitches) HR: Caleb Hamilton (2) Multi-hit games: Luis Arraez (2-for-4, R, 2 RBI), Caleb Hamilton (2-for-3, 2 R, RBI) The Twins top pitching prospect, Brusdar Graterol, had a solid start for the Blue Wahoos as he went 5 innings with just two runs given up. Although knowing how well the Blue Wahoos starters have done so far this year, this may have actually raised their average starting ERA, which is no slight toward Graterol. Actually, let me self-promote some of the numbers I dug up the other day regarding a few of their starters: https://twitter.com/matthew_btwins/status/1121481687798439936 Anyway, the Blue Wahoos wasted no time getting the game going as Ernie De La Trinidad singled home Luis Arraez in the first inning to take a quick lead. Caleb Hamilton wasn’t a fan of only winning by one so he launched a solo shot in the third to double the lead. The Generals answered in the fourth with a few doubles that knotted the game at two. Luis Arraez broke through in the seventh as his clutch two-run double gave the Blue Wahoos a lead which the Generals could not overcome. Dusten Knight recorded the old school three-inning save that most likely was concluded with a backflip (video unfortunately not included). MIRACLE MATTERS Ft. Myers 8, Palm Beach 4 Box Score Charlie Barnes: 5 2/3 IP, 4 H, 0 ER, 2 BB, 6 K, 64% strikes (57 of 89 pitches, literally the exact same as Graterol, freaky) HR: Rortvedt (2) Multi-hit games: Akil Baddoo (2-for-5, R), Royce Lewis (2-for-5, RBI), Jose Miranda (2-for-5, R, RBI), Ryan Jeffers (2-for-4, R), Ryan Costello (2-for-4, R, RBI) After a rough last outing, Charlie Barnes probably would have loved nothing more than a great start to wash out the taste of his outing last week. Luckily, he got just that, as he fired off 5 2/3 excellent shutout innings against the Cardinals. A third inning Royce Lewis single kicked off the scoring and a fourth inning Ryan Costello single added another run to said lead. The score stayed 2-0 until the big bat* of Ben Rortvedt stepped up to the plate in the sixth with two men on and when his at-bat was over, the lead turned into five thanks to his three-run bomb. *Ben Rortvedt’s bat is most likely a normal sized one as he would be cheating if he used a larger than allowed bat. The Miracle were able to plate a few more runs in that inning due to an assortment of hits and finally, the inning ended with an 8-0 advantage favoring the Miracle. The ending havoc resulted in each Miracle batter either having a run scored or an RBI. The Cardinals answered with four runs in the eighth inning, but it was not enough to top the Miracle as Melvi Acosta slammed the door shut with 1 2/3 shutout innings to end the game Now, be blessed by the Miracle gif game: https://twitter.com/MiracleBaseball/status/1122289201343418369 KERNELS NUGGETS Postponed, game to be made up as a doubleheader tomorrow. TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day – Charlie Barnes Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day – Luis Arraez PROSPECT SUMMARY Here’s a look at how the Twins Daily Top 20 Twins Prospects performed: #1 - Royce Lewis (Ft. Myers) - 2-for-5, RBI #2 - Alex Kirilloff (Pensacola) - Injured list #3 - Brusdar Graterol (Pensacola) - 5 IP, 5 H, 2 ER, 2 BB, 4 K #4 - Trevor Larnach (Ft. Myers) - 1-for-5, RBI, 2 K #5 - Wander Javier (EST) - Season has not started #6 - Brent Rooker (Rochester) - Postponed #7 - Jhoan Duran (Ft. Myers) - Did not pitch #8 - Lewis Thorpe (Rochester) - Postponed #9 - Blayne Enlow (Cedar Rapids) - Postponed #10 - Akil Baddoo (Ft. Myers) - 2-for-5, 2B, 3B, R, 3 K #11 - Nick Gordon (Rochester) - Injured list #12 - Stephen Gonsalves (Rochester) - Injured list #13 - Ryan Jeffers (Ft. Myers) - 2-for-4, R, 2 K #14 - Ben Rortvedt (Ft. Myers) - 1-for-3, HR, 2 R, 3 RBI, BB, K #15 - Yunior Severino (Cedar Rapids) - Injured list #16 - Gilberto Celestino (Cedar Rapids) - Postponed #17 - Zack Littell (Rochester) - Postponed #18 - LaMonte Wade (Rochester) - Postponed #19 - Jorge Alcala (Pensacola) - Did not pitch #20 - Jose Miranda (Ft. Myers) - 2-for-5, R, RBI SUNDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Pawtucket @ Rochester (12:05 P.M.) - LHP Justin Nicolino Pensacola @ Jackson (2:05 P.M.) - LHP Devin Smeltzer Palm Beach @ Fort Myers (12:00 P.M.) - RHP Randy Dobnak Cedar Rapids @ Kane County (G1) (1:00 P.M.) - RHP Cole Sands Cedar Rapids @ Kane County (G2) (~30 minutes after G1) - RHP Josh Winder Please feel free to ask any questions and discuss Saturday’s games.

TRANSACTIONS -OF Mark Contreras tranferred from AA Pensacola to A+ Fort Myers -RHP Jacob Blank transferred from A+ Fort Myers to Rookie ball Elizabethton RED WINGS REPORT Rochester 8, Lehigh Valley 13 Box Score Chase De Jong: 2.0 IP, 6 H, 5 ER, 3 BB, 1 K, 52.1% strikes (38 of 73 pitches) HR: John Andreoli (2) Multi-hit games: John Andreoli (2-for-4, R, RBI), LaMonte Wade (2-for-5, 2 R), Luke Raley (2-for-4, R, 2 RBI), Randy César (3-for-4, 2 R, 2 RBI) Another Saturday, another day where Chase De Jong started against the IronPigs and I got to write about it. In relief of De Jong after his two innings of work, Jake Reed fired off three excellent innings with only one earned run and six strikeouts. Now it only seems like a matter of if, not when Reed shows up on the Twins sometime this season. The offense was able to put up eight runs thanks in part to a John Andreoli blast and two doubles from Randy César that buffed up his RBI totals. While the eight runs were great, it was just not quite enough to match the IronPigs offense and the Red Wings dropped the game in the end. BLUE WAHOO BITES Pensacola 5, Mobile 0 Box Score Sean Poppen: 5.0 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 4 BB, 11 K, 64.6% strikes (51 of 79 pitches) HR: None Multi-hit games: Jaylin Davis (2-for-3, R), Tanner English (2-for-2, 3 R, 2 RBI), Ernie De La Trinidad (3-for-4, RBI) Pensacola yet again got another great start from their starting pitcher, this time from the owner of one of my favorite names in the Twins system, Sean Poppen. Poppen was relieved after five innings by Jovani Moran who was relieved after two innings by Cody Stashak who fired off two innings of his own, with the carnage totaling 18 total strikeouts for Blue Wahoos pitching. The Blue Wahoos scraped together five assorted runs throughout the game from a myriad of singles (both of the infield and outfield variety) in support of the excellent pitching and it was enough to beat the BayBears pretty handily. MIRACLE MATTERS Ft. Myers 2, Charlotte 7 Box Score Charlie Barnes: 1 2/3 IP, 7 H, 7 ER, 5 BB, 0 K, 55.2% strikes (32 of 58 pitches) HR: None Multi-hit games: Royce Lewis (2-for-5), Lewin Diaz (2-for-4, RBI), Travis Blankenhorn (2-for-3, R, BB), Michael Helman (2-for-4) Charlie Barnes went 1 2/3 innings and surrendered seven runs with five walks against the Charlotte Stone Crabs. Tom Hackimer came in and did fine work by striking out five over 2 1/3 innings without allowing a hit or a walk. Relievers Alex Phillips and Anthony Vizcaya followed suit with a combined five innings of work that came with six punchouts and only three hits. The Miracle bullpen in total fired off 7 1/3 innings with 11 punchouts and just three hits. The two runs for the Miracle came from a fourth inning Lewin Diaz single and a ninth inning sacrifice fly from Ryan Costello. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 4, Beloit 5 Box Score Josh Winder: 5.0 IP, 6 H, 2 ER, 0 BB, 4 K, 70.1% strikes (54 of 77 pitches) HR: Chris Williams (3) Multi-hit games: Andrew Bechtold (2-for-4, R) The Kernels went for the series sweep against the Beloit Snappers but came up just a bit short and had to settle for taking two of three instead. The scoring started in the bottom of the first when Chris Williams made another deposit into his charity fund that gives home run balls to lucky fans in the outfield stands, his two-run shot was his second homer in as many days. The Snappers responded by scoring the next five runs of the game with the earned runs being split between Kernels starter Josh Winder and reliever Tyler Palm. The Kernels were able to answer back in the seventh with runs coming from a Michael Davis double and a Gabriel Maciel single but the inning ended with the Kernels trailing by a run and the game would end in the same fashion. TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day – Sean Poppen Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day – Randy César PROSPECT SUMMARY Here’s a look at how the Twins Daily Top 20 Twins Prospects performed: #1 - Royce Lewis (Ft. Myers) - 2-for-5, K #2 - Alex Kirilloff (Pensacola) - Injured list #3 - Brusdar Graterol (Pensacola) - Did not pitch #4 - Trevor Larnach (Ft. Myers) - 1-for-4, R, K #5 - Wander Javier (EST) - Season has not started #6 - Brent Rooker (Rochester) - Did not play #7 - Jhoan Duran (Ft. Myers) - Did not pitch #8 - Lewis Thorpe (Rochester) - Did not pitch #9 - Blayne Enlow (Cedar Rapids) - Did not pitch #10 - Akil Baddoo (Ft. Myers) - 1-for-5, K #11 - Nick Gordon (Rochester) - Injured list #12 - Stephen Gonsalves (Rochester) - Injured list #13 - Ryan Jeffers (Ft. Myers) - 1-for-4, 2 K #14 - Ben Rortvedt (Ft. Myers) - 0-for-3, BB #15 - Yunior Severino (Cedar Rapids) - Injured list #16 - Gilberto Celestino (Cedar Rapids) - 0-for-2, K #17 - Zack Littell (Rochester) - Did not pitch #18 - LaMonte Wade (Rochester) - 2-for-5, #19 - Jorge Alcala (Pensacola) - Did not pitch #20 - Jose Miranda (Ft. Myers) - Did not play SUNDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Mobile @ Pensacola (5:05 P.M.) - RHP Jorge Alcala (Most other leagues are off for Easter Sunday) Please feel free to ask any questions and discuss Saturday’s games.

TRANSACTIONS -OF Mark Contreras promoted from A+ Fort Myers to AA Pensacola. Jaylin Davis was placed on the Injured List. -RHP Jacob Blank promoted from rookie ball extended spring training to A+ Fort Myers RED WINGS REPORT Rochester 18, Lehigh Valley 20 (10 innings) Box Score Yes, you are reading that correctly, that is an 18 to 20 game that occurred today ... Chase De Jong: 3.2 IP, 6 H, 2 ER, 1 BB, 5 SO, 63.8% strikes (46 of 72 pitches) HR: Ronald Torreyes (2), Zander Wiel 2 (2), Willin Rosario (3), Wynston Sawyer (1), Brent Rooker (3) Multi-hit games: John Andreoli (2-for-5, 2 2B), Willin Rosario (4-for-7, HR), Brent Rooker (3-for-6, HR), Wynston Sawyer (3-for-3, HR, 2 2B), Randy César (3-for-5), Zander Wiel (4-for-5, 2 HR, 2B) Truly, one only needs to take a glimpse at the box score to capture the essence of one of the more absurd baseball games to ever be played, not just including the minor leagues, but of all time. In total, the damage was a ridiculous 15 home runs combined between the two teams and 38 runs scored in 10 innings. The major league record for home runs in a game is 12 if you wanted a frame of reference. In a game where a “safe lead” would be considered outright laughable by those playing, over a full mile of home run distance was blasted out of Frontier Field. Those in a 10-mile radius of the stadium who enjoy the art of pitching keeled over left and right as homer after homer was launched in an attempt to confuse those whose job it is to observe the results and force those poor individuals to declare the box score to be broken. No pitcher who was forced into this onslaught left without scars as each pitcher gave up at least one unearned run and only the lucky Edubray Ramos was left without an earned run to his name. The “winner” of this game, Josh Martin, was touched for three runs over his two innings of work along with a blown save, a shining example of why pitching wins is a flawed stat. Red Wings starter Chase De Jong was tossed in the fourth inning along with manager Joel Skinner in what was probably an act of grace towards both individuals by the home plate umpire. Home runs by Zander Wiel and Ronald Torreyes in the bottom of the eighth inning gave the Red Wings a slim one-run lead heading into the ninth that was eliminated by a game-tying shot from Jan Hernandez. A 10th inning three-run home run by Sean Rodriguez would be the final blow needed to end the game as the Red Wings could only respond with a Willin Rosario RBI single in the bottom half of the inning. Here is video evidence of the carnage, avert your eyes pitching lovers: https://twitter.com/RocRedWings/status/1117198871707492353 BLUE WAHOO BITES Pensacola 0, Jacksonville 1 Box Score Griffin Jax: 6.0 IP, 3 H, 0 ER, 2 BB, 4 K, 63.5% strikes (47 of 74 pitches) HR: None Multi-hit games: None Stop me if you have heard this already, but the Pensacola Blue Wahoos saw yet another strong start from one of their starting pitchers, this time from RHP Griffin Jax who threw six shutout innings. I’ll let the Blue Wahoos themselves tell you how electric their starting pitching has been so far: https://twitter.com/BlueWahoosBBall/status/1117237264076214272 The Blue Wahoos offense could not do much as they scattered three hits across the nine frames along with three walks that amounted to zero runs. An eighth inning RBI single by the Jumbo Shrimp proved to be the only run in the ballgame as both squads decided to be the exact opposite of the Red Wings game earlier. MIRACLE MATTERS Ft. Myers 3, Clearwater 0 Box Score Bailey Ober: 6.0 IP, 4 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 4 K, 77.7% strikes (49 of 63 pitches) HR: Ryan Jeffers (1) Multi-hit games: Aaron Whitefield (2-for-4, 2B), Lewin Diaz (2-for-4) The Fort Myers Miracle secured an away series win against the Clearwater Threshers with a clean 3-0 shutout, their third shutout of the week. RHP Bailey Ober continued to dominate hitters as he threw six efficient shutout innings to go on top of the six shutout innings he threw in his last start, giving him a predictable ERA of 0.00 on the season. After a great 2018 season at A+ for Ober and now these two strong performances, maybe it is time to consider whether he should be in the top 20 prospects list. The game was a 0-0 stalemate until the top of the sixth inning when Aaron Whitefield hit a double and Royce Lewis thought that he too would like to be on second base, so he hit a double of his own, scoring Whitefield on the play. That run would have been all the Miracle needed to win, but such a future would be too boring for Ryan Jeffers, so when he stepped up to the plate in the seventh inning with Lewin Diaz at first base, he determined that a two-run home run now would be the best time for his first homer of the year, and so he made it be as he blasted a homer, giving the Miracle a 3-0 lead that would hold until the end of the game. Here’s Marshall Kelner on just how dominant the Miracle pitching was: https://twitter.com/MarshallKelner/status/1117231399352844288 https://twitter.com/MarshallKelner/status/1117233897165787136 KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 2, Burlington 1 Box Score Josh Winder: 5.0 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 9 K, 64.0 % strikes (57 of 89 pitches) HR: None Multi-hit games: None The Kernels and Bees felt the cosmic shift that was the Red Wings and IronPigs game and decided to off-set it with a nice, close, low-scoring game that would cleanse the pallet of pitching lovers everywhere. Even the runs that were scored were done so in an unusual way with a second inning Kernels run coming from a wild pitch that scored Michael Davis and a seventh inning throwing error that scored Trey Cabbage. While the Bees might be upset at how these runs went down, at the end of the day, a run is a run and a win is a win. The Kernels pitching trio of Josh Winder, Brian Rapp, and Joe Record combined to strike out 15 total Bees while allowing only four hits, one of the extra-base variety. TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day – Bailey Ober Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day – Zander Wiel (special shoutout to the rest of the Red Wings offense) PROSPECT SUMMARY Here’s a look at how the Twins Daily Top 20 Twins Prospects performed: #1 - Royce Lewis (Ft. Myers) - 1-for-3, BB, RBI #2 - Alex Kirilloff (Pensacola) - Injured list #3 - Brusdar Graterol (Pensacola) - Did not pitch #4 - Trevor Larnach (Ft. Myers) - 0-for-4, 2 K #5 - Wander Javier (EST) - Season has not started #6 - Brent Rooker (Rochester) - 3-for-6, 3 R, 3 RBI, BB, 3 K #7 - Jhoan Duran (Ft. Myers) - Did not pitch #8 - Lewis Thorpe (Rochester) - Did not pitch #9 - Blayne Enlow (Cedar Rapids) - Did not pitch #10 - Akil Baddoo (Ft. Myers) - Did not play #11 - Nick Gordon (Rochester) - Injured list #12 - Stephen Gonsalves (Rochester) - Injured list #13 - Ryan Jeffers (Ft. Myers) - 1-for-4, HR, R, 2 RBI, 2 K #14 - Ben Rortvedt (Ft. Myers) - 0-for-3, BB, 2 K #15 - Yunior Severino (Cedar Rapids) - Injured list #16 - Gilberto Celestino (Cedar Rapids) - 1-for-4, K #17 - Zack Littell (Rochester) - Did not pitch #18 - LaMonte Wade (Rochester) - 0 for 3, K #19 - Jorge Alcala (Pensacola) - Did not pitch #20 - Jose Miranda (Ft. Myers) - 1-for-4, K SUNDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Lehigh Valley @ Rochester (12:00 P.M. CST) - LHP Justin Nicolino Jacksonville @ Pensacola (1:05 P.M. CST) - RHP Andro Cutura Fort Myers @ Clearwater (12:00 P.M. CST) - LHP Charlie Barnes Burlington @ Cedar Rapids (2:05 P.M. CST) - RHP Andrew Cabezas Please feel free to ask any questions and discuss Saturday’s games.