Seth Stohs

I can try, if people think they're valuable... I asked many years ago what should be made of the stats in the DSL. I was basically told, as we know, that the further away from the big leagues, the less the stats mean. It's almost completely about tools at that level. It's weird to say, but if a player there is 19 or older, that's probably not going to be too much of a prospect. There are obvious exceptions. For instance, a guy like Williams Ramirez spent a couple of DSL years as a hitter and then moved to pitcher, so all of those other factors come into it. Then if you see a guy who succeeds at age 17, basically their first year of being able to play, they become intriguing.

I can't speak for Bob, but I know that Ricky De La Torre (6th round pick) is highly regarded defensively at shortstop. To this point, Lewis has played SS most of the time, with De La Torre playing there most of the other days. He's then playing some 2B as well. And obviously they both get some DH days too.

I believe he started for the Saints, but has been in the bullpen since signing with the Brewers.

In every group of Minnesota Twins teams that have had sustained success, there has been a core of young players that came up together and learned to win together. It happened in the mid-to-late '60s. It happened in the late '80s. It happened again after the turn of the century. And, as we get to the All-Star break, it appears that the Twins and their fans, might just be seeing a new core. Hopefully they will be able to lead the Twins back to sustained winning ways.On Monday, I was digging around online, looking for something to write about the Twins first half. As per usual, that meant spending a little bit of time digging around Baseball-Reference.com. Right there on the main 2017 Twins page, it was clear what I needed to write about. Baseball Reference has its own version of WAR (Wins Above Replacement, or bWAR). Each day, they highlight the top 12 on each team's roster with their mug shots. The Twins Top 5 Players in 2017 (by bWAR) are: Ervin Santana - 3.4Max Kepler - 2.1Miguel Sano - 2.0Byron Buxton - 1.9Jose Berrios - 1.7Ervin Santana has obviously been a very key contributor to the Twins. The next four have been the Core Four for the next wave of quality Twins teams. And they have been that for at least three years. Terry Ryan may not have been able to lead the big league team to many wins between his return and 2016, but he has always been greatly respected in the industry for his scouting capabilities, for his ability to see high-end talent. While he would probably never have said it publicly, so as not to disrespect other prospects, but he knew he had something special in Miguel Sano, Max Kepler, Byron Buxton and Jose Berrios. Those four have all been Top 100 prospects. THE CORE FOUR Max Kepler was Baseball America's #30 prospect before the 2016 season. Jose Berrios came in at #36 and then #28 in their pre-2015 and pre-2016 rankings. Byron Buxton was their #10 prospect before the 2013 season, and then was their top prospect before 2014. Before both 2015 and 2016, they ranked him #2 in all of baseball. Miguel Sano became a regular in the Baseball America preseason rankings. He entered it before the 2010 season at #94. Before 2011, he ranked #60. He was their #18 prospect before the 2012 season. That year, he and Eddie Rosario put together video game numbers in Elizabethton, and Sano jumped up to #9 before the 2013 season. Before the 2014 season, he was BA's #6 prospect. Despite missing that entire season, he still ranked #13 before the 2015 season. With those rankings come high expectations, fair or not. Each of these players has less than two years of experience in the big leagues. They've all experienced some ups and downs. While there are a few prospects who jump up to the big leagues and experience immediate success, most do struggle. Sano illustrates both sides of this. He came up in early July of 2015 and hit great the rest of that season. He struggled more in 2016, and still hit 25 homers. So far in 2017, he's put up his 2015 numbers. Now he'll have to show it's for real. While he may hit 40 homers, he may also break the single-season strikeout record. Buxton has followed the path of the likes of Torii Hunter and Michael Cuddyer. Those guys moved up and down from AAA to MLB for a couple of years before their careers took off. They had long and very successful careers. At the same time, he has been as good as any defensive outfielder in baseball, and has the ability to change games with his speed and his arm. He showed the type of power potential he has last September, but that hasn't translated to this point in 2017. Yet, we continue to see glimpses of what he will be. Max Kepler was able to hit lefties almost as well as righties during his breakout season of 2015 in Chattanooga. In the big leagues, he has struggled against right-handers. He's been streaky, but again, you can see the talent. He is a good defensive outfielder with good range and an above average arm. Offensively, he has a perfect swing and often hits the ball real hard. An assumption might be that over time, he'll adjust some and add some lift to those line drives which could produce a lot of home runs. Fans wanted the Twins to call up Jose Berrios late in the 2015 season. We had to wait until last May, and his 2016 in the big leagues was a mess. He had almost no command of any of his pitches. This year, after spending a month in Rochester to start the season, he has been fantastic. For the most part, he has had much better command of his mid-90s fastball. While still inconsistent, he's shown he is capable of a plus-plus breaking ball and changeup. He's been better than expected so far in 2017. In other words, it's very exciting to see these four players continue to develop. However, what is most exciting for me is knowing that each one of them still has a lot of room for growth and should continue to get better, even much better, in coming years. CORES FROM BEFORE Those '60s teams had a core that included the likes of Killebrew, Oliva, Allison, Kaat, Perry, Pascual and more. Later in the decade, they continued to win while adding Carew and Tovar and then Blyleven. Those '80s teams had a core of Puckett, Gaetti, Brunansky, Hrbek and Viola. They added some veterans in 1987 and 1991 and won World Series titles. Then in the early '00s, the Twins had nearly a decade of success, with several division titles. They also had a core of young players, including a season which included nearly 20 rookies. Their core included Koskie, Mientkiewicz, Hunter, Jones, Radke, and it continued with the likes of Mauer, Morneau, Santana, Cuddyer and others who fit in with the original guys. FanGraphs TOP TWINS Since we know that they tend to be a little different, I thought I'd look at the FanGraphs version of WAR (fWAR) and see if it showed much different. Top 2017 Twins according to FanGraphs (fWAR) Miguel Sano - 2.2Max Keper - 1.5Ervin Santana - 1.3Jose Berrios - 1.3Joe Mauer 1.1Brian Dozier, Byron Buxton, Eduardo Escobar - 0.9While the order and the numbers appear different, each of these player is on pace for nearly (or more than) 2 fWAR in 2017. That's a lot of value for a bunch of 23-24 year olds still working through the trials and tribulations of learning major league baseball. BUT WAIT... THERE'S MORE Even more encouraging is that they are joined by a few other young players who are either taking their early-career lumps or working through some AA and AAA development. Adalberto Mejia turned 24 this year, and he's been a good find. He was at the back end of the Baseball America Top 100 last year at midseason. He's done a nice job, particularly his last four starts. The left-hander has had a couple of clunkers, but watching him shows that he has the stuff and makeup to be a mid-rotation starter. He should be a part of the Twins starting rotation, along with Berrios, for years to come. Jorge Polanco has had a tough season. He's been better than expected defensively at shortstop, though still average at best. Offensively, he has struggled this year, more than he has in the past in the minors or his stints in the big leagues. He's also just 23, so taking lumps and experiencing a longer slump should not be surprising. Eddie Rosario is like that basketball player that catches and shoots a 28-footer. The coach yells, "NO!!" and when the ball goes in says, "Good shot!" Rosario can be about as frustrating a player as there is in the game. He doesn't walk enough, wanting to swing at everything. He catches most everything close in left field, and he has a strong arm, but sometimes those throws go to the wrong base, or miss its intended target by a long way. For the last three or four weeks, he's been hitting great, including showing some of the power he's got. BUT WAIT... THERE'S MORE COMING And there are more players coming. Later in the week, we'll take a look at the next wave of prospects, several guys who are (hopefully) going to be able to contribute to the next winning teams. While there may only be a couple that fit into the Top 100 type of prospect as The Core Four, there are a bunch who are nearly ready to contribute to the Twins, and contribute to the Twins over the next half-decade. Click here to view the article

The discussion heading into the Home Run Derby was all about Aaron Judge and defending-champion Giancarlo Stanton. In the end, Aaron Judge was the champion, but he had to beat Minnesota Twins third baseman Miguel Sano. Sano was the first Twins player to reach the finals since Justin Morneau won the Home Run Derby nearly a decade ago. Since going to the new format two years ago, the excitement of the home run derby has taken off. Each round, hitters have four minutes to hit as many home runs as they can. They also get one time out in each round, and two in the finals. If they hit one ball 440 feet or more, they earn a 30 second bonus. It becomes quite entertaining.Sano was the #5 seed, so in the first round, he took on Royals third baseman Mike Moustakus. Sano went first and hit 11 home runs. "Moose" followed. He hit his tenth home run with just under a minute to go, but was unable to hit another. In the second round, Sano topped fellow 2009 international signing from the Dominican Republic Gary Sanchez. Sanchez surprised everyone by beating hometown guy Giancarlo Stanton. Judge had a tougher road to the second round than likely anticipated. Marlins first baseman Justin Bour put on a show, hitting 22 homers in the first round as the 7th seed. Judge, however, nearly hit that number before getting his 30-second bonus for one of his many 440+ foot homers. In the second round, Judge had little trouble ending the night for Dodgers rookie Cody Bellinger. In the final round, it was clear that Miguel Sano was very tired. It was also clear that his pitcher, former big leaguer Fernando Tatis, was also tiring. Sano had a lot of takes, and had to try to go the other way often due to poor pitches. However, he ended the final round with 10 home runs, a very strong showing. Judge was last to hit. He hit his 11th home runs with 2:00 remaining. It was an incredible showing for Judge, and a remarkable show by Sano as well. Call it a coming out for Sano, if you like. Twins fans (myself included) are shocked that Sano seems to be little known nationally, but if that was the case, that has changed. Of course, he was the leader in the fan vote right up until the final tally, so fans know Sano. Now they just know him a little better. What were your thoughts on the performance of Sano, and the home run derby in general? Hey, if nothing else, Sano had the prettiest, most electrifying home run of the night... Click here to view the article

Lewis and Rooker will likely move up, but neither is happening right away. Not quite yet. Gonsalves and Romero are just fine. The other half of the Robinson promotion is Tyler Beardsley being activated by the Kernels.

My guess is Granite will be up for two games, then get optioned and play in the AAA All Star Game.

Gordon is already in Miami for the Futures Game. Featherstone was moved to the mound about 4-6weeks ago. This is just the second time all season that Curtiss has given up a run

Dude is impressive. He's huge. Just wild enough to be scary, but throws really hard, a really heavy pitch. Good slider too. He's absolutely a legit prospect.

Two things... 1.) Yes, but 2.) He was already at 86 pitches through 5.

After winning two out of three at home against the Angels, the Twins welcomed the Baltimore Orioles to Target Field on Thursday night. The Twins were able to win the first of this four-game series, the final series before the All-Star break. Jose Berrios picked up another win and Brandon Kintzler recorded his 23rd save of the season.The Twins used a six-run inning and held on the final five innings. Down 2-0 heading into the bottom of the third inning, FanGraphs data showed that the Twins had a 33% chance to win the game. It’s funny how quickly things can change. When Jason Castro flew out to end a six-run inning, the Twins had an 87.5% chance to win. Bases-loaded singles by Miguel Sano and Max Kepler got the Twins a 3-2 lead. Then Eduardo Escobar hit a deep fly off of the wall in right centerf ield. The ball caromed awkwardly back toward right field and Escobar had a two-run triple. Jorge Polanco’s fielder’s choice drove in the sixth run. Buxton's Bounce Back Heading into the Twins game on the 4th of July, Byron Buxton was slumping and had seen his batting average drop down to .195. In his last three games, he has gone 3-4, 2-4, and 2-4, and is now back up to .214. In his postgame interview, Buxton said being aggressive has helped him. He just wants to get on base. AL Central Cleveland was finally able to figure out how to beat the Padres on Thursday night. The Tigers also won. The Royals and White Sox had the day off. Cleveland 45-39 .536 --- Kansas City 44-40 .524 1.0 TWINS 44-41 .518 1.5 Detroit 38-46 .452 7.0 Chicago 37-47 .440 8.0 Bullpen Usage Brandon Kintzler has pitched in three of the past four Twins games. However, the rest of the bullpen is pretty well rested going into the final three games before the All-Star break. Download attachment: pen76.png What’s Next? It isn’t going to get any easier for the Twins. On Friday at 7:10, it will be Felix Jorge (1-0, 5.40 ERA) facing right-hander Kevin Gausman (5-7, 5.61 ERA). I’m not afraid to admit it. In May and June of 2012, when asked who I thought the Twins should take with the #2 overall pick in the draft, my choice was consistent, Kevin Gausman. The hard-throwing junior right-hander from Louisiana State University. Trust me. I wasn’t disappointed when the Twins selected Byron Buxton, and I’m still not. While Gausman throws hard, he hasn’t been able to hit his stride in the big leagues with the Orioles, yet. There are times he can look the part of an ace, but overall, he’s not there yet. However, in his last two starts, he has been very good. He threw 5.1 shutout innings against the Blue Jays on June 27. Then on July 2nd, he threw seven shutout innings with nine strikeouts. With Hector Santiago going on the disabled list, the Twins will give Felix Jorge another start. He put together a solid major league debut last Saturday. In five innings, he gave up three runs and was credited with the Win. Two runs came in the first inning on an Eric Hosmer opposite field home run. He settled in. The third run came after he left the game. A leadoff single in the 6tsixth ended his night, and soon after, a two-run home run scored that run. Jorge was impressive. His fastball sat between 90 and 95, sitting mostly at 92 and 93. He showed a good changeup and a good curveball, though both were overthrown a bit at times. His reputation as being cool and calm showed as he showed little emotion on the mound. He was sent back to Chattanooga after the game. Since he was the 26th man, he was able to come up before 10 days. Following the game, Felix Jorge was called up with Alan Busenitz getting optioned back to Rochester. Click here to view the article

It could, but at this point, they should wait until after the AAA All Star game (next week). No sense in sending them there to take 3 days off, though maybe that helps them control innings. The fact that they keep bring in veteran starters at AAA also indicates to me that they may not be afraid to promote directly from AA, though they can also release the filler without worrying.

I do think he can be an MLB reliever. He's working on a third and fourth pitch as a starter, and he probably could start in MLB. I think he could be a real solid reliever.

Just to keep people from worrying, Wander Javier is just fine. He's been playing most every day for the E-Twins. He played 8 games in 2016 before blowing out his hamstring, twice. But he's fine right now.

The bullpen has been an issue for the Twins during the first half of the 2017 season. While expectations were not high going into the season coming off of a 103-loss season, the Twins are above .500 as the All-Star Game approaches. Following the All-Star break, Twins Daily will be a great place for Twins fans to keep up with the rumors. Who are some of the players that the Twins could acquire from other organizations if they are buyers? How about if they become sellers? Which prospects might the Twins be willing to trade?Two relievers are believed to be on the market already, playing on teams that are clearly playing for the future. They are relief pitchers who could make the Twins bullpen stronger during the second half. In addition to their tremendous on-field statistics, these two players are #OneOfUs. Brooklyn Park grad Pat Neshek and Chaska High School alum Brad Hand are having great seasons. On Sunday, both were named to the National League All-Star squads, and not just because their teams had to have one representative. Today we consider why these are guys who could help the Twins, and what it might cost to get them. DISCLAIMER: I know there is a sentiment among many Twins Daily readers that ‘bringing back the band’ or acquiring guys who are “one of us” is a bad thing. However, I tend to believe that if the player remains good and can help a team win, then it just doesn’t matter. If Pat Neshek and/or Brad Hand can help the Twins win games in 2017, I don’t care if they’re from Minnesota or Texas. Australia or Venezuela. They happen to be from Minnesota. In the Twins history, we’ve seen both sides of this. Terry Steinbach and Dave Winfield being brought back worked out. Bringing back Jason Kubel and Jason Bartlett didn’t pan out. We’ve seen how Twins fans can turn on players when they don’t become what we thought they might, or they didn’t measure up in some way. We’ve seen one of the top five hitters in the organization’s history and a Minnesotan bashed to a crazy, unfair degree, in part because he’s from Minnesota. Imagine the scrutiny Kent Hrbek might have endured had he played during the age of Twitter. PAT NESHEK Let’s start with Pat Neshek since he’s got a bit of a double whammy. Not only is he from Minnesota, he was drafted by the Twins in 1999 and 2002, and played in the big leagues for the Twins between 2006 and 2010. He came up and used his funky delivery to dominate hitters immediately. He had Tommy John and missed most of 2008, all of 2009, and most of 2010. The Twins let him go in the spring of 2011 and he bounced around a bit. He took off again in 2014 with the Cardinals. In fact, that’s the year that he made his first All-Star appearance, ironically in Target Field. He signed a two-year deal with the Astros, with an option for 2017. After he was traded to the Phillies, they picked up his option for this year at $6.5 million. He will be a free agent at the end of the season. Neshek will turn 37 in September. This year, he has worked 32.1 innings for the Phillies. He’s struck out 8.2 per nine, a K-rate of 26.1%. He’s walked just 2.1 per nine. He’s given up just two home runs this season. He has a 1.39 ERA and a 0.87 WHIP. If you enjoy FIP and xFIP, his numbers are 2.41 and 3.59. He has a WAR of 1.1 already this season. From sidearm, Neshek has thrown 49.7% fastballs with an average velocity of 90.1. He has also thrown 47% sliders at 83.1 mph. He throws a changeup too, but just 3% of the time. 73% of his 491 pitches have been strikes. The Phillies are 28-55, so there is little reason for them to hold on to a veteran with an expiring contract in the second half. BRAD HAND Likewise, the Padres are just 36-48 at the halfway point of the season. They have three Rule 5 players on their roster and a plan to continue adding more young talent. Brad Hand was the second-round pick of the Marlins way back in 2008 out of high school. He signed and by June of 2011, he was a 21-year-old in the big leagues. He struggled with the Marlins, particularly as a starter. Last spring, the Marlins DFAd him and he ended up with the Padres. He’s become one of the better, and most used, relievers in baseball. Last year, he posted a 2.92 ERA over a league-leading 82 games. This year, he’s already pitched in 40 games and has a 2.42 ERA and a 0.94 WHIP. He has struck out 11.2 per nine innings while walking just 2.4 per nine. He’s given up less than a home run per nine innings. His FIP is 2.88, with an xFIP of 2.96. He’s pitched to a WAR of 1.0. Hand throws 49% fastballs at an average of 93.3 mph. He also throws his slider about 45% of the time, at 82 mph. His third pitch is more of a slow curve ball, which he throws just six percent of the time. Hand turned 27 in spring training. 2017 was his first year of arbitration and he’s making just shy of $1.4 million. In 2018, he will again be arbitration-eligible for the second time.He’ll have his third and final arbitration in 2019 before having the potential to become a free agent after the 2019 World Series. WHAT IT MIGHT TAKE There are reportedly several teams evaluating and considering acquiring Neshek including the Nationals. The belief is that it won’t take a ton to get Neshek, a “low level prospect.” Because there are other teams interested, the price could get raised a bit. I would guess it would take a top 20 prospect. To acquire Hand, it is likely to cost the Twins (or another team) much more. He’s nearly ten years younger and has two-and-a-half years under a team’s control. There is value in that. There is no other reason for the Padres to trade him, other that they can ask for the world for him and sell very high. He would likely require a top 10 prospect and a second or even a third piece. Do the Twins have the pieces to make these moves? No question. Do they want to outbid other teams and match the requirements of the teams? That we don’t know. Would the Twins have any desire to acquire One of Us, maybe even Two of Us? What would you do? How much (and name names) would you be willing to give up for these two guys? Click here to view the article

Last May, I was in Cedar Rapids. Dereck Rodriguez made a start and got lit up. After the game, then Kernels manager Jake Mauer said that Dereck would have to figure it out himself and work through it because he had the stuff to be successful. A month later, he was pitching great and earned a promotion to Ft. Myers where he continued to pitch well. He carried that into the Puerto Rican Winter League where he did a terrific job. He began in Ft. Myers this year and was a Florida State League All Star. He is now pitching well for Jake Mauer in Chattanooga and did so again on Wednesday night. As each of the games becomes a final, its game recap and highlights will be updated.Find out everything and more that happened happened in the Twins system on Wednesday, starting with the transactions of the day. TRANSACTIONS There were a handful of transactions in the Twins system on Wednesday. The Twins placed Hector Santiago on the disabled list with upper thoracic back pain and discomfort.They recalled Alan Busenitz from Rochester. He was optioned last Friday after working 2.2 innings of relief. He has not pitched for Rochester since then.RED WINGS REPORT Rochester 3, Pawtucket 1 Box Score Dillon Gee wants to make the Twins’ decision on whether or not to call him up before his July 15th opt-out more difficult. On Wednesday afternoon, he worked five shutout innings. He gave up five hits, walked one and struck out three. Alex Wimmers came on and gave up one run on two hits over two innings to record his fifth Red Wings save. He struck out two. Gee used his defense in this game, including this gem from Engelb Vielma. The Red Wings put together a three-run first inning. That was all for the offense, but it was enough in this game. Zack Granite led off the first with a single. He scored two batters later on Mitch Garver’s 18th double. (Josh Whetzel informed those listening that it had an exit velocity of 110 mph) A Kennys Vargas single was followed by an RBI single from Byungho Park. Later, Tommy Field’s fielder’s choice gave the Wings their third run. Vargas was the lone Red Wings hitter with more than one hit. He went 2-3 and added his third double. Game 2 - Rochester 0, Pawtucket 2 Box Score The Red Wings went with a bullpen effort in the second game. DJ Baxendale got the starting nod. He went three innings and gave up two runs (one earned) on seven hits. He walked none and struck out two. Mason Melotakis came on and struck out three over two scoreless innings. Michael Tonkin struck out one over two scoreless innings. The offense managed just four hits. Matt Hague was 2-2 with two walks and his 13th double. Tommy Field added his 21st double. CHATTANOOGA CHATTER Chattanooga 5, Tennessee 3 Box Score The Lookouts won for the 26th time in their last 31 games on Wednesday night. Dereck Rodriguez put together another strong start. The righty improved to 3-0 with the Lookouts with seven innings. He gave up two runs on seven hits. He walked two and struck out six. Todd Van Steensel came on for the eighth and struck out the side. He got one more out in the ninth inning (on a strikeout, of course), but he gave up one run on three hits. Nick Anderson, on his birthday, came on and recorded the final two outs, both on strikeouts to secure the win. Levi Michael led the offense. He went 3-4 with his tenth double. Travis Harrison went 1-2 with two walks and his 15th double. He also stole a base. Nick Gordon added an RBI double, his 22nd two-bagger of the year. LaMonte Wade and Jonathan Rodriguez were both 1-3 with a walk. The Lookouts are now 12-1, five games ahead of Tennessee in the Southern League’s North Division’s second-half standings. MIRACLE MATTERS Ft. Myers 3, Tampa 1 Box Score Sean Poppen made his Florida State League debut on Wednesday night in Tampa. He worked two shutout innings. He gave up two hits, no walks and struck out two. Then the rains came. There was a delay of nearly two hours. When the game resumed, Keaton Steele took over. He gave up a solo homer in the third inning, but that was it. He worked five innings and gave up just four hits. He walked none and struck out four. Alex Muren worked two strong innings. He walked two and struck out five. The Miracle got most of its offense from the nine-spot. Nelson Molina went 4-4 with two triples. He drove in one of the runs on a single, and he scored the go-ahead run. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 3, Wisconsin 5 Box Score Left-hander Evan Sanders was not drafted last summer. The Twins saw him this offseason in a workout and signed him. Recently, he came up to Cedar Rapids and has been working out of their bullpen. On Wednesday night, he made his first start. The first inning went well. He struck out two. In the second inning, however, he gave up five runs and recorded just one out. Logan Lombana came in and faced 11 batters. He got all 11 out, keeping the Kernels relatively close. In the fifth inning, Travis Blankenhorn had a bases-loaded walk to put the Kernels on the scoreboard. Patrick McGuff provided three shutout innings, striking out five. Alex Robinson worked a scoreless ninth. In the bottom of the ninth, Gorge Munoz was hit by a pitch. It was followed by a triple from Aaron Whitefield to cut the lead to 5-2. After a pitching change, Travis Blankenhorn grounded out, which scored the Kernels' third run, but also accounted for the inning's second out. Lewin Diaz flew out to end the game. Christian Cavaness went 3-4 with his eighth double. E-TWINS E-NOTES Elizabethton , Princeton Box Score The E-Twins game on Wednesday night was rained out. They’ll play two on Thursday. GCL TWINS TAKES GCL Twins 10, GCL Rays 8 Box Score Dane Hutcheon, batting ninth, provided some major run production for the GCL Twins on Wednesday morning. In his first at bat, he drove in two with his first triple of the season. In the fourth inning, he added an RBI single. In the fifth inning, he hit a two-run double. In the game, he went 3-5 with five RBI. Akil Baddoo stayed hot. He went 2-4 with a walk and his third double. He’s now hitting .324. Ricky De La Torre went 2-5. Colton Burns was 1-3 and walked twice. Royce Lewis went 1-4, and he was hit by a pitch again. Carlos Suniaga made the start. He gave up two runs on three hits over three innings. He walked one and struck out three. Juan Mojica came on and gave up two runs (one earned) on three hits and two walks in 2.2 innings. He struck out two. Matz Schutte was next. He went 1.2 innings and was charged with four runs (two earned) on one hit and three walks. Vadim Balan gave up one hit over the final 1.2 innings to record his second save. He struck out one. TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day – Dereck Rodriguez, Chattanooga Lookouts Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day – Nelson Molina, Ft. Myers THURSDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Pawtucket @ Rochester (12:35 CST) - RHP Tim Melville Tennessee @ Chattanooga (6:15 CST) - RHP Fernando Romero Ft. Myers @ Tampa (6:00 CST) - LHP Lewis Thorpe Wisconsin @ Cedar Rapids (6:35 CST) - LHP Domenick Carlini Princeton @ Elizabethton (DH @ 4:00 CST) - RHPs Moises Gomez, Melvi Acosta GCL Rays @ GCL Twins (11:00 am CST) - TBD Please feel free to ask any questions and discuss Wednesday’s games. Click here to view the article

Just not enough command/control, threw a ton of pitches so he coudln't go real far into a lot of games.

Yup, this one was definitely a miss! Wow! That's impressive... Definitely should have been #2 or 3 on the list.

I would almost guess that he'll be the one to move up to E-Town when Rooker moves up.

Rortvedt's been great. Feels like I update this tweet every few days, and I posted this after his first of two hits yesterday...