Seth Stohs

They've got enough pitchers in the big leagues that they need to make some decisions on. But primarily, Gonsalves doesn't need to be added to the 40 man roster until AFTER the 2017 season, so from a roster management standpoint, it makes absolutely no sense for him to be added to the 40-man roster now.

He's a side-winding pitcher, but he's able to hit 93-94 with the fastball. He's also got a changeup and a slider from the side, and he can throw strikes with all of them. I Know he was working on those three pitches from on-top too, just to give hitters more looks. He's very smart, knows how to pitch. Now the biggest thing is getting him healthy!

I'm a little surprised that Walker isn't coming up. In fact, I personally am disappointed. But at the same time, they can't (or teams don't) call up everyone. The Twins aren't sending Walker any kind of message in not calling him up. And, Landa, Rosario and Melotakis weren't called up either. Being on the 40 man doesn't guarantee anything.

I'd think there's a decent chance that Diaz moves up for the MWL playoffs. Granite had a great year, but remember that the AFL isn't always about the better prospects (Though I don't know which of the two is a better prospect). Wiel's bat is going to be his calling card. Defense, we'll see. He has a ton of errors for a first baseman this year. He isn't speedy. But he can hit and hit for some power.

I remember the Osterbrock no-hitter. In fact, I had him on the SethSpeaks.net Weekly Minnesota Twins Podcast the next day or so. http://www.blogtalkradio.com/sethspeaks/2010/05/03/sethspeaksnet-weekly-minnesota-twins-podcast Podcast also includes talk of debuts of Luke Hughes and Wilson Ramos as well as an interview with Kyle Gibson. Fun to listen back to some of them.

I must have started researching players' Augusts with the Bs and missed the A's because Wow! Arraez was tremendous! Hit .425!

I can’t believe that it is already Labor Day. For most of our Minnesota readers, that means school starts tomorrow! The Dog Days of August can be difficult in a long minor league season. We saw yesterday how the starting pitchers were excellent during the month. Today, we consider the top hitters in the Twins system in August. Who ended the season strong? In case you missed it, here were the previous August winners: Starting Pitcher of the Month, Stephen GonsalvesRelief Pitcher of the Month, Jake ReedWhile the pitching did seem to be a bit above the hitting during the month, there were several hitters that had strong August performances as well. Congratulations to all of the players mentioned below. HONORABLE MENTION OF Shane Carrier (Elizabethton) - .296/.327/.454 (.781). 32-108 with seven doubles, two triples, two home runs and 13 RBIs.OF Jaylin Davis (Cedar Rapids) - .253/.333/.451 (.784). 23-91 with six doubles, four homers and 10 RBIss.IF Nelson Molina (Cedar Rapids) - .319/.376/.429 (.805). 29-91 with four doubles, two homers and seven RBIs.C John Ryan Murphy (Rochester) - .328/.361/.448 (.809). 19-58 with one doubles, two homers and ten RBIs.OF Daniel Palka (Rochester) - .228/.282/.525 (.807). 23-101 with six doubles, eight home runs and 13 RBIs.C Stuart Turner (Chattanooga) - .303/.321/.434 (.755). 23-76 with seven doubles, one homer and 12 RBIs.THE TOP SIX HITTERS Number 6 – Ft. Myers/Chattanooga – 3B TJ White - .312/.360/.473 (.833). 29-93 with six doubles, three triples, one home run and 15 RBIs. White was set to have a big season. At 5-11 and 230 pounds, he is incredibly strong, but he also runs very well. After a few games with the Miracle, he was moved up to AA due to some injuries. He struggled for a couple of months before finally being sent back to Ft. Myers where he again played quite well. He was again promoted to Chattanooga mid-month and has been very good since, much more ready. He’s got power potential, but for such a big, strong young man he gets a lot of triples and runs real well. A high school teammate of Rangers prospect Joey Gallo, White went to UNLV. The Twins used their 18th-round pick in 2014 on him. Number 5 – Ft. Myers – OF Joe Maloney - .330/.367/.477 (.845). 29-88 with seven doubles, two home runs and 14 RBIs. Maloney was the independent leagues player of the year in 2015. The Twins signed the catcher following the season. After a strong showing in spring training, he began the year in Chattanooga. With Mitch Garver and Stuart Turner on the roster, Maloney spent his time at DH and in the outfield. Midseason, he was struggling and was sent back to Ft. Myers where he started slow. However, he took off in August, hitting for average and showing good power in the Florida State League. Number 4 – Chattanooga – OF Zack Granite - .316/.354/.410 (.765). 37-117 with five doubles, three triples and 14 RBIss. Granite is no stranger to these hitter of the month awards articles. The speedy center fielder has had a terrific season with the Lookouts. He has been everything you would want from a leadoff man. He’s hit for average, been able to get on base, and even shown a little more pop in his bat than he has in the past. For the month, he hit over .300 and displayed his speed with the extra- base hits. He also stole 15 bases during the month. He currently sits at 55 steals for the season. He was also named to the Southern League’s postseason All-Star team this month. Granite was the team’s 14th-round pick in 2013 out of Seton Hall. Number 3 - Elizabethton/Cedar Rapids – 2B Travis Blankenhorn - .320/.371/.495 (.866) 31-97 with seven doubles, two triples, two homers and 15 RBIs. Blankenhorn has had a very good year with the bat in 2016. He was the Twins tihrd-round pick last year out of high school in Pennsylvania. He split last season between the GCL and Elizabethton. He began this season at extended spring training, in part learning to play second base. He demolished the Appy League and was soon promoted to Cedar Rapids where he has continued to hit. While his defensive position remains uncertain, his bat has kept him in the lineup most days. He had a big month in August, hitting for average, showing some speed and hitting a couple of Kernels homers. Number 2 - Elizabethton – 1B Lewin Diaz - .333/.381/.564 (945). 26-78 with four doubles, one triple, four homers and 13 RBIs. Late last week, we named Lewin Diaz our Short Season Hitter of the Year. When the season is just over two months, a strong month can propel a guy to such an award. Diaz was terrific in August. He hit for average, got on base and showed the tremendous power potential one might hope for in a 250 pound young man. The 19-year-old maybe should be ranked higher this month, but with playing time split more in the rookie leagues, he has 20-30 fewer plate appearances than others. However, Diaz is starting to become what the Twins envisioned when making him a big-money sign from the Dominican in 2014. Number 1B - Cedar Rapids – 2B Luis Arraez - .425/.444/.487 (913). 48-113 with seven doubles and 18 RBIs. Update - Due to Labor Day and the author of this article apparently began researching for the Hitter of the Month with the B's instead of the A's. Arraez had an incredible season with the Kernels and he has had many multi-hit games. His .347 average led the Midwest League. He became the youngest player to lead the MWL in hitting since Mike Trout. Still just 19, Arraez will advance to Ft. Myers in 2017. And the Twins Minor League Hitter of the Month is: Rochester – OF Adam Brett Walker - .269/.314/.537 (.851). 29-108 with four doubles, two triples, seven home runs and 21 RBI. Walker is not a stranger to appearing in hitter of the month award articles. He’s won a few and ranked highly several other times. In August, he again showed the type of power that he has. While he’ll never hit for a big average, and he’ll strike out too much, he has come a long way since the Twins used their third-round pick in 2012 on the strong outfielder. As I wrote last week, this is the fourth straight full-season that Walker has hit 25 or more home runs. He and Daniel Palka provided the Red Wings with some massive power in the middle of their lineup. When it comes to pure power, Walker (and Palka) are right up there with Miguel Sano for biggest in the organization. Walker was added to the Twins 40-man roster last November. With today being the last day of the Rochester season, it is possible he will earn his first big league call up today. There were a lot of real solid hitting performances in the Twins system in August. While there may not have been any 1.000 OPS months, there were quite a few in the .800-.900 range. Consolidating full-season players with the short-season players can be difficult. So, let me know what you think. Feel free to discuss the winner or any of the mentions in the comments. Congratulations to the Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Month for August, 2016, Adam Brett Walker. Click here to view the article

That said, Clark Beeker has been quite good. In August, he made three relief appearances before moving into their rotation. For the month, he went 1-1 with a 1.52 ERA, a 0.85 WHIP, and 5 BB/26 K in 23.2 innings. So they probably have the right guy going for them. But yeah, the E-Twins do have a younger team than usual in the Appy League. Too bad Kirilloff hasn't been able to play.

Fair enough, but he was on my list and I crossed him out with a 1.31 WHIP. He's been good though, for the most part, and I'd like to see him get a call up for September later today.

Happy Labor Day! Welcome to a bittersweet day, the end of the minor league regular season. On Sunday the Miracle played their final game, a morning tilt. Elizabethton played a thriller with their neighbor to the east in Game 2 to set up a big Game 3 tonight. The Kernels will be the only other Twins affiliate advancing to the playoffs. We’ll have one more regular-season Twins Minor League Report for games on Monday, but don’t worry, we’ll cover the Kernels and E-Twins in the playoffs as long as they’re going.Find out everything that happened in the Twins minor league system on Sunday. RED WINGS REPORT Rochester 5, Lehigh Valley 4 Box Score With no playoff hopes to play for, the Red Wings put together a solid performance and came away with their 81st win of the season. Omar Bencomo provided a quality start. The right-hander gave up two runs on six hits over the first six innings. He walked one and struck out four. Alan Busenitz came on and gave up one run on two hits and a walk in 1.2 innings. Edward Mujica gave up a run on a hit over the final 1.1 innings. He struck out two and recorded his 26th save of the season. Tanner English had another solid game at the top of the Red Wings lineup. He went 2-4 with a walk and his first double. He also stole his second base. Kennys Vargas went 2-3 with a walk and his 16th double. Leonardo Reginnato went 2-4 with his third double. The double cleared the bases in the Red Wings big four-run 8th inning. Mitch Garver went 2-2 with two walks and his fifth double. Adam Brett Walker knocked his fifth triple. CHATTANOOGA CHATTER Chattanooga 5, Jackson 8 Box Score Ryan Eades made his final start of the season. He gave up five runs on four hits, four walks and a hit batter over four innings. He struck out four. Luke Bard walked three and hit a batter over two innings, but he didn’t give up a hit or a run. He struck out two. Randy Rosario got the final two innings. He gave up three runs on four hits. He walked two and struck out four. Niko Goodrum led the offense. He went 3-3 with a walk and his tenth double. He stole two bases. TJ White stayed hot. He went 2-3 with a walk and two runs driven in. Dalton Hicks went 2-4 with his 27th double. Zack Granite stole his 55th base. MIRACLE MATTERS Ft. Myers 5, Bradenton 2 Box Score The Miracle ended their 2016 season with a 9:35 am start time. Keaton Steele ended his 2016 season strong. For the seventh straight start, he put together a quality start. The right-hander gave up two runs on four hits over seven innings. He walked two and struck out seven. John Curtiss and Nick Anderson finished out the win as each threw a scoreless inning in relief. For Anderson, it was his 10th save with the Miracle. Daniel Kihle, batting ninth, led the Miracle offense. He went 3-3 with a walk, his fourth double and his second home run. AJ Murray went 2-4 including his fourth home run of the year. It was his second straight game with a homer. Alex Perez was also 2-4. Christian Ibarra added his fifth double. The Miracle ended their season 70-68. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 0, Wisconsin 5 Box Score Sam Gibbons took the mound for the Kernels. The right-hander gave up five runs (3 earned) on eight hits and two walks in seven innings. He struck out five. Andrew Vasquez struck out three over two perfect innings in relief. JJ Fernandez went 3-4. Casey Scoggins was 2-5 with his sixth double. Christian Cavaness added his third triple. E-TWINS E-NOTES Elizabethton 8, Johnson City 7 Box Score The E-Twins traveled the four miles from their ballpark to Johnson City for Game 2 of the first round of the Appalachian League playoffs. Following a Game 1 loss at home, the Twins were in a must-win situation. This game went back and forth, but the Twins live to see another day, a Game 3 on Monday night with the winner advancing to the Appy League championship series. Tyler Wells has been terrific of late. However, he gave up six runs on seven hits and a walk in just 3.1 innings in this game. In the third inning, former Gophers standout Matt Fiedler launched a three-run homer to give Johnson City a 4-1 lead. The Twins scored four runs in the top of the fourth on a series of hits and JC errors. The big hit was a two-run double off the bat of Mitchell Kranson. Ryan Mason replaced Wells and was charged with one run on four hits and a walk over the next 3.2 innings. With a one-run lead, Ray Smith turned to his closer Patrick McGuff. McGuff gave up two hits but no runs over the final two innings to notch the save and send the series to a Game 3. Kranson led the offense. He went 3-5 with that double and four big RBIs. Caleb Hamilton had another good playoff game. He was 3-4 with a double. Shane Carrier added a solo home run in the fifth which tied the game at six. Ben Rortvedt was 2-5 with a double. In case you were wondering, with the GCL season complete, Aaron Whitefield has been sent to Tennessee to help the Twins on their playoff run. Alex Kirilloff was again out of the Twins lineup with his shoulder injury. TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day – Omar Bencomo, Rochester Red Wings Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day – Mitchell Kranson, Elizabethton Twins MONDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Rochester @ Lehigh Valley (12:35 CST) - LHP David Hurlbut Chattanooga @ Jackson (2:05 CST) - RHP Felix Jorge Ft. Myers - Season Over Clinton @ Cedar Rapids (2:05 CST) – RHP Eduarldo Del Rosario Playoffs Round 1 Game 3: Elizabethton @ Johnson City (5:00 CST) - RHP Clark Beeker GCL Twins - Season Over Please feel free to ask any questions and discuss Sunday's games. Click here to view the article

It used to be unique for the Twins to send someone back two years in a row, but it has become fairly common the last 5-6 years. I'd shut Reed down. He threw a ton of innings this year.

Earlier today, we announced our choice for Twins Minor League Starting Pitcher of the Month, Stephen Gonsalves. There were so many terrific starting pitchers in August, and there were some relievers that helped their teams to success too. Let’s take a look some of the top performances in the bullpen and our choice for Twins Daily Relief Pitcher of the Month of August.First, a couple of relievers worthy of mention: Moises Gomez - GCL - 5 G, 1.17 ERA, 1.11 WHIP, 15.0 IP, 13 H, 4 BB, 7 KBrandon Peterson - Chattanooga - 6 G, 1.50 ERA, 1.17 WHIP, 12.0 IP, 6 H, 8 BB, 16 KJohan Quezada - Elizabethton - 8 G, 1.93 ERA, 0.93 WHIP, 14.0 IP, 8 H, 5 BB, 9 KWilliams Ramirez - Cedar Rapids - 7 G, 1.98 ERA, 0.93 WHIP, 13.2 IP, 5 H, 11 BB, 15 KTHE TOP FOUR RELIEF PITCHERS #4 - Nick Anderson - Ft. Myers - 10 G, 1.88 ERA, 1.12 WHIP, 14.1 IP, 11 H, 5 BB, 18 K The Twins signed Nick Anderson out of independent ball last July (2015), and he helped the Cedar Rapids Kernels to the Midwest League championship series as their closer. He returned to the Midwest League to start this season, but after dominating again, he moved up to Ft. Myers. He had some initial struggles there, but has been terrific the last five or six weeks. In August he was terrific. Opponents posted just a .519 OPS off of him. He struck out a lot of batters and generally was dominant. #3 - John Curtiss - Ft. Myers - 10 G, 1.32 ERA, 1.10 WHIP, 13.2 IP, 11 H, 4 BB, 17 K Earlier this week, we learned that Curtiss would be part of the Twins contingent at the Arizona Fall League. He was our choice for relief pitcher of the month back in April and was promoted to the Miracle as the calendar turned to May. He had some ups and downs the first couple of months, but in August, he teamed with Anderson at the back-end of the Miracle bullpen and got the job done. He also has the ability to strike batters out with a mid-90s fastball. The Twins 6th -ound pick in 2014 out of the University of Texas, Curtiss has thrived in the bullpen. #2 - Andrew Vasquez - Cedar Rapids - 7 G, 1.15 ERA, 1.09 WHIP, 15.2 IP, 10 H, 7 BB, 18 K After a so-so pro debut in the GCL last year after being a late-round draft pick, Vasquez began the 2016 season at Extended Spring Training. He actually made a couple of appearances for Elizabethton before coming up to the Kernels. Since then, he has really helped solidify Jake Mauer's bullpen. Vasquez is tall and strong, but he occasionally has some bouts with his control. But when he's on, he misses a lot of bats and makes opposing batters uncomfortable. They posted just a .474 OPS off of him in August. And the Twins Minor League Relief Pitcher of the Month is: Rochester Red Wings – RHP Jake Reed - 10 G, 1.59 ERA, 0.88 WHIP, 11.1 IP, 8 H, 2 BB, 11 K It's almost hard to believe that Jake Reed was only drafted by the Twins two years ago. We have heard his name so many times over those two years as a future bullpen arm. The Twins used their 5th-round pick in 2014 to take the reliever out of Oregon. In college, he was a solid starter his first two seasons, but the move to the bullpen helped him take off. The Twins signed him and sent him to Elizabethton, but he very quickly got to Cedar Rapids where he was completely dominant. He gave up one run in 25 innings (0.72 ERA). Then he dominated in the Arizona Fall League. He began the 2015 season in AA Chattanooga, but he struggled and went back to Ft. Myers where he pitched great. He returned to the Lookouts and helped in their Southern League championship run. He again went to the AFL last year and pitched really well again. He earned an invitation to Twins big league spring training where he made a good impression. He began this season in Chattanooga again where he had some ups and downs early, but he really pitched well before being promoted to Rochester. In his first appearance for the Red Wings, he struggled and allowed a couple of inherited runners to score. Since then, he has been dominant. He should again be invited to Twins spring training and there is a chance he surfaces with the Twins before June. He is blessed with a mid-to-upper 90s fastball with a lot of movement. Sometimes it's clear he's getting so much movement that it runs out of the strike zone. He also has a very good slider. He's got great makeup for a late-innings reliever. There were several very strong relief pitcher performances in August. Feel free to agree or disagree with the order, if you like, but congratulations to each of these individuals on an excellent month. Congratulations to the Twins Daily Minor League Relief Pitcher of the Month for August 2016, Jake Reed. Click here to view the article

He didn't hit well in AAA the whole year. He did better in limited MLB time than in AAA. There is a reason that he doesn't get the playing time that a lot of fans want him to. He's not a big prospect. I mean, he's a 'big' prospect, but he's not a big prospect.

He's been at the back end of some Top 100 lists around midseason... He should be a consensus Top 100 guy. Wherever he lands on those lists, we'll likely all agree that it's way too low and that he should be higher.

Hey ya'll... I just updated the document. I had typed Gonsalves's ERA at 2.08, which would still be very good... but it was actually 0.28...which of course, is remarkable...

He left a game last week after making a strong throw to get a runner trying to score. Left the game shaking his shoulder. He returned to the dugout, but they are being cautious.

The Twins minor league season is almost complete, which is kind of sad. But, what is good to see is that a lot of minor leaguers are ending the season very strong. Today we begin to hand out our August minor league awards, and we will start with the starting pitchers. In all the years and months of me doing these, I have never seen a month with so many really strong starting pitching performances. Just look at those who were selected as honorable mention to see how strong they were in the month.Let’s get right to it. Before we get to our Top 5 starting pitchers for the month of August, here is that extensive list of others who deserve to be recognized for a strong month. Actually, there are a ton of honorable mentions AND I had to do a Top 6 starters just to write more about another Twins starting pitching prospect. This is a good thing (even if it's more work!). HONORABLE MENTION Jordan Balazovic - GCL - 6 GS, 2-1, 2.33 ERA, 1.07 WHIP, 27.0 IP, 25 H, 4 BB, 13 KTyler Beardsley - Elizabethton/Cedar Rapids - 5 GS, 2-2, 2.57 ERA, 1.04 WHIP, 28.0 IP, 22 H, 7 H, 17 KMiguel DeJesus - GCL/Elizabethton - 5 GS, 0-2, 2.74 ERA, 1.09 WHIP, 23.0 IP, 16 H, 9 BB, 17 KClark Beeker - Elizabethton - 6 G, 3 GS, 1-1, 1.52 ERA, 0.85 WHIP, 23.2 IP, 15 H, 5 BB, 26 KRyan Eades - Chattanooga - 6 G, 4 GS, 1-0, 2.22 ERA, 1.11 WHIP, 24.1 IP, 22 H, 5 BB, 24 KTyler Fox - GCL - 5 G, 4 GS, 1-0, 1.96 ERA, 1.09 WHIP, 23.0 IP, 19 H, 6 BB, 15 KNick Greenwood - Rochester - 5 GS, 3-1, 2.25 ERA, 0.97 WHIP, 36.1 IP, 30 H 5 BB, 17 KBo Hellquist - 6 G, 5 GS, 3-2, 2.43 ERA, 1.05 WHIP, 29.2 IP, 26 H, 5 BB, 23 KTyler Wells - 5 GS, 4-1, 2.57 ERA, 1.04 WHIP, 28.0 IP, 20 H, 9 BB, 31 KKeaton Steele - 5 GS, 3-2, 1.91 ERA, 1.00 WHIP, 33.0 IP, 28 H, 5 BB, 22 KCody Stashak - 3 GS, 0.0, 0.54 ERA, 0.96 WHIP, 16.2 IP, 13 H, 3 BB, 10 KTHE TOP SIX STARTING PITCHERS #6 - Dereck Rodriguez - Ft. Myers - 5 GS, 2-2, 1.87 ERA, 0.89 WHIP, 33.2 IP, 27 H, 3 BB, 18 K The first two months of the season were really tough for Rodriguez. He struggled to throw strikes and command the strike zone. He was hit often and hit hard. Then in early June, a switch flipped and he turned it on. Soon after, he was promoted to Ft. Myers and he's been very good there. He's been throwing a lot more strikes and hasn't been getting hit as hard. He's got a few fewer strikeouts, as you'd expect from a higher level, but his command is much improved. #5 - Lachlan Wells - Cedar Rapids Kernels - 4 GS, 3-0, 1.46 ERA, 1.05 WHIP, 24.2 IP, 18 H, 8 BB, 20 K Signed out of Australia, Wells has moved quickly to start his career. A year ago, he debuted in the GCL and pitched well. He pitched for Australia in the World Cup at the end of last season. He began this season in extended spring training but before the Elizabethton season started, he was moved up to the Kernels. He has been terrific since. He continues to grow. The left-hander stands 6-1 and 186 pounds but he still has room to grow. In 12 starts with the Kernels, Wells (19) is 6-4 with a 1.77 ERA. #4 - Eduardo Del Rosario - Cedar Rapids Kernels - 5 GS, 3-0, 1.69 ERA, 1.05 WHIP, 26.2 IP, 21 H, 7 BB, 34 K Like Wells, Eduardo Del Rosario began the season in extended spring training after a solid 2015 in the Gulf Coast League. He was promoted in June to the Kernels and really struggled early, but he appears to be figuring some things out. As you can see from the numbers, he had a terrific month of August. Del Rosario is a wiry sort. He is 6-0 and about 160 pounds. Overall, the 21-year-old is 6-3 with a 3.65 ERA in 15 Kernels starts. #3 - Fernando Romero - Ft. Myers Miracle - 4 GS, 2-1, 1.16 ERA, 0.86 WHIP, 23.1 IP, 16 H, 4 BB, 29 K Like Wells and Del Rosario, Romero began the season in EST. However, he was there because he had missed the two previous seasons with Tommy John surgery and a knee surgery. He was called up to Cedar Rapids in mid-May. He made only a handful of starts before moving up to the Miracle where he didn't miss a beat. He's young and has very few innings above the Gulf Coast League, but he has the stuff of a true ace, something Twins fans have been longing for. He continued his strong showing in August, right up until he was shut down with about two or three starts to go after hitting his predetermined innings limit. After posting a 1.93 ERA in five Kernels starts, he ended his time with the Miracle with a 1.88 ERA in 11 starts. #2 - Brady Anderson - Cedar Rapids Kernels - 5 GS, 3-0, 1.24 ERA, 1.07 WHIP, 29.0 IP, 25 H, 6 BB, 17 K Anderson reported to EST after signing with the Twins as a non-drafted free agent out of Florida Gulf Coast University in Ft. Myers. Likely signed to fill innings in the GCL, Anderson dominated that league. When the Kernels needed a starter in early August, they didn't turn to an Elizabethton starter. Instead, Anderson skipped the Appy League and went into the Kernels rotation. He gave up three runs in five innings in his first outing. Over his final four outings (24 innings), he gave up just one run. Non-drafted signees are typically just happy for an opportunity. However, once given that opportunity, Anderson has fully taken advantage of it. And the Twins Minor League Starting Pitcher of the Month is... Chattanooga – LHP Stephen Gonsalves - 5 GS, 3-2, 0.28 ERA, 0.95 WHIP, 34.2 IP, 25 H, 8 BB, 38 K Gonsalves (22) is the veteran of this group of Top 5 starters. He was solid in Ft. Myers to start this season (5-4, 2.33 ERA), but after one rough outing with the Lookouts - his second with the team - he has dominated Southern League hitters. In his first August outing, he threw six innings with no earned runs. Then he threw a complete game shutout. The next two starts he threw six shutout innings. In once start, he held a no-hitter through six innings. Aside from a game with a bunch of walks, Gonsalves has figured out a way to get hitters out. In the offseason, he added to his pitch repertoire with a slider/cutter pitch. He said it has been a huge strikeout pitch for him, especially against left-handers. Gonsalves has eaten a lot of innings, though the occasional control issues have kept him from pitching more. He has struck out more in AA than he did in Ft. Myers. With the Lookouts, he went 8-1 with a 1.82 ERA. In August, Gonsalves allowed hitters to bat just .125/.227/.144 (.371) against him. During the month, he gave up just two extra-base hits, both doubles. He’s also allowed just one home run during his time with the Lookouts as well, and three all season. Gonsalves has just continued to improve as he has moved up the Twins system. That's what I like to see, certainly what he would like to see, and most important, it's what the front office hopes to see as well. There is a decent chance that Gonsalves will be the organization's #1 prospect heading into the 2017 season. There is a good chance that we will see him in big league spring training, and there is a strong chance that we will see him in a Twins uniform, making starts, sometime during the 2017 season. The Twins have one more spot available for them for the Arizona Fall League. Don't be surprised if that pitcher is Gonsalves. There were so many strong starting pitching performances in August, but the choice of Stephen Gonsalves was very easy. Feel free to discuss below. Feel free to agree or disagree with the order, if you like as I went back and forth many times, but congratulations these individuals on a terrific month. Click here to view the article

Elizabethton began their playoff run with a home game on Saturday night. The Gulf Coast Twins played their final regular season game which amounted to a playoff game. A win would mean a playoff berth. A loss would mean the end of their season. I mean, how can you not want to keep reading this article? Rochester played their first game of the season that held no playoff hopes. A top pitching prospect returned from the DL to make a final start. The Miracle had to play two games to make up for games lost to rain on Friday. The Cedar Rapids game in Wisconsin on Friday night finished at about 12:30 a.m. They had to make the bus ride back to Cedar Rapids to play Clinton in their final regular season series before they start a playoff run. Transactions: The Red Wings playoff hopes came to an end on Friday night. Right after the game, John Ryan Murphy was promoted to Minnesota.Taking Murphy’s place on the Red Wings roster was catcher Brian Olson. Olson had started Game 1 for Ft. Myers on Saturday but left the game early to travel to Rochester.Find out everything that happened in the Twins minor league system on Saturday. RED WINGS REPORT Rochester 1, Lehigh Valley 5 Box Score The Red Wings playoff hopes came to an end on Friday night, so Saturday was the first game that didn’t really have season significance. Then again, for minor leaguers - especially guys in AAA - every game is an opportunity to impress. Tyler Duffey made the start and threw a complete game. However, he gave up five runs on seven hits over eight innings. He walked two and struck out seven. Four of the hits were home runs. Tanner English moved to the leadoff role and picked up his first two Red Wings hits. He also stole his first base. Mitch Garver went 2-4. Leonardo Reginnato led the way going 4-4 in the game. CHATTANOOGA CHATTER Chattanooga 2, Jackson 1 Box Score Kohl Stewart spent some time on the DL but quickly returned and made the Saturday start. He gave up just one run on three hits over six innings. He walked three and struck out one. He improved to 9-6 with the Lookouts with a 3.03 ERA. Randy LeBlanc picked up his first save, in his first relief appearance, with three no-hit, scoreless innings. He walked two and struck out four. Niko Goodrum and Dalton Hicks each went 2-4. Edgar Corcino hit his seventh double. MIRACLE MATTERS Game 1 - Ft. Myers 7, Bradenton 3 Box Score Dereck Rodriguez looked to continue a strong string of starts. The right-hander gave up two runs on five hits over five innings. He struck out three without issuing a walk. He was replaced by Confesor Lara who worked the next two innings. He gave up one run on three hits and a walk. Michael Theofanopoulos struck out four batters over two perfect innings. Nick Gordon had a very good game. He went 3-3 with a walk and his 23rd double. He stole two bases and now has 20 on the season. Christian Ibarra went 2-3 with a walk and his second triple. Joe Maloney provided the big hit of the game. He hit a three-run homer. It was his fifth home run with the Miracle. Game 2 - Ft. Myers 6, Bradenton 11 Box Score Game 2 just got off to a bad start. Lefty Sam Clay started and recorded just one out. He gave up six runs on two hits and four walks. Logan Lombana made his first Miracle appearance. He gave up one run on five hits and two walks in 2.2 innings. He struck out one. Cam Booser gave up two runs on three hits in 1.2 innings. He walked one and struck out three. Luke Westphal gave up two runs on two hits in 2.1 innings. He walked two and struck out three. Brian Navarreto went 3-3 in the game. Alex Perez went 1-3 with a walk. AJ Murray hit his third Miracle homer. Daniel Kihle went 1-2 with a walk, his first triple and three RBIs. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 5, Wisconsin 8 Box Score Over his past eight starts (five of which have been for Cedar Rapids), Brady Anderson has given up a combined four earned runs. On this night, Anderson was charged with six runs on 12 hits in 5.1 innings. He walked one and struck out two. Williams Ramirez went the next 2.1 innings. He gave up two runs on two hits. He walked three and struck out four. Tom Hackimer got the final four outs, two of them on strikeouts. Zander Wiel led the Kernels offense. He went 3-5 with his 17th home run and two RBIs. JJ Fernandez hit a big three-run homer. It was his tenth homer of the season and second in as many games. Jaylin Davis hit his 12th and 13th doubles. Manuel Guzman walked three times. E-TWINS E-NOTES Elizabethton 4, Johnson City 7 Box Score The E-Twins hosted Game 1 of their best-of-three series against neighboring Johnson City. Lewin Diaz got the team started on a positive note when his solo home run gave them a 1-0 lead. Diaz added a double later. Caleb Hamilton twice had an RBI single in the game as well. Luis Martinez was also 2-4. Shane Carrier hit a double. Miguel DeJesus was tasked with the Game 1 start. He gave up three runs on four hits and three walks in five innings. He struck out four. Hector Lujan came on and was charged with two runs on three hits and a walk in 2.2 innings. He struck out one. Johan Quezada gave up two unearned runs on two hits in one inning. Quin Grogan came on to get the final out. Former Gopher and the reigning Big Ten Player of the Year Matt Fiedler hits third for Johnson City. He was the 10th-round pick of the Cardinals this past June and has spent the summer in the Appalachian League. After a very slow start, he ended the regular season hitting .325/.386/.487 (.874) with 20 doubles and four home runs. Game 2 will be in Johnson City, as will Game 3, if necessary. GCL TWINS TAKES GCL Twins 3, GCL Red Sox 4 Box Score The two teams were rained out in their game that was supposed to be played on Friday so their regular-season finale came on Saturday morning. Win and In! The winner of the game would advance to the playoffs. The losing team’s season was over. Unfortunately the GCL Twins season is over. They fell behind 4-0. They scored three in the eighth inning, but the comeback fell just short. Tyler Fox made the start for the Twins. The right-hander from Nebraska-Omaha went the first 5.1 innings. He gave up three runs on four hits and two walks. He struck out one. He was replaced by Zach Strecker who went the next 1.2 innings and gave up a run on four hits. Onas Farfan threw two scoreless innings to end the game. He gave up one hit, walked two and struck out one. Lean Marrero went 3-3 with his sixth double in the game. He stole his fifth base. Akil Baddoo had a two-run triple in the team’s big inning. Jorge Munoz stole two bases, his 12th and 13th of the season. TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day – Kohl Stewart, Chattanooga Lookouts Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day – Zander Wiel, Cedar Rapids Kernels SUNDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Rochester @ Lehigh Valley (5:35 CST) - RHP Omar Bencomo Chattanooga @ Jackson (2:05 CST) - RHP Ryan Eades Bradenton @ Ft. Myers (9:35 CST) - RHP Keaton Steele Clinton @ Cedar Rapids (2:05 CST) – RHP Sam Gibbons Playoffs Round 1 Game 2: Elizabethton @ Johnson City (5:00 CST) - RHP Tyler Wells GCL Twins - Season Over Please feel free to ask any questions and discuss Saturday's games. Click here to view the article

I think just to have a third catcher available. Rochester still has Garver and Paulino.