Seth Stohs

Correct. Obviously at that same stage (AAA), Liriano was hitting 95-97. Mejia is more 90-93. I think he touched 94 a couple times. But I think he's a legit prospect.

He's walked 24 in 44+ innings. I think he's right where he needs to be. He's working on a pitch or two too. He's still very young. There's no rush whatsoever. My guess is he'll get an invite to spring training next year which will be a nice thing, if it happens.

I think Jay, Gordon, Kirilloff, Gonsalves and Romero could all stake claim on the team's #1 prospect if Berrios hits 50 innings with the Twins (which he will).

If a reliever comes into a game in what would be a save situation (if it was the 9th)) and holds the lead, he gets a Hold. If he gives up the lead, he gets a blown Save. If the team reclaims the lead, he gets the Win. So, in this game, Bard did the final two things.

If you were to compile a list of the Twins prospects who have seen their stock rise the most in 2016, Zach Granite’s name would certainly be near the top. I had a chance to catch up with the speedy centerfielder of the Chattanooga Lookouts and talked to him about his season, his job as a leadoff hitter and base stealer and much more. Granite was the 14th-round pick of the Minnesota Twins in 2013 following a strong career at Seton Hall. The Staten Island native signed quickly and spent that summer in Elizabethton where he hit .285 and got on base 36% of the time.He began the 2014 season as the leadoff hitter for the Cedar Rapids Kernels. Unfortunately, he was hurt just a handful of games into the season. When he came back later in the year, he was hurt again. Because he played in just 21 total games for the Kernels in 2014, he returned there to start the 2015 season. At that time, Granite said, “I had a really tough season (in 2014), so I took a good month off and cleared my head. I was in my own head just from not playing. I was thinking too much about it.” Granite ended up being the Twins choice for Minor League Hitter of the Month of April (finished a close 2nd here at Twins Daily) and was quickly promoted to the Miracle where he spent the rest of the season. In 105 games in Ft. Myers, Granite hit .249/.328/.304 (.632) with ten doubles, four triples and a home run. So when he came to spring training this year, he figured he would be back with the Miracle to start the season. Instead, he began the season in Chattanooga. “Honestly, I was expecting to start in Ft. Myers again. I didn’t do as well as I wanted to in Ft. Myers, but I came into spring training ready to compete, and I feel like I did enough to earn the promotion.” Shannon Wilkerson, who was a key instigator for the Lookouts offense and defense late in 2015, began this season on the disabled list with a strained quad. Maybe that was part of the reason that Granite made the jump to Chattanooga. As we sit now, in the beginning of August, that really doesn’t matter because Granite took the opportunity and ran with it. As of this morning, Granite is hitting .295/.352/.380 (.732) with 12 doubles, five triples and four home runs. He also has 38 stolen bases which is one behind Jacksonville’s Yefri Perez for the Southern League lead. He has been caught just nine times. In the newest Baseball America, Perez was named by coaches to have the best speed in the Southern League, but it was Granite who was voted as the league’s best base runner in their annual Best Tools issue. When on base, Granite has been given the green light “unless the score is out of hand”. I asked him what factors went into his decision on whether to take off when he is on base. “Time is probably the biggest factor. If the pitcher is very quick to the plate with a slide step, it is very tough to get a good jump and steal. The defense and catcher are always paying attention to me, so it is tough to fool one of them with a delayed steal. Also stealing in the right count sometimes is beneficial because the hitters behind me get a lot of fastballs away which gives the catcher a better chance of throwing me out.” However, Granite says he is encouraged by his coaches and the organization to attempt to steal bases. “100% they want me to take chances. They want me to learn from my mistakes, and I have become a smarter base runner from it. Sam Perlozzo has helped me a lot in what to think and do on the bases in certain situations. It is great to have a base-running coordinator who has the experience and knowledge that he has.” Base running is certainly a strength in Granite’s game, but it certainly isn’t the only skill he has. “I would have to say base running and defense (are my strongest skills at this stage). I want to get better in every aspect of the game, but those are definitely the best two attributes of my game. Obviously, I have to work on hitting and my arm needs to get a little stronger. Those are two things I will work on a lot in the offseason.” Hitting is something that he has worked on a lot as he has moved up the organizational ladder, and he is seeing the results in 2016. What makes his 2016 so impressive is that he’s made the improvements as he has moved up, as he has seen better pitching. “Pitchers definitely get smarter and more control as the levels go up. Also, I see more of a mix of pitches like breaking balls and changeups.” Granite fully understands his role at the top of the order, as the leadoff hitter for the Lookouts. He tries to keep it simple while at the same time being a pest. “I try to keep things as simple as possible. My plan is to go up (to the plate), get a good pitch to hit, and hit it hard. I have a pretty good eye and don’t chase many pitches which works in my favor. I’m just trying to get on base any way possible because that’s when the fun begins. I know how annoying I can be for the other team just being on first base, and if I can get into scoring position for the middle of the order, I’m doing my job.” He continued, “I would have to say I’m a pest. I don’t strike out a lot and lay off some tough pitches. I try to be the toughest out I can be and try to grind through at-bats like a typical leadoff hitter.” Granite has hit four home runs this season. He had one home run in his pro career before this season. He hit zero home runs in his three seasons at Seton Hall. Listed at 6-1 and 170 pounds Granite is never going to be confused with a power hitter and does a great job of staying within himself and doing the things needed to get on base at the top of the order. But he has made some adjustments with the help of Chattanooga manager Doug Mientkiewicz and hitting coach Tommy Watkins. “A big thing they have taught me is how to drive the ball. Defenses would play me shallow, expecting me to slap the ball the other way, but they have taught me to be more of a ‘dangerous’ hitter and taught me how to drive the ball over their heads. It has really opened up the field for me which has helped me become a better and more diverse hitter.” Granite says that he enjoys facing starting pitchers, but it was interesting to find out which type of pitcher he typically has the most success against. Granite, a left-handed hitter, said, “I enjoy the challenge of facing lefties. Throughout my career, I’ve had more success against lefties than righties, and it’s pretty funny how many times teams will bring in a lefty to face me.” I was intrigued so I went to the numbers and checked out Granite’s splits. In 2016, Granite is hitting .291/.349/.390 (.739) against right-handers, and he’s hitting .308/.360/.341 against lefties. So this year, it’s a pretty even split. He’s hitting for a higher average and slightly higher on-base percentage against southpaws while some of his new-found power has come primarily against right-handers. So let’s look back in his previous seasons. In 2015 the splits were more telling. He hit just .248/.322/.312 (.634) against right-handers while hitting .314/.421/.373 (.794) against lefties. In his injury-plagued 2014 season (101 total PA), he posted a .588 OPS against right-handers and an .833 OPS against lefties. In Elizabethton in 2013, he posted a .601 OPS against right-handers and a 1.224 OPS against lefties. He’s got a month left in the Chattanooga season. His Chattanooga Lookouts are still in the playoff chase, but there are a lot of goals that start creeping into a player’s mind as the season winds down. The Arizona Fall League? “It would mean a lot to me to represent the Twins in the Arizona Fall League. I’ve talked to a couple of guys that played there, and they absolutely loved it. I know a lot of prospects play in that league, so that would be a nice achievement in my career.” The 40-Man roster? “That is something that I have no control over, so I try not to think about it. Obviously it would be amazing if that happened, but all I can do is play. As long as I get to wear a uniform, I’m happy.” Zach Granite has grown tremendously since signing with the Twins. The first time I saw him, he was about to play in his first full-season, with the Kernels in 2014. He has come a long way as a player. He has grown as a player. “Mentally and my aggressiveness have definitely grown the most. In Cedar Rapids and Ft. Myers, I would seem to get myself in bad counts and take a lot when I was ahead in the counts. Now I feel like I am aggressive when I see a pitch I want no matter what the count is. Mentally, it comes with experience of playing. I am a lot smarter and think more situational than I ever have. I have to give a lot of credit to my coaches who have helped me grow as a player.” So then the ultimate question for a player is what would it mean for you to get called into your manager’s office and find out that you’re heading to the big leagues. You see, many subscribe to the theory that once you experience success in AA, you’re just a phone call and an opportunity away. “That is something I’ve dreamed about since I was a kid. It would mean the world to me.” In 2014 in Cedar Rapids, I had the opportunity to do a short video with Granite. It was a lot of fun. Click here to view the article

I agree with that, and Romero might have the highest ceiling of the three.

One more month left in the minor league season. It is hard to believe. Today we hand out our final award of the month to the top starting pitcher in the Twins system in July. It is another familiar name in these awards, but it is a deserving recipient. Before jumping to our starting pitcher honorable mentions and top five for July, a quick reminder that we have handed out awards to Kernels 1B Zander Wiel as Twins Minor League Hitter of the Month, and to Lookouts closer Trevor Hildenberger as Twins Minor League Relief Pitcher of the Month. Check out those articles if you missed either of them.Let’s get to the starters, and before going to our Top 5 starting pitchers for the month of July, here are a few others who deserve to be recognized for a strong month. LHP Stephen Gonsalves (Chattanooga) - 6 GS, 3-1, 2.67 ERA, 1.19 WHIP, 33.2 IP, 22 H, 18 BB, 41 KRHP Kohl Stewart (Chattanooga) - 5 GS, 4-1, 2.28 ERA, 1.63 WHIP, 27.2 IP, 32 H, 13 BB, 17 KRHP Eduardo Del Rosario (Cedar Rapids) - 5 GS, 3-0, 2.83 ERA, 1.26 WHIP, 28.2 IP, 23 H, 13 BB, 30 KRHP Dereck Rodriguez (Cedar Rapids) - 5 GS, 2-2, 3.13 ERA, 1.04 WHIP, 31.2 IP, 24 H, 9 BB, 27 KLHP Taylor Clemensia (GCL) - 5 G, 4 GS, 0-1, 1.66 ERA, 0.92 WHIP, 21.2 IP, 8 H, 12 BB, 25 KRHP Miguel De Jesus (GCL) - 5 GS, 2-1, 2.52 ERA, 1.20 WHIP, 25.0 IP, 20 H, 10 BB, 25 KRHP Huascar Ynoa (GCL) - 5 GS, 0-3, 2.82 ERA, 1.12 WHIP, 22.1 IP, 19 H, 6 BB, 29 KTHE TOP FIVE STARTING PITCHERS Number 5 – Ft. Myers – RHP Randy LeBlanc - 5 GS, 3-2, 2.53 ERA, 1.00 WHIP, 32.0 IP, 26 H, 6 BB, 24 K LeBlanc was spectacular the first two months this season, his first in the organization as a full-time starter. He went 6-2 with a 0.74 ERA and a 0.82 WHIP in nine starts. In early June, he was promoted to Ft. Myers where he experienced some rough starts. He has made some of the necessary adjustments and had a really nice month of July. While he isn’t a big strikeout pitcher, he is known more for his ability to get ground balls. For the month, opponents hit .224/.270/.267 (.537) off him. In ten starts now with the Miracle, he is 4-5 with a 4.25 ERA. Those numbers will look much better if he can end the season with another strong month in August. Number 4 - Cedar Rapids – LHP Lachlan Wells - 6 GS, 2-3, 2.57 ERA, 1.03 WHIP, 35.0 IP, 29 H, 7 BB, 29 K The career to this point of 19-year-old Lachlan Wells is lining up pretty closely with the career of fellow Australian lefty Lewis Thorpe. Wells was in the GCL last year where he went 5-2 with a 2.09 ERA before leaving to play for Team Australia. He began this season in extended spring training, but just as the short-season teams were starting, he was promoted to Cedar Rapids. He made one start in June before putting together a very nice July. He had one start of six shutout innings with eight strikeouts. He had another start where he went eight shutout innings with nine strikeouts. It was an impressive debut in the Midwest League where he is almost three years younger than the average player. Opponents hit just .227/.277/.328 (.605) off him. Number 3 – Ft. Myers – RHP Fernando Romero - 5 GS, 2-1, 2.00 ERA, 1.04 WHIP, 27.0 IP, 23 H, 5 BB, 26 K After missing about two seasons due to Tommy John surgery and a knee surgery, Romero came back strong. He returned to Cedar Rapids in mid-May and stayed there for a month. He went 4-1 with a 1.93 ERA in five starts before being promoted to Ft. Myers. He has now made seven starts for the Miracle. In his five July starts, opponents hit just .230/.274/.300 off him. He continued to miss bats while throwing a lot of strikes. Still just 21 years old, I may have ranked him too low when I had him at #7 in my mid-season Twins prospect rankings. He should shoot up that list and national lists this offseason. Number 2 - Gulf Coast League – RHP Brady Anderson - 6 G, 4 GS, 2-0, 1.08 ERA, 0.72 WHIP, 25.0 IP, 17 H, 1 BB, 22 K The Twins signed Brady Anderson as a non-drafted free agent following the draft this June. No surprise that he did well against Gulf Coast League kids, but it was the dominance that makes you wonder why he went undrafted out of Florida Gulf Coast. In his final three starts with the GCL Twins, he gave up no runs on six hits and no walks in 17 innings. For the month, GCL hitters posted a .187/.213/.209 (.422) line against him. In fact, he pitched well enough that when the Cedar Rapids Kernels needed a starter last night, it was Anderson who they had skip Elizabethton and jump to the Midwest League where he gave up three runs in five innings. Anderson is already 23 and will turn 24 in November, but this isn’t a prospect ranking. It’s about performance, and Anderson was tremendous in July. And the Twins Minor League Starting Pitcher of the Month is: Rochester – RHP Jose Berrios - 5 GS, 3-2, 2.08 ERA, 0.95 WHIP, 34.2 IP, 25 H, 8 BB, 38 K Berrios is no stranger to winning ‘awards’ from Twins Daily. He has won numerous monthly awards the last three seasons and has won the Pitcher of the Year Award in 2014 and 2015. The 22-year-old was the 32nd overall pick in the 2012 draft out of his high school in Puerto Rico. His rise has been impressive and the Twins have moved him up quite quickly (though not quickly enough for many fans). He was given an opportunity to make the Twins Opening Day roster this year but his control and command were not good. After three starts in Rochester, he was called up to the Twins. Things didn’t go terribly well for him in four starts and he was sent back to Rochester. Most notably, he just walked too many batters. Back in Rochester, he continued to struggle a bit for about five starts. However, since mid-June, he has turned things around and been quite good. The walks were down. The strikeouts were up. He flirted with a no-hitter into the 7th inning in one game. He threw a nine inning, complete game shutout in another. Opponents hit just .207/.254/.314 (.568) off of him in July. He’s been another pitcher in his final eight starts in Rochester, and that’s why it was an easy choice to call him back up to start on August 1st. His return was strong. After allowing three runs in the first inning, he calmed down and gave up just those three runs over six innings. Hopefully his days in Rochester are behind him for good. There were several strong starting pitching performances in July, but the choice of Jose Berrios was pretty clear. Feel free to discuss below. Feel free to agree or disagree with the order, if you like, but congratulations these individuals on a terrific month. Congratulations to the July Twins Daily Minor League Starting Pitcher of the Month for 2016, Jose Berrios. Click here to view the article

The Minnesota Twins’ bats continued to rake in Cleveland with a third straight win, and a third straight double-digit output. The team is now 32-30 in their last 62 games. Mauer. Dozier. Kepler, Rosario. Pretty much everyone is producing right now. While the Twins have played three straight high-scoring blowout wins, the Twins affiliates all played some very close contests on Wednesday. There were a couple of transactions of note on Wednesday as well: Niko Goodrum came off of the disabled list for the Lookouts.While we noted that Tyler Jay was placed on the Lookouts disabled list with a “neck strain,” Rob Antony indicated to reporters before Wednesday’s game that there is some concern about Jay’s shoulder.RHP Brian Gilbert was released by the Twins and from the Miracle roster.LHP Cam Booser was promoted from the Kernels to the Miracle.RHP Brady Anderson, a non-drafted free agent from Florida Gulf Coast, was promoted from the GCL and started on Wednesday for the Kernels.Following Wednesday night’s game, Jeff Johnson (The Gazette in Cedar Rapids) reported that RHPs Cody Stashak and Dereck Rodriguez were also headed to Ft. Myers. He also noted the RHP Kuo Hua Lo had been released.Thursday is an exciting day for a couple of new Twins. Hector Santiago will make his Twins debut in Cleveland on Thursday morning. In Rochester, Adalberto Mejia will make his first start.With that, let’s get to the Minor League Report for Wednesday. RED WINGS REPORT Rochester 3, Pawtucket 2 Box Score This was a bit of an intense game. In fact, the game finished under protest by Pawtucket. At that time, Mike Quade, the Red Wings manager, was ejected. Pawtucket questioned which pitcher Quade signaled in from the bullpen. So, the International League will need to make a decision. If they decide to agree with the PawSox, the teams would start the game where it was in the 8th inning. Pat Dean started and gave up two runs on seven hits in 6.2 innings. He walked two and struck out six. Neil Ramirez gave up one hit but got the final out of the seventh inning. He gave up a single to lead off the eighth. Then came the controversy. Ryan O’Rourke came into the game and gave up a hit to the one batter he faced. It was a bunt single on which Reynaldo Rodriguez tried a swipe tag. The runner was ruled safe. Quade disagreed and was ejected. Pat Light then was summoned for his Twins organization debut against guys he was teammates with a couple of days ago. He gave up a hit which loaded the bases, but he was able to get out of the inning without the tying run being allowed to score. He even hit 100 mph on the radar gun a few times. Alex Wimmers came on for the ninth. He also kept it interesting. He gave up two hits and walked one but struck out two and didn’t allow the tying run to score. It was Wimmers’ ninth save with the Red Wings. Trevor Plouffe played seven innings at third base and came to the plate four times before being replaced to start the eighth inning. He was 0-3 with a walk. Reynaldo Rodriguez went 2-3. Daniel Palka was 1-3 with a walk. Darin Mastroianni went 1-2 with a walk and his eighth stolen base. Wilfredo Tovar went 1-3 with a walk and stole his 24th base and hit his first homer of the year. CHATTANOOGA CHATTER Game 1 - Chattanooga 3, Mobile 4 Box Score David Hurlbut gave up three home runs in the first two innings to let the team get down 4-3. The Lookouts scored two runs in the top of the seventh inning to cut the lead to 4-3 but fell one run shy and lost game 1. Hurlbut recovered well, however, completing all six innings. He gave up the four runs on seven hits. He walked two and struck out six. Niko Goodrum hit a two-run homer in the seventh inning. It was his second Lookouts homer. Ryan Walker went 2-3 with a walk. Engelb Vielma went 2-2 with a walk and is now hitting .299. Travis Harrison walked twice. Game 2 - Chattanooga 4, Mobile 5 (11 innings) Box Score The game was tied at three going into the 11th inning. In the top half of the inning, Levi Michael scored on a wild pitch to give the Lookouts a 4-3 lead. Unfortunately, the Lookouts had their second blown save of the game and fell 5-4 after giving up two runs in the bottom of the inning. Felix Jorge started and went the first 5.2 innings. He gave up two runs on seven hits. He struck out four without a walk. Jake Reed went the next 1.1 innings and gave up one run on two hits, earning a blown save. He struck out two. Zack Jones worked the next two innings. He gave up one hit but no runs. He struck out five batters. Raul Fernandez pitched a scoreless tenth inning but he gave up the two runs in the 11th inning. The Lookouts had nine hits in the 11 innings. Zach Granite had two hits. Niko Goodrum had a two-run single, one of his two hits. MIRACLE MATTERS Ft. Myers 5, Bradenton 9 Box Score The game was tied at five going into the bottom of the eighth, but Todd Van Steensel wasn’t able to keep the lead. Randy LeBlanc started and went just three innings. He gave up five runs on nine hits and a walk without a strikeout. Randy Rosario came out of the bullpen and threw two shutout innings. He gave up a hit and walked one but struck out four. Cam Booser made his first Miracle appearance. He walked one and struck one out in his inning. Van Steensel gave up four runs on four hits and a walk in the eighth inning and he also pitched the ninth. LaMonte Wade led the offense. He went 2-3, was hit by a pitch and added his seventh double. TJ White went 2-4 with his 12th double. Joe Maloney was also 2-4. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 4, Clinton 3 Box Score Brady Anderson was pitching great in the GCL, but the Kernels needed a starter and Anderson got the call. He arrived and was placed right on the mound for his Midwest League debut. The right-hander went the first five innings. He gave up three runs on seven hits and a walk. He struck out two. He left the game with the bases loaded and no outs in the sixth inning. Williams Ramirez came on and got the next three batters out to avoid any further damage. Ramirez went two innings and gave up just one hit. Max Cordy worked the final two innings. He gave up just one hit and was credited with his first win. Sean Miller led the way. He got the offense going with his fourth home run of the year. Zander Wiel went 2-3 with a walk and his sixth triple. Chris Ibarra went 2-4. Kevin Garcia went 2-4. In the bottom of the eighth inning, Miller got things going with this 17th double. It was backed up by Garcia’s sixth double which proved to be the game-winning RBI. E-TWINS E-NOTES Box Score No Game Scheduled. In off-the-field news, Alex Kirilloff got engaged… in case you were wondering. GCL TWINS TAKES GCL Twins 3, GCL Rays 2 Box Score Jordan Balazovic made his first start. He gave up one run on four hits and two walks in three innings. Clark Beeker came on and gave up one run on three hits over 3.2 innings. He walked three and struck out three. Callan Pearce struck out two over 2.1 scoreless innings to end the game. He walked two and gave up one hit. The Twins had eight hits in the game, and six of them came in the final two innings. The team was down 2-0 going into the eighth inning. Dominic Blanco singled. Then Heiker Meneses singled. Then Aaron Whitefield had an RBI single. That was followed by an RBI single from Jean Carlos Arias to tie the game. Then in the bottom of the ninth inning, Jorge Munoz got things going with a single. He advanced to third base on a Jhon Alvarez double. Heiker Meneses was walked but on the final pitch, there was a passed ball and Munoz scored the winning run. TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day – Pat Dean, Rochester Red Wings Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day – Sean Miller, Cedar Rapids Kernels THURSDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Pawtucket @ Rochester (12:35 CST) - LHP Adalberto Mejia Chattanooga @ Mobile (6:35 CST) - LHP Stephen Gonsalves Ft. Myers @ Bradenton (5:30 CST) - LHP Sam Clay Clinton @ Cedar Rapids (6:35 CST) – RHP Eduardo Del Rosario Elizabethton @ Johnson City (6:00 CST) - RHP Ryan Mason GCL Twins @ GCL Rays (11:00 am CST) - TBD Please feel free to ask any questions and discuss Wednesday's games. Click here to view the article

It is "just a hamstring." It's a muscle that isn't always easy to recover from. He came back and re-aggravated it. Did he come back too early? Maybe, or maybe he pushed it. Who knows? Injuries happen.

Wow! Did I ever miss that one!! What a terrific month for Ryan and I missed it. I put him in the Honorable Mention, and he should probably be 2 or 3.

No question. That was a miss. I added him to the Honorable Mentions and maybe he could be in the 4-5 range. Thanks!

Chargois has a fastball, a changeup and a slurve, and all are pretty solid. They all can use some work, but he's close. I'm also told that he has made some adjustments even since moving back down and is better today than he was a month ago.

I'm not sure there's any correlation between what Walker is doing and what Kepler is doing. Kepler's always had a good approach and known the strike zone and that improved as he moved up. Walker is great when he gets a mistake. He is making strides and has been much better of late, but there's very little similar about Kepler and Walker.

He likely won't play the rest of this year. He will likely be ready for Instructs in the DR this Fall.

After reviewing the top hitters in the Twins system in June yesterday, it’s time to consider who the top pitchers were in July. Tomorrow we’ll take a lot at the top starting pitchers, but today you’ll be able to see which relief pitchers performed well in July. There were quite a few solid performances.In case you missed them here are the previous July winners, we named Cedar Rapids Kernels first baseman Zander Wiel the Hitter of the Month. First, a number of relievers worthy of mention: RHP DJ Baxendale (Rochester) - 11 G, 1.64 ERA, 1.09 WHIP, 11.0 IP,9 H, 3 BB, 11 KLHP Sean Burnett (Rochester) - 10 G, 1.74 ERA, 1.07 WHIP, 10.1 IP, 9 H, 2 BB, 10 KLHP Ryan O'Rourke (Rochester - 11 G, 0.00 ERA, 0.58 WHIP, 10.1 IP, 5 H, 1 BB, 12 KRHP Marcus Walden (Rochester) - 10 G, 2.63 ERA, 1.10 WHIP, 13.2 IP, 13 H, 2 BB, 12 KRHP Zack Jones (Chattanooga) - 11 G, 1.88 ERA, 0.98 WHIP, 14.1 IP, 9 H, 5 BB, 17 KRHP Jake Reed (Chattanooga) - 10 G, 2.08 ERA, 0.92 WHIP, 13.0 IP, 8 H, 6 BB, 18 KRHP Thomas Hackimer (Cedar Rapids) - 8 G, 1.74 ERA, 1.26 WHIP, H BB, 5 BB, 10 KLHP Anthony McIver (Cedar Rapids) - 8 G, 2.03 ERA, 1.20 WHIP, 13.1 IP, 12 H, 4 BB, 13 KRHP Colton Davis (Elizabethton) - 8 G, 3.00 ERA, 0.83 WHIP, 12.0 IP, 6 H, 4 BB, 18 KRHP Moises Gomez (GCL) - 6 G, 0.60 ERA, 1.33 WHIP, 15.0 IP, 16 H, 4 BB, 13 KRHP Callan Pearce (GCL) - 9 G, 0.73 ERA, 1.38 WHIP, 12.1 IP, 12 H, 5 BB, 14 KTHE TOP FIVE RELIEF PITCHERS Number 5 - Elizabethton/Cedar Rapids – LHP Andrew Vasquez - 7 G, 2.35 ERA, 0.98 WHIP, 15.1 IP, 9 H, 6 BB, 24 K Andrew Vasquez was the Twins 32nd round pick in 2015 out of Westmont College in California. He began in the GCL last year where he walked 15 and struck out 22 in 12.1 innings. The 6-6 left-hander began this season in extended spring training and then started games in Elizabethton where he pitched four games. A week into July, he was promoted to Cedar Rapids. There, he has 15 strikeouts in 10.2 innings. Overall for the month, he was 3-0 in the month. Opponents hit .170/.279/.226 (.505). Number 4 – Rochester – RHP JT Chargois - 8 G, 1.54 ERA, 0.94 WHIP, 11.2 IP, 9 H, 2 BB, 12 K Chargois has been a regular in these monthly relief pitcher reports. He has had a tremendous year . In July, he pitched in the Futures Game. While that didn’t go so well for him, the regular season games went better. Opponents hit just .214/.250/.286 (.536) against him. The 25-year-old has continued to show good control throughout the season. He recorded three saves in July. The team’s 2012 second-round pick has one big league appearance, but he should be up again in the very near future. Number 3 – Rochester – RHP Alex Wimmers - 10 G, 1.42 ERA, 1.03 WHIP, 12.2 IP, 7 H, 6 BB, 13 K Wimmers was the Twins 1st-round draft pick in 2010 out of Ohio State. He has certainly had problems through his professional career. He’s had control issues. He’s had Tommy John surgery. Through all the struggles, however, he appears to have found a role and experienced a lot of success in the Red Wings bullpen. Overall, he’s posted a 3.35 ERA and a 1.16 WHIP in 32 games and 43 innings in Rochester. He was even better in July. Opponents hit just .159/.260/.182 (.442) during the month. He was 1-0 with two saves. He may not be the mid-rotation starter that people envisioned when he was selected late in the first round six years ago, but it is possible that the now-27-year-old can reach the big leagues in the bullpen. He can become a free agent at the end of the season unless he’s on the 40-man roster. Number 2 –GCL/Elizabethton – RHP Patrick McGuff - 8 G, 0.00 ERA, 0.97 WHIP, 12.1 IP, 7 H, 5 BB, 22 K McGuff was the Twins 39th-round pick in June out of Morehead State. After four games and 5.2 scoreless innings in the GCL, he was promoted to Elizabethton. He finished July with 8.2 scoreless innings for the E-Twins. For the month, he went 0-0 with two saves and 12.1 scoreless innings. He also struck out 22 batters in those innings, a 16.1 K/9 rate. Oppenents hit just .159/.245/.159 (.404) against him. He did give up one run in his first appearances of August to end his scoreless streak at 15.0 innings to start his career. And the Twins Minor League Relief Pitcher of the Month is: Chattanooga Lookouts – RHP Trevor Hildenberger - 11 G, 0.00 ERA, 0.73 WHIP, 12.1 IP, 7 H, 2 BB, 16 K For the second straight month, Hildenberger is our choice for pitcher of the month. He has been a regular on these relief pitcher of the month posts all season, and all of 2015 when he was the Twins Daily Relief Pitcher of the Year in 2015. He was the Twins 22nd-round pick in 2014 after five seasons at Cal-Berkeley. After spending that summer in the GCL, he began last year in Cedar Rapids where he posted a 0.80 ERA and a 0.64 WHIP in 28 games (45 innings). He was promoted to the Miracle where he had a 3.32 ERA and a 0.90 WHIP in 13 games and 19 innings. He went to the Arizona Fall League where he had a 2.13 ERA and a 1.03 WHIP in 12.2 innings. He began 2016 in Ft. Myers where he continued to dominate. He posted a 0.96 ERA and a 1.18 WHIP in six games before being promoted to Chattanooga. In 32 games (38.2 innings), he is 2-3 with 16 saves. He has a 0.70 ERA and a 0.70 WHIP. He has 10.5 K/9 and throws a ton of strikes, walking just 1.4 per nine innings. At the end of last week, Hildenberger was placed on the Disabled List with right elbow tendinitis. Hopefully it will be a short stint on the DL and he can get to Rochester before the season ends. There were several very strong relief pitcher performances in July. Feel free to agree or disagree with the order, if you like, but congratulations to each of these individuals on an excellent month of July. Congratulations to the Twins Daily Minor League Relief Pitcher of the Month for July 2016, Trevor Hildenberger. Click here to view the article

Have you heard anything? He played a full game on Monday night.

I looked up stats a couple of days before the end of the month to see who was in consideration. Palka ended the month with a couple of 0-fer days and it dropped down to .828.

I am very curious on this myself. So I asked someone close to the situation, someone who would know. That person said that Garver has worked really hard the last few years behind the plate and has made huge improvements since even the beginning of last year. That person's thought was that he is almost MLB caliber. So I don't know exactly if that's minimal MLB caliber or could be solid caliber, but combined with his offense, I'd say it's a pretty decent possibility that he could be a regular catcher, if necessary.

Well, and by then Nick Gordon will be strongly in the picture.

He had a lot of errors early in the season. I was told a year ago that if he could hit even .250 in AA this year, he would probably have a chance to be the Twins Opening Day shortstop next year. Well, I believe he is at .295 now. And the defense has been much better again. He would seem to be a cinch to be added to the 40-man roster and go to spring training with a shot (though I'd put the odds of it happening below 50%.

There is a lot left to be excited about... No question about that.