Seth Stohs

On Thursday, the Minnesota Twins fell to the Texas Rangers by a score of 2-1. Vance Worley gave up two runs in five innings, but the bullpen threw four scoreless innings and kept the team in it. Unfortunately, the Twins’ bats were quiet. Their lone run came on Josh Willingham’s third home run of the year. All four Twins full-season affiliates won on Thursday. Two of the affiliates scored double-digit runs. The top two prospects added to their home run totals, while their top pitching prospect was on the mound early in the morning. So much to write about, so let’s get to the Minor League Report for Thursday, April 25! (And be sure to look to adopt another prospect today too!) Rochester Red Wings 10, Syracuse Chiefs 7 Box Score The Red Wings had a 7-2 lead going into the bottom of the 6th inning. Shairon Martis worked the first five innings and gave up two runs on five hits. He walked none and struck out four. Caleb Thielbar entered and gave up five runs on five hits and a walk and was able to record just one out. Daniel Turpen came on and got the final two outs of the sixth and worked a perfect 7th frame as well. Luis Perdomo struck out two in the final two innings. Fortunately, then the Wings lost their big lead, they responded. They scored one run in the 7th, the 8th and the 9th inning. Doug Bernier led the offense. He was 5-5 with his first double and four RBI. Brian Dinkelman went 4-5 with his first three doubles of the season. Joe Benson went 2-4 with his first triple. He scored four runs and stole his third base. New Britain Rock Cats 4, New Hampshire Fisher Cats 1 Box Score The Rock Cats had an early-morning wake up call on Thursday. They played a game scheduled to start a 10:35 a.m. eastern time. Likely not everyone was awake. The Rock Cats sent Alex Meyer to the mound against the Fisher Cats. The right-hander improved to 2-0 with six solid innings. He gave up one run on eight hits. He walked one and struck out seven. Aaron Thompson replaced him and gave up no runs in the 7th or 8th innings. He gave up three hits. Michael Tonkin recorded his third save with a scoreless ninth. Dan Rohlfing led the offense. He went 3-4. Jhon Goncalves was 2-3 and is now hitting .304 with the Rock Cats. Josmil Pinto was 2-4. Ft. Myers Miracle 5, Charlotte Stone Crabs 3 Box Score DJ Baxendale was the Twins 10th round pick last summer. He is off to a terrific start as a starter with the Miracle. On this night, he improved to 3-0 with six strong innings. He gave up two runs on six hits. He walked two and struckout five. Dakota Watts entered the game next, making his first appearance of the season. The hard-thrower gave up two hits and a walk, but no runs in his inning. Corey Williams recorded a two-inning save (Save #5). He gave up one run on two hits and struck out one. Eddie Rosario led the offense with a 3-4 day. Levi Michael was activated before the game. He batted second and was the DH. He went 2-4 with two triples. Kennys Vargas was 2-4. Miguel Sano launched his eighth home run of the month and of the year. Drew Leachman singled for his first Miracle hit. AJ Pettersen went 2-4 with his fourth double. The double came in the first inning and extended his hitting streak to nine games. [ATTACH=CONFIG]3882[/ATTACH] Photo courtesy of Rinaldi Photos Cedar Rapids Kernels 16, Great Lakes Loons 7 Box Score It was another offensive explosion for the Kernels in this game. Byron Buxton led the way again. The top pick went 3-5 with a walk, his third and fourth doubles, his third home run and five RBI. Niko Goodrum went 2-4 with two walks and his first home run. Adam Walker was 2-6 with his third double, his third home run and four RBI. Jorge Polanco went 2-4 with a walk and his first triple. Tyler Grimes walked three times. JD Williams was 1-3 with two walks. Travis Harrison hit his eighth double. Brett Lee made the start for Cedar Rapids. The lefty gave up four runs (3 earned) on seven hits and three walks in 4.2 innings. He struck out one. Tyler Jones went the next 2.2 innings. He gave up three runs (2 earned) on three hits. He walked none and struck out two. Matt Tomshaw returned from the Disabled List and work 1.2 scoreless innings. He gave up one hit and walked one while striking out two. Please feel free to comment or ask questions below.

The Minnesota Twins had an off day. So did the Cedar Rapids Kernels and the Ft. Myers Miracle. New Britain and Rochester’s games were affected by weather, nothing new during this season. So, today’s Minor League report may not be long, but hey, there is still baseball to write about so we’re going to do just that. There have been several transactions throughout the organization in the past week. On Wednesday, it was Drew Leachman who was promoted from Cedar Rapids to Ft. Myers. He started for the Kernels on Opening Night, but he jarred his left shoulder on a stolen base that night and didn’t play for two weeks. He went 9-21 in five games since his return, including seven hits in back-to-back games. Rochester Red Wings 6, Syracuse Chiefs 6 (Suspended – 11th) Box Score This game went to the 11th inning. Evan Bigley singled to lead off the inning. It was followed by a walk to Eric Fryer. Doug Bernier bunted the runners up a base. After Ray Olmedo was intentionally walked, Chris Herrmann came through with an RBI single to give the Red Wings a lead. At that point, the Chiefs went to change the pitcher and at that point, the game was suspended due to rain. It will be completed on Thursday before the two teams will play their regularly-scheduled nine inning game. Andrew Albers started for the Red Wings. The Canadian left-hander gave up five runs on nine hits (including 2 home runs) and two walks in six innings. He struck out six. Tyler Roberson came on and threw three shutout innings. He gave up just two hits, walked two and struck out four. Tim Wood pitched a scoreless tenth inning. So, who will come in for the save opportunity in the bottom of the 11th? [ATTACH=CONFIG]3873[/ATTACH] Chris Herrmann photo by Brace Hemmelgarn Herrmann led the offense on this night. He went 4-6 with three RBI and his second stolen base. Chris Colabello went 2-4 with a walk Evan Bigley was 2-4 with his first AAA homer of the year. Doug Bernier went 2-4. Ray Olmedo was 1-2 with a walk and his second double. Game 1 - New Britain Rock Cats 5, New Hampshire Fisher Cats 0 Box Score Trevor May put together his best start of the season for the Rock Cats. The hard-throwing righty threw all seven innings and did not give up a run. He gave up just three hits, walked three and struck out four. Antoan Richardson went 3-4. Mark Sobolewski returned to the Eastern League and went 2-4 with his first double. Reynaldo Rodriguez went 1-3 with a triple. Jhon Goncalves hit his first AA home run. Game 2 - New Britain Rock Cats 0, New Hampshire Fisher Cats 3 Box Score Lefty Pat Dean was good on this night, but not good enough when he consider his offense did nothing to support him. Dean went all six innings. He gave up three runs on seven hits. He walked none and struck out three. Jhon Goncalves had a triple and was hit by a pitch. Jason Christian had the only other Rock Cats hit, a single. Alex Meyer will take the mound for the Rock Cats on Thursday when they play at 9:35 a.m. central time. Ft. Myers Miracle – No Game Scheduled Cedar Rapids Kernels – No Game Scheduled Please feel free to comment or ask questions below.

We are already about 15 games into the minor league season. It’s not a lot of games, but it is just over 10% of the season’s schedule, even if there have been a lot of weather-related postponements and double headers. It’s too early to call any of the numbers more than a Small Sample Size, but it’s always fun to take an early look at Twins prospects. Below, you will find my preseason Top 30 Minnesota Twins prospects along with their statistics through Sunday, along with some of my thoughts and observations on many of the players. It’s exciting to see so many of those top prospects have started the season strong. [ATTACH=CONFIG]3841[/ATTACH] (Note this is my personal prospect ranking, use for entertainment purposes – and for learning about Twins prospects – only.) 1. Miguel Sano – Ft. Myers Miracle - .375/.438/.734 (1.173) with 5-2B, 0-3B, 6-HR, 16-RBI in 64 AB. 2. Byron Buxton – Cedar Rapids Kernels - .415/.523/.642 (1.165) with 2-2B, 2-3B, 2-HR, 10-RBI in 53 AB. Also 6-10 in SB attempts. 3. Oswaldo Arcia – Rochester Red Wings - .394/.474/.727 (1.201) with 2-2B, 3-HR, 8-RBI. Also 1-9 in 3 games with the Minnesota Twins. 4. Alex Meyer – New Britain Rock Cats – 1-0, 1.69 ERA, 1.25 WHIP, 16 IP, 13 H, 7 BB, 19 K These top four prospects would most likely fit into an “Elite” category. These are the guys who should be in Top 50 lists by any publication. All four of them are off to spectacular starts. Sano and Buxton are like Prospects 1a and 1b. Arcia and Meyer would be #1 prospects in several organizations. 5. Aaron Hicks – Minnesota Twins – .059/.200/.059 (.259) with 4-RBI. 6. Kyle Gibson – Rochester Red Wings – 0-3, 4.43 ERA, 1.28 WHIP, 20.1 IP, 19 H, 7 BB, 19 K 7. Eddie Rosario – Ft. Myers Miracle – .352/.385/.507 (.892) with 5-2B, 2-HR, 11-RBI in 71 AB 8. J.O. Berrios – Extended Spring Training – This would be the second tier of prospects. They aren’t quite in the elite category, but they are highly regarded in the industry. Hicks’s struggles at the onset of his big league career have been chronicled, but there is no reason to believe that he will not adjust. Gibson is still working on his gradual return from Tommy John surgery and is really just building up strength. Rosario made a name for himself in Puerto Rico this offseason, and earned his spot on that country’s WBC team. He impressed in Ft. Myers in spring training and he is off to a fast start with the Miracle. Berrios is also from Puerto Rico and despite his youth, he too was on the Puerto Rican WBC team. Because of that, he spent the first three weeks of the season in Ft. Myers, in Extended Spring Training. He made his first Cedar Rapids start on Monday night and gave up two runs in five innings. He sat between 92 and 94 with his fastball and touched 96. He got a couple of strikeouts on a strong breaking ball. 9. Trevor May – New Britain Rock Cats – 0-1, 3.14 ERA, 1.60 WHIP, 14.1 IP, 13 H, 10 BB, 19 K 10. Max Kepler – Extended Spring Training Disabled List – Rounding out the Top 10, these prospects have high ceilings yet have something to overcome. For May, it is his ability to consistently throw strikes. He has the ‘stuff,’ but if he can’t control it, it will be hard to him to get big league hitters out. Kepler is yet to play because of an elbow injury. He’s still young and raw, but incredibly talented. He has to stay on the field. 11. Joe Benson – Rochester Red Wings – .170/.235/.191 (.427) with 1-2B, 0-HR, 1-RBI (Benson has been bothered by his wrist early in the season and is off to a slow start. He’s primarily playing left field although he has already played all three outfield positions). 12. Kennys Vargas – Ft. Myers Miracle – .238/.294/.460 (.754) with 5-2B, 3-HR, 12-RBI in 63 AB (Vargas just looks like David Ortiz. He’s fun-loving, and strong. He has a ton of power, but has a lot of work to do to advance. The talent is there!) 13. Danny Santana – New Britain Rock Cats – .250/.267/.319 (.586) with 1-2B, 2-3B, 0-HR, 7 RBI in 72 AB. (Santana has struggled some in the early season with the bat. That can be attributed to small sample size. However, one concern would be the eight errors he already has committed at shortstop.) 14. Travis Harrison – Cedar Rapids Kernels – .291/.349/.527 (.876) with 7-2B, 2-HR, 8-RBI in 55 AB (Harrison has tremendous power potential, potential that is still yet to develop. He certainly looks the part with a strong, balanced swing. He has five errors on the season.) 15. Alex Wimmers – Disabled List – (Alex Wimmers had Tommy John surgery last August, so he will likely be getting on a mound in another 4-6 weeks for the first time. It’s possible that he could start rehabbing when the GCL season begins.) 16. Adam Walker – Cedar Rapids Kernels – .264/.328/.358 (.686) with 2-2B, 1-HR, 9-RBI in 53 AB (Walker has as much power as anyone in the organization, including Miguel Sano. HE is a big, strong man. Last night, he added a long blast for his second home run. His father was a replacement player for the Vikings back in the ‘80s.) 17. Chris Herrmann – Rochester Red Wings – .175/.233/.200 (.433) with 1-2B, 2-RBI, in 40 AB (Herrmann is struggling early in the season, in his first games at the AAA level. He has primarily been catching early in the season, though he has the versatility to play other positions as well.) 18. BJ Hermsen – New Britain Rock Cats – 0-1, 9.64 ERA, 1.71 WHIP, 4.2 IP, 6 H, 2 BB, 3 K (Hermsen went to big league spring training. After being optioned, he was sidelined by an intercostal strain. He made just his first start of the season on Sunday for the Rock Cats. ) 19. Jorge Polanco – Cedar Rapids Kernels – .300/.323/.417 (.739) with 4-2B, 1-HR, 11-RBI in 60 AB (Polanco had a good offensive numbers a year ago in Elizabethton, but I wasn’t able to move him higher up this list. Whenever I update this list, Polanco will move up. Having seen him play, he was a pleasant surprise. Specifically, he was great to see him swing and hit. I now am a believer in his potential with the bat. He has a ways to go, but he has a real chance.) 20. Luke Bard – Extended Spring Training Disabled List – (Bard is in extended spring training fighting some arm soreness. When he is able to reach the pitch count limit, he will move up to Cedar Rapids, or possibly right to Ft. Myers.) 21. Adrian Salcedo – Ft. Myers Miracle – 1-0, 5.63 ERA, 1.25 WHIP, 8 IP, 10 H, 0 BB, 8 K (a former Top 10 prospect, he had a lost 2012 season due to elbow and shoulder injuries. He did not have surgery, and he is being brought along slowly. So far, he has been used only out of the bullpen.) 22. Mason Melotakis – Cedar Rapids Kernels – 1-1, 2.84 ERA, 1.50 WHIP, 12.2 IP, 12 H, 7 BB, 11 K (Melotakis was one of the 2012 draft picks who was a college reliever but will get an opportunity to start in 2013. He has had mixed results through three starts. He’s limited runs, though he has given up a lot of base runners. He throws 94 from the left-side, so he’s got a chance.) 23. Nate Roberts – Disabled List – (Roberts had a good year at Beloit last year, and then he went to Arizona and led the AFL in Batting Average, On-Base Percentage and Slugging Percentage. Unfortunately, he tore his meniscus while preparing for the season and is on the disabled list awaiting clearance to play.) 24. Michael Tonkin – New Britain Rock Cats – 1-0, 6.23 ERA, 1.62 WHIP, 8.2 IP, 10 H, 4 BB, 7 K (Tonkin took a big step forward in 2012, and with a big fastball/slider combination, he has a chance to move up quickly in 2013. Off to a slow start so far in New Britain.) 25. Pedro Hernandez – Minnesota Twins – 0-0, 3.86 ERA, 1.18 WHIP, 9.1 IP, 8 H, 3 BB, 4 K (The lefty had a very good camp with the Twins but he went back to Rochester to stretch out and start. He never did pitch for the Red Wings as he was needed for a spot start with the Twins. He has stuck.) 26. Danny Ortiz – New Britain Rock Cats – .313/.356/.582 (.938) with 7-2B, 1-3B, 3-HR, 13-RBI in 67 AB (Often overlooked among all of the Twins outfield prospects, but Ortiz can hit. The Puerto Rican is off to a fast start with the Rock Cats. He can play all three positions. He’s not a big guy, but he packs a big punch.) 27. Niko Goodrum – Cedar Rapids Kernels – .298/.400/.383 (.783) with 4-2B, 0-HR, 5-RBI in 47 AB (Niko is a tremendous athlete who is finally growing into his frame. He plays a very good shortstop. He has greatly improved his swing from the left-side. He’s got a chance to keep moving up.) 28. Matt Summers – Ft. Myers Miracle – 1-1, 4.30 ERA, 1.43 WHIP, 14.2 IP, 16 H, 5 BB, 5 K (Summers certainly looks the part of potential starter. He has the motion and the delivery. He has stuff and touches 93 at times. Not sure why he doesn’t get many strikeouts as a starter.) 29. Hudson Boyd – Cedar Rapids Kernels – 1-1, 5.14 ERA, 1.43 WHIP, 14.0 IP, 13 H, 7 BB, 12 K (Boyd is young, and has a lot to improve, but seeing him in person, you can see why the team would make him a supplemental first-round pick. He’s got a good arm, a good changeup and a good curveball. He’ll develop and has a chance to be good.) 30. Levi Michael – Disabled List – (Michael struggled throughout his first pro season in 2012. In 2013, he has fought a shoulder injury. In his stead, former Gopher and Minnetonka native AJ Pettersen has run with the shortstop job in Ft. Myers, hitting .360 on the season and hitting at the top of the order. Michael is likely out another week or two, and when he’s healthy, he’ll likely be starting.) Feel free to ask questions about these 30 prospects or any other prospect in the Twins farm system.

It may have only been two games, but as a Twins fan, there is not much better than sweeping the Chicago White Sox. On Sunday, the Twins scored four runs in the seventh thanks to an RBI single by Aaron Hicks, followed by a bases-clearing double by Josh Willingham. Scott Diamond got his first win of the season and Glen Perkins got the save. Down on the farm, there were several terrific performances. PJ Walters. Nate Hanson. Miguel Munoz. Lance Ray. Drew Leachman celebrated his birthday quite well on the field. Tyler Duffey was back on the mound on Sunday. The story of the day, unfortunately, came from Palm Beach and involved a top Twins prospect. Check out what happened below. Game 1 - Rochester Red Wings 1, Pawtucket Red Sox 8 Box Score Kyle Gibson made the start for the Red Wings. His line shows that he gave up thre runs on three hits and four walks in five innings. However, through five innings, he had not allowed a run. Unfortunately, when he came out for the sixth frame, he gave up a leadoff walk followed by back-to-back singles before being replaced by Luis Perdomo with the bases loaded. Perdomo gave up a walk, a single and a double before he was replaced by Tyler Robertson. Robertson walked two that half-inning, one intentional, but allowed just one inherited runner to score on a ground out before getting an inning-ending double play. Suddenly, the Wings were down by a score of 5-1. Unfortunately, things weren’t much better for the Red Wings in the seventh inning. Robertson walked the first three batters to load the bases before Dan Turpen replaced him. Three more runs scored making it 8-1. The Red Wings managed just four hits. Clete Thomas was 1-2 with two walks. Game 2 - Rochester Red Wings 2, Pawtucket Red Sox 0 Box Score The story of the second game of the double-header was the right arm of PJ Walters. He threw a complete game shutout, allowing just two hits and one walk. He struckout five to improve to 1-2 on the season. The Red Wings had six hits in the game. Chris Colabello doubled for the third time. Ray Olmedo hit a 2-run double that was all the scoring there was in this game. The Red Wings improved to 5-12 with the split on Sunday. New Britain Rock Cats 7, Portland Sea Dogs 8 Box Score BJ Hermsen was back on the mound in a regular season for the first time this year. Hermsen, the Minor League starting pitcher of the year in 2012, went to big league spring training for the first time this spring. After being optioned, he strained his inter-costal and has been rehabbing since. Hermsen went 4.2 innings and gave up five runs on six hits and two walks. He struck out three. Bobby Lanigan came on in relief and gave up three runs (2 earned) on four hits and a walk in just 0.2 innings. Edgar Ibarra struck out three in 1.2 scoreless innings. Michael Tonkin had a quiet eighth frame. Nate Hanson had a big day with the bat. The Eden Prairie High School grad and former Golden Gopher went 4-5 with a double and two RBI. Josmil Pinto went 2-3 with two walks. Dan Rohlfing went 1-3 with two walks. The Rock Cats fall to 8-9 on the season. Ft. Myers Miracle 5, Palm Beach Cardinals 6 (10 innings) Box Score This game was delayed for about two hours because of rain, and then it went to extra frames. However, there was drama throughout most of this game. Unfortunately the Miracle lost 6-5 in ten innings on a walk-off home run. The drama started in the fifth inning. Reliever Brandon Creath was in the game, and Miguel Sano came to the plate. The first pitch barely missed Sano’s head. Doug Mientkiewicz came out and told the home plate umpire that Creath should be ejected. The history? Five days earlier, in his most recent appearance, Creath gave up a long, grand slam to Sano. Creath stayed in this game, and on a 3-1 pitch, Sano launched a very, very long home run, his sixth of the year. He walked a few steps and then, prompted by the Cardinals dugout, started yelling at them as he ran down the line. At that point, the home plate umpire ejected Sano. Mientkiewicz came out and argued, and he was ejected. So was left fielder Stephen Wickens. There was plenty of offense for the Miracle. Unfortunately, they left 15 runners on the base paths. Lance Ray went 3-5 with his fourth double. Kyle Knudson went 2-3 with two walks and his second home run. Michael Gonzales went 2-5 with a walk. AJ Pettersen extended his hitting streak to six game with a 2-5 day. Jason Wheeler started and gave up five runs on six hits in four innings. He gave walked two and struck out two. The bullpen saved the day in this game. Miguel Munoz gave up three hits in three scoreless innings. Corey Williams gave up two hits in his two scoreless innings. However, in the tenth inning, Nelvin Fuentes came on. He threw one pitch and it was deposited over the fence in left field to end the game. The Miracle fall to 14-3 on the season. [ATTACH=CONFIG]3829[/ATTACH] photo by Jim Crikket Cedar Rapids Kernels 3, Burlington Bees 2 Box Score The Kernels got terrific pitching and a big hit off the bat of Niko Goodrum to get this tough win. Tyler Duffey made his third straight Sunday start. In this game, he gave up two runs on four hits and a walk. In seven innings, he struck out six. He improved to 2-1. David Hurlbut came out of the bullpen and recorded his first save. He gave up just one hit and struck out two in the final two innings. After having four hits on Saturday, Drew Leachman celebrated his birthday on Sunday with three more hits. He was 3-3 with a triple and a sacrifice fly. Travis Harrison was 2-4 with his seventh double. Jorge Polanco had a double, his fourth. Byron Buxton was 1-3 with two walks. He stole his sixth base, but he was also caught stealing for the fourth time. Niko Goodrum had just one hit on the day, but it was a two-run single in the seventh that gave the Kernels the 3-2 lead. The Snappers are now 11-5 on the season. Please feel free to comment or ask questions below.

The Twins got a nice 2-1, 10-inning win in Chicago against the White Sox. Eduardo Escobar, who came to the Twins last July from the South Siders, beat out an infield single to shortstop. Ryan Doumit, who was on second after an inning -opening double, advanced to third base and then continued home when Jeff Keppinger was unable to cleanly catch the one-hop throw from Ramirez. Glen Perkins came on to record the save. There were a couple of one-run games in the Twins farm system. A big home run helped Rochester a win, their first back-to-back wins of the season. The Ft. Myers Miracle also played an entertaining one-run game, but you’ll have to keep reading to see whether they won...or not. Byron Buxton’s batting average dropped to .420, but how did the Kernels play? Were the Rock Cats able to bounce back from a big loss a night earlier? Check down below, and please feel free to discuss. Rochester Red Wings 5, Pawtucket Red Sox 4 Box Score It was a back-and-forth game on Saturday afternoon between these two teams. Fortunately, the Red Wings managed to score last on Chris Colabello’s sixth home run of the season. Colabello went 2-4 with that organizational-leading sixth home run. Clete Thomas went 2-3 with a walk. Joe Benson was 2-4. Andrew Albers started and really struggled. Typically an aggressive control pitcher, Albers walked three in just two innings. He gave up three runs on four hits and struck out just one. Caleb Thielbar came on and pitched well. The lefty gave up two hits and a walk in three scoreless frames. He struck out three. Shairon Martis gave up a solo home run. He gave up that one run and three hits and a walk in two innings. Tim Wood’s rehab stint continued with his first appearance in Rochester. He was the International League Relief Pitcher of the Year in 2012 and struck out two on this day. Anthony Slama came in for the ninth and set them down 1, 2, 3 for his second save of the year. New Britain Rock Cats 1, Portland Sea Dogs 7 Box Score After losing 12-1 on Friday night, it was important for the Rock Cats to get off to a fast start on Saturday afternoon. Danny Santana led off the game with his second triple. James Beresford drove him in with a sacrifice fly. That was about it for the Rock Cats offense. Santana was 2-4. Reynaldo Rodriguez hit his sixth double. Danny Ortiz hit his seventh double. Logan Darnell stated for New Britain. The left-hander gave up five runs (3 earned) on seven hits and two walks. In five innings, he struck out six. AJ Achter gave up two runs on four hits and two walks in his 1.2 innings. He struck out two. Aaron Thompson came on and gave up two hits but no runs in 1.1 innings. Ft. Myers Miracle 5, St. Lucie Mets 6 Box Score So close! On Saturday night, Ft. Myers was inches away from a Miracle win in Port St. Lucie. Down 6-2 going into the ninth frame, Eddie Rosario singled. Then three straight Miracle hitters drew walks, which cut the lead to 6-3. Another reliever came on and gave up a single to Kennys Vargas to cut the lead to 6-4. The eight and ninth hitters, Lance Ray and Andy Leer, struck out. That brought up AJ Pettersen. Pettersen hit a hard ground ball off of a diving first baseman. A single run scored. Pinch runner Stephen Wickens attempted to score from second on the play but was thrown out at the plate. The Miracle were that close to keeping the game going, but unfortunately, they fall to 14-2 with the 6-5 loss. Tom Stuifbergen started and gave up just one run through the first six innings. In the bottom of the 7th, a one-out single was followed by a controversial hit batter. The Miracle believed that the ball hit the batter’s bat. The umpire disagreed. Runners on first and second. With the lead runner attempting to steal third, the next batter grounded to third base, but Miguel Sano committed his fourth error of the year loading the bases. TJ Rivera then hit a bases-clearing double that broke open the game. That was the end of the line for Stuifbergen. He went 6.1 innings and gave up five runs (3 earned) on seven hits. He walked none and struck out five. Adrian Salcedo came in and gave up a run on three hits in 1.2 innings. Miguel Sano went 2-3 with a walk and his fifth double. [ATTACH=CONFIG]3814[/ATTACH] photo courtesy of Cedar Rapids Kernels Facebook page. Be sure to "Like" it. Cedar Rapids Kernels 11, Peoria Chiefs 2 Box Score If you can put up crooked numbers on the scoreboard, it’s always a good thing. The Red Wings scored six runs in the first inning and another five runs in the fourth inning to jump out to a huge lead. They ended the game with two straight numbers. The Kernels collected 17 hits in the game. Drew Leachman led the offense with a 4-5 day. He was playing for just the fourth time on the season and came into the game hitting .142 (2-14). He now is hitting .316 after missing almost two weeks with a shoulder injury. Niko Goodrum went 2-4 with two walks and had two RBI. Romy Jimenez went 2-4 with his second double and four RBI. He had a bases-clearing double in the first inning. Jhonatan Arias went 2-5, his first two hits of the season. Travis Harrison was 2-4 with a walk. Adam Walker was 2-4. Jorge Polanco was 2-6. Byron Buxton’s batting average dropped to .420 with an 0-4 game. He did, however, walk twice in the long first inning. Lefty Mason Melotakis started, lasted only 3.1 innings, due in part to giving up four walks and four hits, and so did not qualify for the win, in spite of the run support. Steve Gruver came on for an “easy” “Win” and pitched well. The southpaw gave up one run on four hits in 4.2 innings. He walked none and struck out four. Tyler Jones pitched the ninth inning and gave up a hit, but no runs. Please feel free to comment or ask questions below.

That was fun!! I have about 50,000 cards, most between 1986 and 1992.

Things were pretty tough in the Twins farm system on Wednesday night. However, on Thursday, there were plenty of highlights for each of the four Twins affiliates. There were several great pitching performances. There were a lot of really strong hitting performances. Lots of multi-hit games and some big home runs. One team ended one long streak, and another hopes to have started another long streak. A couple of bullpen arms continued their early-season dominance. One pitcher threw six one-hit innings. Another pitcher had a no-hitter through four innings. Drew Leachman was removed from the Cedar Rapids Disabled List and returned to their lineup. Matt Tomshaw was put on the 7-Day DL for the Kernels. Josue Montanez was sent back to Extended Spring Training. Oh, and it has been verified that J. O. Berrios has been added to the Kernels roster. The Twins had an off day and flew to Chicago to start a weekend series. There is a lot of information today, plenty for those Adopt-A-Prospect forums! Rochester Red Wings 5, Scranton/Wilkes-Barre 4 Box Score It has been a rough and disappointing start to the season for the Rochester Red Wings. Coming into the game, the team was just 2-11 and had lost seven straight games. The offense had also not scored a run in 20 innings. The Red Wings got things going in the first inning and were able to hang on for the win. In the first inning, Eric Farris led off with a single. Chris Herrmann scored him on an opposite field double. Clete Thomas singled in Herrmann. Then Chris Colabello launched a towering, two-run blast, his fifth homer of the season. It gave the Red Wings a 4-0 lead before there was even an out recorded. In the third inning, Chris Herrmann scored on a fielder’s choice by Colabello for the final run of the game for the Wings. Of course, the offense pretty well stopped after the first four batters. They had just two more hits the rest of the game. Herrmann was 2-3 with a walk and a double. Even Bigley, in his first game back with the Red Wings, went 1-2 with a walk. Virgil Vasquez started and went the first five innings. He gave up two runs (1 earned) on six hits. He walked two and struck out three. Daniel Turpen gave up three hits over the next 1.2 innings while striking out two. Tyler Robertson came on with runners on and two outs in the 7th. He got a big strikeout. Luis Perdomo got his first save of the year. He went the final two innings. He gave up two solo home runs, but got the final out of the Red Wings third win. New Britain Rock Cats 17, Portland Sea Dogs 1 Box Score The goal of any baseball team in any baseball game is to get some runs to support good pitching. Well, in this game, the offense was a bit extreme, and that’s a good thing, but it shouldn’t hide some pretty solid pitching too. [ATTACH=CONFIG]3802[/ATTACH] 17 runs. 21 hits. 7 walks. The Rock Cats offense came to play. Antoan Richardson went 4-6 with a walk, his second double and his seventh stolen base. James Beresford went 3-3 with three walks and his, you guessed it, third stolen base. Curt Smith went 3-5 with his third double and first home run. Josmil Pinto went 3-6. Reynaldo Rodriguez walked and hit his fourth and fifth doubles. Danny Ortiz went 2-6 with his sixth double. Jhon Goncalves went 2-6 with his first double. All nine Rock Cats batters had at least one hit. Alex Meyer was a little wild, but he was very effective. The lanky righty went the first six innings without giving up a run. He gave up just one hit, walked four and struck out five. Edgar Ibarra came on and worked the 7th and 8th innings. He gave up one run on two hits and two walks. Bobby Lanigan pitched a 1, 2, 3 ninth inning. Ft. Myers Miracle 11, St. Lucie Mets 8 Box Score After starting the season with 12 straight wins, the Miracle finally took their first loss of the 2013 season on Wednesday night. On Thursday, they traveled across the state to play the St. Lucie Mets looking to start a new streak. Thanks to their bats and tremendous bullpen work, the Miracle improved to 13-1 on the season. Things started out well for the Miracle. In the top of the first, AJ Pettersen led off with a double. He came around to score on Miguel Sano’s fifth home run of the year. Pettersen led the offense with three hits. He was 3-5 with his third double and his second stolen base. Sano was 2-4 with a walk and three RBI. Kyle Knudson went 2-5 with his second double. Down 7-6 in the 7th, Kennys Vargas knocked a two-run double to give the Miracle as lead and they didn’t look back. Vargas was 2-4 and the double was his fourth. Lance Ray went 2-3 with two walks and his third double. Madison Boer started and gave up seven runs on six hits and four walks in 2.1 innings. He struck out two. Nelvin Fuentes came on and gave up a run on two hits and a walk in 2.2 innings. He struck out three. Then the dominant bullpen came on. Ryan O’Rourke has been the guy to come in to close games only to see the Miracle take a lead. O’Rourke improved to 4-0. He pitched two innings and struck out one. Zack Jones came on and recorded his fifth save by working the final two innings. He walked one and struck out three. On the early season, O’Rourke has pitched nine innings and given up no runs on two hits and a walk while striking out seven. Jones has thrown eight shutout innings. He has allowed one hit, walked two and struck out ten. Cedar Rapids Kernels 4, Peoria Chiefs 13 Box Score Things started out so well for the Kernels on this night, but it sure didn’t take long for things to complete turnaround. The Kernels took a 1-0 lead in the first inning on an Adam Walker RBI single. In the second, a Tyler Grimes triple was followed by JD Williams’ first home run of the year. Taylor Rogers started and through four innings, he had given up no hits. However, things went sour in the fifth innings. Rogers gave up eight earned runs on seven hits and two walks in 4.1 innings. Manuel Soliman came on and gave up five runs (2 earned) on four hits and two walks. Chris Mazza came on and gave up two runs and struck out two in 2.1 scoreless innings. Byron Buxton went 2-4 with a walk and his fifth stolen base. Niko Goodrum went 2-4 with a walk and his fourth double. Dalton Hicks and Adam Walker were each 2-5 with an RBI. Please feel free to comment or ask questions below.

In 2012, infielder Jamey Carroll played in 138 games (second-most of his career) and racked up a career-high 537 plate appearances. He was the Opening Day shortstop, but that was the position that he played the third-most. He played 66 games at second base, 44 games at third base and 37 games at shortstop. Through 13 games in 2013, Jamey Carroll has made just two starts and has a total of nine plate appearances. Why has his role been so diminished to start this season? I think there are a few potentially good reasons. Did Carroll’s skills diminish in 2012? A first glance, looking at just his .660 OPS in 2012, it shows a drop from .718 and .706 in 2010 and 2011, respectively. However, his Isolated Discipline (OBP – BA) of .075 was better than 2012 (.069). For his career, his Isolated Discipline is .078. In other words, his approach at the plate was right on part with his career. His 2012 Isolated Power (SLG – BA) was .049. A year earlier, that number was .057 and for his career, it is .067. So, his “power” dropped slightly from not-very-much to even-less. The .022 drop in batting average accounted for .044 drop in OPS by itself. Considering he got off to such a slow start (hitting .214 in April), he was himself the rest of the season. The summary of the previous paragraph is that it was clear that Carroll’s production drop in 2012 was more related to a couple of hits falling (or not falling) in over the course of the season rather than some fundamental flaw in his approach. [ATTACH=CONFIG]3797[/ATTACH] The Twins have committed to giving every opportunity to 26-year-old Trevor Plouffe at third base, 26-year-old Pedro Florimon at shortstop and 25-year-old Brian Dozier at second base. The primary utility player at this stage of the season has been 24-year-old Eduardo Escobar. As much as the Twins say out loud that 2013 is about winning, it makes a lot of sense for the rebuilding organization to play the younger guys as much as possible, ahead of the 39-year-old Jamey Carroll. One side benefit of this situation is that Carroll is a terrific person and happy to teach. He can be a strong influence on the younger players offensively and defensively. Carroll is as steady as it gets with the glove. His demeanor is exemplary on and off the field. He has kept himself in great playing shape throughout his career. And offensively, Carroll remains one of the more patient hitters on the roster. Is it possible that a large percentage of Carroll’s lack of playing time is money-related as well? He is making $3.75 million in 2013. It is the second year of his 2 year, $6.5 million contract. However, the contract comes with a $2 million club option that the Twins could consider picking up. It becomes a player option if he reaches 401 plate appearance. That is a number that he has reached each of the past three seasons. However, in the previous seven full seasons of his career, he reached that number just twice. Considering he prototypes as a #2 hitter, if he were playing most days, he would average about 4.2 plate appearances per start. He was need about 96 starts to eclipse that mark. However, if he continues to get just nine plate appearances for every 13 games, he could end the season with less that 120 plate appearances. At some point during the season, an infielder may get hurt and need to miss 15 to 20 games. Would the Twins start Carroll or Escobar in that situation? My assumption today would be that most of those starts would go to Carroll. Escobar really profiles to be the next in a long line of solid, long-term utility infielders like Al Newman, Jeff Reboulet, Denny Hocking and Nick Punto. No one is feeling sorry for Jamey Carroll. The author of this article and most of those reading it would give just about anything to sit on the end of a Major League Baseball bench and still make $3.75 million for the year. Carroll has had about as good of a career as a guy can have who doesn’t debut in the big leagues until he is 28 years old. He has over 10 years of service time and has earned the respect of his peers all around the game of baseball. I had the opportunity to meet Carroll at Twins Fest briefly and he is one of the nicest people I have met. He acknowledged that he has a goal to play in the big leagues as a 40 year old. He will turn 40 as spring training is starting next year. It may be as simple as the Twins are going to play those young guys and give them a lot of rope to start the season. That’s completely understanding on a rebuilding team with some terrific prospects on the way but still have to determine which of these current young players warrant a spot on future Twins teams. It may be as simple as trying to get out from needing to pay Carroll $2 million in 2013, although that is a very fair rate for a quality utility infielder in baseball. It is also possible that, despite Carroll’s work ethic, his skills had diminished enough to notice in spring training and he simply is not considered the player that he was within the organization. Who knows? Maybe there is something else going on all together.

The Twins got a second win against the Angels on Tuesday night. Joe Mauer got four hits for the second straight game. Brian Dozier was forced into the leadoff spot at the last minute and got on base three times. He was leading off because Aaron Hicks was moved down in the order, and then Darin Mastroianni’s ankle flared up on him again. Following the game, Mastroianni was put on the Disabled List and Oswaldo Arcia was again recalled from Rochester to take his place. In other roster moves, Bruce Pugh was sent from Rochester to New Britain. Aaron Thompson was added to the New Britain roster with Nelvin Fuentes being send down to Ft. Myers. According to Jeff Johnson of The Gazette in Cedar Rapids, the word is that J.O. Berrios will be with the Kernels by Thursday. Rochester Red Wings 0, Scranton/Wilkes-Barre 1 Box Score Kyle Gibson loaded the bases in the first inning but survived by giving up just one run. Unfortunately, that one run was enough to give him, and the Red Wings, another loss to fall to 2-10. Gibson settled in very nicely after the first frame. He went six innings and gave up just the one run on four hits. He walked two and struck out five. Caleb Thielbar came on and gave up three hits, but no runs in 2.2 scoreless innings. Luis Perdomo came in and walked a batter before getting the final out. Oswaldo Arcia was back in the Red Wings lineup on Tuesday night after starting for the Twins on Monday night (and now heading back to Minneapolis). He went 1-4 and stole his second base. Eric Farris went 1-3 with a walk and his first double. Eric Fryer was 2-3. New Britain Rock Cats 7, New Hampshire Fisher Cats 6 Box Score The Rock Cats were able to pull out another win in the bottom of the ninth on this night. James Beresford scored the game-winning run on a wild pitch. [ATTACH=CONFIG]3783[/ATTACH] Beresford has been hot of late. On this night, he went 3-4 with his second double. He was also hit by a pitch. Curt Smith was 2-3 with a walk. Danny Santana was 2-5 with his first double. Nate Hanson was 1-2, but he also walked three times. Josmil Pinto and Danny Ortiz each doubled. Trevor May was back on the mound. The hard-throwing righty gave up two runs on six hits. In 5.1 innings, he walked four and struckout eight. Jose Gonzalez got the final two outs of the sixth inning, but not before giving up four runs on five hits. Edgar Ibarra was perfect for two innings, striking out two. Michael Tonkin got the win. He walked one and struckout one in the ninth inning. Ft. Myers Miracle 7, Palm Beach Cardinals 4 Box Score Another day, another win for the Ft. Myers Miracle. This one came in dramatic fashion. Down 4-3 in the bottom of the seventh, the Miracle loaded the bases to bring up Miguel Sano. On the first pitch, Sano launched a long, towering home run. The grand slam was his fourth homer of the season and gave the Miracle their 7-4 lead, a lead they would maintain over the final innings. Sano went 2-3 with a walk. Early in the game, he extended his hitting streak to ten games. Eddie Rosario extended his hitting streak to nine games with an early single. He was 2-4. Jhon Goncalves went 2-3 with a walk and a double. Matt Koch was 2-4 with a double. Stephen Wickens had a triple. AJ Pettersen hit his second double. Jason Wheeler made the start. The lefty gave up three runs on five hits in six innings. He walked four and struck out four. Tim Wood made his first rehab appearance. He gave up one run on three hits. Cole Johnson picked up the save with two shutout innings. He struck out two. Game 1 - Cedar Rapids Kernels 3, Wisconsin Timber Rattlers 0 Box Score The Kernels remain quite busy. It was their third doubleheader in four days (7 games in 4 days). Brett Lee finally go to make his first start. The left-hander threw six shutout innings. He gave up six hits, walked none and struck out three. Tyler Jones came on for the final inning to record his second save of the season. Jorge Polanco went 2-3 with an RBI. Travis Harrison went 1-2 with a walk. Niko Goodrum went 1-2 with a walk. Adam Walker went 0-1 with two walks. Game 2 - Cedar Rapids Kernels 9, Wisconsin Timber Rattlers 1 Box Score Byron Buxton did not play in the first game, the first game he missed of the season. He had been hit in the elbow on Monday night. He had it checked out, and it was fine. In the first inning, he returned to the lineup with a single. Later, in the same inning, he doubled in a couple of runs. The Kernels bats scored eight runs in the first inning and maintained that lead with a 9-1 win. Buxton went 3-4 with his second double and two RBI. He is now hitting .474 on the season. Jorge Polanco went 2-4 with his third double and two RBI. Travis Harrison hit his second home run, a two run shot. Steven Gruver also made his first start of the season. The lefty gave up two hits in four shutout innings. He walked none and struck out six. Tim Atherton got the win. He went the final three innings and gave up just one run on two hits. He struck out two. Please feel free to comment or ask questions.