Seth Stohs

As has been the case throughout most of the first two months of the 2013 season, the excitement on this night in the Twins minor league system came from the bottom two levels. The Ft. Myers Miracle and Cedar Rapids Kernels combined to score 28 runs on the day. One prospect drilled two home runs in a game. Vance Worley made his second start with Rochester. Was he able to duplicate he results of his first game? And which Alex Meyer showed up on Saturday. The Twins minor leagues have had quite a few walk-off wins already this year. It was fun watching the big league club get a walk-off win on Saturday afternoon. With that, check out what happened in the Twins minor league system on Saturday, including the Dominican Summer League opener: Rochester Red Wings 3, Charlotte Knights 4 Box Score Vance Worley took the mound for his second Red Wings start. His first was a complete game shutout. His second? Not so much. He gave up a first inning run. Then he gave up three runs in the second inning. Not good start, but he went on to throw five shutout innings. Overall, he gave up four runs on ten hits and a walk in seven innings. He struck out seven. Luis Perdomo struckout one in a scoreless ninth inning. The Red Wings had plenty of scoring opportunities. They have eight hits, but they also walked 12 times. Somehow, they managed to score just three runs. Antoan Richardson led off and went 1-2 with three walks and his fifth stolen base. Oswaldo Arcia was 1-2 with three walks. His sixth Red Wings home run came in the ninth inning and cut the deficit to one. Jeff Clement was 2-4. New Britain Rock Cats 4, Bowie Baysox 3 Box Score Alex Meyer has been solid but quite inconsistent for the Rock Cats this season. On this night, he was terrific. The lanky right-hander went the first 6.1 innings. He gave up one run on two hits and two walks. He struck out a season-high ten opponents. Blake Martin came on and gave up two runs on two hits and two walks. AJ Achter came on and got the final five outs for his third save. He gave up two hits and a walk, but no runs. James Beresford led the way by going 3-4 with his fifth stolen base. He’s now hitting .338 and inexplicably remaining in AA. Danny Ortiz was 2-4. Danny Santana was very good in May and went 2-4 with his 10th and 11th stolen bases in this game. Nate Hanson and Curt Smith each doubled. Ft. Myers Miracle 13, Palm Beach Cardinals 4 Box Score The Miracle offense exploded in this game. Angel Morales is inexplicably still in Ft. Myers. It’s his third season with the Miracle, and he had a terrific month of May. In this game, he was 3-4 with two doubles. Kennys Vargas was 3-6. Eddie Rosario went 3-5 with his fifth triple. Andy Leer went 2-4 with two walks and his fourth home run. Aderlin Mejia was 2-5 with a walk. Jhon Goncalves went 2-6. Tom Stuifbergen was the recipient of all the run support. The Dutch right-hander went six innings. He gave up three runs on seven hits. He walked none and struck out three. Chad Rodgers threw two shutout innings. He gave up two hits, walked two and struck out one. Nelvin Fuentes gave up a run on a hit in an inning. Cedar Rapids Kernels 15, Kane County 2 Box Score Byron Buxton was given a very rare night off, and the Kernels’ bats took off. Fifteen runs on fifteen hits and nine walks makes for a pretty good day. Dalton Hicks led the way. The burly first baseman went 3-4 with a walk, his sixth and seventh homers and four RBI. Tyler Grimes went 3-3 with two walks and a triple. Jeremias Pineda went 2-3 with two walks and his first home run. JD Williams and Niko Goodrum were both 2-5 with a walk and a double. Jorge Polanco and Adam Walker each added a double. Photo by Rinaldi Photos Lefty Brett Lee was appreciative of the run support, though he did not need all of it. He gave up two runs (1 earned) on seven hits and two walks in seven innings. He struck out four. Manuel Soliman then struck out four in two perfect innings. DSL Twins 5, DSL Orioles 6 Box Score Opening Day in the Dominican Summer League. The Twins squad used seven pitchers to get through nine innings. Onesimo Hernandez gave up one run on four hits (and a hit batter) in three innings. He struck out thre. Carlos Aponte gave up two runs on two hits and a hit batter in one inning. Sebastian Perez gave up one run on two hits in two innings. Robener Cabrera gave up an unearned run on one hit and a walk in one innings. Johan Quezada walked two and struck out two in one scoreless inning. Rendis Reyes got two outs, though he gave up one run on two walks. Ezequiel Zarzuela got the final out. The offense was led by 17-year-old catcher Rainis Silva who went 2-4. Rafael Valera and Carlos Martinez each doubled. Please feel free to comment or ask questions below.

The Twins had another off day on Monday. Justin Morneau’s Casino Night was on Sunday night. On Monday night, many players worked the bar at Toby Keith’s for Hang with the Majors. These events and some that are less publicized are all a part of Hope Week in which the Twins are quite visible around the community, raising funds for the Twins Community Fund. The Twins do a lot of great things in communities around the state thanks to these types of events. They return to the field on Tuesday when they will take on Jim Thome and the Philadelphia Phillies for three games before the next Border Battle against the Brewers. Here is a look at the Twins minor league scores and highlights from Monday: ROCHESTER 0, INDIANAPOLIS 16 I’m not sure how much you want to read about this game after just looking at the score in the heading. Matt Maloney started and went just two innings. He gave up six runs (4 earned) on five hits. He walked none and struck out none. Brendan Wise went the next three innings and gave up two runs on four hits. He walked two and struck out three. Casey Fien gave up two runs on three hits and (an intentional) walk. Lester Oliveros gave up five runs on three hits and two walks and he recorded just two outs (both on strikeouts). Tyler Robertson got the final four outs. He gave up one run on two hits. The Red Wings managed just four hits. Pedro Florimon had two of them. Wilkin Ramirez hit his fifth double. NEW BRITAIN The Rock Cats had a day off on Monday before starting a series at home against Akron. FT. MYERS 8, PALM BEACH 4 Tied 4-4 going into the 9th, the Miracle got RBI singles from Levi Michael and Danny Santana followed by Sacrifice Flies by Jairo Perez and Oswaldo Arcia. Santana led the offense by going 3-5 with three RBI. He is hitting .310. Danny Rams was 2-3 with his first and second doubles of the season. Jairo Perez had three RBI in the game, but he was also 2-4. Marty Popham started and gave up one run on seven hits in five innings. He walked one and struck out five. Edgar Ibarra came in and was charged with three unearned runs on one hit and one walk in two innings. He struck out three. Ricky Bowen walked three over the last two innings but did not allow a run, so he was credited with the win. BELOIT 7, WISCONSIN 8 For the second straight day, Timber Rattler shortstop Yadiel Rivera came to the plate with the score tied and the winning run on base. For the second straight day, Rivera came through for his team. In Monday afternoon’s series finale, the walk-off hit may not have been as dramatic as Sunday night’s three-run homer, but a walk-off single got the job done for Wisconsin. Jason Wheeler made the start for the Snappers. He gave up four runs on six hits in 5.2 innings. He walked none and struck out six. AJ Achter came in and gave up three runs on three hits and two walks in one inning. He struck out three. Corey Williams came in and gave up the final run. In 1.2 innings, he gave up the run on three hits and a walk. He struck out two. The Snappers grabbed the lead thanks to a six-run fifth inning. The key blow in that game came off the bat of Miguel Sano who hit his 15th home run of the season, a grand slam. He was 2-5 in the game. Jairo Rodriguez was 3-4. Nate Roberts was 3-5. Jhonathan Goncalves went 1-3 with a walk and his second home run. Matt Koch went 2-4. --- Players of the Day for Monday, June 11, 2012 Hitter of the Day – Miguel Sano (photo courtesy of Rinaldi Photos) Pitcher of the Day – Marty Popham --- A Look Ahead – Tuesday, June 12, 2012 Schedule Rochester @ Indianapolis – RHP Sam Deduno New Britain vs Akron – TBD Ft. Myers vs Bradenton – LHP Cole Nelson Beloit vs Peoria – RHP Matt Summers --- If you have any questions or comments on the Twins minor league system, players, teams, etc., leave them in the Comments and I’ll try to answer them!

“It excites me a lot. Look at that line. Those guys have all been mentored by the guy in front of them. Me being mentored by Denard Span means I'm the next one in line. I've still got to get to the big leagues, still have to earn my place as a big league center fielder.” Those were the words of Aaron Hicks at Twins Fest when asked what it meant to follow in the Minnesota Twins centerfield lineage of Kirby Puckett to Torii Hunter to Denard Span. As Hicks looks to be the Twins next great, long-term centerfielder, I thought it would be fun to look back and the others, the other guys who got a chance to play some centerfield for the Twins and, for whatever reason, were not able to make their name for themselves. Assuming Aaron Hicks takes over the centerfield job, he will be the one to follow Denard Span. That said, it is important to note that Ben Revere, who was the Twins first-round draft choice in 2007, a year before Hicks was the Twins first round pick, did play a lot of centerfield the last two seasons as well. And also, don’t forget that the centerfielder who was the Opening Day centerfielder immediately following the departure of Torii Hunter was Carlos Gomez. So many think that Kirby Puckett passed the centerfield torch to Torii Hunter, but that is not technically the case. Hunter was the Twins first round pick in 1993. That was the last year in which Puckett was the Twins primary centerfielder. However, Puckett did still mentor the very young Hunter on and off the field. In 1994, Kirby Puckett moved to right field and the be-goggled Alex Cole was the primarily Twins centerfielder. Late in that 1994 season, Rich Becker took over as the team’s centerfielder, a position he would man through the end of the 1997 season. In 1998, the Twins brought in Otis Nixon and he played 108 games in center field. Torii Hunter took over the centerfield position in 1999, although he had his stint in Rochester in 2000. Matt Lawton and Jacque Jones each got some time at the position as well, but it was basically Hunter’s job until he left for the Angels following the 2007 season. Kirby Puckett debuted with the Twins on May 8, 1984, against the Angels. He was the Twins centerfielder for the better part of a decade. However, the position has been played by many over the previous decade, for various reasons. For some, it was poor play. For others, they left for greener pastures when the Calvin Griffith regime deemed them too expensive to keep. Let’s go back to 1961, when the Twins came to Minnesota. Their centerfielder was Lenny Green. He had come with the team from Washington where he had taken over the position in 1960. He was there into the 1964 season. However, in 1963, Jimmie Hall became the primary centerfielder. He finished third in the Rookie of the Year voting in a year in which he hit 21 doubles and 33 home runs. He remained the starter through 1965. He lost playing time in the World Series because he hit left handed and the Dodgers had Sandy Koufax in their rotation. In 1966, Ted Uhlaender took over for Hall, who played other positions more often and then was traded to the Angels following the season. Uhlaender was the centerfielder through the 1969 season. Cesar Tovar played all over the diamond during his years with the Twins. In 1969 and 1970, he was the primary centerfielder. Jim Holt played a lot of centerfield in 1970 and 1971. In the 1970s, the Twins had some pretty good performers in centerfield, but they seemed to take turns a lot. Steve Brye played a lot of centerfield from 1972 through 1976. Larry Hisle played the position frequently from 1973 through 1977. Dan Ford was the team’s primary centerfielder in 1975 and again in 1978. He moved to the corner outfield in 1976 and 1977 because of the emergence of Lyman Bostock. For a couple of years in the ‘70s, the Twins would have had an outfield of Dan Ford, Lyman Bostock and Larry Hisle. That’s a pretty strong outfield. The Twins and the Angels certainly seemed to enjoy trading with each other. The Angels also signed many free agents from the Twins during these years. Following the 1978 season, the Twins traded Rod Carew to the Angels in exchange a package of players that included Ken Landreaux, who was the team’s centerfielder in 1979 and 1980. He hit .294 with 50 doubles, 16 triples and 22 home runs in those two season and was an All Star in 1980. Following 1980, he was traded to the other Los Angeles team, the Dodgers, for a package that included Mickey Hatcher. Hatcher was in the Twins outfield for several years, primarily in left field. However, in the 1981 season, he played primarily in centerfield. Before the 1982 season, the Twins made another trade with the Dodgers to acquire Bobby Mitchell. He had 13 plate appearances in 19 games for the Dodgers in the two previous seasons combined. HE came to the Twins and was the primary centerfielder in 1982 and played some there in 1983. In 1983, Darrell Brown took over in centerfield. The Twins had acquired him as a free agent in December of 1982. He hit .272/.297/.304 (.601) with six doubles and two triples. He got another month in 1984 before the team called up Kirby Puckett, a singles hitting, speedy outfielder who would go on to become one of the greatest players in team history and a first-ballot Hall of Famer. We read so much about the Twins line of centerfielders from Puckett to Hunter to Span. And now that will be handed over to Aaron Hicks and he is not taking that lightly. There is a good chance that, once he establishes himself, he will start mentoring Byron Buxton to take his position and run with it. Hopefully this review of the Twins centerfield position has been a fun look at the history of the Minnesota Twins. I always enjoy being reminded of names that I haven’t read or heard about in a long time. Those of you who have been fans of the Twins since the early years should really enjoy telling the rest of us stories you recall about some of these players. I hope you’ll use the comments to do just that.

On Monday, the Minnesota Twins and the New York Mets played the series finale of a series that started in April. The teams played a makeup game for a game that was snowed out. The Twins lost 6-1 and will now head to Detroit where they'll play the Tigers for the next three days. Kyle Gibson made the start and went just 3.2 innings. He was charged with four runs on ten hits and two walks. Immediately following the game, he was demoted to Rochester. The question of "What's next for Kyle Gibson?" can take on any number of meanings for Twins fans. There are the short-term and long-term implications and possibilities to that question. Photo by Betsy Bissen Let's start with the short-term. We know that Gibson's innings would be monitored throughout the season. In the offseason, we heard that Gibson could be limited to 130 to 140 innings. Once spring training came, the front office backed away from giving a hard number of innings, saying they would just monitor how he was pitching and how his arm responded. When I talked to Gibson after the Saturday night game against the White Sox at Target Field, he still maintained that they had not yet been given any timeline. He only said that Terry Ryan and others in the front office only insisted that Gibson be completely honest with them about how his arm, and specifically his elbow was feeling. He said that he continues to feel strong. So, what is next for Kyle Gibson? As it relates to 2013, there are several questions. How much more will he pitch, and in what role? Gibson is a starting pitcher. He is currently at 143.2 combined innings on the season between Rochester and Minnesota. He could make another start or two for the Red Wings. He could make those one or two starts and then be shut down for the season, likely around 155 innings. He could skip the next two starts, and then start for the Red Wings in the playoffs, if they make the playoffs. Gibson could also pitch out of the Red Wings bullpen for the rest of the season (about two weeks). His innings and pitching frequency can be monitored very strictly. Is it possible that we see him in a Twins uniform in September? It may be unlikely, but maybe Gibson is able to work out some things, get some time on the Disabled List to rest, and come back to work a hand full of innings for the Twins. I think the more important question is how you feel about the future of Kyle Gibson. What means more to you? How much do you choose to make of ten starts at the end of his rookie season in his first season back from Tommy John surgery? Do you choose to go back to his scouting reports before Tommy John surgery and how well he pitched during his strong run at Rochester in May and early June? There is a general belief that a pitcher should throw no more than 20% more innings than he did the previous season in an attempt to keep healthy. If Gibson ends the 2013 season with 150 innings pitched, a 20% increase in 2014 would put him at 180 innings. I think that's a pretty solid goal. The scouting reports are what they are. They're something that can help predict how well a pitcher could do. Not how well they will do, but what they possibly can become. In his short time with the Twins, we did see a fastball that sat in the low-90s and touched 94 as we had heard. When he was pitching well, we did see some very good sinking action. We saw that he does have three pitches. What we didn't see were a ton of ground balls. His ground out to fly ball ratio was essentially 1 to 1. His strikeout rate dropped, which is no surprise. We also saw his walk numbers increase. Some of it might just be the big league hitters have better eyes, and maybe those sharp, sinkers and sliders that several AAA hitters get taken by big league hitters when they dip below the zone. It's certainly an adjustment that Gibson will need to, and will, work on before 2014. Gibson will be 26 years old throughout the 2014 season. Certainly, that is not young for a player with just ten big league starts. However, when you consider that he lost half of 2011 and most of 2012, and then still was working back early in 2013 because of the surgery, he's where he should be. For those that think this is old, well, The Twins would get his ages 26-31 years under their control. It's probably fair to say that the big league debut season of Kyle Gibson has been disappointing, but hopefully people can see enough of the big picture not to give up on an arm as talented as Gibson's. That's as silly as giving up on Aaron Hicks because of his 2013 struggles. The truth is that most players come up from the minor leagues and experience some growing pains. The hope is that Gibson will return in 2014, fully healthy, and better off for his struggles. My Opinion It is my opinion that the Twins should give Gibson one more start in Rochester, and then shut him down. Let him enjoy the offseason and just have a regular workout routine without the rehab. I have no doubt in my mind that Gibson will be in the Twins Opening Day rotation, and in the rotation for years to come. What happened in his 51 innings with the Twins this season didn't affect my thoughts on this future. If he had been great, my opinion of his future likely would not have changed. So, what are your thoughts? This is a pretty broad topic, with several parts. It will be interesting to see what the Twins, along with Gibson, decide to do.