Seth Stohs

The Chris Colabello Story continues. Since signing with the Twins before the 2012 season, his story has continued to get better and better. Wednesday night was another highlight in what has been a remarkable start to his career and specifically to his 2014 season. On Wednesday, he gave his Mom a great birthday present and then made his teammates happy again with a huge extra inning hit. Maybe I am a horrible child! I think the best gift I ever gave my mom for her birthday was, well, maybe when I drew/colored her a picture or something when I was really young. Chris Colabello gave his mom a really cool birthday present last night. With his mother, Silvana, chatting on FSN with Marney Gellner, she saw her son tie the game at two with a two-run home run. In her excitement, you can hear her say, "Another present!" What the remarkable video right here: http://m.mlb.com/video/v32326113/mintb-colabello-hits-tworun-shot-on-moms-birthday[/media] Move ahead to the 12th inning, and Chris Colabello gave his teammates a great gift. With Joe Mauer on third base and Trevor Plouffe on second base, Rays' manager Joe Maddon decided to pitch to Colabello. Bad guy Josh Lueke got ahead of Colabello 0-2, but he battled and eventually hit a single up the middle to score two more runs and give the Twins a 6-4 lead. After Glen Perkins shut the door in the bottom of the inning, the Twins got back to .500 at 10-10. The Chris Colabello story just continues to get better and better. When the Twins signed him before spring training 2012, he was hoping to do enough just to make an affiliated team's roster for the first time after seven years of independent ball. After a solid season in New Britain, Colabello got an invitation to Twins' big league spring training in 2013. He was able to leave camp to play for the surprising Team Italy in the WBC. He went to AAA Rochester, but on May 22, 2013, he made his major league debut. His story could have ended there and it could have been a story meant for Disney. But the story continued into the 2014 season. He had a very interesting offseason. Though few believed that he would make the Twins' 25 man roster for Opening Day, some thought he could be a candidate to be DFA'd during the offseason. He wasn't. However, a team from South Korea came to the Twins and offered Colabello and the Twins a lot of money for him to play there. He wasn't guaranteed a spot on the Twins major league roster, but he chose again to believe in himself and his dreams and his goals. No one would have blamed him for taking the money in Korea. He would have made almost as much in one season there as he would make in two full seasons in the big leagues. As he told me at spring training, "I played baseball, sometimes literally for nothing for a long time, so it's not and has never been about the money." In a Twins Daily Q&A with Colabello from before the 2013 season, he talked about what he learned about the game while playing in the independent leagues, "Independent baseball taught me a lot about myself. I was blessed to play for Rich Gedman who taught me so much about the game, and most importantly that as long as I had a uniform on, that there was a chance someone would see me." He believed in himself, and he got the job done this spring, earning a spot on his first Opening Day roster. Even then, he wasn't necessarily a starter. He was the team's DH on Opening Day largely because the Twins faced lefty Chris Sale. He has produced, and that is why he remains in the every-day lineup, in the middle of the order. Not only is he hitting in the middle of the order, he is becoming quite the run producer. Yes, RBI is a stat that a player accumulates largely due to what hitters in front of him do. However, through the first three-and-a-half weeks of the season, he has come through and driven in runs whenever the opportunity has presented itself. When Colabello singled in Mauer and Plouffe in the 12th inning, it gave him 26 RBI in April. That number ties Kirby Puckett for the record for most RBI in April, and there are still six games to play. Again, two years ago at this time, Colabello was making his affiliated baseball debut in New Britain, and today, his name is in the same sentence as Hall of Famer Kirby Puckett. If there is a story in baseball in the past several years that is better than Chris Colabello, please let me know what it is. Colabello has his head on his shoulders. He speaks about the process as much as the results. He understands well that there are things that he can control and other things that he can't. From the January 2013 interview, Colabello spoke of this. "My biggest goal is to be able to adjust and be in the moment to the best of my ability. Hitting is so much more about process than it is about results. If you can make a commitment to taking care of the process, the results will take care of themselves." It's that thinking that will continue to give Colabello an opportunity. He's earned more time with an incredible April. If the month were to end right now, Colabello would have to be the favorite for player of the month. Helping his team win and giving his Mom great birthday presents, Colabello is getting the job done, and it's really fun to watch. http://deadspin.com/twins-player-hits-homer-while-his-mom-is-interviewed-on-1566872955?utm_campaign=socialflow_deadspin_twitte r&utm_source=deadspin_twitter&utm_medium=socialflow ~~~ Also, since the Twins beat the Rays on Silvana Colabello's birthday, today (Thursday) you can get 50% off a L or XL pizza from PapaJohns.com if you use the 'TWINSWIN' promo code. ~~~

Alex Meyer had one of the best starts of his minor league career on Wednesday night. He set a career-high in strikeouts and went into the 7th inning for the first time this season. On this night, one could make the argument that his performance was the third best by a starting pitcher in the organization (though you could also make a case for best or second-best very easily, as well). Ft. Myers' Tyler Duffey and Cedar Rapids' Ethan Mildren each made a strong case as well. Also, Chris Parmelee remains on fire!! photo by Mark Rebilas PODCAST NOTES Looking for an update on Nate Roberts? Zack Jones? Get those updates and much more Twins and minor league talk, like what is Miguel Sano up to on Tuesday night’s Twins Hangouts podcast here or download the podcast (or previous podcasts) on iTunes. Also, on last night’s Talk to Contact podcast, the guys chatted with former Twin and current Cedar Rapids hitting coach Tommy Watkins. Listen here. Here is a look at what happened in the Twins farm system on Wednesday. RED WINGS REPORT Rochester 1, Pawtucket 3 Box Score For the fourth time in four starts with the Red Wings, Alex Meyer received a no- decision. His most recent start was a bit of a clunker, but he was tremendous in this start. The right-hander went 6.2 innings without allowing a run. He gave up just three hits, walked three and struck out a season-high 11 batters. Reports stated that he was consistently hitting 96-97 MPH and hit 99 on a couple of pitches. Ryan Pressly came on and got the final out of the seventh inning. He came out for the eight and walked the first two batters. He was replaced by lefty Edgar Ibarra who immediately gave up a two-run double and an RBI single. Matt Guerrier came up and surrendered a single and a walk before getting the final two outs. Chris Parmelee remained on fire. He went 2-4 with two doubles. He’s now hitting .343. In his last seven games, he is 15-29 with three doubles and two home runs with four walks and just two strikeouts. Doug Bernier was also 2-4 on the night and is now hitting .385 on the season. Eduardo Nunez missed his fourth straight game with the oblique strain. ROCK CATS REVIEW New Britain 5, New Hampshire 7 Box Score The Rock Cats had a 4-1 lead after two innings, but then the defense faltered, lost the lead and eventually the game. Tony Thomas had a nice night at the plate. Leading off, he went 2-4 with a walk, his fifth double and his first home run of the season. He drove in two runs. Danny Ortiz drove in the other two runs with his fourth double. DJ Baxendale gave up six runs on five hits and two walks in 4.2 innings. However, due to four errors, just two of those runs were earned. Dan Turpen came on and gave up only one hit over 2.1 scoreless innings. Ryan O’Rourke went the final two innings. He gave up only an unearned run. MIRACLE MATTERS Ft. Myers 4, Jupiter 2 Box Score The Miracle got some big hits but it was the performance of Tyler Duffey that was most instrumental in this win. He improves to 3-0 and drops his ERA to 2.82 after throwing six shutout innings on this night. He gave up just one hit, walked one and struck out five. Tim Shibuya came on and gave up two hits over two scoreless innings. Brian Gilbert came in for the ninth inning and gave up two runs on three hits, but he ended the game with the Miracle in the lead. Travis Harrison and his hot bat were moved to the second spot in the lineup. After a Levi Michael leadoff single in the first inning, Harrison doubled him to third. Michael scored on a Jorge Polanco single while Harrison scored on an error. In the fifth inning, Stuart Turner singled with one out and advanced to third on an AJ Pettersen double. With two outs, Harrison singled in both runners. The Miracle had just six hits, and Harrison had two of them. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 0, Peoria 2 Box Score The Kernels gave up no hits into the 7th inning and found a way to lose this game 2-0. Ethan Mildren made the start and threw five no-hit innings. He walked one and struck out six batters. Alex Muren came on and didn’t give up a hit in the sixth. In the seventh, he allowed a one-out double. After an error and a ground out, Peoria had an unearned run and a 1-0 lead. Hudson Boyd came in for the 8th inning. He gave up a leadoff double, but the next two batters popped out. Unfortunately a passed ball and a wild pitch gave Peoria their second run. Cedar Rapids managed just five hits in the game. Logan Wade had two of them. Joel Licon walked twice. TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day – Tyler Duffey, Ft. Myers Miracle Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day – Tony Thomas, New Britain Rock Cats THURSDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Rochester @ Pawtucket (11:05 a.m. CST) – Kris Johnson (Listen) New Hampshire @ New Britain (9:35 a.m. CST) – Taylor Rogers (Listen) Jupiter @ Ft. Myers (6:05 CST) – Brett Lee (Listen) Cedar Rapids @ Peoria (6:35 CST) – Kohl Stewart (Listen) Please feel free to ask any questions and discuss the Wednesday games. ~~~ Also, since the Twins beat the Rays 6-4, today (Thursday) you can get 50% off a L or XL pizza from PapaJohns.com if you use the 'TWINSWIN' promo code. ~~~

I am all for getting the calls right if we have the technology, but I am not a fan of how the new replay rules are working. I think they need to be much more efficient (or quick!) to not annoy and potentially lose a small part of any team's fan base. With the new replay rules, something that has long been a part of baseball will be much more rare. There won't as many great manager/umpire arguments like there were in the past. We have all seen video of Earl Weaver and Billy Martin in the face of umpires. We have seen dirt kicked and caps thrown. I thought it would be fun to take a look back at Minnesota Twins history and go a little deeper. During the past offseason, video of a July 1978 Twins, Red Sox game appeared. It's actually fascinating to watch a Twins player react like Mike Cubbage did when he was called out. Manager Gene Mauch was also ejected for arguing and tossed bats all over the field before leaving the field. Here is the video, and following it, I'll mention so other interesting tidbits from the game. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=deJTjqB-qmQ Mike Cubbage was the base runner and from watching the video, it appears he was safe. Cubbage had gotten on base with a single. He was 1-2 when he was ejected. He was also hitting .319, pretty impressive considering it was mid-July already. Though his career was not great, he was in the big leagues for parts of eight seasons. He came to the Twins from the Rangers in a July 1976 trade along with Roy Smalley and two other players in exchange for Bert Blyleven. Speaking of Smalley, he came to the team and was a very good shortstop for several years. Most know that he was the nephew of the manager who was ejected, Gene Mauch. Did you know that Smalley was the #1 overall pick in the 1974 draft after a College Baseball Hall of Fame career at USC. He was in the big leagues less than one year later, and traded to the Twins two years after being selected. This ejection came in Game 2 of a doubleheader with the Red Sox. Smalley went 0-4 in that game, but he was 3-5 with a double in the first game. Batting third for the Twins in that game was Rod Carew, playing 1B. He was 1-3 with a walk in the game. The Twins had a couple of hitting stars in the 3-2 loss in Game 2. Hosken Powell led off and went 3-5. "Disco" Dan Ford was batting cleanup and went 2-4. Rob Wilfong, who a couple of years later was sent to California in a deal that brought the Twins Tom Brunansky, had two hits. Willie Norwood went 2-4 with a double and a home run in the game. You may have notice a spry, young first base coach for the Twins, donning the powder blue, and looking to not keep his third baseman in the game. Tony Oliva was the first base coach that year. Roger Erickson pitched the complete game for the Twins. He went eight innings and gave up just three runs on seven hits. He walked none and struck out three. It seems he would fit in well with the current Twins style of pitcher. When the Red Sox won that second game of a double header, they improved to 60-28 under the leadership of one Don Zimmer. The Red Sox put a pretty solid lineup out against the Twins. Hall of Famer Jim Rice hit third in the game. Hall of Famer Carl Yastrzemski batted fourth. The big hit of the game was a two-run homer from Fred Lynn, who batted fifth. Bob Stanley pitched the final two innings for the Red Sox to record the save. He was in just his second season with the Red Sox. He threw in 52 games for the Sox, but he made just three starts. He went 15-2 with 10 saves and a 2.60 ERA. Of course, many in Red Sox Nation remember him for a certain Wild Pitch he threw in the 1986 World Series, in Game 6. That day's first base umpire, Bill Kunkel, pitched in the big leagues from 1961 through 1963. In 1968, he became an American League umpire and was well-respected in that role until his death in 1985. He may be best known as being one of the final two umpires to weather the outer chest protector. His son, Jeff Kunkel, played infield in the big leagues for parts of nine seasons. Let's get back to Mike Cubbage before we conclude this glimpse back in time. Cubbage was a third base coach in the big leagues from 1990 to 2003 for the Mets, Astros and Red Sox. He was an interim manager of the Mets in 1991, and for the Red Sox early in 2002. Since 2006, he has been a scout in the Tampa Bay Rays organization. Once in a while it is fun to look back in history and look into a box score. Which teams had the better players, or even future Hall of Famers? Which relative unknown got to play hero in the big leagues? The Mike Cubbage, Gene Mauch ejection video takes us back in time to some names from over 25 years ago and some great powder blue uniforms. Does anyone remember this game? Who were your obscure favorite players, like Willie Norwood, or Dan Ford, or Roger Erickson or maybe even Bombo Rivera?

~ Sponsored by Switch My Trip ~ Ron Gardenhire and Jason Kubel were insistent throughout spring training. Is it possible that they knew what they were talking about when they kept saying the veteran would be just fine when the regular season began? Fans and many writers wondered aloud which Jason Kubel we might see in 2014. Kubel hit just .196/.288/.283 (.571) in spring training, and that’s only because he ended the spring schedule on a good note. Fortunately, he has been able to flip a switch with the regular season and has been one of the Twins’ top offensive performers in the early weeks. ~ The Twins are looking to switch things around this year. Every week, Metro Transit recognizes a Twins player who successfully switched the outcome of a game for the better. ~ Kubel was drafted by the Twins in the 12th round of the 2000 draft. He stayed in the organization through the 2011 season. He was a solid performer, providing power in the middle of the lineup after his return from major knee surgery following the 2004 season. In 2012, he switched leagues, signing a two-year pact with the Arizona Diamondbacks. The first year with the Snakes, he hit .253/.327/.506 (.833) with 30 doubles and 30 home runs. However, 2013 was a year full of injury and struggle. He played in just 97 games and hit .216/.293/.317 (.610). In August, he was traded back to the AL Central and hit .167 for Cleveland in their playoff push. This past offseason, Kubel signed a minor league contract with the Twins despite reports that he had been offered a guaranteed, major league deal elsewhere. After that slow start in spring training, Jason Kubel has done a nice job of switching the opinions of many fans in Twins territory with his fast start. He is hitting .328/.418/.483 (.901) with six extra base hits. He has regained his form offensively. At the same time, his role with the Twins so far this season has switched from initial plan. He came in to be the team’s primary designated hitter who might occasionally get some time in the outfield. With injuries to Oswaldo Arcia and Josh Willingham, he has become the Twins starting left fielder, playing every day. He has actually represented himself well with the glove to this point in the season. There is a lot of season to go. We are not even to May on the schedule yet. However, to this point, Jason Kubel has done a terrific job. He has been able to switch the opinions of many Twins fans who felt that he was on the wrong side of 30 and in decline. He will turn 32 years old at the end of May, but to this point of the young season, he is healthy and appears to be more like the 2012 version of Jason Kubel that we all hope to see. ~~~ Why fight traffic and parking? Say ‘Switch My Trip’ for the next Twins game. Metro Transit can provide you and your whole family a train ride to the game. Planning your trip is as easy as clicking on this link.

SUNDAY AFTERNOON UPDATE The Twins and Red Wings were the only two organizational teams in action on this Easter Sunday. Coincidentally, both teams used strong starts from their pitchers and big offensive outputs to power their records back to .500. The Twins announced before today's game that they were awarded OF Sam Fuld off waivers. (He'll join the team on Tuesday.) To make room for Fuld, Darin Mastroianni was designated for assignment.[PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] Though Mastro had an option left, the team was required to make room on their 40-man, which they'll have as soon as Jason Bartlett's paperwork goes through. For now though, it's Mastro that goes. He'll remain in the Twin Cities until this process plays out (with him likely to clear waivers and accept an assignment to Rochester). He would have the right to elect free agency. RED WINGS REPORT Rochester 9, Syracuse 3 Box Score Trevor May was the story of the day for the Red Wings. May threw 89 pitches in six innings. He allowed only one hit and a walk. He struck out four and picked up his first win of the season. His ERA drops under 3.00 to 2.93. Offensively, Rochester put up season-highs in both runs (9) and hits (17). Chris Parmelee saw his average jump to .305 with a 4-for-5 day. He drove in one run and scored twice. From the 9-hole, Doug Bernier went 3-for-4 with two doubles, a walk and a run. Danny Santana, James Beresford and Eric Farris all had two-hit games. Chris Rahl had a three-run home run. Earlier on Sunday, the Red Wings announced that Deolis Guerra would be placed on the DL with a hamstring strain. It's purely speculation, but it wouldn't be shocking to see Matt Guerrier fill that role by "taking the next step." MONDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Rochester @ Syracuse (11:00 CST) – Scott Diamond New Britain vs New Hampshire (5:35 CST) - Pat Dean Ft. Myers @ Jupiter (5:35 CST) - Alex Wimmers Cedar Rapids @ Peoria (6:30 CST) – Aaron Slegers --- A couple of losses in the upper levels and a couple of wins in the lower levels quickly summarizes a Saturday in the minor league ballparks. There was a dramatic win in Cedar Rapids again last night, something that has become commonplace the last couple seasons. On Easter Sunday, just one of the Twins affiliates has a game. At 1:00 PM, Trevor May will take the mound for the Rochester Red Wings. Look back at this article later Sunday where you’ll be able to see what happened in that one. Here is a look at what happened in the Twins farm system on Saturday. RED WINGS REPORT Rochester 2, Syracuse 4 Box Score Kris Johnson started and went six innings. He was charged with four runs on eight hits. He walked two and struck out eight. Ryan Pressly came on and threw two scoreless innings despite allowing a hit and walking three. He struck out two. The Red Wings managed just five hits. Deibinson Romero went 2-3 with a walk. ROCK CATS REVIEW New Britain 1, Portland 6 Box Score Sean Gilmartin struck out a career-high nine batters. He didn’t walk any either. However, he gave up three runs on eight hits in five innings to take the loss. Matt Summers came out of the bullpen for the final four innings. He gave up three runs on five hits. He walked none and struck out four. New Britain managed just six hits in the game. Matt Koch was 2-4 with his first Eastern League home run. MIRACLE MATTERS Ft. Myers 4, St. Lucie 0 Box Score David Hurlbut has spent time in the bullpen and starting. Whenever he has started, he has been very good. That was the case on Saturday again. The left-hander threw five shutout innings in his first start of the season. He gave up two hits, walked three and struck out one. Tim Shibuya came on and was perfect for two innings, striking out one. Brian Gilbert finished the game with two shutout innings. Jorge Polanco went 2-4 with his fifth double. Max Kepler notched his first double of the season Travis Harrison went 2-4 with his third double. Harrison is 12-25 in his last six games. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 7, West Michigan 6 (12 innings) Box Score Bryan Santy knocked his first home run in his short stint with the Kernels, and it came in the bottom of the ninth to tie the score and send it into extra frames. The Kernels gave up a run in the top of the 10th to fall behind again. With two outs, Jason Kanzler singled and scored on a pinch-hit double from Mitch Garver. The game continued into the 12th. Engleb Vielma walked to lead off the inning and advanced to second on a Joel Licon sacrifice bunt. Jason Kanzler followed with a game-winning RBI single to end it. Kanzler went 2-6 with his third steal, but his two hits were pretty big. Tanner Vavra, Chad Christensen and Zack Larson each had two hits. Felix Jorge started and gave up five runs on seven hits and three walks in 4.2 innings. He struck out two. Alex Muren came on and gave up two hits and a walk in 1.1 innings, but no runs scored. Yorman Landa struck out four in two scoreless innings. Hudson Boyd went 1.2 innings and gave up a run on two hits and two walks. He struck out two. Brandon Peterson came on for the final out of the tenth inning. He worked two more scoreless innings and struck out three. TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day – David Hurlbut, Ft. Myers Miracle Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day – Matt Koch, New Britain Rock Cats FRIDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Rochester @ Syracuse (1:00 CST) – Trevor May (Listen) New Britain – No Game Ft. Myers – No Game Cedar Rapids – No Game Please feel free to ask any questions and discuss the Saturday games.

I remember asking Kyle Gibson several years ago what it meant to be the Twins #1 prospect. He said that it was an honor, but all being a prospect meant was that you hadn’t done anything yet. It is a great point for all to remember. Friday was the third time this season when Twins top pitching prospects were all on the mound. Friday was a good reminder that there is a reason these guys are at the levels they are at, that there is still work to be done. The Twins lost the opening game of their three game set in Kansas City and are back at .500 (8-8). There were also five Twins minor league games on Friday, and the Twins affiliate lost each of them. Here is a look at what happened in the Twins farm system on Friday, but first a look at the Transactions: TRANSACTIONS The big news was that Jason Bartlett has decided to retire from baseball. According to a Mike Berardino tweet, Ron Gardenhire received a text message from Bartlett saying that “it just wasn’t happening. His body’s not reacting the way right now he wants it to.” The move opens up a spot on the Twins 40 man roster. Eduardo Nunez returned to the Red Wings after his one-day trip to Minnesota to serve as the team’s 26th man in the second game of their double header on Thursday. Reliever Tyler Jones was added to the Miracle roster while lefty Matt Tomshaw was sent to Extended Spring Training. Catcher Bryan Santy was added to the Cedar Rapids Kernels roster to replace Michael Quesada who was placed on the 7-Day Disabled List. He was hit by a pitch in the hand earlier this week. X-rays were negative, so he may not be out for too long. Photo by Jonathan Dyer RED WINGS REPORT Rochester 5, Syracuse 6 (11 innings) Box Score I’m pretty certain that the Red Wings coaching staff didn’t want to play 11 innings on their first game of a road trip, but that’s just what happened. Alex Meyer got the starting nod and struggled for the first time. The talented right-hander gave up five runs on five hits (including one home run) in just 3.2 innings. He walked four and struck out just two. Brooks Raley came on and threw 2.2 scoreless. He gave up a hit, walked two and struck out three. Edgar Ibarra struck out two in 2.1 scoreless innings. He gave up two hits and walked one. AJ Achter went 1.2 innings. In the 11th, he got the first out before giving up a double to former Red Wing Brock Peterson. Matt Hoffman came on and issued an intentional walk before giving up a single to Brian Goodwin. Chris Parmelee led the offense. He went 2-4 with a walk, his second double and his second home run. James Beresford went 2-5 with his fourth double. Eric Fryer and Chris Rahl each went 2-4. ROCK CATS REVIEW Game 1 - New Britain 4, Portland 6 Box Score Portland had made the long trip down to Connecticut, so they might as well play two. Of course, they also did it because they were rained out on Thursday. DJ Baxendale started the first game and went five innings. He gave up six runs on nine hits and a walk while striking out two. Matt Guerrier came on and struck out three in the final two innings. He gave up no runs, three hits and a walk. Reynaldo Rodriguez went 2-3 with his fifth double. Mike Kvasnicka drove in two with a double. Corey Wimberly went 1-3 with a walk and three doubles. Matt Koch hit a double as well. Game 2 - New Britain 0, Portland 6 Box Score Taylor Rogers was on the mound for the second game. He was much improved in his third AA start. He left the game with one out in the fifth inning down just 2-0. However, he was replaced and a couple of batters later, a Blake Swihart home run made the score 6-0. Rogers was charged with four runs on six hits and a walk. He struck out five. Ryan O’Rourke came on and gave up two runs on three hits (including the homer) and recorded two outs. Adrian Salcedo pitched a scoreless inning. Lester Oliveros struck out two in a perfect seventh. There wasn’t much offense for the Rock Cats in this game. They managed just three hits. Mike Kvasnicka hit his third double of the year. Tony Thomas was 1-2 with a walk. Of the 21 outs in this game, the Rock Cats struck out 16 times. MIRACLE MATTERS Ft. Myers 9, St. Lucie 15 Box Score Fair to say that this game was not a pitchers’ duel. JO Berrios made the start for the Miracle. He went two innings and gave up seven runs on eight hits and a walk. However, just two of the runs were earned thanks to the ninth error of Jorge Polanco’s season. Steven Gruver came on and gave up five runs on seven hits and two walks in 2.2 innings. Tyler Jones returned to the mound for his first appearance of the year. He gave up three runs on three hits and a walk in 1.1 innings. He struck out two. Mason Melotakis came on and threw three shutout innings. He gave up one hit, walked two and struck out three. Travis Harrison went 2-5. In the first inning, he hit a three-run homer. He also stole his first base. Niko Goodrum went 2-4 with his second triple. Adam Walker and Dalton Hicks each had two hits. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 2, West Michigan 5 Box Score Kohl Stewart was back on the mound for the Kernels on Friday night. He gave up just one hit over the first three innings, but he gave up two runs in the fourth. He went five innings and gave up just those two runs on four hits and a walk. He struck out three. Josue Montanez came on and gave up three runs on two hits and two walks in two innings. He struck out two. Christian Powell struck out three batters in two perfect innings. The Kernels had just five hits in the game. Zack Larson went 2-4. TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day – Christian Powell, Cedar Rapids Kernels Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day – Chris Parmelee, Rochester Red Wings FRIDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Rochester @ Syracuse (1:00 CST) – Kris Johnson (Listen) Portland @ New Britain (5:35 CST) – Sean Gilmartin (Listen) St. Lucie @ Ft. Myers (6:05 CST) – David Hurlbut (Listen) West Michigan @ Cedar Rapids (2:05 CST) – Felix Jorge (Listen) Please feel free to ask any questions and discuss the Friday games.

There were four games in the Twins' farm system, and the Twins were able to play a split double header at Target Field in some record cold conditions. More impressive, they were able to win two games against the Blue Jays, a team they have been crushed by in recent years. Kyle Gibson threw eight shutout innings in the afternoon game. In the evening game, the Twins used eight eighth inning walks, and three wild pitches in that same inning, to turn a 5-3 deficit into a 9-5 win. It would be very cool if the story in the minor leagues on Thursday were to become a great story of the Twins 2014 season as well. Who was it? Well, keep reading to find out… Here is a look at what happened in the Twins' farm system on Thursday. And, by the way, it's another Top Pitching Prospect Day on Friday. RED WINGS REPORT Game 1 - Rochester 1, Pawtucket 2 (11 innings) Box Score With a doubleheader, the games are only supposed to be seven innings. With this game going 11 innings, the two teams ended up playing 18 innings anyway. Logan Darnell got the start in Game 1 and was impressive. The lefty from the University of Kentucky gave up one run on six hits and a walk over six innings. He struck out four. Ryan Pressly came on and threw two scoreless innings. He gave up a hit and a walk. AJ Achter gave up no runs and recorded four outs. Aaron Thompson got the final five outs, but he gave up one run to take the loss. Brad Nelson led the offense. The veteran went 2-2 with two walks and a double. Deibinson Romero went 2-4 with his second double of the year. Chris Rahl was 2-4 with his third double. Game 2 - Rochester 2, Pawtucket 0 Box Score This offseason, the Twins signed veteran free agent Yohan Pino. Ten years earlier, 2004, the Twins signed Pino out of Venezuela. That summer, he was the Dominican Summer League Pitcher of the Year. In 2005, he was in Elizabethton where he went 9-2 with 64 strikeouts in 67.2 innings. In 2006, he went 14-2 with a 1.91 ERA, primarily out of the Beloit bullpen, though he ended the season making seven starts. That’s the role he has had ever since, splitting time between the rotation and the bullpen. He got up to Rochester in 2009, but in late August, he was sent to Cleveland in exchange for Carl Pavano. In early 2011, he went to the Blue Jays organization. He was there until this spring when he was invited to Twins spring training. Already this year, he has made two starts and two relief appearances. Both starts came in Game 2’s of doubleheaders including the game 2 on Thursday night. The 30-year-old threw the complete game shutout. He gave up two hits, walked three and struck out four. He improved to 2-0 and reduced his ERA to 0.59. Deibinson Romero went 2-3 with another double. Eric Farris went 2-3. Doug Bernier hit his second home run. Last year, the Twins had several players with great stories get call-ups. If there is one to root for in 2014, make it Yohan Pino. ROCK CATS REVIEW New Britain, Portland This game was postponed due to poor weather conditions. The teams will play a doubleheader in Maine on Friday. MIRACLE MATTERS Ft. Myers 1, St. Lucie 6 Box Score Brett Lee took the loss, but he recorded his second straight quality start. The lefty went six innings and gave up two runs on three hits. He walked one and struck out one. Tim Shibuya came in for the seventh and gave up two runs on three hits and a walk. Madison Boer gave up two runs (1 earned) on three hits and a walk in the final two innings. For the fifth time already this season, the Miracle didn’t have a hit through five innings. They ended with four hits in the game. Jason Bartlett was originally in the starting lineup, batting second and playing shortstop. Shortly before the game, there was a lineup change. Jorge Polanco played shortstop and batted second. No official word yet on why Bartlett was removed. Polanco had a hit and committed two more errors. Levi Michael also had two errors in the game. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 3, West Michigan 7 Box Score The Kernels fell behind early, and fought back. In the bottom of the 8th inning, Logan Wade tied the game with a two-run double. Unfortunately, it was all for naught as the team gave up four runs and fell to the Tigers’ affiliate. Randy Rosario got the start. He struggled early with his control. Because of it, the lefty lasted only three innings. He gave up three runs (two earned) on five hits and five walks while striking out two. Brandon Bixler came on and gave up two hits and a walk in 2.2 shutout innings. He struck out three. Brandon Petersen went the next 2.1 innings and didn’t allow a run. He struck out three. Hudson Boyd came into the tie game in the top of the ninth. He gave up four runs on four hits in the inning to take the loss. Logan Wade had the big hit in the 8th inning. He was 2-4. The double was his second. Jason Kanzler was 2-4 and stole a base. Bryan Haar and Bo Altobelli each had a double. TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day – Yohan Pino, Rochester Red Wings Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day – Deibinson Romero, Rochester Red Wings FRIDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Pawtucket @ Rochester (5:00 CST) – Alex Meyer (Listen) Portland @ New Britain (Doubleheader: 4:35 CST) – DJ Baxendale, Taylor Rogers (Listen) St. Lucie @ Ft. Myers (6:35 CST) – JO Berrios (Listen) West Michigan @ Cedar Rapids (6:05 CST) – Kohl Stewart (Listen) Please feel free to ask any questions and discuss the Thursday games. A quick reminder: Thanks to the Twins wins over the Blue Jays on Thursday, it means that on Friday you can get 50% off a Large of Extra Large pizza when you use the “TWINSWIN” promotion code at PapaJohns.com.