Seth Stohs

Under the lights of Friday night lights, several Twins minor leagues shined brightly. None more so than Miguel Sano, the Dominican third baseman whose tremendous power makes him one of the game’s top prospects. He wasn’t the only Twins minor league leaguer to have a strong night. Niko Goodrum returned to the Cedar Rapids lineup with a big game. One of the few prospects in Rochester had a nice game and then got some great news after the game. Elizabethton got a great start and five players got on base at least five times in their final game of the season. See what else happened in the Twins farm system on Friday.[PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] Rochester Red Wings 3, Buffalo Bisons 6 Box Score The Red Wings tailspin continues as they lost for the eighth time in their last ten games. It was also the third time that the team blew a late lead in the last eight games. The big hit in this one was a 3-run homer off the bat of Andy LaRoche. Kyle Gibson made the start and worked the first four innings. He did not give up a run. He allowed two hits, walked four and struck out four. Logan Darnell, making his first relief appearances in the regular season since 2010 in Elizabethton, was charged with three runs (2 earned) on one hit and two walks in two innings. AJ Achter came on and gave up two runs on one hit in just 0.1 innings. Edgar Ibarra gave up one hit and struck one out in 0.2 innings. Virgil Vasquez gave up one run over the final two innings. He gave up one hit, walked two and struck out one. Eric Farris went 2-3 with his 23rd stolen base. Antoan Richardson stole his 25th base for the Red Wings. Josmil Pinto went 2-4 with his eighth and ninth doubles. He was told after the game that he is heading for Minnesota and will be on the roster starting Sunday! New Britain Rock Cats 7, Reading Fightin Phils 3 Box Score Miguel Sano has had some big games this year, and this one ranks right up there. He went 3-4 with his 15th double and his 34th and 35 home runs of the season (19 with the Rock Cats). He drove in three runs and now has 102 combined on the season. Nate Hanson went 2-4. Jordan Parraz went 2-4 with his 11th double. BJ Hermsen made the start and gave up three runs (2 earned) on six hits over five innings. He didn’t walk anyone and struck out four. Corey Williams gave up two hits and walked two batters over two shutout innings. He struck out three. He was credited with the Win in his AA debut. Dakota Watts struck out three over two perfect innings. Ft. Myers Miracle 4, Bradenton Marauders 3 Box Score Taylor Rogers was just getting in some more work before the playoffs. The left-hander started and gave up just one hit over the first four innings. He struck out five. Tyler Duffey came on and pitched a scoreless fifth inning. Chad Rodgers gave up three runs on four hits over three innings (but he got the Win to improve to 8-2). Zach Jones struck out the side in the ninth. Stephen Wickens led the offense by going 3-3 and stole his 20th base. Mike Kvasnicka went 2-4. Matt Koch hit his 20th double. Cedar Rapids Kernels 8, Kane County Cougars 2 Box Score The Kernels continue to roll toward the playoffs with a big win to give them an 86-49 record on the season. They used a big six-run fourth inning to do most of their damage. Niko Goodrum returned to the lineup after coming off of the Disabled List. He went 3-5 with his 21st double, fourth home run and three RBI. Jonathan Murphy went 2-5. Jorge Polanco hit his fifth homer, and Max Kepler hit his ninth of the season. Josue Montanez continued to pitch well. On this night, he gave up two runs on seven hits over seven innings. He didn’t issue a walk and struck out five. Dallas Gallant went one scoreless inning. Brian Gilbert gave up two hits, but no runs, in a scoreless ninth inning. Elizabethton Twins 8, Pulaski Mariners 7 (12 innings) Box Score I guess the E-Twins didn’t want their season to end, so they worked a little overtime. Yorman Landa started and went six shutout innings. He gave up four hits, walked two and struck out two. Tanner Mendonca came on to start the seventh inning and walked two, gave up a single, walked another and gave up another single to load the bases before being relieved by Ryan Eades. Eades gave up a bases-clearing double, and then a triple. Mendonca was charged with five runs allowed without recording an out. Eades was charged with one run on two hits and a walk over two innings. Andre Martinez came in and gave up one run on one hit and one walk in one inning. Austin Malinowski went the final three innings and gave up just one hit. He struck out three so his season ends with an impressive 2.01 ERA. Rory Rhodes led the offense. He went 4-6 with his 13th and 14th doubles. Zach Larson went 3-6 with his fourth and fifth doubles. Bryan Haar went 3-5 with a walk. Zach Granite was 2-4 with three walks and his fifth triple. Logan Wade went 3-6. If you have any questions or comments, please leave them below.

It all started on April 4th, and as we roll into the final days of August, it’s coming to a close. The full-season teams typically play their final regular season game on Labor Day. On Thursday, the GCL Twins played their final game of the season, and on Friday night, Elizabethton will be playing its final game. Those two teams will not be in the playoffs. Neither will the New Britain Rock Cats. Cedar Rapids and Ft. Myers both clinched playoff spots in the first half and are ramping up for their playoff runs. The Rochester Red Wings have been playing quite poorly, but are still contending for the final playoffs spot in the International League. It should be an exciting weekend, and thankfully, there will be at least two Twins minor league affiliates who will continue to play in the postseason.[PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] See what else happened in the Twins farm system on Thursday. Rochester Red Wings 2, Buffalo Bisons 3 Box Score The Red Wings, somehow, are still in contention for a playoff spot despite playing its worst baseball of the season in the last week. Thankfully, Norfolk is playing an equally bad brand of baseball and hasn’t been able to take a clear lead for the International League Wild Card spot. After another tough loss for the Red Wings on Thursday night, they are still just one-half game behind the Tide for that final playoff spot. Cole De Vries started for Rochester and was terrific. He gave up just two hits and a walk in seven shutout innings. He struck out five. However, Michael Tonkin came in for the 8th inning and gave up three runs on three hits and a walk and only recorded two outs. The big blow came off of the bat of former New Britain Rock Cat Luis Jimenez who hit a two-run homer in the inning. Aaron Thompson came on and got the final out via strikeout. The Red Wings had just four hits. Eduardo Escobar hit his third home run, and Aaron Hicks doubled for the second time in his stint with the team. New Britain Rock Cats 4, Trenton Thunder 1 (13 innings) Box Score The night before, the Rock Cats played 12 innings. On Thursday night, these teams played 13 innings. What will happen on Friday night? There wasn’t much scoring in this game as it was just 1-1 until the top of the 13th inning. Angel Morales was hit by a pitch, and Danny Santana bunted him to second. After an intentional walk to Eddie Rosario and another walk to Nate Hanson, Danny Ortiz came through with a bases-clearing double to put the Rock Cats into the lead. Evan Bigley was the lone Rock Cat hitter with more than one hit. He went 2-5 with his eighth double. Photo by Rinaldi Photos Alex Meyer made his second Rock Cats start. He gave up six hits, but no walks, in four shutout innings. He struck out six. Dan Turpen came on and gave up one run on two hits and a walk over three innings. He struck out two. Cole Johnson went the next two innings and gave up one hit, one walk and struck out two. Jose Gonzalez gave up one hit and two walks over three scoreless innings to get credited with the Win. Ryan O’Rourke got his second save by throwing up a zero in the bottom of the 13th, despite giving up two hits and a walk. Game 1 - Ft. Myers Miracle 2, Bradenton Marauders 5 Box Score The Miracle sure have been playing a lot of double headers of late. They split on this night. In the first game, David Hurlbut gave up two runs (1 earned) on three hits and a walk in three innings. He struck out four. Steven Gruver came on for the next three innings. He gave up two runs on five hits and a walk, while striking out five. Nelvin Fuentes gave up one run on two hits in his inning of work. He struck out two batters. Mike Kvasnicka led the offense, going 2-3 with a walk and his ninth home run. JD Williams went 2-4. Byron Buxton was 2-4 and stole his 18th base. Game 2 - Ft. Myers Miracle 2, Bradenton Marauders 1 Box Score In the second game, the Miracle sent Jason Wheeler to the mound. The lefty gave up one run on five hits over the first six innings to improve to 9-4 on the season. He walked two and struck out five. Adrian Salcedo recorded his second save by pitching a scoreless inning. He gave up one hits, walked one and struck one out. Cedar Rapids Kernels 5, Kane County Cougars 2 Box Score The Kernels just continue to win games. Brett Lee was starting again after a DL stint and some time in the bullpen. He threw six shutout innings. He gave up three hits, walked one and struck out five. Hudson Boyd came on for two relief innings and did not allow a run. He gave up one hit, walked one and struck out one. Madison Boer was charged with two runs in the 9th. He gave up four hits, but no walks and struck out two. Tyler Grimes has been getting some time at second base late in the season. With Niko Goodrum on the Disabled List, and Jorge Polanco just off the DL, Jake Mauer has wanted to make sure those two are ready for the playoffs. Grimes went 2-4 with his third stolen base. Bo Altobelli went 2-4. Michael Gonzales hit his fourth homer and drove in two runs. Elizabethton Twins 2, Pulaski Mariners 4 Box Score Felix Jorge was back on the mound and seemed to regain his early-season form. He gave up one run on seven hits in 6.2 innings. He walked one and struck out nine. Carson Goldsmith came in and got two outs, but not before giving up two runs on two hits and a walk. Brandon Peterson got the final four outs, though he also gave up one run on one hit and three walks. He struck out two. The E-Twins had just six hits. Zach Granite went 2-4. Bryan Haar homered for the sixth time. Rory Rhodes hit his fourth homer. The E-Twins will play their final game of the season on Friday night. They will not make the playoffs despite a 36-31 record this season. GCL Twins 5, GCL Orioles 2 Box Score The GCL Twins played their final game of the 2013 season. It was a bit of a bullpen game as five pitchers took the mound. Brandon Easton started and gave up one unearned run on four hits and a walk in two innings. Cameron Booser gave up just one hit over two scoreless innings. He struck out two. Damian Defrank was charged with one run on two hits in his inning. Miguel Gonzalez gave up one hit over two innings. He struck out two. Jose Abreu struck out two in two hitless, scoreless innings. Jason Kanzler went 2-5 with his sixth triple and stole his 13th base. Joel Polanco drove in two runs with his sixth double. If you have any questions or comments, please leave them below.

As I'm sitting here on an airplane, I thought it would be cool to write up a blog from like 34,000 feet. Yes, I paid for the wireless, but I don't care. After 90 minute delay in Hartford, we landed in Philadelphia about 15 minutes before the "On Time" flight was to take off for Minneapolis. We immediately boarded, but thanks to storms and delays, we were on the runway for two hours and 15 minutes, the time the flight is supposed to take. Oh well. Makes me realize that on-time departures are vastly under-rated. That got me to thinking that there are at least a handful of Minnesota Twins minor leaguers that we overlook and should recognize. [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK]Most of these names won't be found on most prospect lists. Here are a few of them: JD Williams - A tenth round pick out of high school in 2010, he has slowly worked his way up to Ft. Myers. He began this season by repeating at Cedar Rapids, which proved to be beneficial for the toolsy outfielder. Coming in to play on Wednesday, Williams was hitting a combined .265/.375/.410 (.786) with 17 doubles six triples and nine home runs. He has stolen 26 bases and improved his defense. As you can see, he is an on-base machine, but the hit tool has made great strides this season as well. Photo by Rinaldi Photos James Beresford - He has been in the Twins farm system for a long time. In fact, he tested minor league free agency this past winter, but he chose to remain with the Twins. We know he won't hit for much power, but he has hit .306/.365/.339 (.704) this season between AA and AAA. All the while, he remains one of, if not the, best defensive shortstops in the organization. Although not likely, it'd be great to see the Australian get a cup of coffee with the Twins in September. Deibinson Romero - You can't help but wonder what would have happened if not for the visa issues that kept Romero in the Dominican Republic throughout spring training. He was coming off of a nice season at AA and had a major league invite. He has played well since going to Rochester about a month into the season. He has hit .278/.379/.456 (.836) with 16 doubles and 13 home runs. He's an adequate defender at third base who walks and shows some power in the upper levels. Zach Larson - The Twins 19th round pick a year ago, the Twins went well over slot to sign him. He began this season crushing GCL pitching and has recently been promoted to Elizabethton where he has hit well. He can hit. He may not run great and have a rocket for an arm, but his bat makes him one to consider and find out more about and then watch going forward. Tyler Grimes - The former 5th round pick struggled last year in the field and with the bat for Beloit. This year, he had to learn a new position (catcher) on the fly. He has one of the strongest arms you'll find behind the plate, and despite being new to it, he has thrown out a strong percentage of would-be base stealers. He's hitting just .245, but has a .370 on base percentage. He's not real big, but he can pack some punch into the ball at times. He's had a very solid year as he's made the transition and it will be interesting to see how he progresses. So, there you have it, five prospects that aren't going to rank real highly on any Top 10 or Top 20 list. In fact, I believe that none of them were even on my Top 50 list before the season. However, that does not mean that they can't surface in the big leagues in some role, even a utility capacity. If nothing else, they do deserve to be noticed.