Seth Stohs

Buyer or Seller? Last year many fans believed that the Oakland A’s and the Baltimore Orioles sneaked into the playoffs. Most thought there would be a return to reality in 2013. Apparently the reality is that both teams are pretty good. The O's are 58-48 and the A’s are currently 62-43 and have a five game lead in the AL West. The A’s have been linked to the likes of Jake Peavy in recent days, although that seems unlikely at this point, but the A’s are certainly buyers, with several needs. What They Need Pitching Of the things the A’s need, it does not appear that pitching is one of them. [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] As of today, the A’s lead the American League in ERA (3.60) and WHIP (1.19). They are second to the Detroit Tigers in Quality Starts with 64. They trail only the Tampa Bay Rays in Batting Average Against (.241). It’s interesting that Oakland is atop the league in most pitching categories, yet they rank 12th in the league with just 6.86 strikeouts per nine innings. Yet, the A’s were believed to be a leading candidate for Jake Peavy. Is it possible they are just planning for a time without All-Star Bartolo Colon? The A’s bullpen is led by former Twin Grant Balfour. Pat Neshek has been good for them as well. They may want some bullpen depth. Hitters As strong as the A’s pitching is, the hitters have been no better than league average. As a team, they are hitting .243 (11th)/.321 (6th)/.395 (10th), with a .694 OPS (11th). The outfield is strong with Yoenis Cespedes, Coco Crisp, Josh Reddick and Chris Young. The left side of the infield is good, with Josh Donaldson and Jed Lowrie. However, the A’s could use up-grades at 2B (Eric Sogard) and catcher (Derek Norris, Stephen Vogt). What Might Work With Jared Burton, Casey Fien, Brian Duensing and other bullpen arms likely available, there could be a match with the A’s. It may make some sense for the A’s to consider a veteran influence such as Jamey Carroll in their infield. He might be an upgrade to current utility man Adam Rosales. Sleeper Targets The A’s system appears to be pretty middle-of-the-pack. Young shortstop Addison Russell is at the top of the list, but he likely is not available, even in a Glen Perkins deal. So, here are some guys the Twins could realistically target. 2B Chris Bostick (Low-A) The A’s took infielder Chris Bostick with their 44th round pick in 2011 out of high school in Rochester, New York. To say he has been a pleasant surprise is an understatement. This year at Beloit, the 20 year old is hitting .293/.368/.488 (.855) with 19 doubles, seven triples, 13 home runs and 76 RBI. He is also 21 of 28 in stolen base attempts. The Twins actually have a nice group of middle infield prospects at this time, but based on history, it never hurts to add more. SP Seth Streich (Low-A) Streich is a Twins-type of pitcher. He was drafted last year out of Ohio University. This year, he is 10-5 with a 3.78 ERA for the Snappers. In 104.2 innings, he has given up 107 hits, but he’s walked just 39. He’s also struck out only 81. Not a real high ceiling here, but enough command of three pitches to have a chance to move up. He also is aware of the Twins farm system as his brother Tobias was in the minor leagues from 2009 through spring training of 2012. C Bruce Maxwell (High-A) At 6-2 and 235 pounds, Maxwell is a sturdy catcher. He was the A’s 2nd round pick in 2012 out of Birmingham-Southern where he was a teammate of former Twins minor leaguer Drew Leachman. He began this season with the Beloit Snappers where he hit .286/.360/.387 (.747) with 14 doubles, two homers and 28 RBI. He was promoted to High-A Stockton recently and he’s hit .236/.310/.348 (.658) with four doubles, two homers and six RBI. He is known to be a very good defensive catcher with a strong arm. SP Raul Alcantara (High-A) Alcantara came to the A’s from the Red Sox organization in the Andrew Bailey deal. He began this season with Beloit and went 7-1 with a 2.44 ERA. In 77.1 innings, he walked just seven and struck out 58. He moved up to Stockton where he has gone 3-2 with a 3.28 ERA. In 35.2 innings, he has walked eight and struck out 27. His fastball sits anywhere from 90-95 mph, so there is some upside. Dream Target SP Sonny Gray (Triple-A / Majors) Now, in a Glen Perkins deal, we know that Addison Russell is likely not available, and it may even be a bit optimistic to think that Sonny Gray would be either. He was the A’s first round pick in 2011 out of Vanderbilt. He raced through the A’s system. This year, in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League, he is 9-7 with a 3.38 ERA and a 1.30 WHIP. He has given up just five home runs in 112 innings (or one every 22 innings). He has made two appearances with the A’s, and has given up just two hits and a walk, while striking out six, in four innings.

On July 2nd, the Rochester Red Wings were 11 games behind Pawtucket in the International League Northern Division. With a win tonight, and a Pawtucket loss, the Red Wings are now 60-51 and in sole possession of first place in the division. The Red Wings have now won 19 games in July, their most since 1999. Defense has been a big part of the Red Wings success. They have not committed an error in their last nine games, a span covering 82 innings. In fact, looking at errors, the Red Wings' 66 miscues on the season are the fewest in all minor league baseball. [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] Check out what else happened in the Twins Minor League system on Monday: Rochester 5, Norfolk 3 Box Score It’s been a pretty busy week for PJ Walters. On Friday, he became a father again to a little girl. He had very little sleep and caught a 6 a.m. flight to Rochester to make the start on Monday night. They immediately put him to work, and Walters came through. He needed 116 pitches to complete seven innings, but he gave up just one run on seven hits. He walked three and struck out five. He got the win and is now 5-2 with a 3.57 ERA with the Red Wings. Cody Eppley came on to start the eighth inning, but he got just one out and left with runners on first and third after giving up two hits and a walk. Aaron Thompson came in and preserved the 5-3 lead for the Red Wings. Michael Tonkin came on for the ninth inning and gave up one hit and no runs to record his seventh Red Wings save. Antoan Richardson led the offense. He went 3-4 with his 13th double. Oswaldo Arcia gave the team a lead in the third inning when he hit his 10th homer. He was 2-3 and was hit by a pitch. Eduardo Escobar was 2-4 with his fifth double. New Britain No game Scheduled. Ft. Myers 5, Daytona 0 Box Score Lefty Matt Tomshaw began the 2013 season in the Cedar Rapids bullpen; since his promotion to the Miracle he has been primarily a starter. The crafty southpaw had his best start of the year, throwing eight shutout innings. He gave up four hits, walked three and hit one while striking out four. Nelvin Fuentes gave up one hit in a scoreless ninth inning to maintain the shutout. Plenty of hitters helped the Miracle to this win. Byron Buxton went 2-5 with his sixth stolen base. Stephen Wickens was 2-4 with his seventh stolen base. Dalton Hicks was 2-4 with a walk. JD Williams went 1-2 with two walks and his sixth stolen base. Matt Koch went 1-2 with a walk, was hit by a pitch and hit his sixth home run of the season. Former Twins starter Scott Baker, rehabbing from Tommy John surgery, started the game for the Cubs. He went 3.1 innings and gave up two runs (1 earned) on three this. He walked two and struck out two. Cedar Rapids 4, Clinton 3 Box Score JO Berrios started this closely contested game. The young right-hander went the first six innings. He gave up three runs on five hits. He walked three and struck out two. Alex Muren came on and gave up one hit and two walks in two scoreless innings; he improved to 6-1 since his promotion to the Kernels. Brian Gilbert came on for the 9th inning and recorded the save. Max Kepler gave the Kernels an early lead with a two-run double, his eighth of the season. He later scored on a wild pitch to tie the game. Travis Harrison went 2-4 and scored the go-ahead run. Jeremias Pineda went 2-4 with his fifth double. Adam Walker hit his 24th double and stole his eighth base. The Kernels are now 65-39 after their three-game sweep of the LumberKings. Elizabethton 0, Kingsport 4 Box Score Felix Jorge started and gave up one run in each of the first three innings. One of them was unearned. He went four innings and gave up six hits, walked two and struck out seven. Andrew Ferreira gave up a run on one hit and three walks in 1.2 innings. He struck out three. Austin Malinowski came on and struck out four in 3.1 scoreless innings. He gave up one hit and walked one. There was not much offense for the E-Twins on this night. Carlos Avila went 1-1 with two walks. Mitch Garver hit his seventh double. GCL Twins 9, GCL Orioles 4 Box Score The Twins were down 3-2 going into the bottom of the 7th inning. Brian Navarreto stepped to the plate with the bases loaded and connected for his third home run. The team added three more runs in the 8th. Jorge Fernandez went 3-4 with his second stolen base. Will Hurt and Adonis Pacheco each tripled. Wilkin Ramirez returned to the field and went 1-2 with a double. Darin Mastroianni was in a game for the first time in a long time. He went 1-3 with two RBI. Alex Wimmers started and worked the first four innings. He gave up one run on two hits. He walked two and struck out six. Dan Sattler gave up two runs (1 earned) on one hit and one walk in just 0.2 innings. Tyler Stirewalt gave up two hits in the next 1.1 innings. Zach Hayden gave up one hit, walked one and struck out one in his inning. Jose Abreu recorded his third save, giving up one run on four hits in the final two innings. Amaurys Minier has not played since leaving a game on July 24. He has a strained quad. Thanks for checking out today’s Twins minor league report. Please feel free to discuss, comment or ask questions.

On Saturday, Nick Blackburn was placed on the Rochester disabled list with an inflamed knee. Virgil Vasquez will make the start for him on Sunday. On the field, there were some good starts and a couple not-so-good starts. A couple affiliates came from behind to get wins. A couple homers by Kennys Vargas powered the Miracle to a win. Elizabethton doubled their pleasure against Johnson City. Check out what else happened in the Twins Minor League system on Saturday night:[PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] Rochester 4, Norfolk 2 Box Score Logan Darnell was solid again in his Saturday start for the Red Wings. The lefty gave up two runs on four hits in seven innings. He walked one and struck out eight. Cody Eppley came on and gave up a hit to the batter he faced. Edgar Ibarra came on and got two outs, extending his consecutive scoreless inning streak to 22.2 innings (between New Britain and Rochester). Michael Tonkin recorded the final four outs, two on strikeouts, for his sixth save. The Red Wings bats made short work of Orioles pitching prospect Kevin Gausman. The hard-throwing righty topped out at 98 mph in his 4.1 innings of work. The Wings scored four runs on six hits and two walks off him. Eduardo Escobar went 2-4 with a double and a stolen base. Deibinson Romero was 2-4 with his ninth home run. James Beresford was 2-3 with a triple. What a month July has been for the Red Wings. With this win and a Pawtucket loss, the two teams are in a virtual tie at the top of the International League North Division. The Red Wings were 11 games behind the Red Sox on July 2nd! New Britain 3, Reading 12 Box Score Miguel Sano sat out for the fourth straight game, and the Rock Cats looked like they needed more than just the ultra-talented prospect on this night. Former Gopher Seth Rosin held the Rock Cats to just one run over the first five innings. Danny Santana was 2-5 with his 20th stolen base. Eddie Rosario was 2-5 with his 11th double and third stolen base. Danny Ortiz went 2-5. DJ Baxendale had another rough start. He was charged with eight runs (7 earned) on ten hits and two walks in four innings. Blake Martin came on and gave up a run on a hit and a walk in an inning. He struck out two. BJ Hermsen and Ryan O’Rourke each threw a scoreless inning of relief. Cole Johnson then gave up three runs on two hits in his inning. He did strike out three. Ft. Myers 12, Clearwater 11 Box Score This was a back and forth game for the Miracle, but in the end, they walked off with a win; they had to overcome a five-run deficit at one point. Tyler Duffey started and gave up seven runs (5 earned) on seven hits and three walks in just 3.1 innings. Chad Rodgers came on and got the final two outs of the fourth, but not before giving up a home run. Steven Gruver worked the next three innings. He gave up one run on two hits and a walk while striking out two. Corey Williams gave up a hit in a scoreless inning. In the ninth, Zach Jones came on to hold a two-run lead, but he gave up two runs on a hit and a walk. He blew the save, but thanks to the Miracle winning in the bottom of the ninth, he also gets the win. JD Williams went 3-5 with a walk, his fifth stolen base and he scored the game-winning run. Kennys Vargas put on a show. He went 2-3 with three walks. He hit his 16th and 17th home runs, both three-run blasts. The six RBI was the most by a Miracle hitter in a game this season. Mike Kvasnicka went 2-5 with a walk and his seventh and eighth doubles. Stephen Wickens was 2-2 with a walk. Cedar Rapids 5, Clinton 2 Box Score Tim Atherton gave up a run in the third and a run in the fourth. In six innings, the Australian right-hander gave up the two runs on six hits and three walks. He struck out eight. Hudson Boyd worked the next two innings, and allowed only a walk. Brian Gilbert came on to protect the three-run lead in the ninth and recorded the save. Max Kepler led the offense on this night. He was 2-3 with his fifth homer, a solo shot, a walk and two RBI. Adam Walker hit his 23rd double, a shot off the wall. Elizabethton 8, Johnson City 0 Box Score The E-Twins doubled their pleasure on Saturday night. The team hit nine doubles and a home run and got great pitching for the win. Randy Rosario started and gave up six hits and no walks in seven shutout innings. He struck out nine. C. K. Irby gave up two hits but no runs in his inning. Kuo-Hua Lo pitched a scoreless inning. Bryan Haar led the offense. He was 3-5 with his fifth, sixth and seventh doubles. Rory Rhodes was 3-5 with his eighth double. Javier Pimentel went 3-5 with his eighth double. Mitch Garver went 2-5 with his fifth and sixth doubles. Jake Proctor returned to the E-Twins lineup and hit a double. Logan Wade was 2-4 and hit his second home run. GCL Twins, GCL Red Sox Postponed by Rain. Thanks for checking out today’s Twins minor league report. Please feel free to discuss, comment or ask questions.

The Twins played a late game out in Seattle and did not get a very good start. The Twins minor league affiliates all got pretty good starts. Five of the six starters began the game with four scoreless frames. The Twins starters at the top three affiliates each went at least six scoreless innings. Liam Hendriks had a perfect game going through six while Trevor May had given up just one hit through the Rock Cats first six innings. Each gave up runs in the third. Matt Summers has been incredible in July, and he was at his best on Thursday. Check out his July numbers below, and then see how the rest of the minor league affiliates did: [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] Rochester 6, Lehigh Valley 3 Box Score Liam Hendriks certainly had people talking for a while with his performance in this game. The Australian right-hander had a perfect game through six innings. However, in the 7th, he gave up three quick runs. In total, he went 7.2 innings and gave up three runs on five hits. He didn’t walk a batter and struck out five. Aaron Thompson came in and got the final four outs to record his sixth Red Wings save. All four outs came on strikeouts. Deibinson Romero led the offense. He was 2-2 with two walks, his eighth double and his seventh home run. Brian Dinkelman went 2-4 with his tenth double. New Britain 1, Reading 3 Box Score Trevor May was terrific on this day. He gave up three runs on four hits and two walks in seven innings. He struck out eight. However, through six innings, he had given up just one hit, one walk and no runs. Dan Turpen came in and worked a perfect inning. Danny Ortiz provided three of the team’s hits, including his 24th double. Reynaldo Rodriguez hit his 23rd double. Nate Hanson, taking over third base duties for the benched Miguel Sano, went 1-2 with two walks and his sixth home run. Ft. Myers 8, Clearwater 3 Box Score Matt Summers has been the story for the Miracle in the month of June. On this night, he was again terrific. He worked seven shutout inning and gave up just five hits and a walk. He struck out seven. After listening to last night’s Twins Minor League Weekly and hearing his July numbers, I had to go look for myself. In four starts this month, he is 2-1 with a 0.28 ERA. In 31.2 innings, he has given up one earned run. He has allowed 17 hits, walked four and struck out 23. Summers was replaced by Manuel Soliman who gave up one hit in his innings. Corey Williams came on for a perfect ninth. Each had one strikeout. The offense was spread out among four players. Utilty man Andy Leer went 3-4 with his ninth double. Byron Buxton was 2-5 with his third home run with the Miracle. Mike Kvasnicka was 2-4 with his sixth double. And Aderlin Mejia’s improbable run at Ft. Myers continues. He went 2-4 with his tenth double and is now hitting .341! Cedar Rapids 3, Peoria 8 Box Score Josue Montanez started and through four innings, he did not allow a run. However, he went seven innings and was charged with five runs on ten hits and a walk. Dallas Gallant came on and gave up two runs on two hits and three walks and recorded just two outs. Alex Muren came on and gave up an unearned run in 1.1 innings. Travis Harrison and Jorge Polanco each went 3-5 in the game. Jeremias Pineda went 2-3 and stole his 11th base. Joel Licon’s sixth double drove in two of the Kernels' runs. Elizabethton 1, Kingsport 3 Box Score Yorman Landa had another decent start, though his control eluded him at times, again. He gave up two runs (1 earned) on four hits. He walked four and struck out five. Austin Malinowski came on and threw two scoreless innings. He gave up two hits and walked a batter. Andrew Ferreira gave up one run on one hit and one walk in one inning. He struck out… one! Zach Granite went 2-4, and Dereck Rodriguez hit his third home run of the season. GCL Twins 4, GCL Orioles 1 Box Score Chih-Wei Hu started and threw four shutout innings. He gave up three hits, walked one and struck out six. Jared Wilson came on and threw two scoreless innings. He walked one and struck out one. Reyson Zoquiel gave up an unearned run on two hits in his inning. Josh Guyer struck out two in a scoreless inning. Derrick Penilla struck out two in his perfect inning to record the save. Alex Swim went 2-3 with a walk as the GCL Twins managed just six hits in the game. Thanks for checking out today’s Twins minor league report. Please feel free to discuss, comment or ask questions.