Seth Stohs

This is really late. Typically, I post my choices for the monthly minor league award winners within days of the end of the month. Because of a trip to Cedar Rapids and a bum computer, the Hitter of the Month for June is a little tardy. But, better later than never, I guess. The players listed below performed well and deserve to be recognized. It was another good month for the hitters. We have a repeat winner and a few of the top prospects in this month’s report. In fact, there were enough who warranted recognition that I included a Top 6 and some Honorable Mentions. Let’s get to it. Here are my selections for the Top 6 Minnesota Twins Minor League hitters in June: [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] Number 6 – Rochester – Doug Bernier - (35-100) .350/.416/.540 (.956) with ten doubles, three triples, one home run and 15 RBI. Bernier signed a minor league contract with the Twins before spring training this year. The middle infielder played his college ball at Oral Roberts and then spent 2002 through 2008 with the Colorado Rockies. He played two games for the Rockies in 2008. He then spent 2009 with the Yankees AAA team. He spent 2010 with the Pirates AAA team. He had spent 2011 and 2012 with the Yankees AAA squad. Overall with the Red Wings, he is hitting .297/.368/.398 (.766) with 13 doubles, three triples and three homers. He was very good in June. Number 5 – Ft. Myers – Kennys Vargas - (28-79) .354/.420/.544 (.965) with nine doubles, two home runs and 17 RBI. Vargas is still just 22 years old, but many forget how little baseball he has played over the last couple years. In 2011, he played in just 44 games. In 2012, he played in only 41 games. The Twins had him stick around Ft. Myers much of last offseason, and he remains with the Miracle, having now played 78 games in Ft. Myers. On the season, he is hitting .298/.373/.528 (.902) with 24 doubles, a triple and 13 home runs while driving in 63 RBI. Eddie Rosario and Miguel Sano have moved up, yet Vargas hit well in June without them around. I suspect he will move up at some point this season. Number 4 – Cedar Rapids/Ft. Myers – Byron Buxton - (33-93) .354/.412/.548 (.960) with five doubles, five triples, 1 home run and 19 RBI. After a tremendous April, Buxton had a more pedestrian May. He even went through a mini-slump. However, in June, Buxton did exactly what you would hope a top prospect would do; he made some adjustments and had a strong month. In 72 at-bats with the Kernels, he hit .361/.420/.597 (1.017) with ten extra base hits; he then got the promotion that fans had been clamoring for. Despite starting out his tenure with the Miracle going 2-13, he then proceeded to have five straight multi-hit games and ended the month strong. He was also named to represent the Twins in the Futures Game. Number 3 – Cedar Rapids – Dalton Hicks - (36-108) .333/.372/.620 (.992) with ten doubles, seven home runs and 33 RBI. The 23-year-old first baseman was the Twins 17th round pick out of Central Florida. He split time in Elizabethton last year, but this year he has been the Kernels every day first baseman. Overall this year he has hit .298/.359/.498 with 26 doubles and 13 home runs. His 77 RBI lead the Midwest League (by a large margin). Listed at 6-5 and 228 pounds, Hicks has a long, but very powerful swing. He was tremendous in June and is a leader on the Kernels roster. I believe that if (or when) Kennys Vargas gets a promotion to New Britain, Hicks will move up to Ft. Myers. Number 2 – Ft. Myers/New Britain – Miguel Sano - (19-82) .232/.336/.646 (.982) with three doubles, two triples, nine home runs and 22 RBI. Sano was named to the Florida League All-Star team in early June. However, the day after the Miracle clinched the first half title and a playoff spot, he (and Eddie Rosario and Angel Morales) were promoted to the New Britain Rock Cats. Let’s not pretend that the lack of batting average for Sano is not a big deal, especially when it comes with many strikeouts, but he’s still so early in his New Britain tenure that it’s not worth worrying about quite yet. Despite a lack of singles, Sano’s power has been tremendous in New Britain. In June with the Rock Cats, he had ten extra base hits in 62 at bats, with just four singles. His power potential is immense, and fans are rightfully excited about what he can become. He will just need to work on his K-Rate to help avoid a case of BrandonWood-itis. The June Minnesota Twins Minor League Hitter of the Month is... Rochester Red Wings 1B Chris Colabello (34-94) .362/.451/.660 (1.111) with four doubles, no triples, eight home runs and 26 RBI. I am certain I sound like a broken record, but the Chris Colabello story should be talked about more, and he should be getting even more attention. He debuted with the Twins in May and still was the choice for minor league hitter of that month. This month, he spent the entire time with the Red Wings and still was incredible. He hits for average, takes walks and hits for power. He is the force in the middle of the Red Wings lineup that has helped them get back over .500 again. Overall, in 77 games with the Red Wings this year, he has hit .358/.436/.653 with 22 doubles, 21 homers and 67 RBI. He was recently named to the International League All-Star team, and frankly, he’s been one of the best handful of players at any level of minor league baseball. There were several strong performances in June that weren’t included in the Top 6. Here are six Honorable Mentions: Josmil Pinto (Rock Cats) – (25-89) .281/.407/.449 (.856) with six doubles, three home runs and 15 RBI. Nate Hanson (Rock Cats) – (29-93) .312/.350/.516 (.866) with 11 doubles, one triple, two homers and 18 RBI. Matt Koch (Miracle) – (23-70) .329/.382/.586 (.967) with six doubles, four homers and 14 RBI. Travis Harrison (Kernels) – (23-90) .256/.382/.489 (.871) with nine doubles, four home runs and 17 RBI. Jorge Polanco (Kernels) – (31-96) .322/.377/.469 (.846) with seven doubles, two triples, one home run and 23 RBI. JD Williams (Kernels) – (29-91) .319/.404/.440 (.844) with two doubles, three triples, one home run, and 14 RBI. It was another very solid month for Twins minor league hitting prospects which is always fun to see. We hope that can continue into July Feel free to comment and discuss.

I have returned from Cedar Rapids, havin had a great weekend which will likely be documented here at Twins Daily in a couple stories. I hope also to provide more encouragement for Twins fans to make that trek to east central Iowa. On Sunday afternoon, a Twins affiliate received one of their best starting pitching performances of the season. A new member of the organization also made a very good impression in his third game with his new AAA team. Here’s a look at what happened in the Twins' farm system on Sunday: [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] Rochester Red Wings 12, Pawtucket Red Sox 7 Box Score Jermaine Mitchell came to the Red Wings this past week after being let go by the Lehigh Valley IronPigs. On Sunday, he made a pretty strong impression. The outfielder went 3-4 with his sixth home run. He scored three runs and had four RBI. Brian Dinkelman was 2-3 with his ninth double. Doug Bernier was 2-5 with his fourth triple. Antoan Richardson and Chris Herrmann each had two hits. Vance Worley improved to 6-3 with Rochester. He gave up three runs on six hits. He walked three and struck out four in six innings. AJ Achter came on for his AAA debut and gave up four runs on four hits and three walks in 1.1 innings. He struck out one. Cody Eppley replaced him and got the final five outs, three on strikeouts. (Photo by milb.com) New Britain Rock Cats 3, Portland Sea Dogs 4 Box Score Tom Stuifbergen made the start and threw well. He gave up two runs on four hits in six innings. He walked two and struck out four. Bruce Pugh came on and gave up two runs on two hits and two walks in 1.2 innings. Dakota Watts came on and gave up a hit before getting the final out. Josmil Pinto went 2-3. Reynaldo Rodriguez was 2-4. Eddie Rosario hit his sixth Rock Cats double. Ft. Myers Miracle 3, St. Lucie 0 Box Score What a terrific start for righty Matt Summers. In Port St. Lucie, he pitched his best game of the year. He gave up two hits in a complete game shutout. He didn’t walk a batter and struck out seven to drop his ERA with the Miracle to 3.20. Mike Kvasnicka remains hot. He went 2-3 with his fifth double. Levi Michael has been playing well of late; he went 2-5 in this game. Byron Buxton was put in the 3-hole of the lineup for the first time this year and went 1-4. Cedar Rapids Kernels 3, Clinton LumberKings 5 Box Score The Kernels made the trek back to Clinton on Sunday afternoon. Mason Melotakis started and gave up five runs (4 earned) on eight hits and two walks. He didn’t record a single strikeout. Hudson Boyd’s third relief appearance was good. He struck out two over two, one-hit innings. David Hurlbut returned from the disabled list to work a scoreless inning, striking out one. He had been out for about a month with a lat injury. Adam Walker went 2-4 with his 18th double. Tyler Grimes was 2-3 and he was hit by a pitch. Joel Licon (2nd) and Jorge Polanco (22nd) also doubled. Elizabethton Twins, Burlington Royals Game Postponed by Rain. GCL Twins No Games on Sundays. Please feel free to comment or ask questions below.

As you know, I have been in Cedar Rapids for their past two games against Wisconsin. They won on Thursday, but they fell 8-7 on Friday. This is a first. Following the game, my brother played cameraman, and we decided to record the minor league report. This is, essentially, a video version of what you would typically read. Let us know what you think. I'd also like to thank everyone involved with the Kernels, from GM Dog Nelson, to the coaching staff and the players, for being great to talk to. The Kernels are covered well locally by The Gazette and MetroSportsReport.com. Special thanks to Steve Buhr for hanging out with us. It was again a great experience, and I certainly still recommend planning a trip to see the Kernels. And yes, the rumors are true... i did throw out a ceremonial first pitch. Video possibly in the comments. here is the report: http://www.youtube.com/watch?client=mv-google&gl=US&hl=en&v=fuxqDPAo4B4&nomobile=1

Adam Brett Walker knows his role on this Cedar Rapids Kernels team, and on the 4th of July, he came through. “My main goal this year was to drive in runs. I think that’s kind of a main part for me. When runners are on, runners in scoring position, I try to have a quality at bat.” Walker came to the plate in the bottom of the 2nd inning of a scoreless game with Max Kepler on first base. Walker crushed the first pitch over the wall in left center field, and the ball likely didn’t get over 20 feet in the air. “I was trying to look for a fastball over the plate. He threw four straight (balls) to Max. He was just trying to get it over, get a strike over. I was trying to put a good swing on it.” The blast proved to be all the Kernels offense needed thanks to Josue Montanez and a couple relievers.[PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] Montanez was put into the starting rotation following the Midwest League All-Star game after pitching in the Kernels bullpen. On this night, he was very good. He began with five shutout innings. The lefty was throwing a fastball between 88 and 90. He showed a very good changeup at about 80 to 82. He also had a good curveball in the low 70s. In total, he went 5.2 innings without allowing a run. He gave up three hits, walked two and struck out five. Alex Muren entered the game with the bases loaded and two outs in the top of the sixth. He needed just one pitch to get out of that inning and keep the shutout going. In the seventh inning, he gave up one run that cut the lead to 2-1. Dalton Hicks stepped to the plate in the bottom of the 8th and hit a long home run over the 400' sign in centerfield to get that run back and give the Kernels a 3-1 lead. Tyler Jones worked the final two innings to record the save. He struck out two, including the final batter on a 96 mph fastball. Catcher Michael Quesada was asked if he could tell before the game that Montanez could have a good night. His response might surprise you. “Honestly, he didn’t really have anything in the bullpen. He just pitched on pure guts. The change up was our key pitch, our out pitch. He did a really good job of keeping guys off balance and throwing strikes when he needed to.” There’s little question about what happened in the sixth inning. Quesada continued, “He got a little tired at the end, but it’s expected. He’s typically a reliever and switching over to the starting role. So for him, it’s still getting used to going longer innings and throwing more pitches.” Hicks and Walker’s home runs were, for each, his 13th, putting both within one homer of team leader, Travis Harrison, who has 14. Hicks and Harrison were both 2-4. The game was played in front of 5,631 fans at Perfect Game Field in Cedar Rapids. It was the second-largest crowd at the stadium. The game started at 5:05. Fans were entertained throughout the game by a couple of dueling pianists. The played and sang the classics . Following the game, the were a couple of presentations. One very neat thing that the Kernels have done several times throughout the year is have a silent auction for special Kernels uniforms. On Thursday, the Kernels wore special Armed Forces jerseys. Each player’s game-worn jersey was auctioned. Every player’s jersey went for at least $100, and all of the money goes to charity. Following the game, the winners of each auction go down to the field and get the jerseys from the players. They are able to get them signed and take pictures with them as well. It’s really a neat thing. At that point, they opened up the field and kids were able to run the bases, and people were allowed to play catch in the outfield. Later in the evening, the Kernels put on a firework display. They timed it well with the Cedar Rapids Downtown fireworks show, which followed soon after. It’s always a great trip to watch the Kernels. This is a well-run organization and they are great people. Spent a good 20 minutes talking to GM Doug Nelson who told us that they are quite pleased with the increased attendance this year. Although there is no way to officially say so, it is likely more people from Minnesota and/or Twins fans from Iowa, are coming to games. I definitely recommend getting to Cedar Rapids for a weekend of Kernels games if and when you can. A great time would be the final weekend of July. It will be Twins weekend and Tony Oliva and others will come and there will be plenty of fun throughout that weekend. This roster, even after the promotion of Byron Buxton, is tremendous and very fun to watch. Rochester Red Wings 6, Pawtucket Red Sox 2 Box Score Pedro Hernandez started and got the win. The lefty gave up two runs on five hits in six innings. He walked three and struck out three. Aaron Thompson recorded the three-inning save thanks to three shutout innings. He gave up three hits, walked one and struck out three. Drew Butera had the big hit. He was 2-4 with a long home run, his second of the season. Chris Colabello doubled for the 22nd time this year. Jermaine Mitchell made his Red Wings debut and recorded an infield single. New Britain Rock Cats 6, Portland Sea Dogs 4 Box Score The Rock Cats were down 4-0 after one inning. Slowly, the offense fought back. Trevor May started and gave up those four runs on eight hits and a walk in six innings. He struck out six. Cole Johnson worked the next two innings and did not allow a run. He walked two and struck out three in two innings. Dakota Watts picked up his first save of the year with a perfect ninth. Jordan Parraz hit a three-run homer (5th with Rock Cats) to cut the lead. Josmil Pinto also homered for the 12th time. Eddie Rosario was 2-5. The game was tied going into the bottom of the ninth. With a runner on, Miguel Sano hit a pinch-hit double to give the Rock Cats the lead. Eddie Rosario followed with an RBI single; he also had a fifth inning triple. Ft. Myers Miracle No Game Scheduled. Elizabethton Twins 5, Bluefield Blue Jays 6 Box Score Felix Jorge joins Yorman Landa and Randy Rosario as three very exciting young pitching prospects for the E-Twins. In this game, Jorge threw five shutout innings. He gave up just one hit, walked none and struck out four. Ethan Mildern gave up a hit and a walk, but no runs, in his one inning. Dallas Gallant worked a scoreless eighth. Logan Wade led the offense by going 2-3 with his first triple and first home run. Mitch Garver was 2-4. Javier Pimentel notched his fourth double. Zach Granite doubled for the first time. That brings us to the 8th inning with the E-Twins ahead 5-0. Gallant remained in the game to start the eighth. He was charged with three runs on two hits and two walks. Kuo-Hua Lo came on to get those final outs. However, he gave up three more runs on three hits and a walk and the E-Twins were unable to score in the top of the ninth. GCL Twins 3, GCL Orioles Rays 4 Box Score The story here, of course, is that Twins top pick from last month’s draft, Kohl Stewart, made his first professional appearance. He gave up one run on two hits in two innings. He walked none and struck out two. Brandon Easton came on and gave up one run on two hits in his two innings. Dan Sattler made his second appearance and went 1-2-3. Josh Guyer gave up two runs on two hits and a walk in his inning. Fernando Romero came on for the final three innings. He walked one and struck out five. Evan Bigley made another appearance and went 2-4. Zach Larson led off the bottom of the first inning with his third home run of the season. Please feel free to comment or ask questions below.