Cody Christie

The Twins are open for business. Right now, that business is to find a replacement manager for the reigning American League Manager of the Year, Paul Molitor. Minnesota under-performed in 2018 and the new front office is in search of someone that fits with the direction of the club. There are currently six open managerial positions (Angels, Orioles, Blue Jays, Rangers, and Reds), so the Twins will have competition for some of the top managerial candidates. Historically, Minnesota has turned to an internal candidate for the job (see Tom Kelly, Ron Gardenhire, Paul Molitor). That being said, here are a few of the internal names being tied to the club.Derek Shelton Current Role: Twins Bench Coach Qualifications: He spent seven seasons as hitting coach under Joe Maddon in Tampa Bay. Also, he spent five seasons as hitting coach in Cleveland. He managed in the Yankees minor league system for multiple years. The 2018 season was his 14th season as a coach at the big-league level. Jeff Pickler Current Role: Twins Major League coach Qualifications: This past season was his second season as a professional coach. His roles this season included instructing the outfielders, advising coaches and players on game preparation, and communicating with the player development side of the baseball operations department. He served as a scout with the Diamonbacks and Padres organization. He also served in a front office role with the Dodgers. James Rowson Current Role: Twins hitting coach Qualifications: He has coached professionally for 17 seasons. Had multiple tenures with the Yankees organization as their minor league hitting coordinator. He spent a couple seasons in the Cubs organization as their minor league hitting coordinator and big-league hitting coach. Minnesota has already interviewed him for the job. Joel Skinner Current Role: Twins Triple-A manager Qualifications: He spent six seasons managing in the Indians minor league system. He moved up to Cleveland’s big-league staff in 2000 and even served as the interim manager in 2002. At the time, he was the youngest manager in baseball. He remained on the coaching staff until 2009 and then moved on to become Oakland’s bench coach. This past season was his first in the Twins system. How do you view the internal candidates? Do any of them have a leg-up on the job? Leave a COMMENT and start the discussion. Click here to view the article

Miguel Sano won’t face criminal charges connected to an accident over the weekend where a police officer broke his leg in multiple places. On Monday, Sano went to traffic court and the police found no intent on his part to hurt the officer.More details continue to emerge but here is what is known at this time: Sano and his wife were leaving a nightclub at 3 am on Sunday morning.Officer Argenis Emilio Gillandeux questioned Sano because his pickup truck didn’t have a license plate and Sano didn’t have his driver’s license on him.Sano and his wife returned to his truck but they were unaware Gillandeux had not moved his motorcycle from behind his truck.Sano was detained by police for several hours on Sunday.Eventually, he was allowed to return home under the condition that he return to traffic court on Monday.Sano drove the injured officer to the hospital himself. They have known each other and attended school together.Sano won’t be charged with a crime because he did not abandon the scene of the accident.On Sunday afternoon, the Minnesota Twins responded to the situation with the following statement: While the information above paints one picture of the situation, other information from other observers paints a very different tone to the incident. Originally, it was thought that Sano fled the scene. Or in some cases, there were accusations of gun shots from Sano’s vehicle. More information could continue to come out in the days ahead but it’s definitely not the start Minnesota wanted for Sano’s offseason. He struggled through different parts of the 2018 campaign and he has a new focus heading into 2019. This was after he weighed as much as 290 pounds this past season. “For next year, I’ll be OK. I’ll lose weight and get in better shape. I know who I am and what I can do.” Let’s hope he stays out of the news and focuses on returning to his 2017 All-Star form. Click here to view the article

Even in the midst of a sub-par season, there were plenty of players who made positive strides. Yesterday, Kyle Gibson was named the team’s most improved player after having the best big-league season of his career. Other impact players included multiple rookies. Today, the Twins Daily 2018 Rookie of the Year winner will be announced. There were 20 rookies who played with the team in 2018. This was up from the 19 rookies to play with the Twins during the 2017 campaign. However, this year’s winner is a player very familiar to those who have followed our minor league coverage over the last handful of years. Congratulations, Mitch Garver.Garver won the Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Year in 2017 and the Twins organization also honored him with the same award. He has been a hitter throughout his time in the minor leagues and his game calling ability has continued to improve. Jason Castro’s injury allowed him to take on a more regular role as the team’s backstop. “It was a different role than I thought it was going to be, but I wouldn’t have it any other way,” Garver said. “Big growing experience, learning experience. From where I was last year to where I am now is a world of difference as far as confidence, understand(ing) the game and the speed of this level and that feeling of belonging.” In April, Garver got the season started off on the right foot. He batted .281/.324/.531 with four extra-base hits through his first 12 games. May was his worst month as he struggled to a .544 OPS with more strikeouts (15) than hits (12). From there, something clicked and Garver became on the team’s most consistent hitters. After hitting .249/.332/.367 in the first half, Garver improved in every category in the second half. He hit .295/.343/.481 with 32 RBI and 16 extra-base hits in the second half. Among Twins players, only Jorge Polanco had more RBI in the second half. Garver was also able to put up these numbers while catching the most games on the team. Garver’s second half wasn’t just one of the best on the Twins. It was very comparable to other MLB catchers. His RBI total ranks his third in baseball behind Salvador Perez and Yadier Molina. His slugging percentage also ranks him third behind Perez and Yasmani Grandal. His weighted runs created (wRC+) was also third among catchers as he trailed Grandal and Omar Narvaez. One of the biggest changes for Garver was the mentalityy that he belongs at the big-league level. “It’s not really physical, it’s just knowing you can play at this level. That’s the biggest thing,” he said. “From where I was last year -which I knew I could play at this level but I had to see myself do it - that’s the biggest difference.” Even as a right-handed batter, he did most of his damage against right-handed pitching. His OPS was 183 points higher against righties and he got on base over 35% of the time. His strikeout to walk ratio looked better against lefties since he faced them in fewer at-bats. In 107 plate appearances, he posted an 18 to 10 strikeout to walk ratio versus southpaws. When former Twins manager Paul Molitor was asked to evaluate Garver’s rookie season, he said he saw plenty of positive signs this year but there are also areas where Garver continues to improve. “It’s a positive, and really a pretty easy positive,” Molitor said. “We monitor the catching progress day-to-day, week-to-week, month-to-month, and we’ve seen areas that numbers are showing up in a better way. I think that he knows that he has to get better in some capacities involving everything from pitching calling to framing and all those things.” “Offensively, I thought he was he was a little tentative early in the year,” Molitor added. “As his aggressiveness came, situational, finding out there’s a lot of hits over there in right field with his swing. Production, he was sitting in the low-teens in RBIs for a long time as I can recall. He’s had a nice spurt here where he started finding a way to not only get hits, but meaningful hits. I think that’s helped him and where his future might go and the role he’ll play moving forward. With Jason coming back, we’re going to have to evaluate where we’re at and see how that combination potentially works together.” Congrats to the Twins Daily Rookie of the Year, Mitch “Garv Sauce” Garver! Candidates Jake Cave only played in 90 games for the Twins and still finished eighth on the team in bWAR. He was outstanding in the month of July as he hit .314/.338/.500 with nine extra-base hits in 70 at-bats. Over the season’s final two months, he had 19 extra-base hits including nine home runs. He’s done all of this while getting on base almost 32% of the time. Fernando Romero made his much anticipated debut in 2018 and there were flashes of the kind of pitcher the organization hopes he can be. He made 11 starts for the club from May-July but he would reach his innings limit with the Red Wings and wasn’t called up for September. In his second start, he shut out the Cardinals over six innings and added nine strikeouts. His longest start came in Seattle when he pitched seven innings. He allowed two runs on five hits and struck out seven. The Ballots Here’s a look at the ballots from our seven voters. Nick Nelson: 1) Mitch Garver, 2) Jake Cave, 3) Fernando Romero Seth Stohs: 1) Mitch Garver, 2) Jake Cave, 3) Fernando Romero John Bonnes: 1) Mitch Garver, 2) Jake Cave, 3) Fernando Romero Tom Froemming: 1) Mitch Garver, 2) Jake Cave, 3) Fernando Romero Cody Christie: 1) Mitch Garver, 2) Jake Cave, 3) Fernando Romero Steve Lein: 1) Jake Cave, 2) Mitch Garver, 3) Fernando Romero Ted Schwerzler: 1) Jake Cave, 2) Mitch Garver, 3) Fernando Romero Points Mitch Garver: 19 Jake Cave: 16 Fernando Romero: 7 How would your ballot look? Leave a COMMENT and start the discussion. Previous Twins Daily Rookie Winners 2015: Miguel Sano 2016: Max Kepler 2017: Trevor Hildenberger Click here to view the article

Near the end of the movie The Dark Knight, Commissioner Jim Gordon gives a memorable speech. He tries to explain to his son why his hero, Batman, is being hunted by the police. Because we have to chase him. Because he's the hero Gotham deserves, but not the one it needs right now, so we'll hunt him. Because he can take it, because he's not a hero. He's a silent guardian, a watchful protector, a Dark Knight. Batman is a misunderstood hero throughout much of the Dark Knight saga, much like Joe Mauer was a misunderstood baseball player for most of his baseball career.I’ve had some frustrating conversations with friends and colleagues over the last few weeks as it became ever more apparent that Mauer’s career was coming to an end. In fact, Sports Illustrated looked into the reasons some Twins fans dislike Mauer. Let’s dispel some of those myths. The Money Myth Baseball’s pay structure is set-up so young players are relatively cheap for owners. At the beginning of a player’s career, they are forced to build up service time and go through the arbitration process. Typically, players enter the prime of their careers near the time they are entering free agency. This forces teams to overpay for a player’s prime and be saddled with a declining player at the end of the contract. Joe Mauer was overpaid at the end of his career, but he was vastly underpaid at the beginning of his career. From 2004-2009, the Twins paid Mauer $21,525,000. According to FanGraphs valuation system, he was worth $151,700,000 during those same seasons. Minnesota signed him to an 8-year, $184 million contract following the 2009 season. Over those eight seasons, Mauer was worth $126,000,000 in total value. For his career, the Twins paid him $218,025,000 and he repaid the organization with $307,700,000 in value. The Anti-Clutch Myth Mauer will forever be associated with Twins teams that struggled in postseason play. Teams he was on seemed to always run into the Damn Yankees before failing to advance. He famously had a double negated at Yankee Stadium in what became a turning point in the series. However, there are only certain things Mauer can control when it comes to pressure situations. This season Mauer led all of baseball in batting average with runners in scoring position. He hit .407 in those situations. That’s not a typo and it wasn’t a one season anomaly. Mauer's career .334 batting average with RISP is second among all active hitters with at least 750 plate appearances, behind only Joey Votto at .336. Mauer was great with players in scoring position and that might be one of the most clutch things a player can do. The No Power Myth Mauer was never going to live up to his 28-home run outpouring from his MVP season in 2009. That season was a season for the ages where Mauer cemented his place as one of the all-time best hitting catchers. Even though the home runs might not have continued at a record pace, there was still power on Mauer’s resume. Minnesota’s team history stretches back to the early 1960’s. There have been multiple Hall of Fame players (Harmon Killebrew, Rod Carew, Kirby Puckett) who spent large chunks of their careers with the Twins. None of them have hit more doubles than Mauer. Among all-time catchers, he has the third highest OPS. The power was there but it just didn’t always come in the form of home runs. I don’t know if I ever fully appreciated Mauer during his playing career. I understood how good he was but it’s easy to see how he could have been misunderstood after looking back on his career. Casual fans don’t understand the type of value and production he was able to produce over his 15-year career. He was the hero Minnesota didn’t deserve. Click here to view the article

Twins Daily Roundtable is a weekly series. As part of this series, a question will be posed to the site’s writers and they will respond in 200 words or less (Some writers don’t like to stick to this limit). This will give readers an opportunity to see multiple points of view and then add their own point of view in the comments section. With the regular season quickly coming to a close, Twins fans might be starting to think about next season. Minnesota has a lot of money coming off the books and very few contracts signed for next season. With this shift, comes the opportunity to reshape a roster. This week’s Roundtable discussion is: “What’s Minnesota’s biggest need this off-season?John Bonnes Can I be so vague as to say "a middle-of-the-order bat?" The lineup's strength this year was supposed to be its depth, and that still might be the case with anticipated growth from Jorge Polanco, Byron Buxton, Max Kepler and Miguel Sano. But when the middle-of-the-order bats fail to live up to their expectations, the team is left with an average offense. And a few injuries and it quickly becomes below average. This offseason shouldn't be about filling in pieces. It should be about finding some foundational cornerstones upon whom the Twins can rely for the next four seasons at least. Tom Froemming How many times have I got to say this? Willians Astudillo lifetime contract. That's item No. 1. Once that's worked out, the Twins are going to need to focus on quality. They already have quantity, but not a ton of players you can truly count on. I'd say the biggest need would be to find a threat to put into the middle of the lineup. I'm not confident Miguel Sano ever gets back to what he was, and as much as I love Eddie Rosario, if he's the best slugger in your 2019 lineup, you've got issues. The pitching staff has its share of needs to address as well, but it's really difficult to win without a lineup that's able to produce on a consistent basis. Ted Schwerzler To a certain extent, the answer probably always needs to be pitching. It's great that the Twins have given Gonsalves, De Jong, Littell, and Stewart some run here down the stretch. It has been equally beneficial to see Andrew Vasquez coming out of the pen. The reality however, is that none of them look like anything close to a certainty opening the 2019 season. Minnesota should have Kyle Gibson, Jake Odorizzi, and Jose Berrios penned into the rotation, but things are less certain behind them. Fernando Romero is likely a near lock to start in the big leagues, but another mid-to-upper level arm would be a big plus. The bullpen will need some retooling as well with the departures 2018 has seen take place. Although you can make arguments for bats around the diamond, lots depends on how the Twins want to configure their in-house options. Cody Christie To me, one of the biggest issues with 2018 was the underperformance of key pieces in the line-up. That being said, players like Byron Buxton, Miguel Sano, Max Kepler, and Jose Berrios need to take the next step. If the Twins are going to contend, their young players need to turn into the team’s most valuable pieces. Sano has already been discussing his weight and he hopes to come into next season after a strong off-season spent between Fort Myers and the Dominican Republic. Buxton needs to prove he can stay healthy and handle the rigors of a full big-league season. Berrios was an All-Star but there is certainly some room for improvement after some up and down moments this year. Kepler might never be a middle of the order bat, but he could certainly become more consistent. There are obviously plenty of holes to fill in the roster but the Twins need their young core to take the next step. Steve Lein With the Twins underachieving this year they sent off several veteran contributors and newcomers at the trade deadline, opening plenty of holes or questions for the 2019 season. Brian Dozier, Eduardo Escobar, Ryan Pressly, Lance Lynn, Fernando Rodney, and Zach Duke all found themselves in new places. That was nearly a quarter of their opening day roster. You had an All Star second baseman, an extra-base-hitting-machine, shutdown set-up man, mid-rotation starter, and a closer in that group. You might lose Joe Mauer to retirement as well. Point is there are a lot of needs for this team. When you ask me for the biggest need I’ll always point to starting pitching, however. Jose Berrios has had a great season and made the first of hopefully many All-Star teams, but he still has some development to turn into that “ace” we all covet. Thankfully the Twins lost out on Yu Darvish last year, but every team must spend money on pitchers at some point if they want to contend. With the payroll space they will have this offseason, they should shoot as high as they can to help their rotation. If you missed any of the most recent roundtable discussions, here are the links: Shifting Service Time The Looming Mauer Decision Grading the Front Office Grading Molitor Closing Time Click here to view the article

Twins Daily Roundtable is a weekly series. As part of this series, a question will be posed to the site’s writers and they will respond in 200 words or less (Some writers don’t like to stick to this limit). This will give readers an opportunity to see multiple points of view and then add their own point of view in the comments section. There has been plenty of discussion in Twins Territory about Minnesota’s decision to not call-up Byron Buxton for the end of September. In doing so, the Twins are going to gain an extra year of team control. Some feel this is unfair to the player. Some feel it is the team utilizing the rules to their advantage. This week’s question is: “Do MLB and the Player’s Union need to revisit the service time rules as part of the next collective bargaining agreement? Why or why not?”John Bonnes I like linking free agency to service time as a professional player instead of service time as a major league player. I'm cautious because it could conceivably be a radical change, encouraging teams to move players through the minors at a rushed pace, but that might be a positive development. Both sides could embrace that change because it will result in players making it to the majors more quickly (and thus getting paid more) but teams could get more years of control at the major league level. I would think there would be three areas to negotiate: Different tenures of service time based on how a player signs, so 16-year-old international prospects have a higher threshold than amateur draftees, which are higher than college draftees. Something like 12 years/10 years/8 years. This is important for teams.An escalating level of compensation once a player is in the majors that leaves them close to their actual free agent value by the end of their service time, similar to arbitration, but with required changes. This is important for players.Perhaps modifying the service time based on the quality of the player? So exceptional players can make it to free agency a year earlier? I'm not as sure about this aspect, but I expect this would be important for agents.Tom FroemmingYes, the player's union needs to find a way to counteract the adjustment modern front offices have made. Teams know that even the very best players are rarely wise investments once they've surpassed 30. Accordingly, they've stopped throwing out big, long-term contracts to most free agents. At the same time, the system has been set up to suppress the earning potential of younger players and front offices are getting, let's say more creative, in the ways they're finding to delay a player reaching arbitration/free agency. Basically, the owners are winning on both ends of a player's career. Maybe the solution is something as simple as dramatically increasing the league minimum, which was $545,000 this season, or maybe they can find a way for players to reach arbitration/free agency earlier by updating the service time rules. The big issue in the short term seems to be that the current Collective Bargaining Agreement, which just went into effect last season, is in effect through 2021. With that being the case, it's difficult to see the owners to have any urgency to concede anything, unless there's (gulp) a strike. Jeremy Nygaard Absolutely it's time for the rules to be revisited. The problem is that there isn't a great solution. Do you change it from six years of service time to something like six seasons of control after a player's debut? Or five seasons? Can it be only based on a player's age? Or some other counting stat? It's going to be difficult to find a way that a club can't continue to manipulate... but it definitely has to happen. Cody Christie Service time rules will change as part of the next Collective Bargaining Agreement. There was one simple solution I saw during the entire Buxton-saga. After a team drafts a player, they get: High school player= 10 years of team control, 6 years of arbitrationCollege player= 8 years of team control, 6 years of arbitrationEven if a player hasn’t made the MLB level, he would still qualify for arbitration. Some hiccups in this rule would come from international signees. Would teams get 12 years of team control with the final six years being part of the arbitration process? Injuries also present an interesting predicament. If a player misses an entire year because of Tommy John surgery, what would be the options for a team? Could teams get something like a “red-shirt” year where they get an extra year of control because of a season-long injury? Changes are coming but the owners aren’t going to give up too much team control. Steve Lein I definitely think it will be a big part of the discussion on the next CBA. There are always going to be problems (including plenty that could be pointed out with my thoughts below), but there are a couple things I dislike about what is done now: 1. Time on the disabled list counts toward service time. 2. A year of service equates to a full-calendar MLB season. There aren’t many players who play all 162 games in a season, but to get a full year a player is required to be active the entire time. I would look to have only active MLB roster days count, and a full year of service be a number like 120 days. A pitcher needing Tommy John surgery may have only pitched 2 games but earns a full year of service, while another guy who plays 130 games in the field doesn’t. The math is off to me. I don’t like to penalize injuries to a player, but that’s another wrinkle for the player’s union to tackle. This way, teams have a much harder decision to make about keeping players in the minors to “gain” an extra year. Instead of a couple weeks and still getting a guy like Kris Bryant into 151 games during the season (how was that NOT a “full season”?!), it’s a couple of months and maybe 100 games. Something that can really affect a team’s aspirations for the season if that player could be a big part of it. Most of all, I will never understand a rule that keeps potential superstar players, and other deserving ones, off an opening day roster. That is what is beyond stupid to me with the current rules. Ted Schwerzler When looking at the current CBA, how it’s interpreted, and how it’s exploited, I think it’s absolutely fair to question the validity of the current situation. In the case of Byron Buxton, Minnesota is well within their means, but it’s a situation that looks unethical and reflects poorly on the team. When comparing millionaire players and billionaire owners, fans should always side with the product on the field. At the end of the day, there needs to be a better representation when it comes to the Player’s Association and the ideals that are fought over. Common ground can be found here, but there’s opportunity for it to land in more of a middle ground than it currently does. Seth Stohs Does it need to be changed? Probably. Am I smart enough to know what the best system would be? Nope. Will teams try to find the loopholes and ways around whatever a new system might be? Absolutely. SD Buhr I have to imagine that service time is a part of virtually every CBA negotiation and I’m sure that will be the case on the next one, too. I don’t think anyone should expect major adjustments to the current system, though. There almost has to be a line drawn somewhere and wherever it’s drawn, owners are going to do what they can to preserve as much control over a talented player’s salary as possible. Any change that works more to the union/player advantage will come with a cost, of course. The players’ side will need to give up something and I’m not sure this issue has affected enough players to a significant degree that the other 98% of the union membership will be willing to give much to get better terms. I do think the next CBA negotiation is going to be far more challenging than the past couple have been. Draft slotting, international pay limits and almost every issue affecting payroll have all been tilted heavily toward ownership lately and I sense that players are going to negotiate much harder on any number of issues. I could see the owners giving a bit on service time in order to avoid get what they want in other areas of greater priority. If you missed any of the most recent roundtable discussions, here are the links: The Looming Mauer Decision Grading the Front Office Grading Molitor Closing Time Prospect Promotions Click here to view the article

Playoffs in the minor leagues certainly present an interesting set of circumstances. Throughout the minor league season, players can move up and down throughout a team’s roster. Some of the players key to a team qualifying for the playoffs might not even be around for the team’s playoff run. That being said, there was plenty of playoff action for the Twins system. The E-Twins already took home their second consecutive Appy League Championship. Cedar Rapids and Fort Myers were looking to join the championship parade.MIRACLE MATTERS Fort Myers 2, Daytona 6 Box Score After taking the first two games of the three-game series, the Miracle were looking to sweep the Tortugas to take their second FSL championship in five years. Unfortunately, the offense would be few and far between for Fort Myers. With one out in the first inning, Brusdar Graterol surrendered a walk and a single before a double drove in the first run of the game. On the same play, Alex Kirilloff hit the cut-off man, Travis Blankenhorn, to nail the second runner at the plate. Graterol allowed three singles in the third as Daytona pushed their lead to 2-0. Overall, Graterol allowed two earned runs on seven hits. He struck out six and walked one. The Miracle finally broke through in the sixth inning as Royce Lewis lead off the inning with his second home run of the postseason. In the bottom half of the inning, Ryan Mason took over for Graterol and quickly gave back a run. He’d end up pitching two innings while allowing one run on two hits. He struck out three and walked one. Lewis struck again in the eighth inning with his second solo-shot of the game. Fort Myers was within a run of tying the game but that’s as close as the team would come. Colton Davis struggled in the eighth inning as he allowed three runs to score on two hits and two walks. Fort Myers has another shot at clinching the FSL Championship on Monday night. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 0, Peoria 5 Box Score Cedar Rapids nearly took the first lead of the game in the top of the third inning. Trey Cabbage tripled to start the inning but he was thrown out at home during the next at-bat. Akil Baddo grounded to second base and Cabbage broke for home but didn’t make it. One big inning spelled the end of the Kernels season. With Blayne Enlow on the mound, the first two batters reached to start the problem. He struck out the next batter but than he hit a batter to load the bases. Three straight singles and a wild pitch saw five runners cross the plate. The Kernels wouldn’t have a batter reach third base the rest of the game. Cedar Rapids went 0-for-5 with runners in scoring position and left seven runners on base. Ryan Jeffers and Ben Rodriguez both went 2-for-4. Melvi Acosta pitched four shutout innings out of the bullpen as he only allowed three hits. Moises Gomez pitched a perfect final frame by striking out the side. STARS OF THE DAY Twins Daily Hitter of the Day: Royce Lewis, Fort Myers (2-for-4, 2 HR, 2 RBI, 2 R) Twins Daily Pitcher of the Day: Melvi Acosta, Cedar Rapids (4.0 IP, 0 ER, 3 H) TOP PROSPECT SUMMARY Here’s a look at how the Twins Daily Top 20 Twins Prospects performed. Please note that this Prospect Summary has been updated. 1. Royce Lewis (FM): 2-for-4, 2 HR, 2 RBI, 2 R 2. Alex Kirilloff (FM): 0-for-4, 2 K 3. Brusdar Graterol (FM): 5.0 IP, 2 ER, 6 K, BB, 7 H 6. Trevor Larnach (CR): 0-for-3, BB, 2 K 8. Akil Baddoo (CR): 0-for-4, K 11. Blayne Enlow (CR): 3.0 IP, 5 ER, 2 K, BB, 6 H 13. Travis Blankenhorn (FM): 0-for-3, BB, K 15. Ben Rortvedt (FM): 0-for-2, 2 BB 16. Yunior Severino (CR): 0-for-1, K 18. Ryan Jeffers (CR): 2-for-4 19. Jacob Pearson (CR): 0-for-1, K MONDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Fort Myers @ Daytona (6:05 PM CST) – RHP Edwar Colina (0-1, 3.94 ERA) -Miracle lead best of five series 2-1 Please feel free to ask any questions about Sunday’s games, or ask any questions you may have. Click here to view the article

Twins Daily Roundtable is a weekly series. As part of this series, a question will be posed to the site’s writers and they will respond in 200 words or less (Some writers don’t like to stick to this limit). This will give readers an opportunity to see multiple points of view and then add their own point of view in the comments section. Joe Mauer continues to climb the all-time Twins leaderboard as fans have seen him reach some impressive milestones over the last calendar year. Moving forward, there are plenty of questions about what next season will bring for Mr. Mauer. His massive contract extension expires at season’s end and there’s no telling how much longer Mauer will play. This week’s roundtable discussion question is: “What will Joe Mauer decide about next season?”John Bonnes Joe Mauer will decide he wants to play, because he loves to compete. The Twins will decide they want him back, because there are not going to be a lot of top flight first-base-type sluggers available on the free agent market. Plus, the Twins weren't adept at getting on base this year (.314 OBP, 9th in the AL), so Mauer remains a good fit. However, I anticipate some drama, at least privately and probably publicly, around the two sides coming to an agreement. This will be the fourth significant negotiation between Mauer and the Twins: there was the draft negotiation, the long-term deal that bought out his initial free agent year, and the $23M-per-year long-term deal. In all three of those, Mauer never advertised that he was willing to take any kind of hometown discount and pushed the team to its limit. (It's almost, again, like he loves to compete.) So I expect him to ask for more guaranteed years and more guaranteed money than the Twins will expect, and I wouldn't be surprised if we hear rumors of him being courted by other teams, or that an agreement isn't reached until later in the offseason. But ultimately, I think a one-year deal or a team-friendly two-year deal will get done. That might be my heart overruling my head. Or maybe my head is assuming that hearts will hold sway over heads on both sides of the negotiation. Either way, I hope this goes the way of "heart." Seth Stohs Short answer: He'll do whatever he wants. Longer answer: If he wants to play, he'll be signed by the Twins for a 1-2 year deal. He could retire if he no longer enjoys it, but clearly, he's been healthy again the last couple of years and he still contributes to the Twins in multiple ways. Tom Froemming The deeper we get into the season without an announcement, the more I feel like Joe is going to play in 2019. The Mauers are going to be welcoming the third child into their family sometime around Thanksgiving, and I'm sure that's going to play a huge role in what Joe decides about his future. I believe him when he says he hasn't really thought about it or come to a conclusion yet, but I think there will be strong interest, from the Twins, in a reunion. It's impossible to know what's really going through his head, but I think if the Twins make any kind of honest effort to bring him back, as I expect they will, he'll be back. Ted Schwerzler I genuinely think that Joe returns to the Twins in 2019. I initially believed there was room for a 2- or 3-year deal, but think he'll sign a one-year pact this winter. If everything goes well, I could see him returning in 2020 as well. At the end of the day, he's an ideal leadoff hitter, and remains among the best defensive first basemen in all of baseball. The Twins should be doing what they can to push him into returning, and it'd be a good thing for them if he obliges. Cody Christie I’m not sure what to think after some of the decisions made by the front office this week. Falvey and Levine might decide they want to keep him around or they could decide to go in another direction. Mauer could find himself waffling through multiple emotions as well. Joe Mauer has the potential to be in the conversation of best Twins player of all-time. According to FanGraphs WAR, only Harmon Killebrew (59.3 fWAR) and Rod Carew (56.9 fWAR) have amassed more career value in a Twins uniform. Mauer might never catch those two or live up to the legend of Kirby Puckett but he’s still a once in a generation talent. I think Mauer’s competitive side wins out and we will see him back with the Twins next season. Like any player, I believe he wants to make the Hall of Fame and he will need to continue to put up numbers for multiple more seasons to pad his resume. That being said, I think he only plays for another season or two. SD Buhr I’ll make this short. I think Joe Mauer retires. I think the current front office will decide they want to move on from having Mauer as their primary first baseman, they will communicate that to him, and he will choose to retire rather than accept a reserve role. Is it what I would do? No. If I were Mauer, I’d have my agent shop me around for a regular spot with a potential contender, so I could get my ring. But, from all accounts, that’s not what Mauer is likely to do. But with a growing family, financial security and being at risk of further head injuries, I suspect that he will hang up the spikes, rather than accept a role where he’s watching as much as (or more than) playing. If you missed any of the most recent roundtable discussions, here are the links: Grading the Front Office Grading Molitor Closing Time Prospect Promotions Hall of Fame Impact Click here to view the article

A playoff atmosphere is circling the farm system. Fort Myers entered play on Sunday with the opportunity to clinch a second half South Division Championship. Elizabethton was facing a do-or-die Game 3 in the Appy League Playoff Semifinals. Cedar Rapids was amid an eight-game winning streak when play started on Sunday. There were lots of meaningful games so let’s jump right into the action.ROSTER MOVES INF Victor Tademo promoted from Cedar Rapids to RochesterRHP Zack Littell recalled by Minnesota from RochesterRED WINGS REPORT Rochester 6, Lehigh Valley 5 Box Score Rochester used a trio of three-run innings to take down Lehigh Valley. In the second inning, Kennys Vargas led off the frame with a double. Vargas moved to third on a hit-and-run before Zander Wiel brought him in with a sacrifice fly. Jeremy Hazelbaker homered to tie the game 2-2. Vargas was at the heart of the next two-run inning. Nick Gordon started the inning with a single before Vargas clocked his 21st home run on the season. Omar Bencomo started and allowed two runs in the first inning. From there he settled in before running into some trouble before finishing the seventh. He left after allowing five runs on five hits with six strikeouts and two walks. Nick Anderson pitched two scoreless frames with five strikeouts to pick up his eighth win. Rochester trailed by one entering the bottom of the ninth. Jon Kemmer put the tying run in scoring position with a sharp line drive double. Wiel sent everyone home happy with a walk-off two-run bomb. CHATTANOOGA CHATTER Chattanooga 1, Jackson 2 Box Score Chattanooga’s offense was little and far between on Sunday. Trailing 2-0 in the final inning, Jaylin Davis doubled to start the frame. After a ground out moved him to third, Jimmy Kerrigan drove him in with a single. The Lookouts rally ended there as Brian Olson struck out and Joe Cronin flied out sharply to center. Kerrigan finished 2-for-4. Overall, the team went 1-for-5 and left seven men on base. Austin Adams started and pitched two scoreless innings with three strikeouts. Anthony Marzi allowed one run on five hits in 4 2/3 innings with three strikeouts. Cody Stashak allowed the run that ended up being the game winner. He pitched 1 1/3 innings and struck out one. MIRACLE MATTERS Fort Myers 2, Clearwater 1 Box Score On the final day of the regular season, Fort Myers won the second half South Division title. It was the second straight season the team has won the second half crown. The Miracle actually finished with the same record as another team but they owned the head-to-head tiebreaker. Aaron Whitefield had the biggest offensive inning of the game for Fort Myers. In the fourth inning, Shane Carrier singled and eventually stole second base before moving to third on a throwing error. Aaron Whitefield singled to drive him in. He stole second and third before scoring on a throwing error. Brusdar Graterol pitched 4 2/3 scoreless innings while striking out four and walking two. He only allowed three hits. Jovani Moran picked up the win after he allowed one run on two hits in 2 1/3 innings. Colton Davis earned his fourth save with two scoreless innings to close out the game. Game 1 of the South Division Championship Series starts on Tuesday night at Hammond Stadium. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 4, Beloit 9 Box Score All good things must come to an end and Cedar Rapids saw their season-high eight-game winning come to an end. Beloit needed to win to keep their playoff hopes alive and they have a chance to play the Kernels in the first round. Ariel Montesino and Jacob Pearson hit back-to-back home runs in the fifth inning to help tie the game. Akil Baddoo finished 2-for-2 with a pair of doubles and an RBI. Ben Rodriguez reached base twice and drove in a run. Rodriguez extended his consecutive game on-base streak to 22. Randy Dobnak started and allowed one run on two hits in two innings. Derek Molina took over and surrendered three runs on six hits. Johan Quezada was charged with the loss even though both runs scored against him were unearned. In the final frame, Jose Martinez allowed three runs on four hits while striking out two. E-TWINS E-TALK Elizabethton 5, Kingsport 2 Box Score The E-Twins used a balanced approach to move into the Appy League Championship Series to defend their crown. On the mound, Andrew Cabezas pitched 4 1/3 innings by allowing one run on one hit. He walked five and struck out five. Brian Rapp pitched nearly four full innings out of the bullpen (3 2/3 innings). He saw one run score on four hits while striking out one and walking one. Tanner Howell earned his first save with a perfect ninth. Offensively, there was only one extra-base hit for the E-Twins but there were plenty of other ways to score some runs. Yunior Severino went 3-for-5 as he drove in a run and scored a run. Gillberto Celestino had one of the biggest hits of the night as he collected two RBI on a single in the fifth. DaShawn Keirsey reached base three times and scored a run. Elizabethton will open the Appy League Championship Series on Tuesday night. STARS OF THE DAY Twins Daily Hitter of the Day: Kennys Vargas, Rochester (2-for-4, HR, 2B, 2 RBI, 2 R) Twins Daily Pitcher of the Day: Nick Anderson, Rochester (2.0 IP, 0 ER, 5 K, 0 BB, 0 H) TOP PROSPECT SUMMARY Here’s a look at how the Twins Daily Top 20 Twins Prospects performed. Please note that this Prospect Summary has been updated. 1. Royce Lewis (FM): 0-for-4, 3 K 2. Alex Kirilloff (FM): 2-for-3, BB 3. Brusdar Graterol (FM): 4.2 IP, 0 ER, 4 K, 2 BB, 3 H 4. Nick Gordon (ROC): 1-for-3, BB 5. Stephen Gonsalves (MIN): Did not play. 6. Trevor Larnach (CR): Did not play. 7. Brent Rooker (CHAT): 1-for-4, K 8. Akil Baddoo (CR): 2-for-2, 2 2B, RBI 9. Wander Javier: Out of for the season 10. Zack Littell (MIN): 4.0 IP, 2 ER, 4 K, BB, 6 H 11. Blayne Enlow (CR): Did not play. 12. LaMonte Wade (ROC): 1-for-4, K 13. Travis Blankenhorn (FM): 1-for-4, K 14. Lewis Thorpe (ROC): Did not play. 15. Ben Rortvedt (FM): 0-for-4, 3 K 16. Yunior Severino (ET): 3-for-5, R, RBI 17. Lewin Diaz (FM): Did not play. 18. Ryan Jeffers (CR): 1-for-4, K 19. Jacob Pearson (CR): 1-for-3, HR, RBI, R, K 20. Luis Arraez (CHAT): Did not play. MONDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Rochester vs. Lehigh Valley (12:05 CST) – RHP Chase De Jong (2-3, 3.41 ERA) Chattanooga vs. Jackson (2:05 CST) – RHP Sean Poppen (5-7, 3.90 ERA) Fort Myers – Playoffs start Tuesday Cedar Rapids @ Beloit (2:00 CST) – LHP Tyler Watson (5-6, 4.78 ERA) Elizabethton – Championship Series starts Tuesday Please feel free to ask any questions about Sunday’s games, or ask any questions you may have. Click here to view the article

Twins Daily Roundtable is a weekly series. As part of this series, a question will be posed to the site’s writers and they will respond in 200 words or less (Some writers don’t like to stick to this limit). This will give readers an opportunity to see multiple points of view and then add their own point of view in the comments section. Derek Falvey and Thad Levine are two years into their tenure running the Minnesota Twins. In their first season, the club made a surprise run to the postseason and the team managed to have a solid off-season in 2018. With two drafts and trade deadlines under their belt, the farm system has been rebuilt into one of the best in baseball. This week’s roundtable discussion question is: “How would you grade the front office’s performance? Why?”Nick Nelson Short-term planning is hard sometimes. No one could have predicted last offseason that returning core players like Byron Buxton, Miguel Sano and Ervin Santana — as well as new additions like Lance Lynn, Logan Morrison and Addison Reed — would collectively contribute so little in 2018 after the years they had in 2017. This turn of events completely sabotaged any chance of contention this season, and there's little the front office could have done about it without the benefit of hindsight. I still like the moves they made, especially because they were geared toward big-picture success. The Twins can move on from Lynn and Morrison after this season and managed to reload the pipeline with savvy trades in late July. They've set themselves up for tremendous spending flexibility this winter. Falvey and Levine have shown a penchant for opportunistically acquiring useful talents — such as Tyler Austin, Jake Cave and Gabriel Moya — at low costs. And, crucially, they've also overseen two drafts that look like absolute slam dunks so far, shoring up a sore spot from the latter years of Terry Ryan's tenure. The 2018 season has been a bummer but I feel extremely optimistic about the organization's leadership going forward. Seth Stohs Always a tough question because what's more important, process or results? Obviously results matter, but that's too easy. We all loved the offseason, for the most part, and adding the likes of Lance Lynn and Logan Morrison to one-year deals in spring training was immensely exciting. It didn't pan out. At all. But I think they've continued to add personnel and systems behind the scenes that should have Twins fans excited. In season, I think they've been fine. They've been willing to work and make changes to the 24th and 25th men on the active roster, and they've been willing to grab guys on the back end of the 40-man roster. I may not agree with every single decision, but I do trust the process. I do like what they did at the trade deadline and as they like to say, the way they've developed "waves" of prospects to hopefully put the Twins in a position to compete for playoff spots for the next decade or two! Grade: I don't know. B? Cody Christie Last week’s roundtable revolved around trying to give a grade to Paul Molitor. Managers get too much of the credit when a team wins or loses. For the front office, it takes a long-term approach to revamp an entire organization. The Twins were amid some bad seasons, but the farm system had some good pieces. There are lots of things to consider when looking at the front office as a whole. In their first season leading the organization, Falvey and Levine kept a lot of the previous front office pieces in place to reevaluate everyone. They started overhauling some of the pieces last off-season so it’s hard to know how well those pieces have worked out. Even though the wins haven’t piled up, I’d give the front office an A for last off-season. It helps to have the number one overall pick, but the minor league system has moved from middle of the road to a top-10 system in all of baseball. I’d give them a solid B+ for their drafting so far with the potential of it moving higher based on results in the years ahead. I feel their approach with Sano and Buxton this season was also appropriate. There are few teams that would send a former All-Star all the way down to High-A to “find themselves.” All things considered, I’d give them an A- at this point. Tom Froemming This is a tough question to answer, given that Derek Falvey has only been around since October of 2016. There are a lot of areas where I would give an incomplete grade at this point, but overall, I'd give them a C. Nothing jumps out to me that suggests they're either clearly above or clearly below average. What's really going to make or break this front office in the end is how they draft. So far, they appear to me to be very good at draft strategy, though having the No. 1 overall pick their first year certainly didn't hurt. I liked how decisive they were at this year's deadline, but there have been a number of odd scrap-heap additions while guys performing down on the farm have struggled to find opportunities. The more Falvey and Thad Levine put their fingerprints on the org, the more we'll know. I think the next 12 months could be particularly telling Ted Schwerzler I've considered this as a significantly loaded question at multiple points during this 2018 season. The offseason was one in which the front office hit it out of the park. They aimed high (Darvish), and they shot often (multiple FAs). When the dust settled, they brought in a crop of players that signified a large talent leap and did so by boasting an all-time high payroll. From there, things went downhill. A good number of those new players flopped (which isn't the fault of the front office), and the answers sought seemed less than satisfactory. I haven't found myself a fan of many roster moves made during the season and think more games could've been won with better promotions from the farm. As a whole, it's been a strong step forward from the late years of the Terry Ryan regime, but this duo isn't yet to the point of breaking through. Jamie Cameron It's easy to get caught up in the day-to-day minutia of what the front office does and doesn't do, particularly with roster management. While some of the roster decisions have been odd (if not extremely poor), there are so many facets of the organization the front office has excelled at. Early indicators suggest the front office has drafted well in both drafts. Additionally, the Twins offseason was both strong and opportunistic (despite not translating on to the field). Finally, the team worked hard to acquire some exciting pieces at the deadline and took advantage of impending free agents. One other key lever when examining the front office. We tend to give equal weight to all aspects of the work of the front office in evaluating them. In reality, the number -one pick decision is vastly higher leverage than in-season roster management in a season where they were unlikely to reach the playoffs anyway. While the front office has some areas for refinement, their biggest decisions have been huge wins for the organization. Steve Lein Two years into evaluating any long-term “plan” Falvine and company may have is still a bit quick on the trigger, but I am on board with a lot of the things they have done to this point in the short-term sense. I liked that they struck on a colder free agent market to bring in guys like Addison Reed, Zach Duke, Lance Lynn, and Logan Morrison on short deals. On paper they improved some areas that needed it after a playoff appearance, which is what we all asked for. I’ll concede this didn’t work out, but when it didn’t they unloaded those and other short-term assets for future returns. I also approve of how they seem to be running the minor league system. For once, I don’t have the impression prospects are being held back as a whole. Top prospects Royce Lewis, Alex Kirilloff, and Brusdar Graterol were all promoted after a half-season in Cedar Rapids, where such prospects often would spend an entire season no matter how they performed under old leadership. Fernando Romero made his MLB debut after just four starts in Triple-A, as examples. What I haven’t liked is their usage of the 40-man roster, both heading into the season with whom they protected/lost, and who has been bypassed with moves on the waiver wire. Small potatoes here, but it’s not all sunshine and rainbows with them yet. To assign a letter grade, I’ll say B-minus, trending up. SD Buhr The best “grade” I can give this front office is “Incomplete.” It hasn’t had time to fail, but the results on the field haven’t been anything to get TOO excited about, either. I’m sure some will give them a partial pass simply because they were not allowed to hire their “own man” as manager, instead being required by ownership to retain Paul Molitor. I think that’s a cop out. “Falvine” has only had one full offseason and I think most of us felt they did a decent job assembling a roster over the offseason. I’m also certain that a lot of people are impressed with the way this FO has modernized its approach to everything from scouting to assembling and utilizing advanced data. I just think running a professional baseball organization is about more than that. It’s also about relationship building – with players, agents, other GMs/executives, affiliates, fans, media and, I’m sure, many more stakeholders. It’s just too early for me to give a pass or fail grade at this point. If you missed any of the most recent roundtable discussions, here are the links: Grading Molitor Closing Time Prospect Promotions Hall of Fame Impact Baseball in 2028 Click here to view the article

Entering play on Monday, the Cedar Rapids Kernels will have a shot at clinching the second-half championship. The Kernels are 40-23 in the second half and sit 3.5 games up on the Peoria Chiefs. In the second half, the Kernels are the only team in the entire league to win at least 20 games at home and on the road. Needless to say, Monday’s game could be a very important one for the Kernels.ROSTER MOVES INF Victor Tademo promoted from GCL Twins to Cedar RapidsINF Andrew Bechtold placed on DL with Cedar RapidsRED WINGS REPORTRochester 2, Syracuse 3 (10 Innings) Box Score Byron Buxton fell a home run short of the cycle but the bats and the bullpen faltered in extra-innings. With the Red Wings trailing 1-0 in the fifth inning, Buxton cracked a two-run triple to take the lead. Unfortunately, that’s where the scoring would stop. Kennys Vargas reached base three times in five trips to the plate. Rochester loaded the bases in the top of the tenth but failed to push across a run. In fact, the team was 1-for-12 with runners in scoring position. Syracuse was able to score the winning run off of Jake Reed in the bottom half of the frame. Lewis Thorpe started and pitched 5 2/3 innings. He allowed one run on five hits. He struck out six and walked two. Tyler Duffey was charged with a blown save after he allowed the game-tying run in the bottom of the eighth. Andrew Vasquez was pitched 1 2/3 scoreless innings with two strikeouts and three walks. CHATTANOOGA CHATTER Chattanooga 2, Jacksonville 1 Box Score Chattanooga was able to jump out to an early 2-0 lead and hold on for the one-run victory. Andy Wilkins put the team on top with a lead-off home run in the second inning. In the third inning, Tanner English tripled and was brought home on a Luke Raley sacrifice fly. Austin Adams was asked to serve in an “opener” role. He pitched two scoreless innings as he only allowed one hit. He whiffed three batters and walked one. Dietrich Enns finished off the final seven innings as he limited the Jumbo Shrimp to one run on three hits. He struck out eight and walked two. MIRACLE MATTERS Fort Myers 1, St. Lucie 5 Box Score Edwar Colina made his High-A debut on Sunday but the Miracle offense didn’t give him a ton of offensive support. Colina pitched into the fifth inning (4 2/3 innings), allowing three runs on six hits. He struck out two and walked three. Jovani Moran finished off the fifth and pitched the next two frames. He allowed two runs on three hits with a pair of strikeouts. Hector Jujan pitched one shutout inning and struck out two. Fort Myers managed only three hits and two of those came off the bat of Aaron Whitefield. Alex Kirilloff went 1-for-4 and scored the team’s only run. Caleb Hamilton reached base on a walk. Overall, the club went 0-for-4 with runners in scoring position. After winning nine consecutive series, the Miracle have dropped three straight series. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 10, Kane County 4 Box Score For the third straight games, the Kernels scored at least one run in the first inning. Gabriel Maciel doubled with one out and moved to second on a walk to Michael Helman. Ryan Jeffers drove in the first run on a single. Ben Rodriguez made the score 2-0 with a sacrifice fly. However, the biggest hit of the inning was a two-run bomb from Jacob Pearson. Michael Davis doubled to started off the second inning with his ninth double. Davis moved to third on an Ariel Montesino single and that’s when things got crazy. With Akil Badoo batting, Davis stole home and Montesino stole second on the same play. Cedar Rapids plated another three runs in the fourth inning. Montesino attempted a sacrifice bunt after two singles from David Banuelos and Michael Davis, but a throwing error allowed two runs to score, he moved to third on the error and then scored on a Gabriel Maciel sac fly. Tyler Watson retired 10 straight batters at one point and tied a season high with seven innings pitched. He struck out eight and walked three on the way to his fifth victory. Moises Gomez pitched the final two frames and allowed a two-run home run in the final inning. Cedar Rapids improved to a season-best 12 games over .500 overall at 72-60. The Kernels secured their fourth consecutive series win. E-TWINS E-TALK Elizabethton 9, Bristol 4 Box Score Elizabethton pounded out 19 hits and was able to cruise to a Sunday evening victory. Trevor Casanova lead the offensive charge by going 4-for-6 with two doubles. Albee Weiss matched Casanova with four hits. Yeltsin Encarnacion reached base four times and drove in two runs. Alex Robles, Chris Williams, and Yunior Severino all had multiple hits. Kody Funderburk pitched into the sixth inning (5 1/3 innings) and allowed four runs on eight hits. He struck out four and a walk. Pedro Garcia pitched 3 2/3 scoreless innings to finish off the game. He struck out two and walked two. STARS OF THE DAY Twins Daily Hitter of the Day: Trevor Casanova, Elizabethton (4-for-6, 2 2B, R, RBI) Twins Daily Pitcher of the Day: Dietrich Enns, Chattanooga (7.0 IP, 1 ER, 8 K, 2 BB, 3 H) TOP PROSPECT SUMMARY Here’s a look at how the Twins Daily Top 20 Twins Prospects performed. Please note that this Prospect Summary has been updated. 1. Royce Lewis (FM): 0-for-4 2. Alex Kirilloff (FM): 1-for-4, R, K 3. Brusdar Graterol (FM): Did not play. 4. Nick Gordon (ROC): 0-for-4, 2 K 5. Stephen Gonsalves (MIN): Did not play. 6. Trevor Larnach (CR): Did not play. 7. Brent Rooker (CHAT): 0-for-3, BB, K 8. Akil Baddoo (CR): 0-for-5, K 9. Wander Javier: Out of for the season 10. Zack Littell (ROC): Did not play. 11. Blayne Enlow (CR): Did not play. 12. LaMonte Wade (ROC): 0-for-4, BB, 2 K 13. Travis Blankenhorn (FM): 0-for-3 14. Lewis Thorpe (ROC): 5.2 IP, ER, 6 K, 2 BB, 5 H 15. Ben Rortvedt (FM): Did not play. 16. Yunior Severino (ET): 2-for-5, R, BB, 2 K 17. Lewin Diaz (FM): Did not play. 18. Ryan Jeffers (CR): 3-for-4, 2 R, RBI, K 19. Jacob Pearson (CR): 1-for-4, HR, 3 RBI, R, K 20. Luis Arraez (CHAT): 0-for-1 MONDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Rochester @ Syracuse (5:35 CST) – RHP Fernando Romero (5-5, 3.40 ERA) Chattanooga vs. Jacksonville (6:15 CST) – TBD Fort Myers vs. Bradenton (6:00 CST) – RHP Brusdar Graterol (4-2, 3.75 ERA) Cedar Rapids vs. Kane County (6:35 CST) – RHP Randy Dobnak (9-5, 3.23 ERA) Elizabethton vs. Pulaski (6:00 CST) – TBD Please feel free to ask any questions about Sunday’s games, or ask any questions you may have. Click here to view the article

Twins Daily Roundtable is a weekly series. As part of this series, a question will be posed to the site’s writers and they will respond in 200 words or less (Some writers don’t like to stick to this limit). This will give readers an opportunity to see multiple points of view and then add their own point of view in the comments section. Paul Molitor is nearing the end of his fourth season as the Minnesota Twins manager. During his first season, the Twins pushed for a playoff spot into the season’s last weeks. There were over 100 losses in 2016. He won AL Manager of the year in 2017 after the Twins bounced back to earn a Wild Card spot. Now in his fourth season, the club is sitting below the .500 mark. This week’s roundtable discussion question is: “How would you rank Paul Molitor’s managerial performance? Why?”Seth Stohs I think he's doing fine. A manager's role in wins and losses is vastly overstated (wins or losses). As for the lineup, I'd say he does just fine. He mixes it up pretty well and isn't married to certain hitters in certain spots. Bullpen usage is where most find fault. I definitely think he has a tendency to overwork the reliable relievers which, practically, is understandable. But he will need to find a way to trust others to try to keep those top guys from wearing down. He's obviously well respected in the clubhouse, but I don't know what we can really comment on his role in there. We just don't know. A manager can't be at all places. In terms of analytics, he certainly has the people around him that will encourage it. This is an impossible question to answer with any certainty. Managers usually get too much credit when the team wins, and they get too much of the blame when things go bad. Tom Froemming I'd give him a D. We're not at the point where I'm demanding he be fired, but I definitely think the team would be better off with someone else running the show. I'm happy to see the Twins are bunting much less frequently this year, but I'm still depressed at how inefficiently the bullpen has been managed. There's also no shortage of strange lineup decisions. He seems to have no interest in providing opportunities for younger players and caters to the veterans far too often. I have a lot of respect for Paul Molitor. He's certainly knows more about baseball than I do, but expertise doesn't always translate to management. Cody Christie Expectations were high for the Twins heading into the 2018 season and things haven’t exactly gone as planned. Falvey and Levine seemed to have put together some strong pieces to build off of last season’s playoff run. However, no one could have predicted the lack of production from Miguel Sano, Byron Buxton, and Brian Dozier. There’s little a manager can do if the team’s best players aren’t performing or aren’t even on the roster. I honestly think the front office will decided to go in a different direction this off-season. I believe Falvey and Levine are going to want to bring in someone younger that fits the mold of “being their guy.” They could give Molitor one more chance to see what he does with the club next year but Minnesota won’t have the likes of Sano and Buxton around forever. If the time isn’t now, when will it be? Overall grade, C- but he moves to a C+ with extra credit for AL Manager of the Year. Ted Schwerzler Molitor was put in a difficult position, but he also hasn’t done himself any favors. This front office likely would’ve hired their own guy had they not been mandated to do otherwise. He saved his skin by winning Manager of the Year in 2017, but he’s continued many of his poor habits this season. Bullpen usage has been questionable, in-game strategy leaves something to be desired, and lineup configuration has been head-scratching at times. Nothing he’s done has been egregious, but the sum of all parts seems average at best. It’s hard to gauge his relatability to this roster without being in the clubhouse, but I tend to believe there’re better options in that department. On a grading scale, I’d tag him with a C-. Regardless of his three-year deal, which did seem odd, I don’t know that Falvey and Levine won’t move on this winter anyways. Steve Lein I'll begin this one by pointing out the cliche that managers get too much of the credit for winning and too much of the blame for losing. The players hit, pitch, and play defense while managers really can only make personnel decisions and have situational influence. But that is where good managers can make their mark. As far as personnel decisions go, Molitor doesn’t get a passing grade from me. Overuse of bullpen pitchers has quite clearly affected their performance. Platoon advantages have not been utilized enough. At times I've thought it was like he's spinning a roulette wheel with players names on it to figure out the lineup order he'd throw out. The up and down records of his his teams during his tenure also tells me he may not have that special sauce that extracts the best out of most of his players consistently. That's one idea I do think the great managers accomplish. When it comes to the situational side during a game, outside of his use of the bullpen, I do think Molitor does well. He's embraced shifting on defense, I don't think they've done much bunting, and based on his Hall Of Fame playing career I know he’s seen it all. I trust him to make the correct decisions in that sense. Overall, I’d rank him around the middle of MLB managers, but his time is running out. SD Buhr This is really a tough question. Obviously, you can’t say Paul Molitor has been an incredibly good manager at this point, based on the results on the field, even though last season’s second half was certainly encouraging. But I’m not really sure you can lay the lack of success this season purely at his feet, either. While most of us were looking for a strong year as they prepared for spring training, I think if you’d have told us then that Polanco and Santana would each miss the entire first half of the season and Sano and Buxton would spend so little time on the active roster, our expectations might have been more muted. I’m not sure you can blame the manager for not winning more games when those major pieces were absent. Personally, I’d probably give him an overall grade of C+ and, based on that, I won’t really have any objection whether the front office decides to keep him around or bring in someone new. If you missed any of the most recent roundtable discussions, here are the links: Closing Time Prospect Promotions Hall of Fame Impact Baseball in 2028 Floundered Click here to view the article

Another top Twins prospect is set to make his big league debut. Stephen Gonsalves will take the place of the injured Ervin Santana. Since being promoted to Triple A this season, Gonsalves has posted a 2.96 ERA with 95 strikeouts in 100.1 innings. The 24-year old lefty has been one of the team’s top pitching prospects throughout his time in the organization. Before Gonsalves makes his debut, there was plenty of other Sunday action down on the farm.ROSTER MOVES OF Robbie Grossman returned to the Twins after ending his rehab assignment with Rochester.RHP Alan Busenitz was recalled from Rochester to Minnesota.RED WINGS REPORTRochester 3, Toledo 4 (10 Innings) Box Score Kennys Vargas got the scoring started for the Red Wings with a solo home run in the fourth inning. It was his 19th long ball of the season. Vargas also drove in the tying run in the top of the ninth. Byron Buxton and Gregorio Petit had both walked before Vargas popped a single to left. In extra-innings, Juan Graterol drove in LaMonte Wade, the runner that started on second. Rochester was up 3-2 but it wouldn’t last. On the mound, Ryan Eades pitched four scoreless inning, striking out five and walking one. Luke Bard surrendered two runs on three hits and two walks in 1 2/3 innings. Ryne Harper calmed some of the storm with 2 1/3 scoreless innings while adding a pair of strikeouts. John Curtiss took the loss, his fourth. He allowed one earned run (two total runs) on four hits in the final frame. CHATTANOOGA CHATTER Chattanooga 2, Montgomery 6 Box Score Chattanooga was staked to an early lead after a two-run double off the bat of Brian Navarreto. Jaylin Davis and Chris Paul had both drawn two-out walks to get on ahead of the Navarreto extra-base knock. Unfortunately, that’s where the scoring ended for the Lookouts. Jorge Alcala pitched into the fourth inning (3 2/3 innings) by allowing three earned runs on five hits. He struck out six and walked four. Cody Stashak took over for Alcala and limited the Biscuits to one hit in 2 1/3 innings. Anthony Marzi allowed one earned run (two total runs) on five hits with two strikeouts in two innings. The Lookouts left eight men on base and went 2-for-5 with runners in scoring position. Navarreto was the only batter with an extra-base knock. Zander Wiel reached base three times out of the lead-off spot. MIRACLE MATTERS Fort Myers 0, Clearwater 2 Box Score Fort Myers had won nine straight series but that came to an end on Sunday. Griffin Jax started and went six innings for the 11th time in his last 13 starts. Both runs scored came on the same play. Jax gave up an RBI triple but then the relay throw soared into the Miracle dugout. Jax struck out four and didn’t walk any. The Miracle bullpen combined for three scoreless frames. Hector Lujan was asked to get one out. Ryan Mason allowed two hits and struck out one in 1 2/3 innings. Kevin Marnon finished off the game with a scoreless ninth as he struck out one. Alex Kirilloff went 3-for-4 and is hitting .375 in the Florida State League. He extended his on-base streak to 31 games. Aaron Whitefield added his fifth double as part of a two-hit day. Caleb Hamilton had one hit but it was his 17th double. Overall, the team went 0-for-4 with runners in scoring position. Charlotte lost on Sunday so Fort Myers remains 0.5 games back in the second half South Division standings. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 3, Wisconsin 2 Box Score Edwar Colina set a career high with 10 strikeouts as he helped the Kernels to improve to 66-59 on the season. It was the sixth consecutive quality start for Colina as he only allowed one run in 6 1/3 innings. He also took over the team lead for strikeouts (95) by passing Bailey Ober (88). Michael Helman gave Colina some early support as he cracked a solo shot in the first inning. It was his first Midwest League home run. The Kernels added to their lead in the seventh after David Banuelos hit a double and moved to third on an error. Akil Baddoo drove him in with a single. In the ninth inning, Michael Davis gave Cedar Rapids an insurance run with a solo home run. Trevor Larnach went 2-for-3 and reached base a third time with a walk. Moises Gomez earned a save the hard way by tossing 2 2/3 innings. He allowed one run on two hits and struck out a pair. E-TWINS E-TALK Elizabethton 5, Johnson City 3 (Game 1- 7 Innings) Box Score In the completion of a game suspended on August 1st, the E-Twins were able to pull away from Johnson City. Elizabethton had scored a first-inning run after Lean Marrero and Trevor Larnach notched back-to-back doubles. Marrero helped add to the lead with an RBI single in the fourth frame. Colton Burns would also single to push the club up 3-1. Johnson City tied things in the bottom of the fourth but the E-Twins found a way to get back on top. Ricky De La Torre collected a one-out single and moved to second after Jared Akins was hit by a pitch. Robert Molina singled to drive in the go-ahead run. Luis Rijo had originally started the game and went two innings by allowing one earned run. He struck out two and walked one. Carlos Suniaga pitched all five innings on Sunday. Two unearned runs were scored against him but he still earned his second victory. He struck out six and didn’t walk any. Elizabethton 0, Johnson City 6 (Game 2- 7 Innings) Box Score Johnson City jumped out to an early 2-0 lead and didn’t look back. Josh Winder started and allowed two earned runs on six hits. He struck out five and walked one. J.T. Perez pitched a pair of scoreless innings before running into trouble in the seventh. He allowed four runs on two hits and three walks in 2 1/3 innings. Juan Gamez got the final two outs but he did allow so inherited runners to score. The E-Twins only had four opportunities to bat with runners in scoring position. Ricky De La Torre had his eighth double, the team’s only extra-base hit. STARS OF THE DAY Twins Daily Hitter of the Day: Alex Kirilloff, Fort Myers (3-for-4, 31-game on-base streak) Twins Daily Pitcher of the Day: Edwar Colina (6.1 IP, 1 ER, 10 K, 3 BB, 5 H) TOP PROSPECT SUMMARY Here’s a look at how the Twins Daily Top 20 Twins Prospects performed. Please note that this Prospect Summary has been updated. 1. Royce Lewis (FM): 0-for-4, 2 K 2. Alex Kirilloff (FM): 3-for-4 3. Brusdar Graterol (FM): Did not play. 4. Nick Gordon (ROC): 0-for-4, K 5. Stephen Gonsalves (MIN): Did not play. 6. Trevor Larnach (CR): 2-for-3, BB -(ET): 1-for-1, 2B, RBI (Completion 8/1) 7. Brent Rooker (CHAT): 0-for-4, 2 K 8. Akil Baddoo (CR): 1-for-5, RBI, 2 K 9. Wander Javier: Out of for the season 10. Zack Littell (ROC): Did not play. 11. Blayne Enlow (CR): Did not play. 12. LaMonte Wade (ROC): 0-for-3, R, BB 13. Travis Blankenhorn (FM): 0-for-4, K 14. Lewis Thorpe (ROC): Did not play. 15. Ben Rortvedt (FM): Did not play. 16. Yunior Severino (ET): 0-for-7, R, BB, 3 K 17. Lewin Diaz (FM): Did not play. 18. Ryan Jeffers (ET): Did not play. 19. Jacob Pearson (CR): Did not play. 20. Luis Arraez (CHAT): Did not play. MONDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Rochester – Scheduled Off-Day Chattanooga @ Montgomery (6:35 CST) – RHP Tyler Wells (0-2, 1.69 ERA) Fort Myers – Scheduled Off-Day Cedar Rapids @ Wisconsin (12:05 CST) – LHP Tyler Watson (4-6, 4.87 ERA) Elizabethton vs. Johnson City (5:00 CST) – TBD Elizabethton vs. Johnson City (Game 2) – TBD GCL Twins @ GCL Rays (11:00 am CST) – TBD Please feel free to ask any questions about Sunday’s games, or ask any questions you may have. Click here to view the article