Cody Christie

A rain delay in Detroit held up the start of the Twins game for an hour and a half. When the game got underway, it turned into a back and forth contest between the Tigers and the Twins. The Twins bash brothers of Josh Willingham and Trevor Plouffe each added another home run to their totals for the season as they continue to try and match each other for the team lead. Even Joe Mauer was able to hit his second home run in the past week with an opposite field home run in the later innings of the game. [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] Nick Blackburn left a few too many sinkers up in the zone and the Tigers offense was able to hit some balls out of the park. The bullpen for the Twins was able to keep some of the damage to a minimum by not allowing a run in their five innings of work. Have a safe and enjoyable 4th of July but make sure to check out what happened across the minor leagues on Tuesday night. ROCHESTER 5, PAWTUCKET 3 In the midst of a tough stretch of baseball where the Red Wings had lost five of their last seven games, Rochester was able to put together a huge seventh inning to come out victorious. One of the most miraculous things might have been the fact that all of the runs were scored after two outs had already been recorded in the inning. Clete Thomas and Rene Rivera hit back-to-back home runs to start the scoring in the frame. The other big hit in the frame was a double by Pedro Florimon to plate two runs and put the team up by two. The bullpen for the Red Wings has been outstanding in recent weeks and they have pitched 12.1 scoreless innings in a row. A starting pitcher hasn't picked up a victory for the Red Wings since June 25 and that trend continued on Tuesday with Bobby Lanigan picking up his first victory of the season for Rochester. Casey Fien pitched two perfect innings for his third hold of the year and he struck out four of the six men that he faced. NEW BRITAIN 14, BOWIE 7 The Rock Cats wasted little time jumping on the Baysox by starting a hit parade in the bottom of the first inning and exploding for ten runs. With this many runs on the board, there were plenty of offensive stars for New Britain. Estarlin De Los Santos was 2-for-5 with a double, a home run, and four RBI. Evan Bigley matched De Los Santos with four runs batted in and he also had a double. Chris Herrmann and Chris Colabello each piled up three hits over the course of the game. Danny Lehman was the only hitter to remain hitless in the game for New Britain. With all of the runs on the board, the pitching staff for New Britain didn't need to be perfect on this night. Blake Martin started the game but didn't make it through five innings before giving up six earned runs. Edgar Ibarra picked up his second win since being promoted from Fort Myers at the end of June. The last 3.1 innings were pitched by Daniel Sattler for his first save and he only surrendered one hit. FORT MYERS 11, ST. LUCIE 2 There were fireworks scheduled for after the game but the Miracle made sure the fans saw some during the game as Fort Myers piled up 13 hits against St. Lucie. Lance Ray was 2-for3 in the contest with his ninth home run of the year and three RBI. Daniel Ortiz also knocked in three runs with his two doubles in the game. It was a very balanced attack for the Miracle as five of the nine batters had multiple hits and six batters had at least one run batted in. After being saddled with the loss in each of his last three starts, Cole Nelson picked up his first victory since June 12. He threw five innings and was charged with two earned runs but he did give up five walks. In three innings of work, Marty Popham was almost perfect by allowing a couple of hits and striking out three. It was the third straight scoreless outing thrown by Popham. The Miracle sit one game behind Bradenton for first place. BELOIT 1, CEDAR RAPIDS 10 Unfortunately for the Snappers, they were on the wrong end of a blowout loss in this game. Beloit only managed four hits in the game and Adam Pettersen had half of those knocks. The only run of the game for Beloit was driven in by Adam Bryant with a single in the bottom of the fourth inning. After getting pulled from the game on Monday with three defensive errors, Miguel Sano was absent from the line-up on Tuesday night. For the second straight start, Tim Shibuya struggled and he was pulled after two innings and a couple of home runs allowed. Bart Carter allowed five earned runs in less than two innings on the mound but he did manage five strike outs. The only Snappers pitcher to survive without allowing a run was Clint Dempster and he struck out four of the six batters that he faced. ELIZABETHTON 7, PRINCETON 2 The month of July has been off to a fantastic start for Romy Jimenez as he has hit two double in every game so far this month. For the season, he is batting .444 and his OPS is an eye popping 1.447 in 11 games. Adam Walker hit his second home run of the season and he had three RBI in the contest. Travis Harrison was also able to knock in two runs with his couple of hits for the E-Twins. It seems that the Twins are being careful with the amount of innings pitched by Taylor Rogers as he has thrown four innings in all of his starts this year. On this night, he allowed two runs on a couple of hits but the big lead allowed him to pitch comfortably. Tyler Herr picked up his second win of the season and he has not allowed a run in his last five trips to the mound. GCL TWINS 3, GCL RAYS 2 After trailing for most of the game, the GCL Twins scored two runs in the bottom of the eighth inning to come out on top. Aderlin Mejia and Logan Wade lead the Twins with two hits apiece and each player had an extra-base hit to their credit. Dereck Rodriguez doubled in a run as part of the rally for the Twins and he later scored the winning run when Bryan Haar singled. Byron Buxton might of had his worst game as a professional by striking out three times in four plate appearances. Adrain Salcedo made his second appearance as he tries to return from injury. He made his first start and gave up two hits and two unearned runs in his two innings of work. Chris Mazza got his first victory of the year and his first victory as a professional. He threw 2.1 innings and struck out three to lower his ERA to 1.17. Jose Berrios got his first save by throwing a scoreless ninth. --- Players of the Day for Tuesday, July 3, 2012 Hitter of the Day- Estarlin De Los Santos http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-gOdjyQdGZmY/T_O60AXicrI/AAAAAAAACm4/d9nQKewbNIY/s320/RockCats.jpg Pitcher(s) of the Day- Red Wings Bullpen (12.1 inning scoreless streak) http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-XkMsrXHz5BU/T_O64-1fpRI/AAAAAAAACnA/ronnKtp688Q/s320/4553.gif --- A Look Ahead- Wednesday, July 4th Schedule Rochester vs Pawtucket- LHP Luke French New Britain vs Trenton- LHP Logan Darnell Fort Myers at Charlotte- RHP Matthew Hauser Beloit at Clinton- LHP Steven Gruver Elizabethton vs Kingsport- RHP Hudson Boyd GCL Twins vs. GCL Orioles- TBA GCL Twins at GCL Orioles- TBA --- If you have any questions or comments on the Twins minor league system, leave them in the comments section and Seth or I will try to answer them. Click here to view the article

As many lists of the top prospects from each team start to trickle out, it is looking more and more that Miguel Sano is the consensus number one prospect from the Twins organization. The young star from the Dominican Republic had an outstanding season for the Elizabethton Twins. He has begun to show some of the great promise the Twins saw in him when they signed him at age 16 to a $3.15 million signing bonus.At the time of Sano signing with the Twins, there were many questions swirling about his true age. In 2009, MLB completed an investigation into this issue but the results were inconclusive. Because of the age issues, Sano lowered his asking price to sign and some teams were still scared away by his high price tag. The Twins were the team to pull the trigger and they gave him the second highest signing bonus in team history behind Joe Mauer’s $5.15 million bonus in 2001. During this offseason, Albert Pujols, the best player to ever come out of the Dominican Republic, received a 10-year $240 million contract with the Angels. There are plenty of reports about teams that were questioning the age of Pujols when it came to contract negotiations. One national writer even suggested that Pujols should produce his birth certificate because of skepticism around his claim to be 31. This still didn't stop the Angels from investing in the best right-handed hitter of the current generation. The latest age related scandal to come out of the Dominican Republic has surfaced within the last week. Roberto Hernandez Heredia, the Cleveland Indians pitcher known as Fausto Carmona, was arrested for using a false identity to play baseball in the U.S. From the perspective of the Indians, one of the biggest issues, besides Heredia having trouble getting to the US, is the three-year age difference between Carmona's birth certificate and his true age. A 28-year old pitcher with a chance to turn it around is a completely different story when compared to a 31-year old player who might have already passed his prime. For players from the Dominican, there is plenty of pressure to find some way to lie about their age to escape the poverty they are subject to for all of their lives in their home country. According to Sports Illustrated on average, a 16-year old player brings in about $65,000 with their signing bonus. Add two years to their age and an 18-year old signs for an average of $20,000. That is a big difference in a country where the per capita income is only $8,900. A player who shows any sign of promise is going to try and "adjust" their age to put their family in a better place for the future. Major League Baseball and the MLB Players Association are working with their international baseball committee to find a way to solve this crisis with players from Latin America. They continue to stress with these players about the fact that the big money for any player is when they get to the major league level. A big signing bonus will look good at first but the goal should be to make it to the big league level and succeed there to get a big contract. Obviously, only a small portion of these signees are going to make it all the way to the majors so the temptation is still going to be there to change their age. For all other players trying to fudge the numbers on their birth certificate, the case around Roberto Hernandez Heredia (a.k.a. Fausto Carmona) could be a benchmark for the consequences they have the potential to face. If the Dominican Republic imposes a harsh penalty on Heredia, other prospects might be scared away from altering their identity in the future. The United States could also make it very tough for Heredia to enter the States in the future. As ridiculous as it seems for a baseball player to be considered a terrorist, the use of an illegal identity to gain entrance to the US could be seen as an act of terrorism. For the Twins and Sano, he was reported as a 16-year old out of the Dominican Republic when he signed in 2009. This past season he was listed as an 18-year old and the younger players on the roster of the Elizabethton Twins. His young age is a very intriguing part of his prospect status. If the Twins were suddenly to find out that Sano was three years older than originally advertised, how would this change the future of the number one prospect in the organization? A difference of age by only a couple of years for Sano probably wouldn’t have changed the minor league level he was playing at last season. If he were older, the organization might be forced to rush him through some of the levels of the farm system. There are still some raw parts to his game and the extra time he is going to get in the minor leagues will be a positive for him. If there are any issues with Sano’s age, they shouldn’t impact the Twins until it comes to signing him to a contract extension. This won’t come for many years and not until he has proven himself at the MLB level. In ten years, the Twins could find themselves in a variety of different situations. Sano might not ever pan out in the minor leagues and the possibility is there for him to never make it to the MLB level in a worst-case scenario. With the investment the Twins have made, there is very little chance that he will not get at least a taste of the big leagues. After a few mediocre seasons, the organization could find themselves in a similar situation to the Indians; Sano’s real age could be released and the team might have to think hard about his future. The best situation for Sano and the Twins would be if he were to follow in the footsteps of Pujols and turn into an All-Star caliber player for multiple seasons. To fans of the Twins, it won't matter what age Sano is if he has a career anywhere close to Pujols. The more prying issue could be if he has been using a false identity to illegally enter the US. Losing a star player in the prime of his career because of visa issues would be a crushing blow to any franchise. Sano might be the best player to come through the Twins minor league system since Joe Mauer and the future of the franchise could be tied to his birth certificate. Click here to view the article

The Florida State League announced that Byron Buxton was that league's player of the week. In games played from July 14-20 and he went 10-for-20 at the plate with one triple, two home runs, four runs batted in and scored six runs. Buxton is currently listed as day-to-day after being hit on the wrist by a pitch. He is expected to be back in the line-up by the end of this week. There were a few different roster moves made throughout the system on Tuesday. Yohan Pino was recalled by the Twins to make the start at Target Field. To make room for him, the team sent Monday's starter Kris Johnson back to Rochester. Relief pitcher Alex Muren was promoted from Cedar Rapids to Fort Myers. Over 29 appearances, he had a 2.89 ERA with 44 strikeouts and eight walks. RED WINGS REPORT Rochester 4, Durham 0 Box Score While making a spot start for only the fourth time this season, Mark Hamburger was dominant over seven shutout innings. He struck out a career high nine batters, walked none, and limited the strong Bulls roster to four singles. It was the first time a Wings pitcher tossed at least seven shutout innings since the middle of June. Ryan Pressly finished the final two innings of the shutout by striking out four and only allowing two base runners. Josmil Pinto led the offensive charge with a two hit night including his fifth double and his eighth RBI. Deibinson Romero helped spark the first run of the game with his International League leading 29th double. Nate Hanson and James Beresford joined the doubles party with one two-bagger each. It was the first road shutout for Rochester since August 11th of last season. Tuesday's have also been very good to the Red Wings. They have a 10-3 record on Tuesday and they haven't lost on Tuesday since May 27th. The team's four doubles tonight give them an International League best 220 on the season. ROCK CATS REVIEW New Britain 9, Altoona 10 Box Score The Rock Cats offense was hot at the beginning of the game combining for nine runs in the first three frames. Altoona got out to a hot start too with a five run first and they capped off their scoring with two ninth inning runs to take back the lead. Virgil Vasquez had a rough day on the mound. He allowed 13 hits and eight runs over four innings. Matthew Summers coughed up the lead after a trio of Rock Cats relievers combined to shut down the Curve offense for four frames. It was the second blown save for Summers and dropped his record to 2-4. Eddie Rosario cracked two home runs and a double. He knocked in four runs and scored three runs to cap quite the offensive night. Brandon Waring and Brad Boyer joined the hit parade with two hits apiece. Mike Kvasnicka only had one hit but he knocked in two runs. MIRACLE MATTERS Fort Myers 7, Brevard County 6 (12 Innings) Box Score The Miracle had to use multiple comebacks to stay in this game. Fort Myers was shutout until the eighth inning but they team combined for four runs in the last two frames to push this one into extras. The Manatees scored two in the top of the 11th inning and the Miracle had to answer back to push this one further into the night. Ethan Mildren started this contest but he would be long gone before a decision was made. He lasted six innings and allowed four runs while striking out five. It was the first time he had gone six innings since being called up from Cedar Rapids. Madison Boer gave up the two runs in the eleventh but the team bailed him out. Tyler Grimes did it all in this game as his fourth hit of the night turned out to be the walk-off hit. He also had two doubles, two runs batted in, and two runs scored. He also had two outfield assists as he threw out a runner at second and at third. Jorge Polanco hit his 18th double of the season as part of a two hit night. Mike Gonzalez reached base four times including two walks and a double. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids had a scheduled off day after taking a 10 hour bus ride to Kentucky. The Kernels start a series with Bowling Green on Wednesday as the start of a six game road swing. Former first round pick Kohl Stewart is the scheduled starter tomorrow. E-TWINS E-NOTES Elizabethton 2, Bluefield 7 Box Score The E-Twins almost matched the Blue Jays in hits on this night but the big hits weren't there. Even though the club combined for nine hits, none of them were for extra-bases. The team went 3-for-12 with runners in scoring position and they combined to leave nine runners on base. A trio of players including Jeremias Pineda, Trey Vavra, and Pat Kelly all went 2-for-4. Pineda stole his ninth base of the season but he also was caught stealing for the fourth time. Nick Gordon was held hitless for only the third time in the last ten games. He also had his fifth error of the year at shortstop. Sam Gibbons started for Elizabethton and he went five frames while giving up four runs on seven hits. He struck out one and walked two. It was the fewest amount of strikeouts he's had all season after averaging over 6.5 per game coming into this start. GCL TWINS TAKES GCL Twins 0, GCL Rays 3 (Suspended- Rain) Box Score This game was suspended by rain in the third inning. The two squads will complete this game tomorrow unless weather gets in the way for a second day in a row. Look for a full report on this game in Wednesday's Minor League Report at Twins Daily. TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day – Mark Hamburger, Rochester Red Wings Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day – Eddie Rosario, New Britain Rock Cats WEDNESDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Rochester @ Durham (6:05 CST) – Alex Meyer (Listen) Altoona @ New Britain (11:05am CST) – Pat Dean (Listen) Brevard County @ Ft. Myers (10:35am CST) – Brett Lee (Listen) Cedar Rapids @ Bowling Green (7:05 CST) - Kohl Stewart (Listen) Elizabethton @ Bluefield (6:05 CST) - Matt Batts GCL Rays @ GCL Twins (11:00am CST) – TBD GCL Rays @ GCL Twins (Completion of Tuesday's game) You can follow me on Twitter @NoDakTwinsFan and check out my writing at NoDakTwinsFan.com

Welcome to the unofficial midpoint of the 2014 Twins season. After teasing fans for different portions of the first half, the Twins find themselves in a familiar position at the break, last place in the AL Central. The Twins enter the break six games under .500 and 10.5 games behind the Detroit Tigers for the top spot in the division. Even though the team's record might not show it, there have been some positive things happening for the Twins this year. Kurt Suzuki and Phil Hughes are looking like fantastic free agent signings. Brian Dozier is in the midst of a breakout season at the plate. Even Kyle Gibson has started to look like he will be a long-term option as a starting pitcher. At the beginning of the season I made a preseason pick about who will be the best players on the Twins in four different award categories (MVP, Best Starter, Best Reliever, Best Rookie). Each of the awards below has been named after someone that optimizes that award for the Twins organization. There are some legends from the past and even one current MLB player but all have had a significant place in Twins lore. Harmon Killebrew First-Half MVP: Brian Dozier, 2B Preseason Pick: Joe Mauer, 1B Joe Mauer is always the safe pick at the beginning of the season and it seems that he has continued to disappoint in recent years. This makes it easy to look at the team and give the first half MVP to Brian Dozier. He has 10 more home runs than any other player on the roster. His 69 runs scored are the most in the American League. He also leads the team in RBI and stolen bases. All of these offensive numbers are great but he also makes some tremendous plays on the defensive side of the ball. His batting average is always going to be low but he seems to have all of the other tools to be part of the Twins long-term rebuilding process. Johan Santana Pitcher of the First Half: Phil Hughes, RHP Preseason Pick: Ricky Nolasco, RHP In the preseason I had the right idea to pick one of the free agent starters the Twins had signed. However I elected to go with the wrong man. Rick Nolasco has struggled during his first 18 starts with the Twins while Phil Hughes has looked like a brand new pitcher. Hughes leads the Twins in wins, innings pitched, and WAR. He's also only walked 11 batters the entire season for a eye popping 0.81 BB/9 rate. To put that in perspective, no other Twins starter has allowed fewer than 2 BB/9. There have been some rough starts for Hughes leading into the break so it will be interesting to see what kind of pitcher he looks like at the start of the second half. Rick Aguilera Relief Pitcher of the First Half: Casey Fien, RHP Preseason Pick: Glen Perkins, LHP This was one of the toughest picks to make but looking deeper at the numbers it made my decision a little easier. Casey Fien and Glen Perkins could both be considered for this award but I give the slight edge to Fien. Perkins will always strikeout more batters than Fien but Fien has been asked to fill a very important late inning role. He does a great job of limiting damage when he comes into games because almost 83% of the time he is able to leave runners on base. Perkins left on base percentage is under 65%. Fien's ERA and WHIP are both lower than Perkins and Fien has pitched the second most innings out of the bullpen behind long-man Anthony Swarzak. This will be a race to watch in the second half as both players are having good seasons up to this point. Rod Carew Rookie of the First Half: Danny Santana, SS/OF Preseason Pick: Josmil Pinto, C Both Josmil Pinto and Danny Santana did some good things in the first half but my vote goes to Santana. He has seemed to be a spark plug for the line-up when he is in the game. While his natural position is in the infield, the team has been forced to move him to the outfield because of injury issues. He was able to continue to produce in the outfield as well. In 37 games, he has been a threat on the bases with six steals to his name. He also has accumulated the same amount of runs scored and RBI as Pinto in fewer plate appearances. Pinto provides the power but Santana's overall game has been a big asset to the Twins in the first half. Now it's your turn. Who would you pick for each of the above awards? Leave a COMMENT and start the discussion.

The festivities are underway in the Twin Cities as Minnesota plays host to the MLB All-Star Game. The major league players still had games to play on Sunday but the some of the best and brightest minor league players were on hand to strut their stuff. Twins pitching prospect Jose Berrios got the start for the World squad and Kennys Vargas was in the middle of the batting order to back him up. Berrios struck out the first batter he faced on a high fastball and both of the other batters flied out. Vargas played the entire game and he collected a double in four plate appearances. He also made a nice leaping catch at first and a couple of nice scoops. Alex Meyer pitched the fifth inning for the US and earned a hold. The first two batters made decent contact against him but luckily one of those hits was right at a fielder. Meyer got a double play to end the inning and he only needed four pitches to get his job done. While these three players were busy with a big event, their teams were busy still trying to win games. Here's a look at how their teams did on Sunday. RED WINGS REPORT Rochester --, Scranton/Wilkes Barre -- (Postponed) Rain put a damper on what was supposed to be the unofficial end of the first half for the Rochester Red Wings. Trevor May was scheduled to make his first start since coming off of the DL but that will have to wait another day. Rochester had also ended a four game losing streak on Saturday so it would have been nice to keep the momentum going in the right direction. The game will be made up as part of a doubleheader on Saturday, August 23. Game one is scheduled for a 3:35 pm CST and both games will be seven innings long. ROCK CATS REVIEW New Britain 4, Reading 6 Box Score New Britain staked themselves to an early two run lead but Reading connected on four home runs as part of a 12-hit barrage to win the game. Jason Wheeler started for the Rock Cats. He went five innings and allowed five earned runs on 10 hits including three of the above mentioned four home runs. It was his third loss in five starts since being moved up from Fort Myers. Daniel Turpen relived Wheeler and pitched two innings. He gave up one hit but it happened to be a home run. Mason Melotakis pitched the last two frames and he kept the ball in the park. Over two shut-out frames he allowed one hit and struck out two. Reynaldo Rodriguez collected two hits including his 30th double of the season. It was the third time in his last ten games that he has collected multiple hits. Eddie Rosario had a double and scored a run. Lance Ray also collected his second double in only eight games since getting promoted. MIRACLE MATTERS Fort Myers 3, Dunedin 1 (Game 1- 7 innings) Box Score DJ Baxendale put together his best outing of the year for the Miracle as he tossed a complete game. He scattered five hits over seven innings and struck out two. Baxendale induced three double plays and recorded 12 outs on ground balls. He hadn't made it through more than six innings in any other start. Nate Roberts and Stuart Turner both knocked two hits and Roberts' triple was the lone extra-base hit. Byron Buxton went 1-for-2 with a run scored and his second stolen base of the season. His infield single was his first hit since coming off of the disabled list at the beginning of last week. MIRACLE MATTERS Fort Myers 8, Dunedin 4 (Game 2- 7 innings) Box Score In the second game of the doubleheader, the Miracle beat up on a familiar name, Dunedin starter Frank Viola Jr. He only lasted 2.1 innings and was charged with six earned runs as the Miracle pelted him with seven hits. Four Miracle hitters had at least two hits. Anderlin Mejia led the way going 3-for-3 with an RBI and a run scored. Adam Brett Walker had a couple of big hits as he knocked in two and hit his ninth double. Fort Myers patched together pitchers for the second half of the doubleheader. BJ Hermsen collected the win after tossing a scoreless second inning. Todd Van Steensel made his Miracle debut at Hammond Stadium and lasted 1.1 scoreless frames. Madison Boer shut the door by recording the last five outs without allowing a hit. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 7, Clinton 4 (Rain Shortened- 6 innings) Box Score One giant inning is all that it took for Cedar Rapids to earn the win. In the top of the sixth inning, the Kernels scored seven runs without recording an extra-base hit. Cedar Rapids has now won four games in a row including another rain shortened game on Saturday. In that big sixth inning, the Kernels sent 11 men to the plate. The team recorded five singles and took advantage of one defensive error. The first four hitters all reached base. It matched the largest run-scoring inning for the Kernels on the season. Four Cedar Rapids hitters (Logan Wade, Chad Christensen, Jason Kanzler, and Alex Smith) had two hits. Swim hit the only Kernels extra-base hit, a double. Lewis Thorpe pitched the first four innings by allowing three earned runs on four hits. He struck out five and didn't walk anyone. Brandon Bixler earned his sixth victory of the season with all of them coming out of the bullpen. He allowed one run over two innings with a strikeout. Hudson Boyd earned the save since he was on the mound when the game was called. E-TWINS E-NOTES Elizabethton 10, Danville 6 Box Score The E-Twins brought a consistent offensive approach to pound out 10 runs on 16 hits. Max Murphy reached base four times and scored three runs. He also hit his sixth home run of the season in the ninth inning. Tyler Kuresa went 2-for-4 with a home run. All of the hitters in the batting order from first to seventh had a minimum of two hits with the exception being Nick Gordon (1-for-6 with a run scored). Michael Cederoth was credited with his second professional victory in as many appearances. He allowed three runs over five innings with four strikeouts and two walks. CK Irby got hit around a little in his second inning of work. He gave up two runs on four hits but it wasn't enough to get Danville back into the game. TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day – DJ Baxendale, Fort Myers Miracle Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day – Max Murphy, Elizabethton Twins MONDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Rochester- Scheduled Off Day Reading @ New Britain (11:05 CST) – Tyler Duffey (Listen) Dunedin @ Ft. Myers (6:05 CST) – TBD (Listen) Cedar Rapids @ Clinton (6:30 CST) - Ryan Eades (Listen) Elizabethton @ Danville (6:00 CST)- Stephen Gonsalves GCL Twins @ GCL Rays (11:00am CST) – TBD

Welcome to July! Minnesota's offense busted out the fireworks a couple days early with a big performance against the Royals. The biggest news of the night might have been Joe Mauer being pulled from the game with what is being called an oblique strain. Mauer told reporters after the game that he has been dealing with a sore oblique for about a week and it doesn't feel good. This is bad news especially since Mauer's bat had seemed to be warming up in recent weeks. The Twins offense wasn't the only one to explode on Tuesday. Let's look around the minor leagues to see who's hot and who's not. RED WINGS REPORT Rochester 15, Norfolk 11 Box Score Rochester went on a scoring rampage of their own pounding out 15 runs on 19 hits. Chris Colabello cranked out two home runs and Wilkin Ramirez collected five hits to help the offensive charge. Chris Herrmann went 2-for-4 with a home run and he now has a season-high six game hitting streak. Eric Farris has a seven game hitting streak of his own and he leads the team with 29 multi-hit games. On the mound, Kris Johnson did just enough to pick up his seventh win of the season. He last five innings and gave up four runs on six hits. Edgar Ibarra saw his 15.1 inning scoreless streak come to an end in a big way. In relief of Johnson, he was charged with five earned runs on only three hits. Aaron Thompson did well to stop some of the bleeding at the end of the game by tossing two shutout innings. ROCK CATS REVIEW New Britain 9, Binghamton 6 Box Score New Britain rode a five-run first inning to an early lead and the team was able to hold back the charging Mets. Eddie Rosario and Mike Kvasnicka each hit a home run to help the cause. Rosario reached base in three at-bats and scored two runs. Aaron Hicks showed some positive signs by going 2-for-3 with a run scored. Reynaldo Rodriguez has been a doubles machine this year as he hit his 24th double in this game. Jason Wheeler picked up his second win in three starts since being promoted from Fort Myers. He went six frames and was charged with three earned runs. He struck out five and he has yet to allow more than three runs in any of his Double-A action. Mark Hamburger struck out five batters in only two innings of relief work but it took him 45 pitches to get through those innings. MIRACLE MATTERS Fort Myers 4, Bradenton 5 Box Score The Miracle rallied for two runs in the ninth inning and three runs over the last three frames but it still wasn't enough to overcome an early deficit. Lance Ray got the scoring started early with a first inning home run. After that the Fort Myers offense went cold until the late innings. At one point 16 Miracle batters were retired in a row. Alex Wimmers was strong in relief as he threw five scoreless frames before giving up two runs in his sixth inning of work. BJ Hermsen took the loss after surrendering three runs on five hits over two innings. There was a lengthy weather delay after the second inning which caused Hermsen to be pulled early. Travis Harrison and Max Kepler each had a double, the 21st for Harrison and the 8th for Kepler. Jorge Polanco went 0-for-4 in his second game back after his brief taste of the big leagues. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 0, Wisconsin 1 (12 innings) Box Score It turned into a long evening in Wisconsin as the Kernels and the Timber Rattlers decided nine innings wasn't enough to decide this game. In fact, it took 12 innings and the game almost lasted until after midnight in the Central Timezone. After all of those innings and all of that time, the Kernels found themselves on the short end of the stick. Cedar Rapids had a grand total of four hits over 12 frames. Two of those hits came off of the bat of Jason Kanzler. Bryan Haar and Zack Granite also added singles. The team went 0-for-7 with runners in scoring position and they left seven runners on base. They also couldn't capitalize on three defensive errors committed by Wisconsin. Aaron Slegers started the game but he would long gone before a decision was made in this one. He last five innings and limited the Timber Rattlers to two hits. Brandon Bixler and Dallas Gallant kept the shutout going by combining for four scoreless frames. Jared Wilson took the loss as he gave up a walk, a sac-bunt, and then the game winning hit. E-TWINS E-NOTES Elizabethton 4, Johnson City 8 Box Score After ending the month of June on a three-game winning streak, the E-Twins saw that streak come to a screeching halt. The team was only able to muster up four hits including a 2-for-3 night from Dutch Doel. Nick Gordan went 1-for-5 including his third stolen base. He also committed his second error of the season on a throw. The team left seven runners on base. Stephen Gonsalves scattered seven hits and limited the Cardinals to four runs. Cameron Booser kept Elizabethon in the game by pitching three shut-out innings with two strikeouts. Randy LeBlanc took the loss as he gave up three run in the bottom of the eighth inning. GCL TWINS TAKES GCL Twins 7, GCL Rays 8 Box Score There wasn't a lot of solid pitching in this match-up as the teams combined for 29 hits and 15 runs. The Twins held multiple leads in this game but costly error meant three late unearned runs. Alexis Tapia tossed four innings of two-run ball to start the game but he didn't figure into the decision. Miles Nordgren took the loss but he didn't give up an earned run after Rainis Silva had a fielding error at first. Manuel Guzman and Amaurys Minier each had three hits and they combined to go six-for-nine in the game. Minier is batting .407/.500/.630 in eight games this season with four extra-base hits. The lone extra-base hit for the Twins came off the bat of Jack Barrie, his firs double of the year. The club went 3-for-10 with runners in scoring position and that was the difference in the game. TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day – Jason Wheeler, New Britain Rock Cats Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day – Chris Colabello, Rochester Red Wings WEDNESDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Rochester@ Pawtucket (5:15 CST) – Sean Gilmartin (Listen) Binghamton@ New Britain (6:05 CST) – Tyler Duffey (Listen) Ft. Myers@ Bradenton (5:30 CST) – Tim Shibuya (Listen) CedarRapids @ Wisconsin (7:05 CST) - Lewis Thorpe (Listen) Elizabethton-Scheduled Off Day GCL Rays @GCL Twins (11:00am CST) – TBD

[COLOR=black]Minnesota will host the All-Star Game in a little more than a couple weeks and this is the time of year where pundits start debating who should and who shouldn't be on the All-Star Game roster.[/COLOR] [COLOR=black]One of the most exciting events in the almost 30 years since Minnesota last hosted the game is the Home Run Derby. In 1985,the last year the Twins were the host, the first HR Derby was held and this event has exploded to a full-day, prime-time event.[/COLOR] [COLOR=black]It's always nice for the home team to have a participant in the Derby but the Twins likely won't have a candidate when the final Derby teams are announced. If I were in the shoes of Troy Tulowitzki and Jose Bautista, this is how I would construct the rosters.[/COLOR] [B][I][COLOR=black]The Captains: Troy Tulowitzki, Jose Bautista[/COLOR][/I][/B] [COLOR=black]Major League Baseball already announced both these players as captains and they were both leading fan voting for the All-Star Game. Bautista will lead the AL squad which has won the last four contests. The Toronto slugger will return to the event for the third time. Tulowitzki will be participating in his first home run derby but he is in the middle of a monster season for Colorado. There have only been a handful of shortstops to participate in this event so it will be interesting to see how Tulo does.[/COLOR] [B][I][COLOR=black]Former Twins: Justin Morneau, Carlos Gomez[/COLOR][/I][/B] [COLOR=black]Since the Twins likely will not have a representative in this event, the closest thing to a Twin would be Justin Morneau. He spent the first 11 years of his career here and he would get one heck of an ovation from the Target Field fans. [URL="http://boston.redsox.mlb.com/news/article/mlb/rockies-shortstop-troy-tulowitzki-said-marlins-outfielder-giancarlo-stanton-will-complete-in-the-home-run-derby?ymd=20140628&content_id=82075246&vkey=news_mlb"]Tulowitzki has already said that he won't ask Morneau to participate in the event until rosters are announced[/URL] for the All-Star Game. Another former Twin who could be asked to participate is Carlos Gomez. Besides his connection to playing here, he's also from Minnesota's border state so the Brew Crew could be happy too. There's no doubt he would bring a certain flair to the event.[/COLOR] [B][I][COLOR=black]The Rest of the NL: Giancarlo Stanton,Yasiel Puig[/COLOR][/I][/B] [COLOR=black]While Tulowitzki is waiting to announce members of the squad, [URL="http://boston.redsox.mlb.com/news/article/mlb/rockies-shortstop-troy-tulowitzki-said-marlins-outfielder-giancarlo-stanton-will-complete-in-the-home-run-derby?ymd=20140628&content_id=82075246&vkey=news_mlb"]he has already come out and said thatGiancarlo Stanton will be participating.[/URL] Stanton is known for his shows in batting practice so it makes sense for him to participate in this event. He has never been a contestant and he will quickly become one of the favorites this year. Yasiel Puig is a sensational player and he can do some amazing things on the field. This event seems tailor made for his personality. The only question that remains is... Will he do a bat flip after every home run?[/COLOR] [B][I][COLOR=black]The Former Champion: Yoenis Cespedes[/COLOR][/I][/B] [COLOR=black]Last season Yoenis Cespedes beat out Bryce Harper to take home the HR Derby crown. If he wants to defend his title, he is going to have to do it in Minnesota. [URL="http://blog.sfgate.com/athletics/2014/06/25/as-yoenis-cespedes-plans-to-defend-home-run-derby-title/"]He's already told reporters in the Bay Area that he plans to defend his title[/URL]. This could also set-up an interesting Cuban match-up if both Cespedes and Puig are participants. No player has repeated as champion since Ken Griffey Jr back in 1998 and 1999.That's a long streak to break and Cespedes will have plenty of competition standing in his way.[/COLOR] [B][I][COLOR=black]The Rest of the American League: Mike Trout, Edwin Encarnacion, Chris Davis[/COLOR][/I][/B] [COLOR=black]Mike Trout is the best player in the world and it could be exciting to see what he can do when he's swinging for the fences with every pitch. Bryce Harper got to participate in last year's event so maybe it's Trout's turn. If Bautista is going to bring a teammate it could be Edwin Encarnacion, [URL="http://www.fangraphs.com/leaders.aspx?pos=all&stats=bat&lg=all&qual=y&type=8&season=2014&month=0&season1=2014&ind=0&team=0&rost=0&age=0&filter=&players=0&sort=5,d"]who is near the top of the AL leader board in home runs[/URL]. Jose Abreu said he didn't want to participate and Nelson Cruz had his steroid issue last year so Encarnacion could be a solid choice. A year ago, Chris Davis put on a solid showing in this event, finishing in fourth place so he might want another shot at the title. He also has the most home runs in the AL since the start of 2013. Sign him up.[/COLOR] [B][I][COLOR=black]My AL Team:[/COLOR][/I][/B] [COLOR=black]1. Jose Bautista- Toronto[/COLOR] [COLOR=black]2. Yoenis Cespedes- Oakland[/COLOR] [COLOR=black]3. Mike Trout- Los Angeles[/COLOR] [COLOR=black]4. Edwin Encarnacion- Toronto[/COLOR] [COLOR=black]5. Chris Davis- Baltimore[/COLOR] [B][I][COLOR=black]My NL Team:[/COLOR][/I][/B] [COLOR=black]1. Troy Tulowitzki- Colorado[/COLOR] [COLOR=black]2. Giancarlo Stanton- Miami[/COLOR] [COLOR=black]3. Justin Morneau- Colorado[/COLOR] [COLOR=black]4. Carlos Gomez- Milwaukee[/COLOR] [COLOR=black]5. Yasiel Puig- Los Angeles[/COLOR] View full article

Minnesota will host the All-Star Game in a little more than a couple weeks and this is the time of year where pundits start debating who should and who shouldn't be on the All-Star Game roster. One of the most exciting events in almost 30 years since Minnesota last hosted the game is the Home Run Derby. In 1985,the last year the Twins were the host, the first HR Derby was held and this event has exploded to a full-day prime-time event. It's always nice for the home team to have a participant in the derby but the Twins won't likely have a candidate when the final derby teams are announce. If I was in the shoes of Troy Tulowitzki and Jose Bautista, this is how I would construct the rosters. The Captains: Troy Tulowitzki, Jose Bautista Major League Baseball already announced both of these players as captains and they were both leading fan voting for theAll-Star Game. Bautista will lead the AL squad that has won the last four contests. The Toronto slugger will return to the event for the third time. Tulowitzki will be participating in his first home run derby but he is in the middle of a monster season for Colorado. There have only been a handful of shortstops to participate in this event so it will be interesting to see how Tulo can do. Former Twins: Justin Morneau, Carlos Gomez Since the Twins aren't likely going to have a representative in this event, the closest thing to a Twin would be Justin Morneau. He spent the first 11 years of his career here and he would get one heck of an ovation from the Target Field fans. Tulowitzki has already said that he won't ask Morneau to participate in the event until rosters are announced for the All-Star Game. Another former Twin that could be asked to participate is Carlos Gomez. Besides his connection to playing here, he's also from Minnesota's border state so the Brew Crew can be happy too. There's no doubt he would bring a certain flare to the event. The Rest of the NL: Giancarlo Stanton,Yasiel Puig While Tulowitzki is waiting to announce some members of the squad, he has already come out and said thatGiancarlo Stanton will be participating. Stanton is known for his shows in batting practice so it makes sense for him to participate in this event. He has never been a contestant and he will quickly become one of the favorites this year. Yasiel Puig is a sensational player and he can do some amazing things on the field. This event seems tailor made to his personality. The only question that remains is... Would he do a bat flip after every home run? The Former Champion: Yoenis Cespedes Last season Yoenis Cespedes beat out Bryce Harper to take home the HR Derby crown. If he wants to defend his title, he is going to have to do it in Minnesota. He's already told reporters in the Bay Area that he plans to defend his title. This could also set-up an interesting Cuban match-up if both Cespedes and Puig are participants. No player has repeated as champion since Ken Griffey Jr back in 1998 and 1999.That's a long streak to break and Cespedes will have plenty of competition standing in his way. The Rest of the American League: Mike Trout, Edwin Encarnacion, Chris Davis Mike Trout is the best player in the world and it could be exciting to see what he can do when he's swinging for the fences with every pitch. Bryce Harper got to participate in last year's event so maybe it's Trout's turn. If Bautista is going to bring a teammate, it could be Edwin Encarnacion, who is near the top of the AL leader board in home runs. Jose Abreu said he didn't want to participate and Nelson Cruz had his steroid issue last year so Encarnacion could be a solid choice. A year ago, Chris Davis put on a solid showing in this event finishing in fourth place so he might want another shot at the title. He also has the most home runs in the AL since the start of 2013 so sign him up. My AL Team: 1. Jose Bautista- Toronto 2. Yoenis Cespedes- Oakland 3. Mike Trout- Los Angeles 4. Edwin Encarnacion- Toronto 5. Chris Davis- Baltimore My NL Team: 1. Troy Tulowitzki- Colorado 2. Giancarlo Stanton- Miami 3. Justin Morneau- Colorado 4. Carlos Gomez- Milwaukee 5. Yasiel Puig- Los Angeles

On Tuesday afternoon, the rosters for the MLB Future's game were announced and it included two Twins players, Jose Berrios and Kennys Vargas. Word came out on Wednesday that Rochester Red Wings starter Trevor May would be added to US roster to replace Cardinals LHP Marco Gonzalez who made his big league debut. May is in the middle of a breakout season at Triple-A. Since the beginning of May, he's gone 7-3 with a 2.35 ERA over 10 starts. This could set up a situation similar to last year when the Mets had prospects as the starting pitchers for both the US and the World team.May could start for the US and Berrios could start for the World squad. Enough about the Futures Game, let's dive down on the pond. RED WINGS REPORT Rochester --, Scranton/WB -- (Postponed) The game between the Red Wings and the RailRiders was rained out on Wednesday night. The game will be made up as part of a doubleheader on Thursday, July 10. First pitch is scheduled to be at 4:35 CST and both games are scheduled to be seven innings. Earlier in the day, Rochester made a roster move by adding RHP Lester Oliveros from New Britain. To make room for him on the roster, the team sent RHP Mark Hamburger to Double-A. ROCK CATS REVIEW New Britain 3, Altoona 1 Box Score The Rock Cats rode a hot start from Taylor Rogers to win the rubber game of a three-game set with the Altoona Curve.Rogers tossed eight frames by allowing one on six hits. He struck out a career high 11 batters and improved to 7-4 on the season. He hasn't lost a game since June 3rd and he is 6-1 over his last ten outings. Matthew Summers earned his first save of the year by pitching a perfect ninth. Earlier in the day, the Twins reinstated Aaron Hicks from the disabled list and optioned him to New Britain. He lead-off for the Rock Cats but went 0-for-4 with a strikeout. Nate Hanson was the lone batter with multiple hits as he went 2-for-3 with a run scored. Brandon Waring had a big two-out RBI double that turned out to be the difference in the game.Reynaldo Rodriguez added his 21st double of the season. New Britain starts a five-game weekend series in New Hampshire on Thursday including a make-up game from April 15th. MIRACLE MATTERS Fort Myers 8, St. Lucie 6 Box Score The Miracle put themselves in an early 6-0 hole before the team even had a chance to bat. B.J. Hermsen was pelted for six runs on six hits in the first inning. After the rough start, he didn't allow another run and he made it through four innings. Alex Wimmers picked up the victory out of the bullpen with four shutout innings of work. He struck out four and limited the Mets to two hits. Fort Myers responded to St. Lucie big first inning with a strong inning of their own. The Miracle sent 11 men to bat and plated five runs in the frame. Even a 20 minute delay due to a lightning strike in the area couldn't stop the runs from being scored in the first. With the delay, the first inning took over an hour to complete and featured 21 hitters, 11 runs, nine hits, six walks, three different pitchers, and an error. Lance Ray's first home run of the season was a big one as he put the Miracle on top in the late innings. Nate Roberts went 3-for-4 with a double and two RBI. Niko Goodrum scored two runs and stole his 14th base of the season but his first inning error added to an already bad frame. KERNELS NUGGETS CedarRapids 1, Peoria 2 Box Score Kohl Stewart continues to impress on the mound but the Kernels are having a tough time backing up some of his stronger outings. He went five innings in this game and gave up two runs on six hits. Over his last ten starts, he has a 2.29 ERA and he has allowed more than two earned runs in only one of those outings. Unfortunately for him, the offense hasn't been there and he hasn't won a game since April 25th. The Kernels went 0-for-8 with runners in scoring position as the team left six men on base. J.D. Williams went 2-for-4 with two doubles and a run scored. His doubles were the only extra-base hits for the Kernels. Bryan Haar collected two hits. It was a rough night at the plate for Jason Kanzler as he struck out four times. E-TWINS E-NOTES Elizabethton 8, Burlington 0 Box Score Nick Gordon cracked his first professional home run to help the Elizabethton to their fourth win of the season. His three-run shot was part of a two hit night where he also scored two runs. Max Murphy also helped the cause with a two hits including his first home run of the young season. Tyler Kuresa had a double and an RBI. In his second start of the season,Stephen Gonsalves was very sharp to pick up his first victory. He struck out nine batters in six shutout innings. Keaton Steele earned a hold after pitching two innings and limiting Burlington to one base runner. Jake Reed closed out the shut out by striking out the side in the ninth. GCL TWINS TAKES GCL Twins 9, GCL Orioles 7 Box Score The GCL Orioles outhit the GCL Twins sixto 14 but the Orioles pitching staff allowed nine walks. The Twins were timely with their hits and four of the six hits were for extra-bases. It was the second straight day with a win for the Twins after losing their first three contests of the year. Four different pitchers helped the Twins to come out victorious. Josh Guyer started the game and tossed 3.1 innings by allowing three runs on five hits. He struck out two and walked one. Alexis Tapia earned his first victory as he gave up two runs over 2.2 frames. Trevor Hildenberger struck out three batters in his two innings of work. Nelson Molina was in the middle of most of the offensive action. He went 2-for-3 with two triples, two runs scored, and four RBI. Rafael Valera only collected one hit but he knocked in a couple runs and drew two walks. Dubal Baez and Jarrad Poteete both hit their third double of the season. TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day – Taylor Rogers, New Britain Rock Cats Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day – Nick Gordon, Elizabethton Twins THURSDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Rochester@ Lehigh Valley (6:05 CST) – Trevor May (Listen) NewBritain @ New Hampshire (6:05 CST) – Jason Wheeler (Listen) St. Lucie@ Ft. Myers (6:05 CST) – Tim Shibuya (Listen) CedarRapids @ Peoria (7:00 CST) - Aaron Slegers (Listen) Elizabethton@ Burlington (6:00 CST) – Sam Gibbons (Listen) GCLOrioles @ GCL Twins (11:00am CST) – TBD

If not for injuries to top prospects Miguel Sano and Byron Buxton, it's likely that both players would be heading to their second straight Futures Game. With both players on the shelf, the Twins will have the opportunity to showcase some of their other top talent on Sunday of All-Star week. The rosters were announced for the MLB Future's Game on Tuesday and the Twins will be represented by first baseman Kennys Vargas and right-handed pitcher Jose Berrios. Vargas is near the top of the Twins minor league leader board in almost every major offensive category. Berrios is in the midst of a breakout season in the Florida State League and he could be considered a top 50 prospect in all of baseball. Berrios pitched on Monday night so he wouldn't be part of Tuesday's action. Vargas has played at New Britain all season and Berrios could be well on his way to joining him with the Rock Cats. Let's see how New Britain did along with a jammed packed day in the minors. RED WINGS REPORT Rochester 7, Scranton/WB 5 Box Score The Red Wings didn't make it easy on this night as they found themselves in a back and forth contest with the RailRiders. Out of Rochester's ten hits, six of them were for extra-bases. The team was also able to overcome leaving 10 men on base and only notching two hits with runners in scoring position. The win snapped a three-game losing skid. Chris Colabello lead the way offensively going 2-for-5 with a home run, double and two RBI. It was his first home runs since June 20th and only his second home run in 29 Triple-A games this year. Eric Farris was back in the leadoff spot and he collected three hits and two RBI. Logan Darnell earned the victory but he wasn't exactly sharp. He tied a career-high with five walks and it was the second time in three starts that he had allowed that many free passes. He allowed three runs over five frames. Michael Tonkin earned his fifth save with a perfect ninth inning. ROCK CATS REVIEW New Britain 5, Altoona 2 Box Score The Rock Cats ended their 12-game winning streak on Monday so it was time to start a new winnings streak on Tuesday. Pat Dean tossed 6.2 frames while allowing one earned run on seven hits for his sixth win of the season. Cole Johnson and Lester Oliveros took care of the rest of the game as Altoona only had one base runner over the last 2.1 innings. New Britain's offense showed some strength with a trio of home runs. Mike Kvasnicka hit a two-run bomb in the second inning to start the scoring for the Rock Cats. Reynaldo Rodriguez and Brandon Waring added solo shots later in the game. Aaron Hicks continued his rehab assignment and went 0-for-2 with two strikeouts. Kennys Vargas got big news earlier in the day but he failed to pick up a hit in four trips to the plate. The Rock Cats are 13 games over .500 and the club has won 15 of their last 17 contests. MIRACLE MATTERS Fort Myers 7, Charlotte 6 (10th inning) Box Score It took two late inning lead changes and a clutch RBI triple from Stuart Turner in the 10th for the Miracle to sweep the Stone Crabs. It was the first extra-innings win for Fort Myers in 2014. Travis Harrison started the top of the tenth with his team-leading 20th double, a pinch hit, and Turner followed with the game-winning hit. The Miracle pounded out 15 hits including three hit efforts from Tuner, Lance Ray, and Aderlin Mejia. Ray collected two doubles and he scored a run while Mejia had two RBI. The team went 6-for-14 with runners in scoring position to help the cause. Fort Myers had to rely a lot on their bullpen in this game. DJ Baxendale lasted 4.2 innings while surrendering five runs on eight hits. Steven Gruver finished the fifth and pitched the next two frames without allowing a run. Tyler Jones was asked to get a two-inning save but he blew the lead in the bottom of the ninth. With the comeback, Jones earned his first victory of the season and Mason Melotakis struck out the side in the 10th for his first save. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 1, Peoria 3 Box Score Cedar Rapids scored the first run of this game but they would come up empty the rest of the way. The Kernels struggled to a total of five hits and one extra-base hit. Zack Granite led off the game with a double and he was knocked in a couple batters later by Chad Christensen. The four through eight hitters in the order didn't collect a hit and combined for eight strikeouts. Ethan Mildren pitched five innings and allowed three runs but he didn't get much offensive support. It was the second straight loss for Mildren after winning two straight starts. He's pitched at least five innings in nine of his last ten starts. Brandon Bixler was solid in relief as he allowed two hits and struck out two over two shutout innings. The loss dropped Cedar Rapids 11 games under the .500 mark. E-TWINS E-NOTES Elizabethton 6, Pulaski 9 (10 Innings) Box Score The E-Twins jumped out to any early 6-0 lead after only two innings but the bullpen faltered down the stretch allowing the Mariners to get back into the game. It was the second consecutive loss for Elizabethton after winning three of the team's first four games. On this night a wild pitch and a fielding error with two outs would cost the team the game. Three doubles in the first inning and two doubles in the second inning helped the E-Twins offense but the club wouldn't record another extra-base hit the rest of the way. Trey Vavra went 2-for-4 with a double and two RBI. Max Murphy knocked his second double of the year as part of a two hit night. Every starter for the Twins had at least one hit. Michael Cederoth started and pitched 2.2 shutout innings. Dereck Rodriguez earned his first hold of the year by throwing two innings and only allowing one unearned run. CK Irby had his first blown save of the year and Josue Montanez took the loss. Montanez didn't allow an earned run as a wild pitch and a fielding error proved costly. GCL TWINS TAKES GCL Twins 9, GCL Orioles 1 Box Score The GCL Twins had struggled out of the gate losing their first three contests of the year and things didn't start out too great in this one as the team found themselves in any early 1-0 hole. Luckily for the Twins, the Orioles didn't do much else after that and the Twins offense found some life. Roberto Gonzalez was hitless so far this season but that didn't stop him from collecting two doubles as part of a three hit effort. All three of Gonzalez's RBI came with two outs in the inning. Dubal Baez did a good job setting the table out of the lead-off spot. He went 3-for-5 with a double and three RBI. Michael Theofanopoulos earned his first victory of the season by throwing two shut-out innings with four strikeouts. Wilfredy Liranzo started the game and allowed one run on two hits with four strikeouts and three walks. Eduardo Del Rosario and Miles Nordgren locked down two innings apiece to notch the team's first victory. TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day – Pat Dean, New Britain Rock Cats Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day – Stuart Turner, Fort Myers Miracle WEDNESDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Rochester @ Scranton/WB (6:05 CST) – Kris Johnson (Listen) Altoona @ New Britain (11:05 CST) – Taylor Rogers (Listen) St. Lucie @ Ft. Myers (6:05 CST) – B.J. Hermsen (Listen) Cedar Rapids @ Peoria (7:00 CST) - Kohl Stewart (Listen) Pulaski @ Elizabethton (6:00 CST) – TBD (Listen) GCL Orioles @ GCL Twins (11:00am CST) – TBD

Hardball history on the Minnesota prairie started long before the Twins moved to the Upper Midwest. Baseball legends like Ted Williams and Willie Mays called Minnesota home before making their big league debuts. There was a lot that went into the Twins becoming the franchise they are today and the club's entire history is summarized in the new book Minnesota Twins Baseball: Hardball History on the Prairie. There are plenty of people who know a lot about Twins baseball but author Stew Thornley is a little closer to the action than most. He is the official scorer for Twins home games and he has written more than 40 books including Onto Nicollet: The Glory and Fame of the Minneapolis Millers. He's been around baseball, and more specifically the Twins, for decades and his historical knowledge is evident to the reader. Minnesota's rich history of supporting teams like the Saints and the Millers gave way to talk of a major league team moving to Minnesota. The Giants and the Dodgers were some of the team's discussing a move but Minneapolis wasn't attractive enough for their organizations. Both team's moved west and thankfully the Senators were also looking for a new home and their rich crop of young players helped to make the team successful early in the club's history. Throughout the pages of this 126-page book, Thorney does a good job of retelling the major events in Twins history one decade at a time. There have been good and bad times over the last five decades and the author employs his collection of knowledge to convey that to the most passionate of Twins fans. He tells stories that might not be familiar and even provides insights into his own private collection of baseball artifacts. Some of the best parts of this book are the stories before Minnesota had the Twins. One of the most interesting stories was that the New York Giants organization took out a full page ad in the Minneapolis Tribune to apologize for calling up Willie Mays after only 35-games with the Millers. As the Giants President Horace C. Stoneham said, "We honestly admit too, that this player’s exceptional talents are the exact answer to the Giants' most critical need." He was certainly right about Mays. The fight to avoid contraction and to build a new stadium has been central to the Twins organization in recent decades. The Minnesota Twins could have become the North Carolina Twins at one point but that story line never played itself out. The club started to play better, a new stadium was built, and it is truly hard to imagine a summer in the Upper Midwest without the Twins being part of this generation or the next. Even though this book is a quick read,there is great information packed onto every page. The inset stories and pictures provide a look at how baseball has changed on the prairie since the 1880s. For even the most dedicated Twins fan there will be stories in this book that one has forgotten or stories that one would love to relive again. This book can be read over a long weekend at the lake but the memories will stick with you forever. When Calvin Griffith decided to name his team the Minnesota Twins, he said, "We want our new baseball enterprise to be for everyone in Minnesota and the Upper Midwest." Twins Territory has expanded beyond the boundaries of Minnesota and the history of baseball in the region is something every fan can cherish.

Next month's All-Star Game is fast approaching and Target Field will serve as the center of the baseball universe.The starting rosters for the National League and the American League will be announced during the weekend of July 5th-6th and it doesn't seem likely for the Twins to have a starter elected by the fans. This leaves some question as to who should represent the hometown team in Minnesota's first Mid-Summer Classic since 1985.Joe Mauer has been named MLB's All-Star Ambassador but that might not guarantee him a spot in the game. He's been a regular at the game when he was a catcher but the switch to first base has seen a decline in his numbers. There are other worthy candidates on the Twins this season and the team might be able to sneak a couple players onto the roster since manager Ron Gardenhire is on the coaching staff. Here's a look at the top All-Star Game options for the Twins through the middle of June. 1. Glen Perkins, LHP Perkins was picked as a replacement player for last year's All-Star Game after Jesse Crain went down with an injury.Unfortunately for Perkins, he never made it into the game and I think this is something Gardenhire will want to accomplish this year. Only Greg Holland and Fernando Rodney have more saves than Perkins in the American League. It would be cool to hear Perkins come into a close game in front of his hometown crowd especially after the leadership role he has taken with this organization over the last handful of years. 2. Phil Hughes, RHP It has been quite the stretch of baseball for Hughes since he signed with the Twins. Hughes is keeping the ball in the park and he has the lowest walk rate of his career. His seven wins have him three behind the leaders in the American League and he has as many wins as Yu Darvish and Jered Weaver. He's been the most valuable pitcher on the Twins staff and he should be recognized for his achievements. His exit from New York was rough which makes his success in Minnesota all the sweeter. 3. Brian Dozier, 2B Dozier might be the team's MVP up to this point but there are slough of bigger named second baseman in the American League. Ian Kinsler, Robinson Cano, and Dustin Pedroia all have the big names that would draw in viewers for the All-Star Game. According to FanGraphs version of WAR,Dozier has been more valuable than all of them but that still might not help his cause. His 15 home runs are more than Kinsler, Cano, and Pedroia combined. He's have a great first half but it might not be enough. 4. Kurt Suzuki, C Since Mauer isn't in the catching picture any more, there will be a new starter behind the dish. Salvador Perez and Yan Gomes sit ahead of Suzuki in fWAR but most of that comes from their power numbers and defense. Suzuki leads AL catchers in batting average and on-base percentage.Someone like Perez might deserve the start but Suzuki would be a viable back-up option for the late innings. He's an eight year veteran in the middle of one of his best seasons so it might be nice for him to get an All-Star nod to add to his resume. 5. Joe Mauer, 1B There are a lot of Mauer haters out there especially with his rough first half of the season. He's been striking out more, not hitting for power, and his average has suffered as more teams shift against him. He's still the biggest name on the Twins roster and he's MLB's appointed ambassador. Mauer is only the 10th best first baseman according to fWAR so there would be quite the list of players ahead of him. If you factor in last season's numbers as well, Mauer's fWAR would be the fourth highest among AL first baseman.

Baseball lost another great on Monday morning. Hall of Fame hitter Tony Gwynn passed away at the age of 54. He lost his battle after he had been dealing with cancer issues for some time. Gwynn said that he believed the cancer was attributed to his chewing tobacco habit during his playing days. Fans across Twins Territory can feel the pain that Padres fans are dealing after today's announcement. Former Twins great and Hall of Fame inductee Kirby Puckett also passed away at an early age. It can be tough for a franchise to lose the player most associated with the success of the franchise. Gwynn never had a heroic World Series moment like Puckett but there were still connections between these star players. Both players were born in 1960. Gwynn was born in Los Angeles, CA and Puckett was born in Chicago, IL. Gwynn debuted in 1982 at age 22. Puckett wouldn't debut until 1984 at the age of 24. Puckett would make every All-Star Game from 1986 to 1995. Gwynn was on the NL squad for every one of those games except for 1988. Puckett led the AL in hits in 1987, 1988, 1989, and 1992. Gwynn led the NL in hits in 1984, 1986, 1987, 1989, 1994, 1995, and 1997. Puckett won his lone batting title in 1989 when he hit .339. Gwynn won the NL crown that same year with a .336 batting average. Gywnn collected his 2,000 career hit in August 1993. Puckett wouldn't be far behind as he got his 2,000th in April of the next season. Both men finished their careers with a batting average of over .300 (Puckett at .318, Gwynn at .338) Gwynn led the NL in WAR once in 1987. Puckett led the AL in WAR once in 1992. Puckett won Gold Gloves in 1986-1989 and 1991-1992. Gwynn won Gold Gloves in 1986-1987 and 1990-1991. Gwynn won seven Silver Slugger awards and Puckett had six Silver Slugger awards to his credit Both elected to Baseball's Hall of Fame with over 80% of the vote. Puckett got 82.1% and Gwynn received 97.6% of the vote. Both of these players were great hitting outfielders during the same time period, one in the National League and one in the American League. They helped make their organizations better. Overall, both players were taken too soon.

On May 24th the Twins were in San Francisco for the second game of a three game series. Aaron Hicks was the starting center fielder that day and this day would mark a turning point in his career. Whether it was a turning point for the better or for the worse, remains to be seen. Ryan Vogelsong, a right-handed pitcher, was the Giants starter that day. This meant the switch-hitting Hicks was batting left-handed. Hicks would struggle on this day going 0-for-3 with a strikeout. He would be removed in the late-innings of a close game for a pinch hitter. This was the end of Hicks being a switch hitter. A couple of days later he would enter Ron Gardenhire's office and tell him he was done from the left side of the plate. Hicks had been a switch hitter since little league but he lost confidence at the plate and it was time for a change. Hicks is only 24-years old and the former first round pick was supposed to be the team's center fielder of the future. What does the future hold for Mr. Hicks? Bait and Switch Hicks is not that far removed from seemingly putting it all together at Double-A. During the 2012 season, he was a .286/.384/.460 hitter with 13 home runs, 21 doubles, and 11 triples. Even from the left-hand side of the plate he had an .828 OPS with 29 extra-base hits. His triple total was a New Britain team record and this gave the Twins plenty of confidence in him moving forward. In the Eastern League that season, Hicks was almost 2.5 years younger than the other hitters. This made his performance all the more impressive. He made one of the hardest jumps in the minor leagues and compiled the best numbers of his professional career. It was hard to imagine that he would be giving up switch-hitting in a little over a year and a half. Playing Rushin' Roulette Twins fans know the tale of Terry Ryan trading away Denard Span and Ben Revere during the same off-season. This meant Hicks was rushed to the big leagues after never seeing a pitch at the Triple-A level. There were plenty of struggles during his rookie season and the Twins sent him down to Rochester to finish out 2013. He has a grand total of 22 games played in Rochester. The Twins talked about sending him down after he switched away from switch-hitting. At the time, the team didn't really have any other options for center field so he stayed with the big league club. There have been some positive signs since Hicks gave up switch-hitting. In a very small sample size of 24 plate appearances, he's hit .263/.391/.316 with a double and four walks. Rising Stars Hicks was put on the 15-day disabled list retroactive to last Tuesday with a right shoulder strain. With Sam Fuld recovered from his concussion, it would seem likely for the Twins to send Hicks to Rochester after he's healthy. Minnesota has other options in center field and Hicks needs to spend more time seeing right-handed pitching from the right side of the plate. Danny Santana has burst onto the scene as a viable fill-in option in center. He's been a lifetime infielder during his time in the Twins organization but his bat has been so hot there is no reason to keep him out of the line-up. Byron Buxton has taken over the title of the center fielder of the future but he's been hurt for most of the year. This could leave a surprise candidate like Eddie Rosario as the center fielder to bridge the gap to Buxton. Time Will Tell The career of Hicks is far from over. Players like Brian Dozier and Trevor Plouffe both struggled in their first tastes of the big leagues. It took them time to develop and now they are both important parts of the current Twins line-up. Hicks is young and the Twins are going to give him every opportunity to succeed. If he can rekindle some of his Double-A magic in Rochester, the Twins will make sure he is back in Minnesota. Only time will tell when Hicks will make his way back into the Twins starting line-up.