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Steve Lein

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Blog Entries posted by Steve Lein

  1. Steve Lein
    The Scottsdale Scorpions, whom host Twins prospects this season in the Arizona Fall League, had a dominant week with a 5-1 record. They outscored their opponents 41-21 and Twins prospects had a lot to do with that. The Scorpions are now tied with the Salt River Rafters atop the Eastern Division at 9-6.
     
    Taylor Rogers had a fantastic start on Wednesday but was betrayed by his bullpen (not his fellow Twins prospects), one catcher continued his hot hitting, and Adam Brett Walker came up big in multiple games.
     
    Read on to check out how each prospect did in week two of the 2015 Arizona Fall League season!
     
    (links provided to each player’s overall stats by clicking their name)
     
    Adam Brett Walker – 4 games, 5-15 (.333), 3 R’s, 1 2B, 2 HR’s, 6 RBI, 1 BB, 3 K’s.
     
    Walker started the week off with a bang, collecting a home run and three RBI in his first two games.
     
    In Monday’s win, Walker punctuated the scoring with his three-run homer in the ninth inning to make the final score 10-3. He was also hit by a pitch in the game and singled in the seventh inning to reach base in three of six plate appearances. He struck out once.
     
    In his next game on Wednesday, Walker was even more pivotal for his team. His double in the fourth inning gave Scottsdale their first runs of the game and close the lead to 4-2. He would score the third run when the next batter (another Twins farmhand) followed with a double. The inning would end with the game tied 4-4. With the game still tied in the sixth, Walker sent a blast into the left field bleachers for a solo home run that proved to be the game winner, as the Scorpions went on to beat Glendale 5-4. Walker also singled in the game to finish 3-4.
     
    For the rest of the week, Walker cooled off with an 0-3 day in Scottsdale’s 4-2 win on Thursday, and 0-4 effort in their 6-2 win on Saturday. But positives from those games included the fact he struck out only once, and he also drew a walk in Saturday’s game.
     
    This is the type of week that one would want to see from Walker. Not many wasted at-bats, big impacts on a few games with his power, and clutch performances at that.
     
    Stuart Turner – 2 games, 2-7 (.286), 1 R, 1 2B, 2 K’s.
     
    Turner again made the start at catcher for the Scorpions in two games on the week, playing in the games on Wednesday and Thursday.
     
    On Wednesday he followed Walker’s double in the fourth inning with one of his own to drive him in and make the score 4-3, and came around to score the game-tying run on a single. He finished the day 2-4 with two strikeouts.
     
    In Thursday’s second consecutive win against the Glendale Desert Dogs, Turner was 0-3, but picked up an RBI when his fly ball in the second inning was turned into a force out of a runner at second base, but the runner on third scampered home.
     
    Turner had one base stolen on him in the two games, and did not get any other chances to throw runners out.
     
    Mitch Garver – 2 games, 3-9 (.333), 1 R, 2 RBI, 1 K.
     
    Garver saw action at catcher on Tuesday and Friday this week, and picked up hits in each contest. He has collected at least one-hit in each of his five games on the season, and has two in four of those contests. His average stands at .409.
     
    In Tuesday’s 9-4 loss to Salt River, Garver picked up an RBI on a single in the seventh inning to make the score 7-2, but did not reach base in any other plate appearance. On defense, he caught one runner stealing second base in the seventh inning.
     
    In Friday’s 12-1 blowout win for Scottsdale against Mesa, Garver got the three run fourth inning started with a double to right field. He would later score on Christian Arroyo’s three run home run to make the score 7-0. Then in the three run seventh inning, his single brought the tenth run of the game for the Scorpions. He finished 2-5 with the double, run scored, and RBI.
     
    Nick Burdi – 2 games, 2 IP, 0 R’s, 0 H’s, 0 BB’s, 2 K’s, 0.00 ERA.
     
    Burdi made two appearances on the week, pitching the ninth inning in Monday’s 10-3 win, and the eighth inning in Friday’s 12-1 win.
     
    He was flawless, recording one-two-three innings in both appearances.
     
    On Monday, he struck out the first two hitters he faced, one looking and one swinging, and a fly-out ended the game.
     
    On Friday, he got a quick three ground ball outs on just seven pitches.
     
    He’s allowed just one hit and walked none in his brief appearances so far, striking out one per inning.
     
    Trevor Hildenberger – 1 game, 2.1 IP, 2 R’s, 4 H’s, 0 BB’s, 1 K, 7.71 ERA.
     
    Twins Daily’s 2015 Minor League Relief Pitcher of the year got in on just one game this week, and it didn’t go as well as Hildenberger may have hoped as he was tasked with going multiple innings early in the game.
     
    Scottsdale’s starter Antonio Romero left the game after collecting just two outs in the first inning, as three consecutive walks scored the game’s first two runs. Hildenberger ended the early bases loaded threat by inducing a groundout.
     
    In the second inning, the leadoff man picked up an infield single, but was quickly erased on a double play ball, and another groundball ended the scoreless inning for Hildenberger.
     
    Hildenberger’s third inning is where he ran into trouble as his workload was extended. He struck out the first batter of the inning, but a double, triple, and single from the next three hitters brough in two runs and 4-0 lead for Glendale. He escaped the inning without any further damage by getting two more ground balls.
     
    Scottsdale came back to win the game 5-4 via the heroics of Walker detailed above.
     
    Jake Reed – 2 games, 2.0 IP, 1 H, 3 BB’s, 0 K’s, 0.00 ERA.
     
    Reed made two appearances on the week, pitching the ninth inning in Wednesday’s 5-4 win to pick up his first Save, and the ninth inning on Saturday to close out their 12-1 win.
     
    It wasn’t particularly pretty at times, but Reed got the jobs done with scoreless innings.
     
    On Wednesday, Reed ran into trouble with two walks and a throwing error that moved the first of those runners to second base, but got a double-play ground ball to end the game and pick up the save.
     
    On Saturday, a ground rule double and a walk put runners on first and third with two outs, but a ground ball to short ended that game as well.
     
    Reed threw thirty-six pitches in those two games, with twenty going for strikes and did not pick up any punchouts.
     
    Taylor Rogers – 1 game started, 5.0 IP, 4 ER’s, 2 H’s, 2 BB’s, 3 K’s. 0.00 ERA.
     
    Rogers got the start in Tuesday’s 9-4 loss, but it wasn’t because of anything he did.
     
    He was effective and efficient in his five innings, leaving the game with his team up 1-0 and in line for the win before the bullpen imploded behind him. He allowed no runs on two hits and two walks, while striking out three to lower is ERA in the AFL to 3.46.
     
    He retired nine in a row at one point and did not really get into any trouble as he scattered the two hits and two walks. He finished the fifth inning with runners on first and second for the best chance Salt River had to that point in the game.
     
    QUICK HITS:
     
    - MLB.com’s prospect guru Jonathan Mayo was in Arizona this week, and filed a report on Twins prospects. His main topic, the focus on improved plate discipline for Adam Brett Walker.
     
    - More details of Walker’s monster day in the come from behind 5-4 victory on Wednesday. First line of the article: “Adam Brett Walker II is a strong man” (duh).
     
    - More Walker details from Twitter, as Seth tells you how far, and how fast, Walker’s home run from Wednesday’s game traveled, Bernie Pleskoff adds some confirmation, and another observer shows us just how far it went.
     
    Please feel free to ask questions and discuss the performances during the week!
  2. Steve Lein
    The AFL season always carries some interesting story lines going into the offseason.
     
    Which prospects are ready to make the last step to the majors? What young talent does an organization want to protect on the forty-man roster for the Rule V draft? What lesser known prospect can make a bigger name for himself heading into 2016?
     
    All of these questions could apply to the collection of prospects the Minnesota Twins have sent to Arizona this October.
     
    The Scottsdale Scorpions played in three games this week, winning the next two in convincing fashion after falling in their season opener. The Scorpions game on Friday was postponed by rain.
     
    Let’s check out what happened in the opening week of the 2015 Arizona Fall League season!
     
    Adam Brett Walker – 2 games, 1-6 (.167), 1 R, 3 BB, 3 K’s.
     
    Walker’s performance in the AFL in 2015 could say a lot about his development as a prospect and perhaps more notably, his ability to control the strikezone and get on base.
     
    Two games never says much of anything, but so far so good on the latter as he’s gotten on base by drawing three walks. The former was on display as well, as this control of the strikezone also resulted in three strikeouts..
     
    Walker scored from first base on a double in the opening game of the season after drawing his first of two walks on the game. He struck out once and flew out in his two other plate appearances to finish 0-2.
     
    In Wednesday’s 13-3 Scorpions win, Walker reached base twice on a single and a walk, but was the only hitter in their lineup to not score a run or drive one in. He finished 1-4 with a walk and two strikeouts.
     
    Stuart Turner – 1 game, 1-2 (.500), 1 R, 1 2B, 1 3B, 2 BB.
     
    Turner started the opening game of the season at catcher for the Scorpions, batting ninth.
     
    Despite going 1-2 on the game with two walks, it was his defense that perhaps stood out the most.
     
    Turner gunned down runners at second base in the third and sixth innings. In the fifth inning Salt River’s Christopher Bostick did manage to steal second and third base, but Turner’s defense showed up plenty.
     
    Turner walked in his first plate appearance, then reached on a throwing error in the fourth. Unfortunately he got caught between first and second on the play for the innings final out.
     
    His seventh inning double led to him scoring the Scorpions third and final run of the game on a sacrifice fly, and he drew his second walk in the ninth inning.
     
    Mitch Garver – 1 game, 2-3 (.667), 1 R, 2B, HR, 3 RBI, 1 BB.
     
    Garver also started one game at catcher and batted ninth for the Scorpions in their 9-2 win on Friday.
     
    While he made a few defensive plays of his own, Garver showed up a little bit more on the offensive side.
     
    He reached base on an error from the shortstop to lead off the third inning, but was stranded. He drew a walk in the fifth but was stranded again. The sixth inning is where he made his biggest contribution.
     
    With runners on second and third and two outs, Garver launched a three run home run to left-center field, breaking the game open for the Scorpions at 6-2, add added a double in the eighth inning.
     
    Nick Burdi – Did not play.
     
    With the rain out on Friday, Burdi did not see action in any games for the Scorpions in week 1.
     
    Trevor Hildenberger – 1 game, 2.0 IP, 0 R’s, 2 H’s, 2 K’s. 0.00 ERA.
     
    Hildenberger made his only appearance of the week in the season opener, pitching the final two innings of the Scorpions 5-3 loss.
     
    In the seventh inning, Hildenberger worked around two errors by the Scorpions second baseman by continuing to induce ground balls to him. Carlos Asuaje started a double play to end the inning and strand a runner to make up for them.
     
    In the eighth, the first two men singled, but Hildenberger bounced back with two strikeouts and a ground out to end the threat.
     
    Jake Reed – Did not play.
     
    Again because of the rain Friday, Reed did pitch resulting in both top five round draft picks and collegiate closers from the 2014 draft did not see action for the Scorpions in the opening week (Burdi – 2nd round, Reed – 5th round).
     
    Taylor Rogers – 1 game, 4.0 IP, 1 ER, 2 H’s, 1 BB, 5 K’s. 2.25 ERA.
     
    Rogers gave the Scorpions their best start of the opening week, allowing one earned run on two hits and a walk, while striking out five in their 13-3 win over his team from last AFL season, the Salt River Rafters on Wednesday.
     
    He retired the side in order in the first, including two strikeouts, and faced just three hitters in the second by getting a line drive double play after a leadoff single.
     
    In the third inning, Rogers issued a walk but retired the three other hitters, including another strikeout.
     
    In the fourth he got two quick outs, but around the pair of strikeouts to end the inning allowed the only large contact of the day, a solo home run to the Desert Dog’s cleanup hitter, Gabby Guerrero, the nephew of former major league professional hitter, Vladimir Guerrero.
     
    Please feel free to ask questions and discuss the performances during the week!
  3. Steve Lein
    Fall. My favorite season.
     
    It’s always sad to see the summer go, but the colors in Minnesota, ducks and geese flying overhead, and deer rummaging through the woods are some of my favorite things.
     
    The fall season, October especially, also means it’s time for the MLB Playoffs, another one of my favorite things. Whether that is because early in my childhood I got to stay up late to watch the Twins win the 1987 and 1991 World Series with my hero Kirby Puckett being magical, or getting to sit in the stands and watch as the Soul Patrol, Doug Mientkewicz, Johan Santana, Brad Radke, Justin Morneau, Joe Mauer, Eddie Guardado, Joe Nathan, and everybody else won six Central Division Titles in the 2000’s. That experience culminated for me by watching Game 163 in the ‘Dome from above the Baggy.
     
    Fall baseball is the best.
     
    But in seasons where your favorite team just isn’t any good, or they just didn’t win quite enough games, it leaves a hole. As I’ve gotten older and experienced more Fall-baseball-envy however, I’ve also discovered Minor League prospects can fill it!
     
    The Arizona Fall League is a short season league where every team in Major League Baseball sends some of their Top Prospects in October. It is used as a proving ground for players looking to take the final steps to their MLB dreams. Whether they are an elite talent looking to make a case for an early call-up the next season, or someone on the doorstep being evaluated for protection on the 40-man roster, these minor league games in October can determine a lot going into the offseason.
     
    Each team sends seven players to the league, and the Twins are represented on the Scottsdale Scorpions roster this season by catchers Mitch Garver and Stuart Turner, outfielder Adam Brett Walker, and pitchers Nick Burdi, Trevor Hildenberger, Jake Reed, and Taylor Rogers.
     
    It will be the second trip to the league for both Reed and Rogers, as they pitched for the Salt River Rafters last season. Reed appeared in ten games, and put up a 0.71 ERA and 10/3 K-to-BB ratio in 12.2 total innings. Rogers appeared in just three games, as he took a line drive off his shoulder/arm in the third inning of his first start. He allowed one run in 5.2 total innings.
     
    Players on that same Rafters roster who made their MLB debut for the Twins this year included Eddie Rosario, Byron Buxton, and Max Kepler. Rosario just missed on the league’s batting title.
     
    While there may not be quite that much star power in this season’s selections, there is still plenty of intrigue, and another outfielder is at the forefront.
     
    Adam Brett Walker is not your typical prospect.
     
    He doesn’t hit for average. He strikes out too much. He won’t wow you in the field or with his arm…But he will amaze you with his power.
     
    When I had the privilege of traveling down to Spring Training again this season, it was hard to miss him on the back fields, because there was a mass migration to the fences where he was playing when it was his turn to bat. Just like there was for Sano and Buxton, and he didn’t disappoint. In a single day, I watched him hit one long blast (probably) out of the complex, and heard the fan reaction for his second one that got out of there in (probably) 0.5 seconds his next at-bat.
     
    Power. He’s definitely got it. But as mentioned, he also has a few of what many would consider red flags in his game.
     
    He doesn’t hit for average:
     
    In four Minor League seasons, he has batted just .254, with a season high of .278 in 2013 for the Low-A Cedar Rapids Kernels. In 2014 he hit just .246 moving up a level to High-A Fort Myers, and .239 this past season with the Southern League Champion Chattanooga Lookouts.
     
    He strikes out too much:
     
    In 1,747 career professional plate appearances and 452 games, he has made the walk of shame from the batter’s box back to the dugout 542 times, including 195 this season at AA in 133 games, a rate of 34.8% of his plate appearances. Compared to his 31.0% career rate strikeout rate, this means it has gone from pretty bad to even worse as he’s moved up the ladder.
     
    He won’t wow you in the field or with his arm:
     
    As a pure corner outfielder thus far as a pro, he has a career fielding percentage .970. For context on this number, a stat which is hated to the sabermetricians of the world, of the eighty-one MLB-er’s who played 800+ innings in the outfield in 2015, only one had a fielding percentage below that.
     
    His name was Hanley Ramirez, and if you didn’t see some of his antics in the outfield this year around the Green Monster for the Boston Red Sox, you are missing out.
     
    His career high of seven assists in a season also doesn’t jump out at you when compared to say, the fact that Eddie Rosario’s sixteen in the MLB this season nearly led all of baseball. This was also a number that was driven by his accuracy and opposing team’s willingness to keep testing him, and not by a cannon-like right-arm coming off his shoulder like teammates Aaron Hicks and Byron Buxton possess.
     
    These current skills simply won't jump out at you, but is it possible any of these facts will even matter? I mean, there’s still that power…
     
    After all, in his four seasons in the Twins’ system he’s launched 14, 27, 25, and 31 home runs. Those totals have led his league in every season. In 2015, the second place slugger had 17 compared to his 31. Not even phenom rookie Kyle Schwarber of the Cubs was keeping up with that pace while in the Southern League.
     
    He’s also driven in 45, 109, 94, and 106 runners in those seasons, leading his league in that category the past three seasons as well.
     
    It’s amazing to me that despite the room for improvement in these areas, the overall production remains. It is also notable that his on-base percentage has remained nearly stagnant throughout his development, meaning his walk-rate has also improved year-to-year, albeit not by much.
     
    If you’re into comparisons for his future prospects as a Major League player, I hate to tell you this, but you won’t find one. It is also now four years into his development and he has neither moved the needle on his prospect floor or on his ceiling in any direction. He could be the next Twins’ version of David Ortiz, washed out after some cups of coffee, or he could be the Red Sox version of the same player, a once-in-a-generation slugger. He could also be none of that.
     
    His time in the Arizona Fall League in 2015 could finally move those needles either way. That’s what I’ll be watching for.
     
    QUICK PREVIEWS:
     
    - Nick Burdi finished his 2015 season on a much higher note than it started, as a lack of control in AA led to a midseason demotion.
     
    To start the season in Chattanooga, Burdi made it through twenty games with a 3-4 record, 5.93 ERA, thirty-two hits and twenty-two walks allowed in 30.1 innings, while striking out thirty before the roster move was made.
     
    He rediscovered the same success in the Florida State League as he had in 2014, dominating the hitters of the league for five weeks before earning back his place at AA. In twenty FSL innings pitched, he racked up twenty-nine strikeouts compared to just three walks, and upon his recall to AA was 2-2 with a 2.25 ERA and two saves.
     
    He finished the year for the Lookouts by making eight more appearances, and was 0-0 with one save, a 1.35 ERA, eight hits and ten walks allowed in 13.1 innings, while striking out twenty-one in those games.
     
    Burdi does not have to be added to the 40-man roster, so his time in the AFL is a likely audition for AAA and a potential midseason MLB callup.
     
    - Trevor Hildenberger was Twins Daily’s 2015 Minor League Relief Pitcher of the Year, and is a much similar situation to Jake Reed’s of last season going into the AFL: Can he continue his ascension in the reliever rankings after finding great success in the lower levels?
     
    For 2015, Hildenberger appeared in forty-one games between the Cedar Rapids Kernels and Fort Myers Miracle. Everything about his numbers was otherworldly: 1.55 ERA, 0.72 WHIP, just thirty-nine hits and seven walks allowed, while striking out eighty.
     
    - Jake Reed make’s his second trip to the AFL, but enters with a much different outlook than he a year ago, as his 2015 season was very similar to teammate Nick Burdi’s
     
    He struggled in the Southern League to the tune of a 5.64 ERA upon his demotion, with several appearances of multi-run damage, including a June 1st appearance of misery where nine runs scored in just one inning pitched (five runs were earned).
     
    Like Burdi, his demotion proved only that he could dominate A-league hitters as in twelve innings he did not allow a single earned run.
     
    He was back up at AA to end the season, but it didn’t go well, as he raised his double-A earned run average to 6.32 after two appearances to end his season.
     
    - Taylor Rogers, like Reed, makes his second consecutive trip to the AFL, and I’m sure he’d enjoy more of an opportunity than he had last year.
     
    2015 was a very good season for the left-hander, and he spent all of it in AAA with the Rochester Red Wings. His 174 innings pitched trailed only teammate Pat Dean for the lead in all of the Minor Leagues in that category.
     
    What this trip might mean for Rogers however, is how he fits in the future plans of the parent club.
     
    He has been a starter all of his career, but it is only his dominance against same-sided hitters that has really stood out to this point.
     
    He had a 1.42 ERA, .177 batting average against, and 0.68 WHIP vs. left-handed hitters in 2014, while against righties those numbers ballooned to 5.23, 1.67, and .326. It’s been a similar pattern throughout his MiLB career, and could mean that a similar career path to another lefty on the Twins, Brian Duensing, could be in order.
     
    - Stuart Turner goes into the Fall League after spending all of 2015 in Chattanooga. It was a struggle for him, as his .223/.322/.306 triple slash line will attest, but he was much better in the second half, as he went .262/.363/.341 after the All-Star break.
     
    Notable, is he kept his Isolated Discipline (OBP minus BA) at .100 throughout the year, at least maintaining an ability to get on base through other means.
     
    Turner has been sent to the level above the next player in this preview in each of the last two seasons, but their AFL performance this fall may shape the pecking order for 2016.
     
    -Mitch Garver did much more with the bat than Turner in 2014, but that was while being a level lower in the Midwest League and a year older than Turner. In 2015, he posted very similar numbers in the FSL to what Turner had done the year before (.688 OPS vs. .698 OPS) while those same conditions applied.
     
    They are both labeled as strong defenders, finishing one-two in the collegiate catcher of the year voting in 2013, which is where my competition for playing time in 2016 comparison comes in.
     
    It is also a bit odd to have two catchers from one MLB team on the same AFL roster, but this may be by design. The Twins likely want to learn a bit more about their depth at the catcher position going into the offseason as this is one area they might look hard at improving through other means, and what better way to do so than side-by-side?
     
    QUICK FIX:
     
    The Scottsdale Scorpions are taking on the Salt River Rafters on opening night as I write this (Box Score), and Walker has contributed a walk, after which he scored from first on a double.
     
    Good luck to all of the players in the AFL for the Twins this season, and I’m looking forward to following along with everyone at Twins Daily!
     
    Please feel free to ask any questions about the AFL and discuss this week’s performances!
  4. Steve Lein
    Tyler Duffey was on the mound for the Minnesota Twins on Sunday as the parent squad looked to avoid a home-series-sweep at the hands of the team who has been chasing them in American League Wild Card standings. Duffey delivered, tossing seven shut-out innings as Twins won 8-1 to end the series with the Teams tied in those standings. The Angels next series has them facing the Houston Astros, whom they are both chasing. The Twins have an opportunity to make up some ground in the next few days while they face off against the Cleveland Indians, who are 1.5 games behind them.
     
    In the minors on Sunday, the Cedar Rapids Kernels looked to end their Midwest League Championship series at home, and Chattanooga Lookouts looked to send their Southern League series to a deciding game five. Both teams got quality starts from their starting pitchers, would it be enough to extend or win their respective series’?
     
    Keep on reading about Sunday’s action to find out!
     
    CHATTANOOGA CHATTER
    Biloxi 2, Chattanooga 4
    Box Score
     
    Lefthander David Hurlbut made the start for the Lookouts, as they came into the game down 2-1 in the series against the Biloxi Shuckers.
     
    He made quick work of the first and second innings, pitching a one-two-three frame in the second, but the Shuckers got on the board first in the third, as a two-out rally was capped by an RBI single from Orlando Arcia to make it 1-0. A solo home run from Brett Phillips in the fourth made it 2-0.
     
    Hurlbut didn’t allow any further damage, retiring the next seven batters he faced to finish six innings. He allowed the two runs on five hits and walk, while striking out six.
     
    The Chattanooga lineup finally came alive in the bottom of the sixth, as a single from Jorge Polanco and walks to Travis Harrison and Adam Brett Walker loaded the bases. Levi Michael tied the game at two with a single to left field, which was followed by a Heiker Meneses walk to again load the bases. Stuart Turner put them in front 3-2 with a sac fly to score Walker, a and single from Shannon Wilkerson brought in Michael to make it 4-2. Chattanooga sent every hitter in the lineup to the plate in the big inning.
     
    The outburst put Hurlbut in line for the win, and the Lookouts summoned fireballer Nick Burdi from the bullpen to hold the lead. He walked one in the seventh inning, but retired the other three hitters, including a strikeout, to keep the lead at two.
     
    In the eighth, it got a bit more interesting. Burdi retired the first hitter, but then walked the next two to put the tying run on base. A ground-out then put runners at first and third with two outs, before he walked another to load the bases. That ended his night and brought in J.T. Chargois from Chattanooga’s bullpen.
     
    He struck out Nick Ramirez to end the inning and the threat.
     
    After the Lookouts were held off the board in the bottom of the eighth, Chargois remained in the game to close it out.
     
    A single and a walk around a groundout and a strikeout again had the tying run on base, but again Chargois bore down and ended the threat and game with a strikeout to push it do a deciding game five tomorrow night in Chattanooga.
     
    The offense was led by Jorge Polanco, who picked up three hits and scored a run, and Michael who was 2-4 with two RBI in his first start in their last eight postseason games. As a team the Lookouts did not have a single extra base hit, but took advantage of six walks and got the runs when they could by going 3-8 with runners in scoring position.
     
    KERNELS NUGGETS
    West Michigan 2, Cedar Rapids 1
    Box Score
     
    After two and a half innings in Cedar Rapids on Sunday, the game was tied 0-0 as both starters had scattered two hits. The Kernels scored the first run of the game in the bottom of third, as Nick Gordon doubled and scored on a single from T.J. White to make it 1-0.
     
    It remained that way until the fifth inning, when Kernels starter Randy Rosario finally ran into some trouble he could not escape from unscathed. A single and a walk put two runners on with one out, before consecutive singles each plated a run to put West Michigan up 2-1.
     
    Rosario came out again for the sixth, and put up another scoreless frame despite two hits to end his day.
     
    Michael Theofanopoulos came in from the bullpen for the seventh and eighth innings and kept the score 2-1. He gave up two hits in his two scoreless innings.
     
    John Curtiss came on for the top of the ninth and gave up a leadoff single, but a sacrifice bunt and consecutive swinging strikeouts would keep the Shuckers lead at one for the home team’s final at-bat.
     
    Edgar Corcino worked a walk to put the tying run on base to start the inning, and was put into scoring position at second base when LaMonte Wade singled to center with one out. A Chris Paul strikeout put the Kernels down to their last out in the potential series clinching game.
     
    Max Murphy worked a walk to load the bases, and summoned the Shuckers closer Joe Jimenez into the game to face Kernels catcher Brian Navarreto, who played hero in last night’s Kernels win.
     
    It wasn’t meant to be this time, as Naverreto went down swinging to force a Midwest League Championship deciding game five Monday night in Cedar Rapids.
     
    Nick Gordon had a solid game for the Kernels, going 2-4 with a run scored and a double from the two-spot in the lineup. He is hitting .364 in the postseason for the Kernels. LaMonte Wade added two hits, Austin Diemer added a triple, and White had their only RBI.
     
    As a team Cedar Rapids was just 1-9 with runners in scoring position however, and left seven men-on-base.
     
    TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY
     
    Pitcher of the Day – J.T. Chargois, Chattanooga Lookouts (Save, 1.1 IP, 1 H, 1 BB, 3 K’s)
    Hitter of the Day – Levi Michael, Chattanooga Lookouts (2-4, R, 2 RBI)
     
    MONDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS
     
    Biloxi @ Chattanooga (6:15PM CST) – TBD
    West Michigan @ Cedar Rapids (6:35PM CST) - TBD
     
    Please feel free to ask any questions and discuss Sunday’s games!
  5. Steve Lein
    The Minor League seasons came to an end last week, and even though Cedar Rapids and Chattanooga are still playing in the playoffs, it is time to start handing out some awards. All week, we will be handing out some (proverbial) awards. Yesterday, it was Max Kepler taking home the Hitter of the Year prize.
     
    The Twins Minor League Report authors each voted for the five awards being handed out. Today, we’ll take a look at the top Starting Pitchers in the Twins minor league system in 2015. We each voted for our top six performers.
     


    Image courtesy of Craig Gordon. Photo of Jose Berrios.
     
    Short profiles of our top six are to follow, but first, some players worthy of Honorable Mention.
     
    Honorable Mention:

    Chih-Wei Hu, Fort Myers Miracle/Rochester Red Wings: 16 GS, 6-3, 2.38 ERA, 1.15 WHIP, 90.2 IP, 81 H’s, 23 BB’s, 79 K’s.
    Sam Gibbons, Cedar Rapids Kernels: 15 GS, 7-4, 2.89 ERA, 1.18 WHIP, 90.1 IP, 84 H’s, 23 BB’s, 68 K’s.
    Aaron Slegers, Fort Myers Miracle, Chattanooga Lookouts: 25 GS, 9-10, 3.35 ERA, 1.13 WHIP, 156.0 IP, 143 H’s, 33 BB’s, 104 K’s.
    Ryan Eades, Fort Myers Miracle: 20 GS, 6-3, 3.11 ERA, 1.24 WHIP, 118.2 IP, 109 H’s, 38 BB’s, 80 K’s.

     
    Pitcher of the Year
     
    Here are the top six vote-getters for Twins Minor League Starting Pitcher of the Year.
     
    #6 – Pat Dean, Rochester Red Wings: 27 GS, 12-11, 2.82 ERA, 1.15 WHIP, 179.0 IP, 170 H’s, 36 BB’s, 98 K’s.
     
    The lefthander drafted out of Boston College in the third round of 2010’s draft, was as steady as you could possibly be for the Rochester Red Wings in 2015. He did not miss a single turn in Rochester’s rotation and led all of the minor leagues in innings pitched on the year. His accomplishments also included leading all Twins farmhands with five complete games, including three of the shutout variety. He also did not wear down with the high workload that comes from leading the minors in innings pitched, as four of those complete games came in his last eight starts of the season. He failed to complete at least five innings in just two starts the entire season, and one of those included a game which was delayed by rain that he could not continue once play resumed. Of his twenty-seven starts, thirteen were of the quality start variety, and he went seven or more innings eleven times. It is quite an accomplishment to rack up twenty-three decisions in twenty-seven starts, and speaks to the consistency Dean displayed throughout the year. Dean appeared in April and August’s Starting Pitcher of the Month reports, and was honorable mention two other times.
     
    #5 – Felix Jorge, Cedar Rapids Kernels: 23 G/22 GS, 6-7, 2.79 ERA, 1.06 WHIP, 142.0 IP, 118 H’s, 32 BB’s, 114 K’s.
     
    Jorge spent the entire season with the Cedar Rapids Kernels, and racked up quite the workload for a twenty-one-year-old starter in his first full year of exposure to a full season league. In 2014, he spent some of his time with the Kernels, but needed to make some adjustments and was sent to the Appalachian League when their season started. It helped, as 2015 was a mammoth step forward for the right-hander. He ranked top ten in the Midwest League in ERA (7th), innings pitched (10th), and WHIP (3rd), and just outside the top ten in strikeouts (12th). He improved in all aspects of his game in the MWL as compared to 2014, and did not fail to finish at least five innings in any of his twenty-two starts on the year. In fact, he failed to go six innings in just two starts, and notched twenty quality starts in those twenty-two games. In his first game of the year, he struck out a season high ten batters, and followed that up with a nine K effort his next time out. Jorge is poised to start 2016 in Fort Myers, and with a similar performance, will look to reach Chattanooga as a 22 year old. Jorge appeared in the Starting Pitcher of the Month rankings twice (May, June), and received honorable mention two other times.
     
    #4 – Mat Batts, Cedar Rapids Kernels/Fort Myers Miracle: 24 GS, 11-6, 2.61 ERA, 1.10 WHIP, 141.1 IP, 127 H’s, 28 BB’s, 129 K’s.
     
    Batts started his season in the Midwest League alongside Jorge, and laid waste to its hitters. The lefty posted a 2.21 ERA in seven starts, with forty-four K’s in 40.2 innings before being bumped up to the Florida State League. He continued his success there, posting a 2.77 ERA in seventeen starts and 100.2 more innings. He struck out eighty-five FSL hitters. His eleven wins on the season ranked fourth in the organization, behind only pitchers that make up this list, and also ranked third in strikeouts and fifth in ERA. Batts received honorable mention in three of the monthly awards rankings, and took home the Pitcher of the Month award in July, when he was 3-0 in five starts with a 1.15 ERA, 0.86 WHIP, .179 batting average against, and 30 K’s compared to just 7 BB’s in 31.1 total innings.
     
    #3 – Tyler Duffey, Chattanooga Lookouts/Rochester Red Wings: 22 GS, 7-8, 2.54 ERA, 1.08 WHIP, 138.0 IP, 119 H’s, 30 BB’s, 122 K’s.
     
    Duffey has made quite an impression with Twins fans after his promotion to the major leagues and continues to do so in their push for the playoffs, but before that he was making quite an impression in double and triple-A too. With the glut of pitching the Twins had to stash in AAA to start the season, Duffey found himself in Chattanooga to start the year despite making some appearances for the Red Wings in 2014. He didn’t stay there long. In eight starts, Duffey racked up 52.2 innings (6.5 innings/start) and struck out fifty-four hitters with a 2.56 ERA. In what would be his final start there, he struck out a season high twelve hitters to earn a promotion back to AAA. He made fourteen more starts with the Red Wings before he found himself in the majors pitching meaningful games with the Twins, which totaled 85.1 innings with a 5-6 record and 2.53 ERA. He struck out sixty-eight and walked just eighteen. With the Twins he has held his own after a rough introduction, and struck out eight twice in six starts. Duffey reached as high as number two on the monthly award lists (June), and number five another time (July) with one honorable mentions (May).
     
    #2 – Stephen Gonsalves, Cedar Rapids Kernels/Fort Myers Miracle: 24 GS, 13-3, 2.01 ERA, 1.10 WHIP, 134.1 IP, 95 H’s, 53 BB’s, 132 K’s.
     
    Even moreso than Jorge or Batts, Gonsalves was otherworldy to start the year in Cedar Rapids. He made just nine starts there before it was determined he needed to be in the Florida State League. He needed to be there because he was 6-1 in this nine games, with a 1.15 ERA, 0.80 WHIP, just twenty-nine hits and fifteen walks in 55.0 innings, while racking up an astronomical seventy-seven strikeouts. He struck out double-digit hitters in four of those games, including his last two, and did not record fewer strikeouts than innings pitched in any of his starts while Midwest League batters hit just .154 against him. They couldn’t get him to the Florida State League fast enough. While the strikeout numbers didn’t persist for the projectable lefty in the FSL, his overall success did. In fifteen starts with the Miracle, Gonsalves went 7-2 with a 2.61 ERA in 79.1 more innings. On the year as a whole, Gonsalves did not allow more than three earned runs in any of his twenty-four starts, and surrendered just four home runs the entire season despite being a fly-ball heavy pitcher (0.72 GO/AO ratio). Gonsalves took home the montly award for April, and was number two for the month of May (though he might as well have won it then too, since it went to Tommy Milone, haha), and appeared at number six again in the month of July.
     
    Starting Pitcher of the Year – Jose Berrios, Chattanooga Lookouts/Rochester Red Wings: 27 GS, 14-5, 2.87 ERA, 1.05 WHIP, 166.1 IP, 136 H’s, 38 BB’s, 175 K’s.
     


    Image courtesy of Craig Gordon. Photo of Jose Berrios.
     
    As if you didn’t already know?!
     
    Jose Berrios came into the 2015 season with lofty expectations for himself. In Spring Training, he talked about how one of his goals was to break camp with the Major League Team. It didn’t matter to him that he was just twenty-years old and had made just one appearance above AA in 2014.
     
    He certainly didn’t perform himself out of the chance, as he appeared in two games with the Major League squad that totaled six innings of 0.00 ERA pitching. But the Twins had a plan for him, and it included getting stretched out for a full minor league season to fully developing their prized young pitcher, who had made quite an impression.
     
    It’s hard to argue with the end results, even if you’re in the camp who believes he could be contributing in the majors for the Twins right now (I do! I do!).
     
    Berrios returned to the ranks of AA, where he had spent a good portion of his 2014 season with the New Britain Rock Cats of the Eastern League, but with the Twins new affiliate in the Southern League, and the stacked roster of the Chattanooga Lookouts.
     
    But he wasn’t about to be overlooked.
     
    His first start of the season came on April 10th, and he allowed one earned run in 6.1 innings to pick up his first win. He struck out eleven on just eighty-nine pitches.
     
    As the month turned to May, Berrios really started to find his footing in AA. He made six starts on the month, and went 4-1 with a 2.61 ERA. He totaled 41.1 innings, including a two-run, eight inning effort on May 8th that he followed up with two-hit complete game shutout on May 13th.
     
    He made his final start in double-A on June 28th, going seven innings to improve his record to 8-3, while allowing just one run on two hits, while striking out six.
     
    In Rochester, Berrios experienced some early struggles, allowing five runs in each of his first two outings, but he learned quickly.
     
    His next start was a seven inning gem where he allowed just two runs on seven hits and a walk, while striking out nine. It was a springboard for the domination he would sustain over the season’s final two months.
     
    From that start on July 18th on, Berrios made ten more starts with the Red Wings. He completed seven innings in six of those games, six in three others, and only failed to complete that number in his last start as he was shut down for the year with a well-above his career high 166.1 innings pitched.
     
    In a two start stretch in August with General Manager Terry Ryan in attendance, Berrios allowed just one run on only eight hits and one walk, while striking out twenty-two in consecutive seven inning appearances. Ryan had to have his mind made up at that point, as you don’t see that type of dominance and come away unimpressed if auditioning for a major league call-up. It doesn’t get any better than that.
     
    As a fitting end to his phenomenal year, Berrios finished the 2015 season by leading all of the minor leagues in strikeouts with 175. Though it might come a year later than he originally had hoped, Berrios is poised to make a strong contribution in the Majors in 2015, and who knows, it could be as soon as April (or March?!) 2016 against the Philadelphia Phillies.
     
    Obviously, there were some fantastic starting pitcher performances from Twins minor leaguers throughout the system in 2015. Congrats to all the players on a fantastic season that was loads of fun to follow like every year, and get ready for 2016!
     
    The Ballots
     
    In an attempt to be transparent, here are the votes from our Twins Daily minor league writers:

    Seth Stohs – 1) Jose Berrios, 2) Stephan Gonsalves, 3) Mat Batts, 4) Tyler Duffey, 5) Felix Jorge, 6) Pat Dean
    Jeremy Nygaard – 1) Jose Berrios, 2) Stephen Gonsalves, 3) Tyler Duffey, 4) Felix Jorge, 5) Mat Batts, 6) Pat Dean
    Cody Christie – 1) Jose Berrios, 2) Stephen Gonsalves, 3) Felix Jorge, 4) Mat Batts, 5) Aaron Slegers, 6) Tyler Duffey
    Steve Lein – 1) Jose Berrios, 2) Stephen Gonsalves, 3) Tyler Duffey, 4) Mat Batts, 5) Pat Dean, 6) Felix Jorge
    Eric Pleiss – 1) Jose Berrios, 2) Tyler Duffey, 3) Stephen Gonsalves, 4) Mat Batts, 5) Felix Jorge, 6) Ryan Eades

     
    Feel free to discuss. How would your ballot look?
  6. Steve Lein
    The Minnesota Twins got a brilliant start from Ervin Santana on Sunday afternoon, and held off a late rally to win two of three games from the American League West division leading Houston Astros, and remain in the thick of the Wild Card standings. That Miguel Sano guy hit another home run, too. (He might be good…)
     
    In the minors on Sunday, there were a few other brilliant starts from pitchers, a pair of double-headers, including one that went late into the night, and a Tropical Storm set its sights on Florida.
     
    Keep reading to find out what happened!
     
    RED WINGS REPORT
    Pawtucket 0, Rochester 7
    Box Score
     
    Lefthander Pat Dean made the start for the Red Wings, and cruised to his eleventh victory of the season. He was brilliant throughout, scattering five hits and one walk in eight innings while striking out three, keeping the Red Sox off the scoreboard with some help from his defense.
     
    The only threat against him came in the sixth inning, when a pair of singles put runners on first and second. Another single was sent into left field, but Reynaldo Rodriguez’s throw cut down the runner at home for the final out of the inning. The win brought Dean’s ERA back below 3.00, where it has hovered all season.
     
    The Red Wings got on the board early, as Kennys Vargas launched his sixth home run of the season in AAA, a three run shot to put them in front from the start. They would add single runs in the fourth and fifth innings, along with two more in the seventh.
     
    A.J. Achter finished the game with a scoreless ninth inning, walking one and striking out one.
     
    Vargas led the offense with his home run, and finished his day 1-2 with two walks, two runs scored, and the three RBI. James Beresford (3-5, R), Danny Santana (2-5, 2 R’s), and Oswaldo Arcia (2-3, RBI) collected multiple hits.
     
    In his first appearance of his rehab assignment, Aaron Hicks led off and was the DH. He went 1-5 with an RBI.
     
    CHATTANOOGA CHATTER
     
    The Lookouts had a double-header on Sunday afternoon, making up their game against Birmingham that was rained out on July 2nd.
    Game 1: Chattanooga 10, Birmingham 4
    Box Score
     
    Starter Greg Peavey was in control through the game’s first four innings, facing just one batter over the minimum. But a long inning inside the dugout may have switched his fortunes around in this one when it got to the fifth inning.
     
    Chattanoog’s lineup struck for four runs in the fourth inning by sending every hitter in the lineup to the plate. It was four walks (one intentional to Max Kepler), a sacrifice bunt, a single from Heiker Meneses, and an error off the bat of Travis Harrison that combined to put the runs on the board.
     
    Menses would add another single in the fifth to score Wickens and make the game 5-0 at that point.
     
    This is where Peavey unraveled. A pair of two-run home runs would pull the Baron’s within one, before Peavey was able to finish the inning and his day. He finished with the four runs allowed on four hits and one walk, while striking out four.
     
    Corey Williams would come on for the sixth inning and recorded the first two outs, before a walk then brought J.T. Chargois into the game. He hit the first batter he faced, but struck out the next to end the inning.
    The Lookouts added five more runs in the seventh inning to give Chargois a good cushion. They again sent nine hitters up to bat, and again it was started by Walker, though this time with a double. Singles from Wickens, Meneses, Wilkerson, and Kepler, and a sac fly from Harrison would add the runs to the board.
     
    Chargois pitched a double-perfect ninth inning, striking out the side to secure the win in game 1.
     
    Game 2: Chattanooga 3, Birmingham 0
    Box Score
     
    In the makeup game, Brett Lee got the start for Chattanooga, and was untouchable. In the (7-inning) complete game shutout, Lee allowed just two hits and two walks, while striking out eight Barons hitters. Lee recorded a strikeout in all but one inning, and struck out the side in the sixth. The win pushed his record to 6-4 on the season with Chattanooga, and the eight strikeouts were a season high.
     
    Chattanooga three runs in this one came in the sixth inning, when Birmingham went to their bullpen. Travis Harrison got it started with a one-out double, and would come around to score on a Niko Goodrum single. After Goodrum stole his sixteenth base, D.J. Hicks launched his fifth home run of the year to make it to the 3-0 final.
     
    MIRACLE MATTERS
     
    The Fort Myers Miracle game against the Jupiter HammerHeads was postponed and rescheduled on Sunday afternoon due to Tropical Storm Erika. They will have a second day off tomorrow.
     
    KERNELS NUGGETS
    Cedar Rapids 7, Peoria 3
    Box Score
     
    Cedar Rapids took an early lead they would not relinquish in the second inning, plating six runs. Alex Real brought in the first two runs with a single, Austin Diemer brought him in with a double, an error off the bat of Rafael Valera scored Diemer, and a Triple from Nick Gordon added the fifth run. Gordon would score the sixth on a wild pitch.
     
    T.J. White capped the Kernels scoring in the third inning, leading off the frame with his second home run of the year with Cedar Rapids.
     
    Starter Keaton Steele gave a quality effort, finishing eight innings to improve his record to 6-4. He allowed three runs on eight hits, and struck out six. A two-run home run in the second inning was the only major damage as Peoria was just 1-5 with runners in scoring position, and left only four men on base for the game.
     
    John Curtiss finished the game with a scoreless inning, allowing one hit and striking out two.
     
    The Kernels offense got multiple hits from Valera (2-5, R), Gordon (2-5, R, 3B, RBI), White (3-5, 2 R’s, HR, RBI) and Diemer (2-4, R, 2B, RBI).
     
    The win ended a season long five-game losing streak for the Kernels.
     
    E-TOWN E-NOTES
     
    Elizabethton had a double-header scheduled for Sunday against the Bristol Pirates to make up a prior rainout from August 15th, but the weather would not cooperate on this day, either, pushing the start time back and the makeup game to late in the evening. But they did manage to finish both games.
     
    Game 1: Bristol 7, Elizabethton 6 (9 innings)
    Box Score
     
    Bristol jumped out to an early 3-0 lead after two innings when they finally did get started, as they tagged starter Andro Cutura for two in the first and an error in the second led to another run. Cutura would finish five innings, allowing four runs (two earned) on eight hits and a walk. He struck out seven and would end his day with his team down 4-0.
     
    Elizabethton’s offense finally found some life in the fifth inning, when Kamran Young led off with a double. He would come around to score the Twins first run of the game on a single from Christian Cavaness.
     
    In the sixth, they got Cutura off the hook for a loss by tying the game at four. Zander Wiel led off with a single, and would score after a walk and error put two more runners on base. Another single from Manuel Guzman would load the bases, and a wild pitch would score one more before another RBI single from Cavaness would tie the game.
     
    It would go into extra innings for a seven-inning game, and finish after the normal nine. After Cutura was lifted from the game, Josh Guyer added 2.1 innings, allowing two unearned runs on one hit and one walk. He struck out four.
     
    After those two runs made it 6-4 in favor of the Pirates in the eighth, the Twins were quick to get them back in the bottom half. A double from Jermaine Palacios brought home Nelson Molina and Manuel Guzman, who had reached base with a pair of singles.
     
    Jose Abreu was brought into the game to end the threat in the eighth, but didn’t quite make it through the ninth. He got the first two outs on ground balls, but then a solo home run put Bristol back out front.
     
    Lewin Diaz doubled to put a runner in scoring position in the home half of the ninth, but ground balls from Brian Olson and Nelson Molina weren’t enough to tie it back up.
     
    Cavaness (2-4, 2 RBI), Palacios (2-4, 2B, 3B, 2 RBI), Diaz (2-5, 2B), and Guzman (2-4, R) all collected two hits. LaMonte Wade drew three walks and stole his ninth base.
     
    Game 2: Bristol 4, Elizabethton 11
    Box Score
     
    The Twins scored two in the first inning after Jermaine Palacios and Daniel Kihle started the inning with singles. A sac fly and error from LaMonte Wade scored the first run, then a sac fly from Amaurys Minier the second.
     
    Elizabethton starter Nate Gercken gave both those runs back and more in the following inning, as a three-run home run gave Bristol the lead.
     
    In the bottom of the third inning, Kihle tied the game at three with a solo home run of his own for the home team.
     
    After that, the rest of the Elizabethton lineup exploded, putting crooked numbers on the board in each of the fourth, fifth, and sixth innings. When the dust settled, it was 11-4 Twins.
     
    Kihle (2-3, 2 R’s, HR, RBI, BB), Brad Hartong (3-4, 2 R’s, 2 2B’s, RBI), and Nelson Molina (2-3, RBI) led the way with multiple hits. LaMonte Wade drew two more walks and stole another base.
     
    Gercken would finish his game with four earned runs on four hits and four walks in 4.1 innings. He struck out five. Anthony McIver came on for the final 2.1 innings, allowing no runs on two hits and a walk. Of the eight outs he recorded, six came via strikeout.
     
    GCL TWINS TAKES
     
    The Gulf Coast League regular season came to an end yesterday for GCL Twins. The GCL Blue Jays and GCL Red Sox will face off for the league championship. The Twins ended their season with a record of 27-32, and third place in their division.
     
    TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY
     
    Pitcher of the Day – Brett Lee, Chattanooga Lookouts (W, 7.0 IP, CGSO, 2 H’s, 2 BB’s, 8 K’s)
    Hitter of the Day – Kennys Vargas, Rochester Red Wings (1-2, 2 R’s, HR, 3 RBI, 2 BB)
     
    MONDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS
     
    Pawtucket @ Rochester (6:05PM CST) – RHP Jose Berrios (4-2, 2.78 ERA)
    Chattanooga @ Birmingham (4:15PM CST) – RHP Aaron Slegers (1-3, 5.32 ERA)
    Fort Myers @ Jupiter – TBD
    Cedar Rapids @ Peoria (7:00 PM CST) – RHP Felix Jorge (6-6, 2.90 ERA)
    Bristol @ Elizabethton (6:00 PM CST) – TBD
     
    Please feel free to ask any questions and discuss Sunday’s games.
  7. Steve Lein
    The Minnesota Twins got to Orioles closer Zach Britton on Sunday, and stole a 4-3 win in extra innings thanks to some early help from the bat of Miguel Sano (11th HR in first inning), and late help from the defense of Baltimore (2 errors in the 12th inning) to move back to .500.
     
    In the minors on Sunday two affiliates had trouble producing offense, starting pitching was a struggle throughout, including one game from a top lefty, and one game was rained out. Overall the Twins affiliates were just 1-3 on the day.
     
    To find out how it all went down, keep reading!
     
    RED WINGS REPORT
    Rochester 2, Scranton/Wilkes-Barre 4
    Box Score
     
    The Rochester lineup made little of their opportunities on Sunday, and they didn’t have many of them. As a team they totaled only five hits, were 1-7 with runners in scoring position, and left six men on base. Kenny Vargas was responsible for their two runs on the day, as he blasted a two-run home run in the ninth inning. He was 2-4 on the day and the only Red Wings hitter with multiple hits. Carlos Paulino added a double.
     
    On the mound for the Red Wings, lefty Taylor Rogers was solid but got handed his eleventh loss of the season. He went 6.2 innings, allowing four earned runs on eight hits and one walk, while striking out nine. A.J. Achter came on in the seventh, and finished the games 1.1 innings. He allowed one hit.
     
    CHATTANOOGA CHATTER
    Tennessee @ Chattanooga (postponed)
     
    The Lookouts matchup with the Smokies was rained out on Sunday afternoon. The game will be made up on Monday in a double-header in Chattanooga.
    MIRACLE MATTERS
    Jupiter 4, Fort Myers 1
    Box Score
     
    Just like their AAA brothers, the Miracle weren’t able to muster much offense. Their lone run came in the eighth inning when Engelb Vielma led off the frame with a walk. That was followed by a Ryan Walker single and a Mitch Garver walk to load the bases with nobody out. After a pitching change, three consecutive strikeouts killed the rally, and the lone run came on a strike-three wild pitch with Jason Kanzler up to bat.
     
    Logan Wade collected two singles, but no other hitter had more than one hit or an extra-base hit on the day. As a team Fort Myers was 0-6 with runners in scoring position and left ten men on base.
     
    Stephen Gonsalves made the start for the Miracle, but only made it through four innings with a high pitch count as he didn’t appear to be his normal self. He allowed four runs (three earned) on six hits and three walks, while striking out only one. The loss made him 6-2 on the season with Fort Myers.
     
    Jake Reed pitched two innings of scoreless relief, allowing just one hit and striking out one. Zach Jones added 1.2 scoreless and hitless innings, striking out two; and Trevor Hildenberger finished the final 1.1 hitless innings without allowing a baserunner. He struck out two as well.
    KERNELS NUGGETS
    Cedar Rapids 7, Clinton 11
    Box Score
     
    The Kernels jumped out to the first lead of the game, but didn’t hold it for long.
     
    A double from Austin Diemer and single from T.J. White put them up 2-0 after the top of the third inning, but things unraveled quickly for starter Randy LeBlanc after that.
     
    Clinton scored one in the bottom of the third, two in the fourth to take the lead, and eight in the fifth to never look back.
     
    LeBlanc came out for the fifth inning, but wouldn’t record an out and left with the bases loaded. In four innings, he allowed seven earned runs on six hits and two walks. Two of those hits were home runs. Jared Wilson didn’t fare much better, but finally finished the eight run fifth inning. He allowed four earned runs on three hits and two walks. He struck out two.
     
    Yorman Landa kept the LumberKings off the scoreboard in the sixth and seventh innings, allowing two hits and walking one, with two strikeouts. John Curtiss finished the final inning, allowing one hit.
     
    The Kernels managed to add a run in the fifth, three in the eighth, and another in the ninth to make the score respectable, but it was never that close.
     
    White (3-5, R, 2B, 3 RBI) and Alex Real (2-4, R, 3B, RBI) had multiple hits on the game. Nick Gordon was 1-4 with a double, but also walked once, stole his twenty-fourth base, and scored three runs in the loss.
     
    E-TOWN E-NOTES
    Elizabethton 8, Greeneville 6
    Box Score
     
    Elizabethton took the early lead, and held on to improve their record to 31-27 on Sunday, one game back of the Appalachian League West division leading Kingsport Mets with eight games left to play in the regular season. The face the Mets in a three game series later in the week with obvious playoff implications.
     
    On this day, the Twins got the scoring started in the second inning. A.J. Murray led off with a double and scored on a single from Lewin Diaz. Later in the inning, a hit-by-pitch and walk loaded the bases, and Jermaine Palacios delivered a two-out two-run single to make it 3-0 Twins.
     
    They would add another run in the third on a sac fly from Rainis Silva to score Murray, and then went off for four more runs in the fourth.
     
    Kamran Young led off the fourth with a walk and scored on a Manuel Guzman double. Guzman came into score on a LaMonte Wade single. Then Wade and Murray would scamper home on a single from Travis Blankenhorn to reach their final tally.
     
    Miles Nordgren made the start for Elizabethton, and pitched five innings to pick up the win. He allowed five runs (four earned) on eight hits and a walk. He struck out four.
     
    Logan Lombana pitched into the eighth inning. He allowed one run on three hits in 2.2 innings, striking out one. Kuo Hua Lo picked up his seventh save on the year by pitching the final 1.1 innings. He struck out three.’
     
    Five hitter in the Elizabethton lineup had multiple hits on the day, including Palacios (3-5, 2B, 2 RBI), Wade (2-5, R, RBI), Murray (2-4, 3 R’s, 2B, BB), Diaz (2-4, R, RBI), and Blankenhorn (2-5, 2 RBI).
     
    GCL TWINS TAKES
     
    The Gulf Coast League Twins, like the rest of the GCL, had the day off on Sunday. They play a home and home double-header vs. the GCL Rays Monday morning.
     
    TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY
     
    Pitcher of the Day – Fort Myers Bullpen: Jake Reed (2 IP, 1 H, 1 K), Zack Jones (1.2 IP, 0 H’s, 2 K’s), Trevor Hildenberger (1.1 IP, 0 H’s, 2 K’s)
    Hitter of the Day – T.J. White, Cedar Rapids Kernels (3-5, R, 2B, 3 RBI)
     
    MONDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS
     
    Rochester @ Syracuse (6:05PM CST) – LHP Logan Darnell (3-1, 3.54 ERA)
    Tennessee @ Chattanooga (4:15PM CST) – Game 1: LHP David Hurlbut (8-6, 4.03 ERA), Game 2: TBD
    Jupiter @ Fort Myers (6:05PM CST) – RHP Kohl Stewart (6-7, 3.21 ERA)
    Peoria @ Cedar Rapids(6:35 PM CST) – RHP Keaton Steele (4-4, 3.36 ERA)
    Elizabethton @ Greeneville (6:00 PM CST) – TBD
    GCL Twins @ GCL Rays (9:00 AM CST) – Game 1: TBD, Game 2: TBD
     
    Please feel free to ask any questions and discuss Sunday’s games.
  8. Steve Lein
    Tommy Milone’s return to the Twins rotation and a home run off the bad of Trevor Plouffe gave them a series victory in Cleveland on Sunday afternoon, and brought Minnesota’s record on the season back above .500.
     
    In the minors, it took a superb day from a (or the) top prospect in Rochester to bring them a win in extra innings, multiple hitters powered Chattanooga to a blowout win at home, and a dynamite start from a pitcher with a hitters name gave Fort Myers an easy win on the road. There were also two other “walk-off” games on the day as well.
     
    To find out how it all went down, keep reading!
     
    RED WINGS REPORT
    Scranton/Wilkes-Barre 2, Rochester 3 (12 innings)
    Box Score
     
    It took twelve innings Sunday afternoon, but the Red Wings managed a walk-off win despite being out-hit 13-8 on the day and receiving little support from most of the lineup.
     
    The RailRiders took the an early 2-0 lead off Rochester starter David Hurlbut, scoring a run in each of the first two innings, but that would be it for the game.
     
    Hurlbut would finish 6.2 innings, allowing just the two runs on nine hits while striking out two. Alex Meyer would bring the Red Wings into extra innings, finishing the seventh and four more scoreless innings. He allowed just two hits and two walks, while striking out four. Mark Hamburger picked up the win by tossing a scoreless twelfth inning despite allowing two hits. He struck out two.
     
    Leading the offense for the Red Wings was Byron Buxton from the leadoff spot. He was 3-6 on the day with his first AAA home run, a solo shot in the fifth inning to tie the game at two. James Beresford also picked up three hits from the two-hole, and Kennys Vargas and Danny Ortiz each drew two walks. The rest of the lineup managed just two more hits and one walk.
     
    In the bottom of the twelfth Jose Martinez led off the inning with a single and was moved into scoring position on a sacrifice bunt from Carlos Paulino. That brought the top of the order and Buxton back up to the plate. On a 2-0 pitch, he sent a line drive single into center field to bring home Martinez and start the extra-inning-walk-off-win celebration.
     
    Buxton has hit safely in all 11 of his AAA games to this point, owning a .404 batting average and has collected multiple hits in five games.
     
    CHATTANOOGA CHATTER
    Tennessee 4, Chattanooga 11
    Box Score
     
    The Lookouts found themselves down 4-1 after the top of the fifth inning, but after the bottom of the seventh would find themselves in front by seven.
     
    Lefthander Jason Wheeler got the start and finished five tough innings. He allowed four runs on seven hits and two walks while striking out two. He even picked up his third AA win of the year thanks to the offense after his day was done. Alex Wimmers pitched two scoreless innings, striking out three, and D.J. Johnson and J.T. Chargois each added a scoreless inning.
     
    The Chattanooga offense worked ten walks and combined those free passes with twelve hits to route the Smokies. Max Kepler continued to be Max Kepler, ending his game 3-4 with two runs scored, two doubles, and two RBI. Not to be overshadowed, Niko Goodrum scored three runs while also collecting three hits, including his fourth triple and fourth home run, a two-run blast in the seventh inning. He drove in four. Travis Harrison was the only batter in the lineup to not collect a hit, but did reach base three times via walk. Adam Brett Walker scored two runs and drew two walks while ending his day 1-3.
     
    Kepler is near the top of the leaderboard in the Southern League in runs scored (2nd), hits (5th), doubles (2nd), triples (1st, tied with Buxton), total bases (2nd, behind Walker), on-base percentage (1st), slugging percentage (1st), batting average (1st), and OPS (1st). He also has sixteen stolen bases, forty-eight walks compared to just fifty-three strikeouts, and fifty-six RBI. This is the type of overall season from the young German that wins Minor League Player of the Year awards. Bask in its glory!
     
    MIRACLE MATTERS
    Fort Myers 5, Charlotte 1
    Box Score
     
    The Miracle jumped out to an early lead and never had to look back in this one thanks to their starting pitcher.
     
    In the second inning, a double from Logan Wade, walk from Michael Quesada, and single from Tanner Vavra would bring Engelb Vielma to the plate with one run in and runners on first and second base. Vielma then “cleared” the bases with an infield single and an throwing error to make the score 3-0.
     
    Fort Myers added two more insurance runs in the fifth inning after Vavra and Vielma singled to start the inning, and were brought home on a Jason Kanzler triple.
     
    Vielma was 4-5 on the day and has raised his average to .280 on the season with the Miracle. Quite an accomplishment when you discover he was hitting below .200 entering the month of June. But he hit .346 that month, then followed it by hitting .338 in July, and is at .380 so far in August. In his last ten, he’s hitting .425.
     
    Mat Batts was sensational on the mound for Fort Myers to pick up his seventh Florida State League win. In eight innings, he allowed just a solo home run and three other hits, while striking out nine. He retired the first eight batters of the game before giving up a hit, and then proceeded to strike out the next three hitters. Charlotte had just one opportunity with runners in scoring position on the game due to his dominance.
     
    Todd Van Steensel pitched a scoreless ninth inning, allowing two hits and striking out one.
     
    KERNELS NUGGETS
    Cedar Rapids 6, Fort Wayne 7 (10 innings)
    Box Score
     
    Cedar Rapids scored four runs in the seventh inning to take the lead in this one 4-1, and added two more insurance runs in the eighth to enter the bottom of the ninth inning on the road up 6-1.
     
    For TinCaps fans, it turned into the type of game you regret for leaving early. For Kernels fans, that means it turned into a disappointing loss.
     
    Randy LeBlanc started the game for Cedar Rapids, and went four innings allowing one run on three hits and two walks while striking out three. Luke Bard and Nick Anderson threw two scoreless innings apiece, each allowing a hit. Bard struck out two and Anderson struck out three.
     
    The four runs in the seventh inning came after an Austin Diemer double scored two, a Pat Kelly single scored Diemer, and a Rafael Valera double scored Brian Navaretto.
     
    A triple from Diemer in the eighth added another run, and he was brought home on a Navaretto single to make the score 6-1.
     
    In the ninth inning, John Curtis was summoned to finish the game for the Kernels. As alluded to earlier, he was not able to. A single and back-to-back home runs would make the score 6-4, then consecutive walks with two outs would bring Yorman Landa into the game. The first batter he faced singled to bring in two more runs and tie the game before he got the third out to send it to extra-innings.
     
    Landa remained in the game for the tenth inning, but ran into immediate trouble after a throwing error from third baseman T.J. White put the winning run on base to start the inning. A groundout moved him to second base, and a wild pitch put him ninety feet away for the TinCaps game-winning single.
     
    Cedar Rapids got two hits from Alex Real (2-5, 2 R’s, BB) and Diemer (2-4, 2 R’s, 2B, 3B, 2 RBI) and two-RBI from Valera (1-4, R, 2B, 2 RBI, BB) to lead their offense.
     
    E-TOWN E-NOTES
    Danville 5, Elizabethton 6
    Box Score
     
    As opposed to their Midwest League cousins, the E-Twins were able to give their fans a comeback walk-off victory on Sunday despite being outhit 11-7 on total hits and 6-0 on extra-base hits.
     
    Danville scored two runs in the first inning and one in the second jump out to a 3-0 lead against Twins starter Miles Nordgren. He would finish 3.1 innings on the day but no further damage.
     
    In the bottom of the second Elizabethton tied it at three after a bases loaded walk to Daniel Kihle scored one, and an Alex Perez single scored two more. The game would remain tied until the seventh inning when the Twins took a 4-3 lead after Manuel Guzman came around to score from first base after a throwing error.
     
    C.K. Irby had pitched 3.2 scoreless innings to get Elizabethton to that point, allowing just one hit and one walk while striking out four, but was replaced by Jose Abreu to start the eighth. He was greeted by a leadoff double, and one out later a two-run home run to put Danville back in front 5-4.
     
    The Twins managed to tie the game in the bottom of the eighth, as LaMonte Wade reached on another Danville error, and singles from Travis Blankenhorn and Brian Olson were enough to get him home.
     
    Abreu made it interesting in the top of the ninth inning, but got a ground ball double play to end the threat and bring the home team back up to the plate.
     
    Guzman got them started with a leadoff single and moved to second on a sacrifice bunt. An intentional walk to Perez was followed by a walk from Wade to load the bases for A.J. Murray. His line drive to right field brought home the game winner for the home team.
     
    Guzman led the team with three hits on the day (3-4, 3 R’s) and was the only hitter in the lineup with multiple hits. Wade drew three walks and scored a run.
     
    GCL TWINS TAKES
     
    The Gulf Coast League Twins, like the rest of the GCL, had the day off on Sunday. They host the GCL Orioles Monday morning.
     
    TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY
     
    Pitcher of the Day – Mat Batts, Fort Myers Miracle (W, 8 IP, 4 H’s, 1 R, 0 BB’s, 9 K’s)
    Hitter of the Day – Niko Goodrum, Chattanooga Lookouts (3-5, 3 R’s, 3B, HR, 4 RBI)
     
    MONDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS
     
    Buffalo @ Rochester (6:05 PM CST) – LHP Taylor Rogers (8-10, 3.90 ERA)
    Chattanooga - Scheduled day off.
    Charlotte @ Fort Myers (6:05PM CST) – Stephen Gonsalves (5-1, 2.34 ERA)
    Cedar Rapids – Scheduled day off.
    Danville @ Elizabethton (6:00 PM CST) – RHP Andro Cutura (2-2, 1.23 ERA)
    GCL Orioles @ GCL Twins (11:00 AM CST) – TBD
     
    Please feel free to ask any questions and discuss Sunday’s games.
  9. Steve Lein
    Mike Pelfrey battled with Hisashi Iwakuma Sunday afternoon at Target Field, and Brian Dozier’s ninth inning home run to tie the game at one was the Minnesota Twins first earned run against Iwakuma in his career, a streak lasting 42.0 innings (they did have two unearned). But the bullpen wasn’t able to hold off the Mariners in extra innings and they fell 4-1 to split the series.
     
    In the minors on Sunday, there was little offense except for one guy in a Florida State League double-header, a lefty in Rochester was brilliant, and the Elizabethton and Chattanooga lineups produced big run totals.
     
    To catch up on everything that happened, keep reading!
     
    RED WINGS REPORT
    Syracuse 0, Rochester 6
    Box Score
     
    Five runs in the third inning were more than enough to carry the Red Wings on Sunday, as lefty Pat Dean was in control throughout.
     
    He retired the first nine hitters in a row, before issuing a walk to start the fourth. It may have been because he was in the dugout for too long, as the Rochester lineup brought eight men to the plate in the bottom of the third.
     
    Doug Bernier led off with a single, Danny Santana reached on an error, and James Beresford singled to load the bases. Two outs later, a Danny Ortiz walk scored the innings first run, and it was followed with a grand slam from Xavier Avery, his first as a Red Wing to put them up 5-0
     
    Dean scattered just four hits and another walk the rest of the way, and finished the complete game shut-out with a one-two-three ninth inning that included two strikeouts to hit double digits in K’s for the first time this season. He also lowered his ERA under three for the season. In his last four starts Dean has completed at least seven innings, going 2-2 in those games with just five earned runs allowed on twenty-eight hits and 7 BB’s in 32 total innings. His ten strikeouts on the day exceeded his total of nine in the prior three games.
     
    Rochester added their sixth run in the sixth inning, when Beresford drove in Eric Farris with a single.
     
    Beresford was 2-4 on the day with an RBI, and Reynaldo Rodriguez had two hits including a double to support the Avery slam. Oswaldo Arcia was 0-3 on the day with a strikeout and a hit-by-pitch.
     
    CHATTANOOGA CHATTER
    Chattanooga 8, Jackson 2
    Box Score
     
    On the mound for the Lookouts on Sunday was lefthander Brett Lee looking for his second win of the year in the Southern League. He tossed the first six scoreless innings, scattering five hits and a walk with four strikeouts to end up with that win.
     
    Chattanooga took a 1-0 lead in the top of third when Jairo Rodriguez led off with a double and moved to third on a Shannon Wilkerson single. An errant pick-off throw allowed Rodriguez to score. They would add multiple runs in each of the sixth, seventh, and eighth innings to go up 8-0.
     
    The two in the sixth came courtesy of two walks, two wild pitches, and a sac fly. Three in the seventh by way of two singles, two errors, and a sac fly. Then two more runs in the eighth helped along by two walks, two singles, and two wild pitches. The eight runs on the scoreboard were more than Chattanooga’s six hits, due largely to the ten walks drawn as a team and three Jackson errors.
     
    Wilkerson and Rodriguez had multi-hit and multi-run games. Stephen Wickens scored two runs and Jorge Polanco added two RBI. Adam Brett Walker II drew three walks, giving him nine free passes in his last ten games.
     
    Alex Muren came on to pitch the seventh and eighth innings, and allowed one run on three hits that included a solo-home run. He struck out one. Tim Shibuya came on for the ninth and also gave up a solo home run, but finished the 8-2 victory.
     
    Chattanooga improved to 13-20 overall in the second half of the Southern League season, and have won five of their last eight.
     
    MIRACLE MATTERS
    Game 1: Fort Myers 0, Daytona 3
    Box Score
     
    In game one of their Sunday double-header, the Fort Myers offense was nowhere to be found outside of anyone not named Aderlin Mejia. He had both of their two hits as a team on the game, both doubles. They did manage three walks, but were 0-5 with runners in scoring position and left only six men on base.
     
    Starter Aaron Slegers was knocked around for the three runs in the first inning, but settled down to shut the Tortugas out the rest of the way. For the final five innings he allowed just one more hit and one walk, which started the second inning. He then retired the final fifteen men he faced in a row.
     
    In six total innings Slegers allowed four hits and one walk, while striking out five but the lack of run support saddled him with the loss and a now 8-6 record on the year with the Miracle.
     
    Game 2: Fort Myers 0, Daytona 1
    Box Score
     
    The second seven inning game of the day was also a pitcher’s duel, with each team remaining scoreless into the final inning.
     
    Aderlin Mejia didn’t have all of the Miracle’s hits in this game, but the one he did was another double. If not for a runner being picked off first base beforehand, it may have driven in a run in the third inning.
     
    The rest of the lineup managed just three hits, all singles, and were unable to string anything together. They again left only six men on base and had only three at-bats with runners in scoring position in this one.
     
    Ryan Eades started for the Miracle, and went the first five. He allowed four hits and two walks, while striking out three. Corey Williams pitched a scoreless sixth, walking one.
     
    It was then Todd Van Steensel’s turn in the bottom of the seventh. He was greeted with a double to put the winning run in scoring position. Daytona bunted him to third, then an intentional walk set up the potential for a double-play ball. Instead, a single to right field brought home the walk-off winner for the Tortugas.
     
    KERNELS NUGGETS
    Cedar Rapids 4, Kane County 5
    Box Score
     
    Cedar Rapids jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the second inning as Tyler Kuresa and Brian Navarreto collected RBI singles and Rafael Valera added an RBI fielder’s choice.
     
    Luke Westphal made the start for the Kernels and pitched the first three scoreless innings. He allowed two hits and one walk, and struck out three. Randy LeBlanc then came in for the next three and two-thirds innings, and it was the final two-thirds that were troublesome.
     
    In the seventh a double with one out put a runner in scoring position, and a single to center brought him home. LeBlanc would get the second out with a groundout, but an RBI single and RBI double put Kane County out front 4-3 and would bring in Cameron Booser from the bullpen. Another single would make it 5-3 before Booser got a strikeout to end the inning.
     
    The Kernels got one of the runs back in the eighth as Edgar Corcino slugged his third home run of the season to right field. They then got the tying run in scoring position in the ninth when Navarreto doubled with one out, but an Austin Diemer strikeout and Valera ground out would end the game.
     
    Navarreto (2-3, 2B, RBI, BB) and Brett Doe (2-4, R) each had two hits in the loss for the Kernels.
     
    E-TOWN E-NOTES
    Burlington 6, Elizabethton 13
    Box Score
     
    Burlington scored early and often in the top of the first, jumping out to a 4-0 lead, but Elizabethton was quick to respond with a two-run home run from Chris Paul to answer in the bottom half.
     
    The Twins would take the lead back for good in the bottom of the second. Amaury Minier led off with a single, Brian Olson drew a walk, and Nelson Molina singled to load the bases with one out. Jermaine Palacios then brought in a run with sac fly, and kept the bases loaded when it was dropped for an error. An Alex Perez walk tied the game at four, then a LaMonte Wade walk gave them the lead 5-4. A double-play ball to end the inning then went awry for Burlington to plate two more.
     
    The Twins would add a single run in the fourth on a single from Wade to score Perez who had doubled, and two runs in each of the sixth and seventh innings courtesy of home runs from Palacios and Olson. Their thirteenth and final run came in the eighth on an RBI double from Wade, again scoring Perez.
     
    After the four run first inning, starter Onesimo Hernandez recovered to go three scoreless. In his four innings on the day he allowed four runs (two earned) on seven hits while striking out three. Logan Lombana was the first in relief and picked up the win with one run allowed on two hits and a walk in 3.1 innings. He struck out two. Jose Abreu finish the final 1.2 innings, allowing one run on four hits.
     
    Wade (3-3, R, 2B, 3 RBI, 2 BB), Paul (2-5, R, HR, 3 RBI), and Molina (2-4, 2 R’s) each had multiple hits on the day. Palacios also added three RBI. Travis Blankenhorn was the only hitter on the day to not reach base or score a run for the home team.
     
    The win moved Elizabethton a game in front of Burlington in the standings, and one win shy of a .500 record at 19-20.
     
    GCL TWINS TAKES
     
    The Gulf Coast League Twins, like the rest of the GCL, had the day off on Sunday. They travel to play the GCL Orioles on Monday.
     
    TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY
     
    Pitcher of the Day – Pat Dean, Rochester Red Wings (CG-SO, W, 9 IP, 4 H’s, 0 R’s, 1 BB, 10 K’s)
    Hitter of the Day – LaMonte Wade, Elizabethton Twins (3-3, R, 2B, 3 RBI, 2 BB’s)
     
    TUESDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS
     
    Rochester @ Gwinnett (5:35 PM CST) – TBD
    Chattanooga @ Jackson (7:05M CST) – RHP D.J. Baxendale (4-2, 4.10 ERA)
    Fort Myers – Scheduled day off.
    Cedar Rapids – Scheduled day off.
    Elizabethton @ Johnson City (6:00 PM CST) – RHP Miles Nordgren (0-2, 1.07 ERA)
    GCL Twins @ GCL Orioles (11:00 AM CST) – TBD
     
    Please feel free to ask any questions and discuss Sunday’s games.
  10. Steve Lein
    The Twins had the day off on Monday as they travel down the west coast of California from Oakland to Los Angeles to face the Angels of Anaheim on Tuesday. Kyle Gibson will make the start and look to get Minnesota back in the win column after the drubbing yesterday.
     
    But in the minors on Monday, it was a full slate of games with each affiliate in action. There were several strong starting pitching performances including a late bid for a combined-no-hitter, a big home run from a familiar name in these reports, and a couple blowouts in the lower levels.
     
    To see if the Twins’ affiliates came out on top in those games, read on!
     
    TRANSACTIONS
     
    Before we get to the games, a few quick transaction updates:
     
    Wilkin Ramirez was sent to the disabled list for the Rochester Red Wings, and they activated Nate Hanson in his place.
     
    Pitcher Keaton Steele was also activated from the disabled list for Cedar Rapids, and started tonight’s game for the Kernels.
     
    RED WINGS REPORT
    Gwinnett 6, Rochester 3
    Box Score
     
    Lefthander Taylor Rogers kept the Rochester Red Wings in the game for most of it, but was unable to finish his day on high note.
     
    Rochester got out to an early 1-0 lead in the second, when Reynaldo Rodriguez led off the inning with his ninth home run of the season.
     
    In the top of the third the lead was handed to the Braves when they got to Rogers with three singles, resulting in two runs.
     
    The score would remain that way through the sixth, with Rogers finishing that inning with only the two runs allowed on four hits and a walk, along with three strikeouts, but it unraveled for him in the seventh.
     
    Consecutive singles, a sac bunt, and intentional walk to load the bases started the inning, then two more singles and a sac fly brought in four runs to make it 6-1 before Cole Johnson came on in relief and escaped the jam.
     
    The Red Wings would try to get back in the game in the bottom half of the seventh, as Rodriguez and Bernier drew walks to put runners on with two outs, and Eric Farris delivered his first triple of the season to drive them in and make the score 6-3.
     
    Johnson recorded one out in the eighth before his own troubles summoned Mark Hamburger to wiggle out his jam with runners on second and third. Hamburger would come back out for the ninth and pitch a scoreless inning, allowing a single and striking out two, but the Red Wings went down one-two-three in the ninth.
     
    Rochester was outhit 11-5 on the game, and didn’t get many chances as they were just 1-5 with runners in scoring position and left only five men on base. Rodriguez was the only Red Wings player with multiple hits, going 2-3 with two runs scored and the solo home run.
     
    CHATTANOOGA CHATTER
    Mississippi 1, Chattanooga 4
    Box Score
     
    The Lookouts were rained out yesterday, but continued their slight turnaround from a rough start to the month despite missing a day of action. After starting July 3-9 in their first twelve games, they are 5-1 over their last six.
     
    Starter David Hurlbut did much of the work for Chattanooga, pitching six shutout frames. He scattered five hits and two walks, while striking out two to improve to 6-4 on the season.
     
    He left the game with a 3-0 lead thanks to a single run in the fifth and two in the sixth from the home team. Travis Harrison scored the first run of the game in the fifth, when he led off the inning with a walk and scored on a Stuart Turner double. In the sixth, Max Kepler drew a walk and trotted home on Adam Brett Walker II’s twenty-fifth home run of the season to make it 3-0.
     
    J.T. Chargois relieved Hurlbut for the seventh and pitched a scoreless inning, walking one and striking out one. Mississippi got their only run of the game in the eighth off reliever Alex Muren, when consecutive errors from Muren and Kennys Vargas allowed the leadoff man to circle home-to-home in just those two batters.
     
    Niko Goodrum added an insurance run in the eighth with a solo home run, his third of the season with the Lookouts and seventh total.
     
    Stuart Turner had two hits on the night including the RBI double. Walker had a typical day with the big home run, but also struck out twice. Kepler (1-3, R, BB) and Vargas (1-3, BB) each reached base twice in the game.
     
    MIRACLE MATTERS
    Jupiter 1, Fort Myers 2
    Box Score
     
    It was a pitcher’s duel at Hammond Stadium on Monday night, with the Miracle’s Aaron Slegers facing off against the rehabbing Henderson Alvarez of the Miami Marlins.
     
    Slegers got the best of him with seven strong innings. He walked none and allowed just five hits and one run, while striking out five.
     
    Fort Myers got to Alvarez in the third inning, and would end his night with two unearned runs after Alex Swim reached base on an error to start the inning. Swim would move to second on a passed ball, and a single from Mitch Garver and a walk to Brett Doe would load the bases for consecutive sacrifice flies from Ryan Walker and T.J. White. Those two runs would be just enough, as the HammerHead’s Drew Steckenrider would hold the Miracle lineup at bay for the rest of the game.
     
    Todd Van Steensel picked up his twelfth save with Fort Myers with two innings of relief to finish the game. He allowed one hit and struck out one.
     
    White was the only batter with multiple hits for the Miracle going 2-3 with an RBI, and Swim added a double to the effort.
     
    The Miracle improved to 14-11 in the second half of the FSL season, and 52-43 overall.
     
    KERNELS NUGGETS
    Cedar Rapids 5, Quad Cities 14
    Box Score
     
    Things got ugly early in this one for the Kernels, and if it were a Minnesota Baseball Association Town Team game, would have ended a bit early in the eighth inning due to the mercy rule.
     
    Starting pitcher Keaton Steel, fresh off the disabled list, got through the first two innings unscathed, but recorded just one out in the third as the first four men reached base via single or walk, scoring the first two runs of the game in the process, and they would tack on three more to Steele’s line before Jared Wilson would escape later with the bases still loaded.
     
    The River Bandits would continue to fill the scoreboard against Wilson in the fourth (two runs), Michael Theofanopoulos in the fifth (four runs) and Cameron Booser in the sixth (one run), before they finally got a damage free and one-two-three seventh from Randy LeBlanc. He was not immune either though, as they’d get him for two more runs in the eighth, both unearned, as Kernels shortstop Sean Miller committed errors on consecutive ground balls to bring the score to 14-4 and the mercy conditions.
     
    Cedar Rapids scored their first run of the game in the sixth inning, as Zack Larson singled in Tanner English who had led off the inning with a walk. In the seventh, a triple from Austin Diemer and a double from Miller brought a little bit of life to the game, but three runs on the Kernels scoreboard weren’t much help. They added a fifth run in the top of the ninth, when English connected for his third home run of the season, making the final score of 14-5.
     
    Edgar Corcino (2-4, BB) and Miller (2-4, R, 2B) each had two hits to lead Cedar Rapids, and as team they were 1-9 with runners in scoring position and left eight men on base.
     
    E-TOWN E-NOTES
    Elizabethton 12, Burlington 1
    Box Score
     
    The Elizabethton lineup scored early often and late often on Monday, leading to a 12-1 blowout of the Burlington Royals, and were aided by another stellar performance from starter Derek Rodriguez, who continues to impress early in his transition to a pitcher with Elizabethton.
     
    The Twins racked up nineteen hits, and went a combined 8-21 with runners in scoring position. Though normally you might see fourteen men left on base as a bad thing, combined with the twelve runs on the scoreboard this tells you how many chances they gave themselves.
     
    They jumped out to a 3-0 lead after the first inning, primarily due to the bat of newly signed first baseman Zander Wiel of Vanderbilt. His first professional home run was a two-run shot to make it 3-0 and Elizabethton would need no other insurance, though they took out a pretty large policy the rest of the game.
     
    They added two more in the second inning, and single runs in each of the third and fourth. They were held in check for the next two innings, before adding three to board in the seventh, and single runs again in each of the eighth and ninth.
     
    Rodriguez retired the first eleven Royals of the game, before a single in the fourth with two outs finally got a runner on base for the home team. They would get just one more single off Rodriguez in the fifth, and he faced the minimum over his final three innings, including retiring the final seven Royals he faced. He didn’t walk a single batter, and picked up three strikeouts along the way to improve his Appalachian League record to 3-0 in five starts.
     
    Alex Robinson came on in relief to finish the final two innings, allowing one run on one hit, a double in the ninth, and two walks.
     
    Rainis Silva was 4-4 in the game and got on base in all five plate appearances for Elizabethton, scoring three runs in the process as he doubled and homered to drive in three. Kamran Young was 2-5 with a double, run scored, and a walk. Leftfielder Chris Paul had three hits including a double, scored three runs, and drove in one. Weil was 2-4 with three RBI’s and a walk to go along with his first pro home run. Travis Blankenhorn notched three hits and a walk, scoring one and driving in one. Ariel Montesino also joined the multiple-hit parade, going 2-4 with a walk, double, run scored and RBI. All nine starters for the Twins had at least one hit, and Amaurys Minier was the only starter not to score a run.
     
    The win brought Elizabethton’s record to 12-13, and they shoot for .500 at home against the Princeton Rays tomorrow.
     
    GCL TWINS TAKES
    GCL Orioles 0, Elizabethton 1
    Box Score
     
    Pitching was again the name of the game in this one, and Twins pitchers had a combined no-hitter through the first seven innings.
     
    Eduardo Del Rosario went the first five to get it started, walking two and striking out five. Max Cordy walked one and struck out two in the sixth, and Stephen Pryor struck out two in a perfect seventh. Next up in the eighth was John Curtiss, who got the first batter on a ground out to bring the team to 7.1 no-hit innings, but a walk to the next batter would be as far as he could bring them. The Orioles Jack Graham was up next, and was the first to get lucky, sneaking a ground ball through the right side for a base hit and putting a runner in scoring position. Obviously disappointed and perhaps angry the hit got through, Curtiss proceeded to strikeout the next two hitters and keep the 1-0 Twins lead.
     
    The Twins got that run in the second inning, as singles from Jermaine Palacios, Ruar Verkerk, and Kerby Camacho brought Palacios around to score with two outs.
     
    Johan Quezada was brought in for the save opportunity, and fared much like Curtiss. He got a ground out to start the inning, but then a walk and single put the game tying runner on second base again. After a pinch-runner and pinch-hitter substitution, Quezada got a ground ball to third to end the game and pick up the save.
     
    Rosario improved to 2-0 in the Gulf Coast League in five starts, and lowered his ERA to 1.96 with the five no-hit frames.
     
    On offense, the Twins got multiple hits from Luis Arraez (2-3, BB), Palacios (2-3, R) and Verkerk (2-3) and eight hits as a team. Because they were all singles however, they were just 1-5 with runners in scoring position and left only five men on base.
     
    TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY
     
    Pitcher of the Day – Derek Rodriguez, Elizabethton Twins (W, 7.0 IP, 2 H’s, 0 ER’s, 0 BB’s, 3 K’s)
    Hitter of the Day – Rainis Silva, Elizabethton Twins (4-4, 3 R’s, 2B, HR, BB, 2 RBI)
     
    TUESDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS
     
    Gwinnet @ Rochester (6:05 PM CST) – RHP Tyler Duffey (4-4, 2.24 ERA)
    Montgomery @ Chattanooga (10:15 AM CST) – TBD
    Jupiter @ Fort Myers (6:05 PM CST) – RHP Chih-Wei Hu (5-2, 2.20 ERA)
    Wisconsin @ Cedar Rapids (6:35 PM CST) –RHP Felix Jorge (4-3, 2.06 ERA)
    Princeton @ Elizabethton (6:00 PM CST) – RHP Alex Tapia (1-1, 2.95 ERA)
    GCL Twins @ GCL Orioles (11:00 AM CST) – TBD
     
    Please feel free to ask any questions and discuss Sunday’s games.
  11. Steve Lein
    The Minnesota Twins were unable to take the series on Sunday in Kansas City, falling 3-2 to the Royals in Ervin Santana’s season debut. He did more than they could have hoped for limiting the Royals to just two runs on three hits, while striking out eight. But Miguel Sano driving in another run, and Aaron Hicks going yard weren’t enough to get him the victory.
     
    In the minors on Sunday, there was a comeback win for one squad, and another pounded out fourteen hits to jump out to early big lead.
     
    To find out about how all it went down on Sunday, keep reading!
     
    TRANSACTIONS
     
    The Twins have been busy over the weekend with transactions, and this came with the announcement of the International League All-Star teams on Sunday. Representing the Rochester Red Wings will be 2B James Beresford, RP A.J. Achter, and SP Taylor Rogers.
     
    RED WINGS REPORT
    Lehigh Valley 4, Rochester 2
    Box Score
     
    Lefthander Taylor Rogers was on the mound for the Red Wings, and delivered a quality start effort. In 6.1 innings, he allowed three earned runs (four total) on nine hits. He walked none and struck out six.
     
    The third inning was the big one for the Iron Pigs, as an error by Oswaldo Arcia in right field got things going to start the inning. This was followed by consecutive doubles to score two, and a single later in the inning would put the third run on the board. Rogers would record the first out of the seventh inning, before surrendering a home run to Chase d’Arnaud to end his night.
     
    Mark Hamburger pitched 1.2 innings of perfect relief, striking out one; and Caleb Thielbar pitched the ninth, allowing two hits but no runs to finish the game.
     
    There was little offense for Rochester in this one as they were just 0-2 with runners in scoring position and left only five men on base. The first eight men of the game were retired before a Carlos Paulino single in the third. Jorge Polanco doubled in the sixth but only made it to third base, and Wilkin Ramirez added a single in the seventh. That was it for the offense until the ninth inning.
     
    Arcia led off the bottom half with a single, was retired at second on a Reynaldo Rodriguez fielder’s choice, and Jose Martinez later followed with his third home run of the season to put their only runs on the board for the day.
     
    The loss put the Red Wings record at 44-39 on the season, one and a half games back of the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders in the International League North Division.
     
    CHATTANOOGA CHATTER
    Chattanooga 2, Jacksonville 3
    Box Score
     
    Jacksonville jumped out to an early lead in the first inning against Lookouts starter D.J. Baxendale. The second hitter of the game clubbed a solo home run to make it 1-0, and later with the bases loaded Niko Goodrum’s first error in double-A allowed a second run to score. Baxendale would recover and finish four innings with just the two runs allowed on three hits and a walk. He struck out four.
     
    Madison Boer would pitch the next two scoreless innings, working around three walks and one hit to keep the score at 2-0.
     
    In the top of the sixth, Max Kepler drew a walk with two outs, and Adam Brett Walker drove him in with a double to make it 2-1. Chattanooga then tied it at two in the seventh as Goodrum made up for his earlier error with a solo blast, his second home run in the Southern League.
     
    Jacksonville managed to manufacture that run back in the bottom of the inning however, as a leadoff walk and sacrifice bunt put the go-ahead run in scoring position. D.J. Johnson got the second out of the inning, but an RBI single would do the trick for the Suns. J.T. Chargois pitched a scoreless eighth inning, walking two.
     
    Chattanooga threatened in each of the eighth and ninth innings, but were unable to push the tying run across home. Walker started the eighth with a single, and stole second base to put himself in scoring position but the next three batters were retired, ending up stranding him on third. In the ninth, Stephen Wickens doubled with two outs, but Kennys Vargas popped out to end the game.
     
    Leadoff man Levi Michael was 2-5 on the day with a double, and Wickens and Walker both added doubles in multi-hit efforts.
    MIRACLE MATTERS
    St. Lucie 4, Fort Myers 5
    Box Score
     
    Fort Myers scored first in the game’s opening frame as an Engelb Vielma single and stolen base, Alex Swim hit by pitch, and Mitch Garver walk loaded the bases. They would only get one run on the scoreboard however, on a Jason Kanzler sac fly. They went up 2-0 after the third inning after a Ryan Walker sac fly to score Swim, but it also turned into a double play as Mitch Garver was nabbed attempting to advance to third on the throw home.
     
    Kohl Stewart made the start for the Miracle, and began the game by striking out the first two batters. He’d make it a one-two-three inning with a pop-out to Vielma at short. He worked around a walk and ground-rule double in the second to escape a jam, and pitched another one-two-three third inning. In the fourth, it looked like he was going to work out of another jam, but after a line-out throw-em-out double play of his own teams doing, he got tagged with a two run home run to tie the game at two. He would finish three more innings, picking up three more K’s along the way, put a throwing error from himself in the seventh led to an unearned run and 3-2 deficit after he finished the inning. Overall on the day, Stewart went seven innings, allowing three runs (two earned) on five hits and two walks, while striking out six. His six strikeouts were the most in a game this season.
     
    St. Lucie would add another run in the eighth inning off Brandon Bixler, as an error from Bryan Haar at third, a walk, and a wild pitch put runners on second and third, and a sac fly brought one in for a 4-2 lead.
     
    The Mets bullpen then entered the game, and it was a good thing for the Miracle. Alex Swim led off the bottom of the eighth with a single, and Garver followed with a walk. A fly out and walk later had the bases loaded for Marcus Knecht. His single brought in two runs and tied the game at four. Haar was then intentionally walked to load the bases again, and a wild pitch allowed Walker to scamper home with the go-ahead run.
     
    Nick Burdi came on for the ninth inning and his first save opportunity back with Fort Myers, and struck out the first batter he faced. A single then put the tying runner on base, and Burdi was likely bailed out by the third ground-rule double of the game for the Mets, as it kept the tying run to just third base. Burdi then got a groundout to his drawn in infield, and a fly out to preserve the victory pick up the save.
     
    As a team, the Miracle had just five hits on the game, led by Swim who was 2-3 with two runs scored, but took advantage of seven walks and three errors from St. Lucie.
    KERNELS NUGGETS
    Burlington 6, Cedar Rapids 9
    Box Score
     
    The Kernels lineup scored multiple runs in each of the first three innings to jump out to a 7-0 lead early.
     
    In the first Jorge Fernandez cleared the bases the with a three-run double to score Edgar Corcino (walk), Nick Gordon (double), and Max Murphy (walk). In the second, Brian Navarreto and Pat Kelly led off with back-to-back singles and a wild pitch would allow Navarreto to score. Later in the inning, Gordon and Corcino executed a doube steal for the innings second run. In the third inning, Brett Doe led off with a home run, his third of the year, and singles from Fernandez, T.J. White, and Navaretto would add another run. Doubles from Fernandez and Navarreto in the seventh inning would add two more insurance runs.
     
    Making the start for Cedar Rapids was lefty Randy Rosario, and he worked the first 4.2 innings. He allowed no runs and scattered four hits, while striking out five. Brandon Bixler worked through the seventh inning, and allowed one run on three hits (the run scored on a solo home run) and a walk. He struck out two. Michael Theofanopoulus worked around a couple hits in the eighth inning by striking out two, but ran into a ton of trouble in the ninth.
     
    With game at 9-1, a leadoff double got things rolling for the Iron Pigs. A hit batter and two singles around a strikeout and a groundout scored two runs and put runners on the corners with two outs. A double would bring in both those runners, and a single another run before Theofanopoulos got the final out of the game on a ground ball. His line read 2.0 innings pitched, and five earned runs on seven hits, while striking out three.
     
    Fernandez (3-5, 2 R’s, 2 2B’s, 4 RBI), and Navarreto (3-4, R, 2B, 2 RBI) had three hits apiece, and Corcino (2-4, 2 R’s, BB) and Gordon (2-5, R, 2B) also collected multiple hits to lead the offense in taking three of four from Burlington.
     
    After a .204 average in the month of May, Gordon followed with a .293 average in June to up his overall line to .253 on the season. He’s collected hits in eight straight games.
     
    E-TOWN E-NOTES
    Elizabethton 5, Princeton 2
    Box Score
     
    This game was scoreless through five as starters Juse Mujica for Princeton and Cody Stashak of Elizabethton combined for ten shutout shutout innings. Stashak allowed just three hits and one walk while striking out five, and Mujica gave up just two hits and one walk while striking out six.
     
    The Twins got on the board first in the sixth after Mujica left the game, as the first three hitters of the inning singled to load the bases. A sac fly from Alex Perez, error of the bat of LaMonte Wade, and single from Amaurys Minier would give Elizabethton a 3-0 lead.
     
    They added more in the seventh when Austin Diemer launched his third home run of the season, a two run shot to make it 5-0.
     
    Princeton got on the board in the seventh, as Samuel Clay gave up two singles and a walk to score one, before escaping without any further damage. Jose Abreu would come on in the eighth and pitch a scoreless inning, before running into his own trouble in the ninth. A single, walk, and double brought the tying runner to the plate, and Anthony McIver was summoned. The 15th round draft pick and lefthander quashed any rally by striking out both hitters he faced to pick up his first professional save.
     
    The Twins got multi-hit efforts from Sean Miller (2-5, R), Diemer (2-4, 2 R’s, HR, 2 RBI), and Nelson Molina (2-3, R, BB) in the victory.
     
    GCL TWINS TAKES
     
    The Gulf Coast League Twins, like the rest of the GCL, had the day off on Sunday. They travel to face the GCL Orioles on Monday.
     
    TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY
     
    Pitcher of the Day – Cody Stashak, Elizabethton Twins (W, 5.0 IP, 3 H’s, 1 BB, 5 K’s)
    Hitter of the Day – Jorge Fernandez, Cedar Rapids Kernels (3-5, 2 R’s, 2 2B’s, 4 RBI)
     
    MONDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS
     
    Lehigh Valley @ Rochester (6:05 PM CST) – LHP Pat Dean (6-7, 3.11 ERA)
    Chattanooga @ Jacksonville (6:05 PM CST) – LHP Jason Wheeler (0-1, 6.35 ERA)
    St. Lucie @ Fort Myers (6:05 PM CST) – LHP Stephen Gonsalves (2-0, 3.79 ERA)
    Beloit @ Cedar Rapids (6:35 PM CST) – RHP Sam Gibbons (2-2, 4.85 ERA)
    Elizabethton @ Princeton (6:00 PM CST) – RHP Derek Rodriguez (2-0, 1.46 ERA)
    GCL Twins @ GCL Orioles (11:00 AM CST) – TBD
     
    Please feel free to ask any questions and discuss Sunday’s games.
  12. Steve Lein
    Happy Father’s Day across Twins Territory!!!
     
    While Jake Arrieta was taking it to the Minnesota Twins lineup and Anthony Rizzo continued to bash their pitchers on Sunday Afternoon, three of the four full-season league affiliates were in action in the minors.
     
    The organization went 2-2 on the day, but in the minors a come-from behind victory was sparked by a pair of bash-brothers in a single inning, and there were several standout bullpen performances.
     
    Read on to find out about all the action on Sunday afternoon!
     
    RED WINGS REPORT
    Louisville 3, Rochester 2
    Box Score
     
    The Red Wings managed to score first and last in this contest, but were still handed a loss as Louisville put a crooked number on the scoreboard in an inning, while they did not.
     
    In the first inning Danny Santana led off the game for Rochester with a double, and after being moved to third on a ground out, trotted home to score the game’s first run on a Danny Ortiz single and 1-0 lead.
     
    It would remain that way until the third inning, when Red Wings starter Pat Dean gave up a solo home run to number eight-hitter Ryan Lamarre to tie the game at one. Dean had retired the first seven hitters of the game to that point.
     
    He ran into further trouble in the fourth inning as the middle of the lineup for Louisville came through with some more power. Number three-hitter Hernan Iribarren singled to start the inning, and trotted home on a two-run home run from cleanup man Josh Satin, making the score 3-1.
     
    Dean would face the minimum over the next nine outs before walking two around a strikeout to begin the top of the seventh. He was relieved by Alex Meyer who escaped the inning with zero damage after two fly-outs.
     
    In the bottom of the seventh inning, it was again Santana providing a spark for Rochester. His third triple in 12 games with the Red Wings allowed him to score on a sac-fly to left field from James Beresford, closing the score to 3-2.
     
    Meyer would pitch a scoreless eighth inning, picking up two strikeouts along the way, to keep the game in striking distance for Rochester. Caleb Thielbar retired the side one-two-three in the ninth, bringing up the home team for their final at-bat.
     
    Eric Farris singled with one out, then was erased on a Eric Fryer fielder’s choice, before Fryer moved to second on a balk, placing the tying run in scoring position for the games star to that point, Danny Santana. Unfortunately, this at-bat ended in a ground out to second base instead of an extra-base hit, and Rochester fell 3-2.
     
    Santana (2-5, 2 R’s, 2B, 3B) and Oswaldo Arcia (2-4) were the only hitters in the lineup with multiple hits, and Reynaldo Rodriguez added a triple to lead the offense.
     
    Dean managed a quality start, allowing the three runs on five hits and two walks in 6.1 innings, striking out five.
     
    CHATTANOOGA CHATTER
    Jacksonville 5, Chattanooga 6
    Box Score
     
    The Lookouts found themselves down 5-1 after the top-half of the sixth-inning, but the powerful bats in their lineup refused to let them stay there.
     
    D.J. Baxendale made the start, and pitched the first three frames in his first start returning from shoulder discomfort. He allowed zero runs on one hit and two walks, while striking out three.
     
    Tim Shibuya came on for the fourth inning, and promptly allowed a solo home run to the first batter he faced, the rehabbing Michael Morse of the Miami Marlins, to tie the game at one. It didn’t get much better for Shibuya, as he would allow two runs in each of the fifth and sixth innings to put the Lookouts in a 5-1 hole. Brandon Peterson game on in the sixth inning with two outs and a runner on third, but picked up a strikeout to end the frame.
     
    This is when the big-boppers in the Chattanooga lineup came out to play.
     
    Mike Gonzalez led off the bottom of the sixth with a walk, and Adam Brett Walker made the score 5-3 with his Southern League Leading 19th home run of the year. Singles from Jairo Rodriguez and Levi Micheal around a Stephen Wickens fly out and Niko Goodrum K would bring Miguel Sano to the plate. His 13th home run of the season would put the Lookouts out front 6-5 and they never looked back.
     
    Peterson would pick up four more strikeouts and not allow a single baserunner in the seventh and eighth innings, before yielding the save opportunity to J.T. Chargois.
     
    He walked one but retired the three other hitters to pick up his fifth save in eight appearances with the Lookouts. His ERA stands at 2.08 for the season, and 1.17 with Chattanooga.
     
    Assisting Sano (1-3, 2 R’s, HR, BB, 3 RBI) and Walker (1-4, R, HR, 2 RBI) with multiple hits in the comeback victory were Michael (2-4, R, BB, SB), and Rodriguez (2-4, R). Max Kepler was 0-2 but reached base via walk twice and stole his eleventh base from the cleanup spot in the lineup (behind Sano).
     
    The Lookouts finish the first half of the Southern League season atop the North Division standings, and tied with the Biloxi Shuckers of the South Division with 43-25 records. The 43-25 mark is the Lookouts best first half record in the history of their home park, AT&T Field.
    MIRACLE MATTERS
     
    The Miracle enjoyed a day off on Sunday afternoon, and host the Palm Beach Cardinals for a three game series starting tomorrow at 6:05 PM CST at the Century Link Sports Complex and Hammond Stadium.
    KERNELS NUGGETS
    Cedar Rapids 5, Clinton 2
    Box Score
     
    Cedar Rapids jumped out to a 1-0 lead in the second inning after Brett Doe led off the frame with an infield single and moved into scoring position when T.J. White was hit by a pitch. He would score on a Rafael Valera single.
     
    Kernels starter Jared Wilson gave the run back in the bottom half when a two-out single brought home Joseph DeCarlo, who had doubled. Cedar Rapids responded by adding two runs in each of the third and fifth innings.
     
    Max Murphy was the catalyst in both those innings. In the third, he slugged his fourth home run of the season, a two run shot to make the score 3-1, and in the fifth his double put runners on second and third. A balk would score Alex Real and move him up to third, before a pickoff attempt caught Pat Kelly between first and second base with two-outs. Kelly was savvy enough to make the Lumberkings attempt multiple throws in a rundown, and Murphy was able to scamper home before they tagged-out Kelly to end the inning.
     
    Randy LeBlanc was the first pitcher in relief of Wilson, and he went three scoreless innings to improve his record to 5-0. He allowed just two hits and struck out two. These three scoreless innings improved his ongoing scoreless streak to 26 innings, tying him with Trevor Hildenberger for the team’s longest streak of the year and lowered his ERA to 1.52.
     
    Lefty Cameron Booser came on for the eighth inning and allowed one run on a sac fly after a walk and two singles, but struck out the last two hitters he faced to escape with limited damage.
     
    Hildenberger then came on for the ninth and recorded his eighth save by striking out the side. His ERA rests at 0.51 on the season and has not been above 1.00 since April 23rd.
     
    The Kernels got multiple hits from Real (2-5, 2 R’s, 2B), Murphy (2-4, 2 R’s, 2B, HR, 2 RBI) and Valera (2-3, BB, RBI) to lead the offense.
     
    TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY
     
    Pitcher of the Day – Brandon Peterson, Chattanooga Lookouts (W, 2.1 IP, 5 K’s)
    Hitter of the Day – Miguel Sano, Chattanooga Lookouts (1-3, 2 R’s, GW 3-Run HR, 3 RBI)
     
    MONDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS
     
    Rochester @ Pawtucket (6:05 PM CST) – LHP Tyler Duffey (1-4, 4.15 ERA)
    Chattanooga – Scheduled Day Off.
    Palm Beach @ Fort Myers (6:05 PM CST) – TBD
    Cedar Rapids – MWL All-Star Break.
     
    Please feel free to ask any questions and discuss Sunday’s games.
  13. Steve Lein
    The big news of the day was obviously the 2015 MLB draft and the Twins selection of Illinois pitcher Tyler Jay (whose pre-draft profile you can read here, and talk about the pick here). Instant and meaningless analysis: I love the pick! But like every other day during the summer, there also was plenty of action in the Minors for the Twins affiliates as well, where Jay will (hopefully) soon be playing.
     
    There was one top prospect making his first start in a new league, a rain postponement that pushed out the start of another, and a standout individual performance and football game score from our friends in the Dominican Republic worthy of mention.
     
    Read on to find out about all the action on Monday night!
     
    TRANSACTIONS
     
    It was known yesterday, but became official today that the Twins have sent shortstop Danny Santana down to AAA, and recalled Kennys Vargas in his place.
     
    Some of the League All-Star rosters have also recently been released, with pitchers Chih-Wei Hu, Brandon Peterson, and J.T. Chargois along with catcher Alex Swim representing the Fort Myers Miracle in the Florida State League game to be played on June 20th.
     
    In the Midwest League, pitchers Felix Jorge, Cameron Booser, and Trevor Hildenberger along with first baseman Trey Vavra will represent the West Division squad and the Cedar Rapids Kernels in their game on June 23rd.
     
    RED WINGS REPORT
    Indianapolis 6, Rochester 3
    Box Score
     
    It was International League division leaders squaring off as the Red Wings lead the North Division, and the Indians the West Division.
     
    It did not start out well for Rochester, as Indianapolis jumped out to 3-0 lead after the second inning, and made it 4-0 after four. All four of those runs were charged to starter Jason Wheeler, who would go on to finish the fifth inning. He allowed those runs on eight hits and two walks, while striking out two.
     
    The Red Wings lineup struggled to get anything going against Indians starter Clayton Richard, who has been a MLB starter for several seasons with the Chicago White Sox and San Diego Padres. He came to the Pittsburgh Pirates organization this year after a shoulder surgery limited him to just four starts in the minors in 2015. He appears to be back on his way to the majors as he now sports a 1.69 ERA for Indianapolis.
     
    Over Richard’s seven innings, the Wings managed just five hits and two walks, and the lone unearned run came in his final inning, when Richard committed a throwing error to move Jose Martinez to third base and in position to score on a sac fly from Wilkin Ramirez.
     
    In the ninth inning, doubles from Oswaldo Arcia, Eric Fryer, and Wilkin Ramirez made the score 6-3, but they weren’t able to do any more damage. Reynaldo Rodriguez was 2-4 on the night to lead the offense, and Ramirez had two RBI.
     
    In relief for the Red Wings, Logan Darnell allowed two runs on two hits and a walk in two innings. He struck out three. Mark Hamburger and Ryan O’Rourke each pitched a scoreless inning, with Hamburger picking up two K’s.
     
    CHATTANOOGA CHATTER
    Chattanooga @ Jackson, Postponed (Rain)
     
    Starter Jose Berrios was looking for a bounceback start after he suffered his worst outing of the year (relatively speaking) in his last one, but he was forced to wait another day due to the rain in Jackson, Tennessee. The game will be made up tomorrow as part of a double-header, with both games going seven innings. The first game will start at 5:05 PM CST.
     
    MIRACLE MATTERS
    Fort Myers 5, Lakeland 3
    Box Score
     
    Stephen Gonsalves was on the mound for the Miracle, making his Florida State League debut, and he also picked up his first FSL win.
     
    Overall, the start wasn’t as good as all of his had been in the Midwest League, but that’s not unexpected with a guy making his first start at a new level. Gonsalves finished 5.1 innings, allowing three runs on five hits and three walks, while striking out two (or five, if the game report from Miracle play-by-play man Bryce Zimmerman is to be believed). In his final inning, a walk and two-run home run got the bullpen active, and he left the game with runners on the corners. Alex Muren came on and got the final two outs to keep Gonsalves in line for the win.
     
    The Miracle took a 2-0 lead in the second inning with two-out rally started by Bryan Haar with a single. Marcus Knecht followed with a single of his own and they moved into scoring position on a wild pitch. Chad Christensen would bring them home on a single to center field.
     
    Fort Myers added three runs in the top of the sixth inning that was led off with a single from Ryan Walker. FSL All-Star Alex Swim brought him home with his first triple of the season to right field to chase Lakeland’s starter from the game, and Mitch Garver greeted his replacement with a single to bring him in. Niko Goodrum would follow with a single to put Garver on third, and he raced home on Haar ground out to make it 5-1 at that point.
     
    Muren would finish seventh inning before relinquishing duty to Todd Van Steensel, who picked up his sixth save with two innings of scoreless ball. He struck out three (or four if the same report is instead accurate).
     
    Walker, Goodrum, Haar, and Christensen each collected two hits on the night, and Christensen’s two RBI’s led the team in the victory.
    KERNELS NUGGETS
    Cedar Rapids 4, West Michigan 2
    Box Score
     
    The Kernels completed a come-back victory with a single run in the sixth inning to close the game to 2-1, and added three in the seventh to take the lead for good.
     
    West Michigan got out to the 2-0 lead in the fourth inning, when starter Jared Wilson ran into his first trouble of the night. Up to that point, the only runner for the Whitecaps had reached on an error by Kernels third baseman T.J. White. It was a triple with one out that got the first run of the game in scoring position. A single would bring that runner in for a 1-0 lead, then a single and walk loaded the bases and the second run scored on a wild pitch.
     
    Wilson would recover to pitch scoreless fifth and sixth innings, ending the game with six innings pitched, and allowing the two runs on three hits and two walks, while striking out four. The win brought Wilson’s record to 5-1 on the season, and lowered his ERA to 3.10.
     
    When Wilson exited, the game was left up to the unhittable, long named, and University of California alumni duo of Michael Theofanopoulos and Trevor Hildenberger. Theo went two perfect innings, striking out one to pick up his fourth hold of the season, while Hil pitched a scoreless ninth, walking one and striking out two to pick up his sixth save.
     
    The Cedar Rapids scoring was started in the sixth inning by Nick Gordon, who brought home newly minted lead-off man Edgar Corcina with a single. Corcina had singled and stole second base to put himself in scoring position.
     
    In the seventh, a two-out three-run rally was started when Brett Doe was hit by a pitch. This was followed by a White single, Blake Schmit 2-RBI double, and a Brian Navaretto RBI single to make the final score of 4-2.
     
    Gordon, White, and Schmit were all 2-4, with Schmit’s 2-run double being the Kernels only extra-base hit of the evening.
     
    DSL TWINS SPECIAL REPORT
    DSL Twins 21, DSL Yankees (team 1) 14
    Box Score
     
    It’s really hard to make anything out of the young players who make up the roster of the Minnesota Twins Dominican Academy team, but it’s hard not to notice a baseball game score with an NFL-like final of 21-14. The DSL Twins took advantage of sixteen hits and twelve walks to come away with the victory. As a team they we’re 8-15 with runners in scoring position and four hitters in the lineup racked up multiple hits. There was also just one hitter in the lineup who did not score multiple runs.
     
    Even more notable, was the batting line of first baseman and clean-up hitter Jorge Parra, as he hit for the cycle and tallied six RBI’s. He was 4-6 on the night as a whole and also scored three runs. Quite a performance no matter the level or competition!
     
    TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY
     
    Pitcher of the Day – Todd Van Steensel, Fort Myers Miracle (W, 2.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R’s, 3 K’s)
    Hitter of the Day – Jorge Parra, DSL Twins (4-6, 3 R’s, 2B, 3B, HR, 6 RBI)
     
    TUESDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS
     
    Indianapolis @ Rochester (6:05 PM CST) – LHP Taylor Rogers (5-3, 3.09 ERA)
    Chattanooga @ Jackson, Double-Header (Game 1: 5:05 PM CST, Game 2: 30-45 min after end of Game 1) – RHP Jose Berrios (6-3, 3.25 ERA) and TBD
    Fort Myers @ Lakeland (5:30 PM CST) – LHP Mat Batts (0-1, 2.13 ERA)
    Cedar Rapids – Scheduled day off.
     
    Please feel free to ask any questions and discuss Monday’s games.
  14. Steve Lein
    The calendar of the year 2015 is turning to June, and the Minnesota Twins have the best record in the American League.
     
    Wait…what?!
     
    There were few who believed that might be case this season, except maybe Terry Ryan, but it’s true and this team has certainly been fun to watch again!
     
    Like their parent club, many of the teams in the Minor Leagues are having great seasons as well as both Rochester and Chattanooga lead their divisions while Cedar Rapids is 33-18 and in second place. Fort Myers is the only affiliate with a losing record at 24-26, but are just a game behind second place in the Florida State League South Division.
     
    In the games on Sunday, there were two rainouts, but Fort Myers and Cedar Rapids were in action so read on to find out what happened and where!
     
    TRANSACTIONS
     
    Before we get to the games, there were a few transactions in the lower levels of the system on Sunday.
    In Cedar Rapids, Tyler Kuresa was sent back to Extended Spring Training, and Alex Real was assigned in his place from Elizabethton. Hudson Boyd was also placed on the 7-day disabled list with a separated left shoulder.
     
    RED WINGS REPORT
    Rochester @ Buffalo, Postponed (Rain)
     
    Rochester’s game against the Buffalo Bisons was postponed due to rain. The game will be made up the next time the Red Wings head to Buffalo, over August 10th to the 13th.
    CHATTANOOGA CHATTER
    Biloxi @ Chattanooga, Postponed (Rain)
     
    Southern League South division leaders, the Biloxi Shuckers, were in town to take on the Southern League North leading Lookouts over the weekend, but Sundays tilt was postponed due to wet field conditions. The game will not be made up as the teams are not in the same division, and will not play again in the first half.
    MIRACLE MATTERS
    Fort Myers 4, St. Lucie 10
    Box Score
     
    The St. Lucie Mets moved a game in front of the Miracle for second place in the South division with their victory on Sunday. Both teams trail the division leading Charlotte Stone Crabs by a significant margin, so they have a lot of work to in the first half of the season to clinch a playoff spot.
     
    Fort Myers starter Aaron Slegers was coming of one of his best games as a pro, where he pitched a complete game shutout, allowing just three hits and striking out nine in the process. Unfortunately in this one, St. Lucie got to him early and often.
     
    They scored four runs in the first, four runs in the second, and two in the third before Slegers was finally removed from the game. Two of the runs we’re unearned after a Niko Goodrum error in the first, but Slegers final line ended up as 3.0 IP, with ten runs on twelve hits and two walks. He struck out three.
     
    Though he didn’t give up a home run, six of those hits went for extra bases.
     
    After he left the game, the Miracle bullpen of Luck Westphal, Matt Summers, and Dallas Gallant threw five shutout innings. They combined to allow just three more hits and three walks, and struck out two. Westphal went the first three innings, and Summers and Gallant pitched one apiece.
     
    On the offensive side, the Fort Myers lineup managed just four hits, but did produce four runs helped out by seven walks from Mets’ pitchers. Niko Goodrum went 2-3 with his tenth double and scored two runs, Bryan Haar knocked in two runners and added a double, and Marcus Knecht also picked up an RBI with a double in the second inning. As a team, they went 2-10 with runners in scoring position and left eight men on base.
    KERNELS NUGGETS
    Clinton 5, Cedar Rapids 6 (11 innings)
    Box Score
     
    Cedar Rapids got the walk-off victory in extra innings on Sunday, coming back from a 5-0 deficit in the sixth inning.
     
    The Kernels sent Sam Gibbons to mound to make his first appearance and start of the 2015 season, and he cruised through the first four innings. He struck out the side in the second inning, and retired seven in a row at one point.
     
    He finally ran into trouble in the fifth inning, as consecutive singles put a runner in scoring position with two outs. Another single brought in the game’s first run, then a triple added two more. Gibbons got a groundout to finish the inning and his day with 5.0 innings pitched and three earned runs on six hits and walk, while striking out six.
     
    Michael Cederoth entered the game for the top of the sixth, and began the frame by committing an error on a throw to first that moved the runner to second base. Two outs later, shorstop Niko Goodrum committed his seventh error of the season allowing the first run of the inning to score. A stolen base, walk, and single brought in the second run before Cederoth escaped with his team down 5-0.
     
    Edgar Corcina got the scoring started for the Kernels with a double to left field leading off the bottom of the inning. He would score after consecutive errors put Gordon and Zack Larson on first and second. T.J. White then brought them in with his fourth triple of the season, cutting the lead to 5-3.
     
    In the eighth inning, the LumberKings defense again failed them. Larson again reached base due to an error, and would score after singles from Jorge Fernandez and White. Fernandez would score to tie the game at five on a Pat Kelly ground out to second base.
     
    From the seventh inning on, the long-named and untouchable duo of Michael Theofanopoulos and Trevor Hildenberger held Clinton scoreless. Theofanopoulos went three innings, allowing zero hits and two walks, while striking out three. Hildenberger picked up the win by pitching the extra innings. He allowed just one hit and struck out three. He lowered his ERA to 0.31 on the season.
     
    In the bottom of the eleventh, Kelly started the inning with a single, and was moved into scoring position on a sacrifice bunt from Brett Doe. After a pop out and intentional walk, Tanner English stepped in the box with two outs. He sent a single into centerfield, bringing Kelly home for the walk-off win.
     
    T.J. White (2-5) and Brett Doe (2-4) each collected multiple hits for the Kernels, and Brian Navarreto was the only hitter in the lineup without a base knock on the game.
     
    TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY
     
    Pitcher of the Day – Trevor Hildenberger, Cedar Rapids Kernels (W, 2.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R’s, 0 BB’s, 3 K’s)
    Hitter of the Day – T.J. White, Cedar Rapids Kernels (2-5, 3B, 3 RBI)
     
    MONDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS
     
    Rochester – Scheduled Day Off.
    Tennessee @ Chattanooga (6:15 PM CST) – LHP David Hurlbut (0-1, 21.00 ERA)
    Fort Myers @ St. Lucie (5:30 PM CST) – LHP Mat Batts (0-0, 1.29 ERA)
    Cedar Rapids @ Beloit (2:00 PM CST) – LHP Stephen Gonsalves (5-1, 1.31 ERA)
     
    The Twins Dominican Summer League team also begins play tomorrow morning, as they host the DSL Giants at 10:30.
    Please feel free to ask any questions and discuss the Sunday games.
  15. Steve Lein
    All four of the Minnesota Twins affiliates were in action on Sunday afternoon, and along with Major League team, the organization had an undefeated day.
     
    In Rochester, a certain starting pitcher continued his run of AAA dominance, top prospects began and ended the scoring for Chattanooga, Fort Myers got a complete game shutout effort on the hill, and the Cedar Rapids lineup knocked the Twins’ former affiliate around their old ball park.
     
    Read on to find out who did what and where in Sunday’s MiLB action!
     
    RED WINGS REPORT
    Rochester 3, Norfolk 1
    Box Score
     
    Rochester scored single runs in the third, fourth, and seventh innings to provide plenty of run support for the continued AAA dominance of Tommy Milone.
     
    He pounded the strike zone all day and scattered six hits over 8.1 innings. Eighty-five of his one-hundred-and-eight pitches went for strikes and had retired eleven men in a row when he was finally struck for his first earned run since being optioned to AAA in the bottom of the ninth. Norfolk’s Christian Walker homered to make the score 3-1.
     
    With the shutout no longer in place, Milone was lifted for A.J. Achter, who quickly got the final two outs for his sixth save of the year. Milone finished the game with eight strikeouts and no walks.
     
    Jose Martinez got the scoring started for the Red Wings when he led off the top of third inning with his second home run of the year. He added a sacrifice fly to score Josmil Pinto in the fourth.
     
    Danny Ortiz would add the final insurance run in the when he led off the seventh inning with his 7th home run of the season and the 3-0 lead for Rochester.
     
    Martinez and Ortiz would both finish the game with two hits and a home run. Kennys Vargas was 1-4, and Argenis Diaz and Eric Fryer collected the other two hits for the Red Wings.
     
    The win improved Rochester to 25-19 on the season, leading the International League North Division.
    CHATTANOOGA CHATTER
    Chattanooga 7, Mobile 6
    Box Score
     
    The Lookouts jumped out to an early lead in the top of the first inning, and the scoring got started by the bat of Miguel Sano. With Jorge Polanco on first base after a single, Sano launched his ninth home run of the season to center field and a 2-0 lead. Max Kepler and Adam Brett Walker followed with back-to-back doubles to score a third run, and Mike Gonzalez brought home Walker with a single to make it 4-0.
     
    Mobile got one run back in the bottom of the inning after a leadoff home run against starter Greg Peavey, but Chattanooga would score two more in the second to make it 6-1.
     
    Stephen Wickens reached base on an error, moved to second on a Byron Buxton groundout, and scored on a Polanco single. Travis Harrison would then bring Polanco around to score with his first triple of the season to right field.
     
    Peavey then kept the BayBears lineup silent until the sixth inning when they plated two runs to close the score to 6-3 and chase him from the game. D.J. Johnson escaped the jam in the sixth, and worked a scoreless seventh before running into trouble in the eighth. A walk, hit batter, and a double would score one before Zack Jones was summoned. He walked two batters to score the first inherited runner, and then a sacrifice fly scored a second to tie the game at six.
     
    In the top of the ninth however, the bat and legs of Buxton would put Chattanooga back on top for good, as he beat out a groundball to third base for a single, and the rushed throw to first turned into a throwing error that allowed Carlos Paulino to race home and make the score 7-6.
     
    Jones got a one-two-three bottom of the ninth to pick up his third win on the season.
     
    Polanco, Harrison, and Paulino each collected two hits, and Polanco stole his ninth base. Buxton finished 1-4 with a walk.
    MIRACLE MATTERS
    Brevard County 0, Fort Myers 4
    Box Score
     
    The Brevard County Manatees had no answer for the efficiency of starter Aaron Slegers on this day.
     
    His quick work and complete-game-shutout performance allowed this game to finish in just under two hours. He didn’t go to a single three-ball count with any hitter, and threw twenty-one first pitch strikes. The Manatees manages just three hits, all singles, and Slegers struck out a season-high nine batters. It was the first complete-game shutout for the Miracle this season, and was one of two shutouts in the series.
     
    The Miracle lineup got all the offense they would need in the second and third innings to jump out to 3-0 lead. Niko Goodrum drew his Florida State League leading twenty-seventh walk, stole his tenth base, and scored on a Marcus Knecht single in the second, and Tanner Vavra and Zach Granite scored on an Alex Swim single in the third.
     
    Fort Myers added a run in the eighth inning on a throwing error from the catcher that allowed Swim to scamper home.
     
    Knecht was 2-3 on the night with an RBI and stolen base, and Swim 2-4 with two RBI and a stolen base.
    KERNELS NUGGETS
    Cedar Rapids 11, Beloit 1
    Box Score
     
    Cedar Rapids pounded out thirteen hits on the day to dismantle the Beloit Snappers in the organizations old stomping grounds.
     
    They went ahead 2-0 in the second inning, when Blake Schmit drove in Max Murphy with a single, and Zack Larson scored on a wild-pitch strike three to Rainis Silva that would have ended the inning.
     
    Their big inning was the top of the third, as they batted around and added six runs to their total. Nick Gordon was the victim of the first and last outs of the inning, but in between Trey Vavra singled, Murphy brought him home with a triple, Larson and Pat Kelly hit back-to-back doubles to score two more, Tyler Kuresa singled in Kelly, and Tanner English added a triple that scored Kuresa and Silva who had reached base on an error.
     
    In the fourth inning they would score three more to go ahead 11-0 when two consecutive errors began the frame. A single from Larson, sac fly from Kelly, and double from Kuresa would bring in the Kernels final runs of the day.
     
    It was more than enough for the Cedar Rapids pitching staff, who went with a bullpen game started by Zach Tillery. He pitched the first two innings, allowing just two hits. Luke Bard then made his second appearance of the season, pitching two hitless innings of his own. Cameron Booser pitched the fifth and sixth innings, allowing Beloit’s only run of the game, an unearned one, while walking three and striking out one. Trevor Hildenberger finished the final three innings for his fifth save. He allowed two hits and struck out one. Hildenberger’s ERA now sits at 0.35 on the season, his last ten appearances and 21.2 innings pitched being of the scoreless variety. Over that timeframe, he’s allowed just six hits and two walks, while striking out twenty-five.
     
    TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY
     
    Pitcher of the Day – Aaron Slegers, Fort Myers Miracle (CG SO, 9 IP, 3 H’s, 0 BB’s, 9 K’s)
    Hitter of the Day – Max Murphy, Cedar Rapids Kernels (3-5, 3 R’s, 3B, RBI)
     
    MONDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS
     
    Rochester @ Durhan (4:05 PM CST) – TBD
    Chattanooga @ Mobile (4:05 PM CST) – RHP D.J. Baxendale (3-0, 2.47 ERA)
    Fort Myers – Scheduled Day Off.
    Cedar Rapids @ Beloit (2:00 PM CST) – RHP John Curtiss (2-3, 5.79 ERA
    Please feel free to ask any questions and discuss the Sunday games.
  16. Steve Lein
    In the minors on Sunday, Twins affiliates saw a solid rehab appearance from starter Ricky Nolasco in Cedar Rapids, and eight dominant innings from a left-hander in Rochester. Multiple games had dramatic finishes, but just one team would bring home a victory.
    Read on to find out what happened and where!
     
    RED WINGS REPORT
    Syracuse 4, Rochester 6
    Box Score
    Rochester plated four runners in the third inning, and two in the fourth to provide just enough offense for the bullpen in the ninth, after starter Pat Dean delivered eight dominant innings.
    Dean allowed just six hits (all singles) and walked two, while striking out seven on the day. He retired the first ten Syracuse hitters of the game, and his is lone earned run against came in the fourth inning. Tony Gwynn Jr. singled with one out, and moved to second on a walk, before a Kila Ka'aihue single with two outs brought him home from second. Dean would strike out the next hitter to end the inning.
    Rochester's offense brought all nine hitters in the lineup to the plate in the third, resulting in their big inning. Aaron Hicks led off with walk, then stole second base and scored the first run of the game on a Josmil Pinto single. A Brock Peterson single later loaded the bases for Danny Ortiz, who's groundout went 3-2 to prevent a run but kept the bases loaded with two outs. Jose Martinez then single to bring in two runs, and chase starter Taylor Jordan from the game. James Beresford would bring Ortiz home with the final run of the inning with a double.
    A Reynaldo Rodriguez triple to left field in the fourth inning scored Hicks and Pinto to provide the needed offense in the ninth, when Stephen Pryor relieved Dean with a 6-1 lead.
    The first three batters would load the bases after a double, walk, and single. The Red Wings then conceded the run for a double play that made the score 6-2 with two outs and left a runner on third. The next hitter, Cutter Dykstra, hit his first home run of the season to make the score 6-4. Rochester went back to the bullpen for closer Michael Tonkin, and he struck out the final batter for his fifth save of the year.
     
    CHATTANOOGA CHATTER
    Chattanooga 2, Tennessee 5
    Box Score
     
    The Lookouts would score first and last in this one, but nothing in between handed them their sixth loss in their last seven games to put them at 7-9 on the season, and in fourth place in the Southern's Leagues North Division.
    Dalton Hicks hit his second home run of the year in the first inning for the early 1-0 lead, and a ninth inning double from Adam Brett Walker put runners on second and third. A Stephen Wickens groundout would then bring in the games last run.
    In between, the Lookouts managed just three singles, and Tennessee starter Frank Batista retired the last twelve hitters he faced to complete seven innings.
    Chattanooga starter Tyler Duffy ran into trouble with two outs in the fifth inning and the game tied 1-1. With runners on first and third, four consecutive singles would plate runs to put the Smokies up for good 5-1.
    Adrian Salcedo came on for the sixth inning, and pitched three scoreless innings, allowing just one hit and striking out three to finish the game.
     
    MIRACLE MATTERS
    Palm Beach 4, Fort Myers 2
    Box Score
    Starter Brett Lee came off the disabled list to make his first start of the season for the Miracle, and left the game down 4-0 after five innings. He surrendered the four runs on 11 hits, while striking out four.
    It was a flurry of singles that would cause problems for Lee in the fifth (and all game for the Miracle), when four of them ended up tallying three runs on the scoreboard.
    Dereck Rodriguez would make his Florida State League and 2015 season debut when he came on for the sixth inning. He pitched two innings of scoreless ball, allowing one hit and walking two, with two K's. Brandon Peterson would allow two hits while collecting the first two outs of eighth inning, before being replaced by Madison Boer who finished the game with 1.1 scoreless.
    The Miracle scored both their runs in the sixth, when with two outs a Jason Kanzler single moved Chad Christensen to second. Logan Wade would bring him home with a single of his own, and Marcus Knecht followed with a double to bring in Kanzler. The Miracle wouldn't collect another hit until there were two outs in the ninth inning when Mitch Garver singled to center. The next hitter, Bryan Harr would fly out to left to end the game.
    Despite all of the Cardinals hits being singles, the Miracle were outhit 14-7 on the game and fell to 6-12 on the season. Palm Beach got a complete game effort from Jimmy Reed, who improved to 2-0.
     
    KERNELS NUGGETS
    Kane County 3, Cedar Rapids 2
    Box Score
    Cedar Rapids made a late effort to avoid a series sweep, but would leave a runner in scoring position in the ninth to be handed a series sweep by rival Kane County.
    Ricky Nolasco made the start in his first rehab appearnace, and was solid in five innings. He allowed just one run (unearned) on three hits and zero walks. while striking out five. He completed his outing with a 1-2-3 fifth inning, with the final two hitters of the going down looking. A Tanner English error in center field in the first inning led to the only blemish in the run column.
    The Kernels tied the game in the fifth, when Nick Gordon brought home English after he singled and stole second base (his seventh of the year) to tie the game at one, making up for the early misplay.
    It was then quiet until the seventh inning, when reliever Michael Theofanopoulus ran into some issues. A double from Fernery Ozuna would put the Cougars up 2-1, and then two consecutive wild pitches brought him home to make it 3-1.
    In the ninth inning Cedar Rapids had a chance after English led off the frame with his first home run of the year, making it 3-2. Zach Granite would draw a walk and move to second on a wild-pitch to put the tying run in scoring position, but Max Murphy groundout would end the game.
    English and Granite would each collect two hits to lead the Fort Myers offense, but as a team the Miracle were just 1-11 with runners in scoring position and stranded twelve men on base.
     
    TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY
     
    Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day – Pat Dean, Rochester Red Wings (W, 8.0IP, 1 R, 6 H’s, 2 BB, 7 K’s)
    Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day – Tanner English, Cedar Rapids Kernels (2-4, 2 R's, HR, RBI, SB)
    MONDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS
     
    Columbus @ Rochester (5:35 PM CST) – LHP Taylor Rogers (1-0, 2.37 ERA)
    Chattanooga @ Tennessee (6:05 PM CST) – RHP J.O. Berrios (1-1, 3.94 ERA)
    Fort Myers @ Tampa (6:06 PM CST) – LHP Luke Westphal (0-1, 5.40 ERA)
    Cedar Rapids - Scheduled Day Off.
     
    Please feel free to ask any questions and discuss the Sunday games.
  17. Steve Lein
    On Sunday afternoon Trevor May went six innings in his second start of the year for the Twins, holding the Cleveland Indians to just one run on four hits and zero walks. He struck out seven. Torii Hunter also hit his first home run in a Twins uniform since 2007, a three run shot in the sixth inning to help the Twins beat the Indians 7-2, closing their first home stand of the year with a 4-2 record and two series wins.
    Two of the Twins affiliates went into extra innings, with one collecting a walk-off victory and the other suffering a walk-off defeat. Read on to find out what happened to who in the Minor Leagues on Sunday.
     
    RED WINGS REPORT
    Rochester 3, Pawtucket 4
    Box Score
     
    The Red Wings jumped out to an early 2-0 lead in the first inning after Aaron Hicks led off the game with a single, and after an Eddie Rosario fly out and Josmil Pinto strike out, Brock Peterson stepped to the plate. He launched a 2-1 pitch over the centerfield wall for his fourth home run of the season, which is tied for first in the International League in the early going.
     
    Left-hander Pat Dean was on the mound for Rochester, and though his game started unnaturally as he loaded the bases after three hitters (hit batter, single, walk), he would strike out the next two hitters and escape unscathed in the first after a fly ball to Rosario in centerfield. Dean dominated the rest of the outing, finishing six innings and allowing zero runs on just two hits and one walk, while striking out seven.
     
    Both lineups remained silent until the bottom of the seventh after Dean had exited the game, when Pawtucket struck for two runs and a tie game after Ryan Presley entered. He struck out the first hitter he faced, but two walks, a Jackie Bradley Jr. single, and a wild pitch evened the scoreboard. Presley would finish the inning with a strikeout, but the damage had been done.
     
    Rosario put the Red Wings back in front 3-2 in the top of the eighth, as he led off the inning with a triple and made his way home on a Reynaldo Rodriguez single. But it would not be enough.
     
    Presley came back out for the bottom of the eighth but after recording one out, surrendered two consecutive singles to put runners on first and third. Michael Tonkin was summoned, but unleashed a wild pitch to score the tying run, then an Argenis Diaz fielding error allowed the go-ahead run score.
     
    A 1-2-3 top of the ninth dropped the Red Wings to 5-5 on the year.
     
    Rochester hitters Hicks (2-5), Rosario (2-4, 3B), Rodriguez (2-4), and Danny Oritz (2-4), would each collect multiple hits, but Peterson (1-3, HR, BB) was the only other hitter in the lineup to reach base.
     
    CHATTANOOGA CHATTER
    Birmingham, Chattanooga (postponed)
     
    Chattanooga and Birmingham’s game was rained out on Sunday afternoon and will be made up in a future meeting between the two teams.
     
    MIRACLE MATTERS
    St. Lucie 2, Fort Myers 3 (11 innings)
    Box Score
     
    Starter Ryan Eades was again stellar for the Miracle, giving a quality start effort in six innings. He allowed just one run on six hits and one walk, while striking out three. After two starts in the Florida State League the 2013 second round pick out of LSU sports a 1-0 record and 0.75 ERA.
     
    Brandon Peterson came on in relief and pitched 1.2 innings, allowing one run on two hits and three walks, while striking out two. Righty Todd Van Steensel would pitch into extra innings, striking out five in 2.1 innings of scoreless ball, before being replaced by J.T Chargois in the eleventh. Chargois pitch a scoreless inning, allowing a double and a walk to put runners on first and third, before striking out Amed Rosario of the Mets to end the inning.
     
    Fort Myers would end the game in walk-off fashion, giving Chargois his first victory of 2015, after a single from a pinch hitter brought home the winning run from third base. Jason Kanzler started the rally with one out, bunting down the first base line for a single, and Engelb Vielma moved him to third with a single of his own before an intentional walk to load the bases prompted a pitching change from the Mets. Miracle manager Jeff Smith countered with pinch hitter Aderlin Mejia in place of Tanner English, and he lined a one-hopper to the left side of the infield, that turned into the game winning single when it bounced away from a diving shortstops glove, scoring Kanzler.
     
    The offense was led by Kanzler who went 2-4 (GW run), while Mejia (1-1, GW RBI single) Max Kepler (1-5), Marcus Knecht (1-5), Alex Swim (1-5, SB), Chad Christensen (1-3, R, BB) and Vielma (1-4) collected the other six hits.
     
    KERNELS NUGGETS
    Cedar Rapids 1, Burlington 2 (12 innings)
    Box Score
     
    The Kernels game against the Burlington Bees went twelve innings on Sunday afternoon, as pitching dominated the scoreboard.
     
    Felix Jorge was on the hill for the Kernels, looking to build off his strong 2015 debut where he shutout the Beloit Snappers for seven innings, collecting ten strikeouts along the way. He wouldn’t reach double digits in K’s, but totaled nine strikeouts in five innings, allowing just one earned run on five hits (all singles) and two walks in five innings.
     
    Cameron Booser would come on to pitch two perfect innings, striking out three, and Trevor Hildenberger would bring them into extra innings while allowing just one hit in three innings, striking out four.
     
    Samuel Clay was next up in the bottom of the eleventh, and would retire the first four batters he faced before Burlington’s Natanael Delgado lined his forth single of the game in the twelfth. A strikeout and walk would put Delgado in scoring position for Miguel Hermosillo to provide the walk off single.
     
    The Kernels lineup combined for just five hits on the night, with Tyler Kuresa collecting the only extra base hit, a double in the seventh. Zach Larson collected the only RBI of the night on a groundout in the sixth.
     
    TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY
     
    Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day – Pat Dean, Rochester Red Wings (W, 6.0 IP, 0 R’s, 2 H’s, 1 BB, 7 K’s)
    Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day – Brock Peterson, Rochester Red Wings (1-3, R, HR, 2 RBI, BB)
     
    MONDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS
     
    Rochester @ Syracuse (5:35 PM CST) – TBD
    Chattanooga @ Mississippi (7:00 AM CST) – RHP D.J. Baxendale (2-0, 0.00 ERA)
    Fort Myers @ Tampa (6:00 PM CST) – LHP Luke Westphal (0-1, 4.15 ERA)
    Beloit @ Cedar Rapids (6:35 PM CST) – RHP Jared Wilson (1-0, 2.84 ERA)
     
    Please feel free to ask any questions and discuss the Sunday games.
  18. Steve Lein
    In the majors on Sunday afternoon, Phil Hughes was out-dueled by Chris Sale who was making his first start of 2015 season, as the Twins lost the rubber-match of their three game series 6-2 in Chicago.
     
    In the minors, all four of the Twins full-season affiliates were in action on Sunday, and there were a lot of zeroes put up on the scoreboards.
     
    Read on to see how each of them fared.
     
    RED WINGS REPORT
    Buffalo 2, Rochester 0
    Box Score
     
    On the mound for the Red Wings Sunday afternoon was big lefthander Jason Wheeler and he put forth a strong quality start effort. Unfortunately, he was also saddled with a loss as the home team lineup was unable to provide any offense to support him. In the losing effort, Wheeler tossed 6.2 innings and allowed just four hits, but four walks doomed him in the box score as both the Bisons’ runs were scored by batters who were issued a free pass.
     
    In the third inning Wheeler walked the leadoff man who was sacrificed over to second base, then moved to third on a groundout before a Chris Dickerson single brought in the first run of the game. In the fourth inning, Chris Colabello drew another leadoff walk, and was brought home on a triple from Caleb Grindl.
     
    That was it for the offense from either side in this one.
     
    Lester Oliveros relieved Wheeler in with two outs in the seventh inning, and struck out two while finishing the eighth. Stephen Pryor came in for the ninth and struck out one.
     
    The Red Wings outhit the Bisons 8-5 on the game, but were also 0-5 with runners in scoring position and left eleven men on base. Eddie Rosario (2-4, 2B) and Doug Bernier (2-4) each collected two hits on the day. Aaron Hicks was 0-5 with three strikeouts.
     
    LOOKOUTS LOOK-INS or CHATTANOOGA CHATTER
    Chattanooga 6, Montgomery 0
    Box Score
    It was another pitcher’s duel for most of the game in Montgomery, as the first twelve Lookouts hitters were retired in order, including five via strikeout, before Dalton Hicks led off the top of the fifth inning with a double. D.J. Baxendale started for Chattanooga, and kept the Biscuits lineup at bay in similar fashion, scattering six hits and one walk in 6.1 innings, while striking out four to pick up his first victory of 2015. Ryan O’Rourke came on and retired consecutive left-handed hitters, including one strikeout, to finish the seventh inning. Dallas Gallant got the save while pitching the final two innings, allowing two hits and striking out two.
     
    The Lookouts didn’t put any runs on the board until the seventh inning, when the Biscuit’s went to their bullpen. Miguel Sano drew a leadoff walk, Hicks singled him to third and advanced to second on the throw, then Travis Harrison brought them both home with a single to center field to take the lead 2-0. Harrison would later come around to score on a sac fly from Stuart Turner to make it 3-0. RBI’s from Mike Gonzalez (double), Adam Brett Walker (sac fly), and Byron Buxton (single) would make the score 6-0 in the top of the ninth after Hicks and Harrison drew consecutive walks to start the inning.
     
    For the game, the Lookouts offense was led by Hicks (2-3, 2 R’s, 2B, BB) and Harrison (1-3, 2 R’s, 2 RBI, BB), but everyone in the lineup reached base at least once, and Sano was the only batter without a hit. Byron Buxton (1-5, RBI, 2 K’s) also notched his first steal of year.
     
    MIRACLE MATTERS
    Ft. Myers 0, Charlotte 4
    Box Score
    It was another shutout performance for a Twins affiliate, but this one also came on the losing end and was the second time in the opening four game home-and-home series the Stone Crabs shut out the Miracle in Port Charlotte.
     
    The Miracle lineup managed just five hits and two walks on the night, and like their Red Wings brothers, struggled when they did have opportunities. As a team they went 0-10 with runners in scoring position and left six men on base for the game. Niko Goodrum was the lone standout, going 2-3 with a double and a walk, but was stranded in scoring position three times. Logan Wade (1-4, 2B), Alex Swim (1-3, BB), and Engelb Vielma (1-3) collected the other three hits.
     
    On the mound for the Miracle was Ethan Mildren, the Twins 12th round draft pick in 2013 out of the University of Pittsburgh. In five innings, the right-hander surrendered just two runs on six hits and one walk while striking out two. Alex Muren pitched two scoreless innings in relief (1 H, 1 BB, 2 K’s), while Brian Gilbert allowed the two other runs in the eighth inning on three singles and a double.
    KERNELS NUGGETS
    Beloit 3, Cedar Rapids 8
    Box Score
     
    Cedar Rapids scored early and late en-route to a 8-3 home victory at Perfect Game field to move to 4-0 on the season.
     
    To get the scoring started, Zach Granite led off the game for the Kernels with a single and scored on an Edwin Diaz groundout. Tyler Kuresa would then double in Jorge Fernandez who reached base with a walk to give the Kernels a 2-0 lead out of the gate.
     
    In the second inning, the Kernels loaded the bases with two outs, and right-fielder Zack Larson cleared them with a double.
     
    Beloit would close the gap to 5-3, before the home team tacked on three insurance runs in the eighth inning. Jonatan Hinojosa and Brian Navaretto led off the frame with back-to-back singles and moved into scoring position on a sacrifice bunt from Tanner English. Granite then brought them both home with a double before scoring himself on a single from Nick Gordon.
     
    Granite (2-3, 3 R’s, 2B, 2 RBI, 2 BB), Larson (2-5, 2B, 4 RBI) and Hinjosa (2-4, R,) collected multiple hits on the day. Kuresa and T.J. White added doubles to the effort.
     
    Hard throwing righty Michael Cederoth made the start for the Kernels and made it through four innings before being replaced by Sam Clay in the fifth. Cederoth allowed one run on three hits and three walks while striking out three. Clay would last just one-third of an inning as he walked the bases loaded and gave up a bases clearing double. Zach Tillery would come on to finish the fifth, and then three more innings. He allowed just one hit and one walk, while striking out four in 3.2 innings. Cameron Booser would finish the game for the Kernels, walking one but striking out the side to end the game.
     
    TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY
     
    Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day – D.J. Baxendale, Chattanooga Lookouts (W, 6.1 IP, 0 R’s, 6 H’s, 1 BB, 4 K’s)
    Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day – Zack Larson, Cedar Rapids Kernels (2-5, 2B, 4 RBI)
     
    MONDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS
     
    Rochester @ Scranton/Wilkes Barre (5:35 PM CST) – RHP Mark Hamburger
    Chattanooga @ Montgomery (10:35 AM CST) – RHP Alex Wimmers
    Fort Myers @ Tampa (6:00 PM CST) – RHP Ryan Eades
    Beloit @ Cedar Rapids (6:35 PM CST) – RHP Felix Jorge
     
    Please feel free to ask any questions and discuss the Sunday games.
  19. Steve Lein
    It was about a week ago where the Minnesota Twins AFL team, the Salt River Rafters, clinched their spot in League Championship game, but they still had a few games left to play before that.
     
    Eddie Rosario entered the season’s final week with a chance at a batting title, and two relief pitching prospects had yet to allow a run in a league play. How would they finish?
     
    Let’s check out what happened in week 6!
     
    Byron Buxton – Did not play.
     
    Buxton had surgery on his fractured finger three weeks ago, and is expected to be ready to go for Spring Training.
     
    Final AFL totals: 13 games, .263/.311/.298, 2 2B’s, 6 RBI, 4 BB, 12 K’s, 5 SB (6 attempts)
     
    Eddie Rosario – 3 games, 2-13 (.154), 1 RBI, 1 BB, 2 K’s.
     
    Rosario admittedly let the pressure of winning the League’s batting title affect him in the season’s final days, and the results showed. He had just two hits in thirteen at-bats, which resulted in a final batting average of .330 to finish second in the race.
     
    Of course, it didn’t matter much two days later, as Rosario had his best game of a fantastic overall AFL season in the League Championship game.
     
    Final AFL totals: 24 games, .330/.345/.410, 4 2B’s, 2 3B’s, 18 RBI, 5 BB, 19 K’s, 10 SB (14 attempts).
     
     
    Max Kepler – 3 games, 7-14 (.500), 4 R’s, 2B, 3B, 1 RBI, 1 K.
     
    Kepler had a strong final three games, racking up multiple hits in each contest to raise his average to .307 to finish the season.
     
    In Monday’s 8-4 win he was 2-4 and scored two runs. The next night he was 2-5 with a run scored, double, and an RBI in a 4-4 eleven inning tie. Then in his final game of the week, Wednesday’s 4-5 loss, he was 3-5 with a run scored and a triple.
     
    Final AFL totals: 18 games, .307/.366/.440, 4 2B’s, 3 3B’s, 7 RBI, 6 BB, 14K’s, 3 SB (3 attempts)
     
     
    Taylor Rogers – 1 game, 1 IP, 0 H’s, 0 BB, 0 K’s.
     
    Rogers made a single appearance in the final week of the AFL regular season, making the start in Tuesday’s 4-4 eleven inning tie.
     
    He pitched two innings, and needed just twenty-two pitches, fourteen of which went for strikes.
     
    In the first, Peoria’s leadoff man, top prospect Francisco Lindor, pushed a ground ball through the infield, but was nailed at second base while trying to stretch it into a double. Rogers struck out the next batter and induce a ground ball to end the inning 1-2-3.
     
    In the second inning, Rogers again set the Javelina’s hitters down in order, inducing two easy ground ball outs and a fly out.
     
    Final AFL totals: 3 appearances, 2 starts, 5.2 IP, 1.59 ERA, 4 H’s, 1 ER, 2 BB, 4 K’s, .211 BAA.
     
    Jason Adam – 1 game, 1 IP, 5 R’s (2 ER), 4 H’s, 1 BB, 1 K. 18.00 ERA.
     
    Adam also made a single appearance on the week, and after a rough start to his AFL season had gone five consecutive appearances without allowing a run. That streak ended in Thursday’s 8-5 loss, as Adam was charged with the Blown Save and Loss after coming into the game in relief of top prospect Archie Bradley in the third inning.
     
    He was summoned with two outs after Bradley allowed Scottsdale to close an early game lead of 4-0 to 4-3. Adam got the final out, but would run into trouble of his own in the fourth.
     
    He walked the leadoff man and surrendered the tying and go-ahead run after an RBI triple and sacrifice fly to the next two hitters. A throwing error and two consecutive singles would load the bases, before Adam picked up the second out of the inning by striking out Josh Bell for the innings second out. But an RBI single and the second error of the inning would end his night and AFL season on a sour note.
     
    Final AFL totals: 10 appearances, 1-1, 13.1 IP, 5.40 ERA, 23 H’s, 8 ER’s, 6 BB, 7 K’s, .371 BAA
     
    Zack Jones – 2 games, 2 IP, 0 ER, 1 H, 5 BB, 2 K’s, 1 Hold (6). 0.00 ERA.
     
    Jones’ first appearance of the final week came during Monday’s victory, where he picked up his sixth AFL Hold while making it interesting in the eighth inning. He walked two batters and hit another with a pitch to load the bases, recording two outs before he was taken out of the game.
     
    In Thursday’s 8-5 loss, he relieved Adam in the bottom of the fourth inning, and walked his first hitter to load the bases before escaping by inducing and foul pop up. In the fifth, the bases would again be loaded against him after a single and two walks, but a strikeout of Dante Bichette Jr. would preserve his 0.00 ERA in AFL League play, despite his odd overall numbers.
     
    Final AFL totals: 11 appearances, 11.1 IP, 0.00 ERA, 7 H’s, 0 R’s, 12 BB, 11 K’s, .171 BAA.
     
    Jake Reed – 1 game, 1 IP, 1 ER, 2 H’s, 1 BB, 1 K. 9.00 ERA.
     
    Reed made his only appearance of the week before the AFL championship game in Tuesday’s tie game. He gave up his first earned run of the AFL season, and only his second ER in 43.2 innings during his professional debut season.
     
    He was charged with a Blown Save after entering the game to start the top of the eighth. He surrendered a leadoff double and a walk before striking out Patrick Leonard for the first out, but a ground ball single up the middle to Justin O’Connor would bring in the run. The final two outs were recorded on plays during the next two at-bats, so he did limit the damage.
     
    Final AFL totals: 10 appearances 12.2 IP, 0.71 ERA, 10 H’s, 1 R, 3 BB, 10 K’s, .213 BAA.
     
    Notes/Links:
     
    -Overall, Twins prospects fared very well in the Arizona Fall League.
    -The Salt River Rafters won the AFL League Championship on Saturday, after defeating the Peoria Javelina’s 14-7 in Scottsdale.
    -Rosario and Kepler combined to bat .333 with 1 2B, 1 3B, 4 R’s, 2 RBI, 1 BB, and 3 K’s during the week.
    -Twins pitchers compiled a 5.09 ERA in 5.3 IP, allowing 3 ER’s on 8 H’s and 7 BB’s, while striking out 5 on the week.
  20. Steve Lein
    The Arizona Fall League season came to a close with the Championship game on Saturday, with the West Division champion Peoria Javelinas facing the East Division champion Salt River Rafters, for whom Minnesota Twins prospects play.
     
    The teams traded haymakers inning after inning in Scottsdale, AZ, with seven total home runs and twenty-one runs scored.
     
    Eddie Rosario got the festivities started for the Rafters, launching a 1-1 pitch deep over the right field fence off Peoria starter Miguel Almonte of the Kansas City Royals for an early 1-0 lead.
     
    In his next at-bat in the third inning, Rosario brought in the the third Rafters run with a hard ground ball single to centerfield, scoring Joe Sclafini. He would end up being picked off a batter later, but the damage was done.
     
    Peoria would take the lead 6-3 after scoring three runs in each of the fourth and fifth innings, but the Rafters kept pace with two of their own in the fifth and sixth.
     
    In the bottom of the fifth, with the score 6-5, Rosario faced a tough lefty in the form of Royals farmhand Daniel Stumpf, and proceeded to drill another hard ground ball into center for his third hit in three at-bats.
     
    The Twins' Taylor Rogers came in to start the sixth inning for Salt River, and gave up a home run to the first batter he faced, Royals outfield prospect Bubba Starling, but would retire the next five hitters, before Reid Redman was brought in to face Hunter Dozier, also of the Royals, to end the top of the seventh.
     
    It was the bottom half where the Rafters would blow the game open, and Rosario again played a large part. His double on the first pitch he saw would one-hop the right field wall, putting runners on second and third. An intentional walk would bring Max Kepler to the plate.
     
    He quickly fell behind 0-2, but would lay off three consecutive pitches in the dirt and drew an RBI walk to score the innings first run. He was 0-4 for the game with the BB, RBI, and run scored.
     
    With runners on first and second and two outs after six more runs had scored in the frame, Rosario got another chance, and on an 0-2 pitch again put good wood on the ball. Unfortunately, this line drive was snared by the rightfielder to end the inning.
     
    The eighth and nine innings were uneventful, and Rosario, Kepler, Rogers and the rest of the Twins prospects and Rafters roster celebrated the victory.
     
    Rosario finished the game 4-5 and just a triple shy of the cycle, with two runs scored and two RBI, to obviously take home (my) player of the game honors.
  21. Steve Lein
    The MLB Free Agency period opened last week after, and in unsurprising news, the Minnesota Twins have yet to make any moves.
     
    Former Twin Michael Cuddyer inked a two-year, $21 million deal with the New York Mets, and all twelve pending free agents to receive qualifying offers, declined them.
     
    In the Arizona Fall League, the Salt River Rafters moved on without the Twins’ Byron Buxton manning centerfield, but welcomed back another one of their participants.
     
    Let’s check out what happened in week 5!
     
     
    Byron Buxton – Did not play.
     
    Buxton had surgery on his fractured finger two weeks ago, and is expected to be ready to go for Spring Training.
     
     
    Eddie Rosario – 5 games, 4-19 (.211), 1 R, 2 2B’s, 1 3B, 5 RBI, 1 BB, 5 K’s.
     
    Rosario appeared to endure his first struggles in the AFL, but was still productive on the week as he picked up a pair of doubles, a triple, and five RBI. He drove in at least one run in four of the five games.
     
    With Buxton being out, I thought Rosario might get some time in center field, but that was not the case for the week as he remained in left for all five games. He also picked up an Outfield assist in Friday’s loss.
     
    His average fell to a still fantastic .356 on the year as of Sunday.
     
     
    Max Kepler – 4 games, 3-16 (.188), 1 R, 2B, 3 K’s.
     
    Kepler played in four games, playing right field in each.
     
    He went 2-4 in Monday’s 1-0 Rafters win to raise his average to .306 in league play, but managed just one more hit on the week and finished at .262.
     
     
    Taylor Rogers – 1 game, 1 IP, 0 H’s, 0 BB, 0 K’s.
     
    Rogers made his return to AFL league play after taking a line drive to his shoulder in his first start for the Rafters back in week 1, pitching an inning of relief in Saturday’s 7-4 loss.
     
    It was a quick inning as he needed just eight pitches to induce two-ground balls and an infield pop out.
     
    Taylor’s twin brother, Tyler, is also pitching in the Arizona Fall League for the Scottsdale Scorpions, and after they took different path’s after high school, have been able to reconnect on baseball fields in the AFL.
     
     
    Jason Adam – 2 games, 3.1 IP, 0 R’s, 3 H’s, 2 BB’s, 3 K’s. 0.00 ERA.
     
    Adam made two appearances, pitching more than an inning in each game.
     
    In Tuesday’s 3-1 loss, Adam replaced starter Vincent Velasquez after just two outs in the first inning. Adam would finish the first and walked two batters in the second inning before recording back-to-back strikeouts to end the frame.
     
    In Friday’s 5-4 loss, Adam pitched the fifth and sixth innings, surrendering two hits but no damage on the scoreboard.
     
    He lowered his ERA on the AFL season to 4.38 at the end of the week.
     
     
    Zack Jones – 2 games, 2 IP, 0 ER, 0 H’s, 1 BB, 3 K’s, 1 Hold (5). 0.00 ERA.
     
    Jones made appearances in Tuesday’s 3-1 loss, and Thursday’s 4-2 loss.
     
    On Tuesday, Jones pitched the ninth inning, striking out two in a scoreless inning around a throwing error that allowed the leadoff man to reach base.
     
    He picked up his fifth hold in Thursday’s loss, pitching the sixth inning to relieve Mark Appel. He walked the first batter he faced, but he was erased on a steal attempt and he retired the next two hitters, one with a strikeout.
     
     
    Jake Reed – 2 games, 2 IP, 0 ER, 2 H’s, 0 BB, 1 K. 0.00 ERA.
     
    Reed also pitched two games on the week, picking up his third AFL hold with two innings in Wednesday’s 8-4 win, and finishing the 8th inning in Friday’s 7-4 loss.
     
    In his two innings on Wednesday, Reed surrendered a double to the first man he faced in the sixth inning, Dante Bichette, Jr, but retired the next six in a row. Twenty-two of his thirty pitches went for strikes.
     
    On Friday, things didn’t go as well, but Reed maintained his 0.00 ERA in league play as he was not responsible for any of the runners who scored. He entered the game with the bases loaded, and Hunter Dozier and Justin O’Connor singled to score the first two inherited runners. The third would score on a fielder’s choice groundout before Reed escaped with Dozier on third.
     
     
    Notes
     
    -Rosario and Kepler combined to bat .200 with 2 2B’s, 2 3B’s, 2 R’s, 5 RBI, 1 BB, and 8 K’s during the week.
    -Twins pitchers compiled a 0.00 ERA in 9.0 IP, allowing 0 R’s on 6 H’s and 3 BB’s, while striking out 7 on the week.
  22. Steve Lein
    The big news out of the Minnesota Twins camp this past week was the naming of their next manager, Hall of Famer Paul Molitor, but that wasn’t the only notable news in the organization.
     
    In the Arizona Fall League, it was further bad news for Byron Buxton’s season, as he injured his finger in Monday’s game, and will miss the rest of the AFL season.
     
    Read on to find out how the rest of Twins prospect’s fared during the week, and how the AFL Fall Stars game went for their two participants!
     
    Byron Buxton – 1 game, 1-4 (.250), 1 K, SB (5), CS (1).
     
    The play that took Buxton out of action again occurred in the ninth inning of Monday’s 3-3 tie. It was a sinking line drive that he came in on and just missed making the play.
     
    Although not as serious of an injury as the other’s that occurred this season, it’s yet another blip on what can only be described as a disappointing and lost season for the young phenom.
     
    Buxton had surgery on Thursday and is expected to be ready to go for Spring Training.
     
    Eddie Rosario – 4 games, 6-19 (.316), 3 R’s, 2 2B’s, RBI, 4 K’s, 1 SB (10), 1 CS (3)
     
    Rosario remained the number three hitter in the Salt River Rafter’s lineup playing left field, and continued hitting.
     
    In Tuesday’s 14-2 Rafter’s win, he was 2-5 with a double. Then later in the week on Halloween he collected two more hits including another double in five at-bats, to finish the week batting .397 in League play and well atop the leaderboard.
     
    Max Kepler – 3 games, 4-14 (.286), 3 R’s, 3B, 5 RBI, 1 BB’s, 4 K’s.
     
    Kepler appeared in three games during the week, making two appearances in the regular right fielder rotation, and one game at designated hitter.
     
    He collected a hit in each of those games, including a triple, two runs scored, and three RBI in Tuesdays 14-2 thumping Rafters thumping of the Glendale Desert Dogs. He was also 2-5 in Monday’s game and carries a .289/.385/.422 triple slash line on the season in eleven games.
     
    Taylor Rogers – Did not play.
     
    Rogers took a line drive to his shoulder in his only start for the Rafters in week 1, and has not pitched since.
     
    Jason Adam – 2 games, 2 IP, 0 R’s, 2 H’s, 2 BB’s, 0 K, Win (1-0). 6.00 ERA.
     
    Adam was the first of three consecutive Twins pitchers in Monday’s tie, surrendering a double and a walk before getting out of the jam with a fly ball to Kepler.
     
    His second appearance came on Friday, entering the game with one out in the sixth inning. He proceeded to hit the first batter he faced and walked the second to load the bases, but induced a groundball to pick up the final out of the inning.
     
    He came back out to start the seventh and gave up a single to the leadoff man, but retired the next two batters before being removed. He picked up his first AFL win in the process and lowered his ERA in the AFL to 6.00. Since surrendering runs in his first four appearances, Adam has pitched three scoreless innings.
     
    Zack Jones – 2 games, 2 IP, 0 ER, 2 H’s, 2 BB, 2 K’s, 1 Hold (4). 0.00 ERA.
     
    Jones was the third of the Twins relievers on Monday and walked the first man he faced. He would also give up a single before retiring the final two batters on fly balls.
     
    In the Rafters 5-4 loss on Thursday, Jones pitched the eighth inning. He would again walk the first man he faced, but then retired the next two hitters with strikeouts. A pitch got away from him and hit the next batter to put men on first and second, but got an infield pop-up to finish the inning and pick up his fourth hold in AFL play.
     
    Jake Reed – 2 games, 2 IP, 0 ER, 2 H’s, 0 BB, 1 K. 0.00 ERA.
     
    Reed also made two appearances on the week, and in Monday’s tie pitched the sixth inning. He gave up a single to right field with one out but escaped any damage to his perfect ERA with a fly-ball and strikeout to end the inning.
     
    He made his second appearance in Wednesday’s tie with the Surprise Saguaros, pitching the seventh inning. He surrendered a single (and then a stolen base) to top shortstop prospect Trea Turner of the San Diego Padres, but retired the other three men he faced.
     
    He has now thrown eight scoreless innings in the AFL and continues to focus on improving his changeup and breaking ball in his transition from college to the minor leagues.
     
    AFL Fall Stars Game:
     
    With the AFL season half over, Saturday’s game was their All-Star showcase, the Fall Stars game.
     
    Byron Buxton and Jake Reed were the Twins original participants, but after Buxton’s injury it was (the deserving) Eddie Rosario taking his place.
     
    Rosario batted second and played left field for the East squad, going 0-2 with a walk, stolen base, and two strikeouts. He also picked up an outfield assist at second base.
     
    Reed made his appearance in the seventh inning, and was credited with a hold after retiring Nick Williams and Just O’Connor, giving up a single to Jace Peterson, and fielding a ground ball off the bat of Kyle Waldrop (not the former Twin) to end the frame.
     
    Their AFL-East squad won the game 6-2.
     
    Notes
     
    -Twins hitters combined to bat .297 with 2 2B’s, 1 3B, 6 R’s, 6 RBI, 1 BB, 9 K’s, and 2 SB during the week.
    -Twins pitchers compiled a 0.00 ERA in 6.0 IP, allowing 0 R’s on 6 H’s and 4 BB’s, while striking out 3 on the week.
  23. Steve Lein
    The end of the third week in the Arizona Fall League marks the halfway point of the season, and at this juncture the Salt River Rafters, for whom the Twins prospects play, have clearly been the class of the League. They lead the East Division with a 12-4-1 record and are the only team with double-digit wins.
     
    In week 3, Taylor Rogers was again the only Twins representative who didn’t see action.
     
    Did Eddie Rosario continue to hit? Did Byron Buxton turn it around? Did Zack Jones and Jake Reed continue to mow down hitters?
     
    Read on to find out!
     
     
    Byron Buxton – 4 games, 6-18 (.333), 2B, 3 R’s, 3 RBI, 1 BB, 4 K’s, 3 SB’s (4).
     
    Buxton played in four games this week, including another appearance in RF.
     
    His big game of the week came on Friday, when he went 3-5 with a double, scored two runs, drove in two more, and stole two bases. It was the second game in a row he collected multiple hits after going 2-5 the day before.
     
    It’s a good sign to see all of his tools back on display, and Buxton is happy to be moving forward after his injury-wrecked 2014 season.
     
    Buxton raised his average from .229 to .264 during the week.
     
     
    Eddie Rosario – 4 games, 6-13 (.462), 2 R’s, 6 RBI, 2 BB, 1 K, 3 SB (9).
     
    Rosario continued to bat third in the Rafters lineup this week, and continued to rack up hits.
     
    He currently is second in the league in batting average (.429) and total hits (21), fourth in RBI’s (11), and second in stolen bases (9).
     
    He had at least one hit in all four games during the week and collected multiple hits twice. In Tuesday’s 5-0 Rafters win, he was 2-2 with two RBI sac fly’s in four plate appearances.
     
    He was 2-4 with three RBI in his next game on Thursday, where he also stole two more bases.
     
    Of major note in reference to Rosario, is the fact he has hit safely in all ten games he has played in the AFL, and seems to like the pace of play created by the 20-second pitch clock.
     
     
    Max Kepler – 3 games, 5-12 (.417), 2 R, 2 2B’s, 3B, RBI, 1 BB’s, 4 K’s, SB (3).
     
    Kepler saw action in three games during the week, and made the most of his opportunities as he went 2-4 on Tuesday, 2-5 with a double and triple on Wednesday, and 1-3 with a double, walk, and RBI on Thursday.
     
    His triple in Wednesday’s 9-3 victory sparked a four run second inning for the Rafters.
     
    He raised his average to .290 in league play, with an on-base percentage of .405.
     
     
    Taylor Rogers – Did not play.
     
    Rogers took a line drive to his shoulder in his only start for the Rafters in week 1, and has not pitched since.
     
     
    Jason Adam – 1 game, 1 IP, 0 R’s, 1 H’s, 0 BB, 1 K. 0.00 ERA.
     
    Adam finally made his first scoreless appearance in Friday’s 8-1 win, allowing just a single in the sixth inning. The runner moved to second on a passed ball, but he finished the inning with a strikeout and picked up his first hold.
     
     
    Zack Jones – 2 games, 1.1 IP, 0 ER, 1 H’s, 3 BB, 0 K, 2 Holds. 0.00 ERA.
     
    Zack Jones made appearances in the wins on Monday and Thursday, picking up a hold in both contests.
     
    In Monday’s win, he gave a double but retired the three other batters he faced.
     
    In Friday’s win, he lost his control in the seventh inning, throwing just eight of twenty-one pitches for strikes while walking three to load the bases. He recorded just one out, but still picked up a hold as Kaleb Fleck from the Diamondbacks organization retired the next two batters.
     
     
    Jake Reed – 2 games, 2 IP, 0 ER, 1 H, 0 BB, 0 K’s, 2 Holds. 0.00 ERA.
     
    Reed also pitched in the same games as Jones, pitching the inning before him in each contest. He was extremely efficient, throwing twenty of twenty-four pitches for strikes, while allowing just one hit in his two innings. He also recorded two holds.
     
    Of note from Jones and Reed, is neither hurler recorded an out with a strikeout on the week.
     
     
    Notes
     
    -Twins hitters combined to bat .395 with 3 2B’s, 1 3B, 7 R’s, 10 RBI, 4 BB’s, 9 K’s, and 7 SB during the week.
    -Twins pitchers compiled a 0.00 ERA in 4.1 IP, allowing 0 R’s on 3 H’s and 3 BB’s, while striking out 1 on the week.
  24. Steve Lein
    The second week of the Arizona Fall League season included a tie for the Salt River Rafters as their game on Friday went 11 innings, and the teams ran out of scheduled pitchers. Overall on the week, the Rafters were 3-2-1, and Eddie Rosario continued to rake and run.
     
    Let’s see how all of the Twins prospects fared in week two of the Arizona Fall League.
     
     
    Byron Buxton – 4 games, 3-18 (.167), 2B, 1 R, 1 RBI, 1 BB, 3 K’s. Batting .229 overall.
     
    Buxton again played in four games, playing centerfield for three games and right field for one, while batting leadoff in each.
     
    After a two-hit day (including a double) in Monday’s 7-4 win, he cooled off for the rest of the week.
     
    In Tuesday’s game he was 0-4 but made good contact, lining out to both third base and left field. On Thursday he was 0-4 with two K’s, and finished his week by going 1-6 in Friday’s tie.
     
     
    Eddie Rosario – 4 games, 7-18 (.389), 2B, 2 R’s, 2 RBI, 3 SB (6), 1 BB, 5 K’s. Batting .417 overall.
     
    Rosario continued his hot hitting from week one, and enters week three sitting atop the AFL batting average leaderboard.
     
    He also sits in second on the stolen base leaderboard with six as he swiped three more bags in his four games. He was also caught stealing for the first time.
     
    In the eleven inning tie, Rosario wen 3-6 and stole two bases.
     
    Also notable was that Rosario batted leadoff, second, and third in the lineup during the week, and also played one game in centerfield. .
     
     
    Max Kepler – 3 games, 2-10 (.200), 2 R’s, SB (2), 4 BB’s, 2 K’s. Batting .211 overall.
     
    Kepler played right field in all three games and was moved up and down the lineup. Despite collecting just two hits on the week, he also drew four walks compared to only two strikeouts. Despite the .211 batting average, Kepler’s on-base percentage through two weeks is a strong .375.
     
     
    Taylor Rogers – Did not play.
     
    Rogers took a line drive to his shoulder in his only start for the Rafters last week, and has not pitched since.
     
     
    Jason Adam – 2 games, 3 IP, 2 ER’s, 7 H’s, 0 BB, 1 K. 6.00 ERA.
     
    Adam is looking to make a good impression on the Twins in the AFL after coming over in the Josh Willingham trade with Royals.
     
    He struggled in week one, and was only marginally better this week.
     
    His ERA sits at 9.00 overall, with a WHIP of 2.33 in six total innings. He has allowed at least one run in each of his four appearances thus far.
     
     
    Zack Jones – 2 games, 2 IP, 0 ER, 2 H’s, 0 BB, 1 K, 1 Hold. 0.00 ERA.
     
    Jones picked up his first Hold in Monday’s 7-4 win, and made his second appearance of the week on Thursday.
     
    He gave up a single in each appearance, but didn’t surrender any damage to the scoreboard. Though he didn’t walk anybody, he did hit one batter on Monday (hope it wasn’t a fastball!).
     
     
    Jake Reed – 1 game, 2 IP, 0 ER, 0 H’s, 1 BB, 2 K’s. 0.00 ERA.
     
    Reed made just one appearance during the week, but it was of the two inning variety.
     
    He entered the game in the fifth inning of Thursday’s 5-1 win, and pitched a 1-2-3 inning, including a strikeout. In the sixth, Reed walked the second batter he faced, but got a fielder’s choice groundball out and his second strikeout to end the inning.
     
    He now has 7 K’s in 5 IP in the AFL, and in 36 innings since being drafted by the Twins in fifth round of June’s draft, has allowed just one earned run.
     
    Notes
     
    -The Rafters have the best record in the AFL at 7-3-1 after two weeks.
    -Twins hitters combined to bat .261 with 2 2B’s, 5 R’s, 3 RBI, 6 BB’s, 10 K’s, and 4 SB during the week.
    -Twins pitchers compiled a 2.57 ERA in 7 IP, allowing 3 R’s (2 ER) on 9 H’s and 1 BB, while striking out 4 on the week.
  25. Steve Lein
    Trevor May was cruising for the Twins early in Baltimore tonight, as he had struck five through the first three scoreless innings. But in the fourth the wheels fell off, as he plunked Adam Jones and Nelson Cruz consecutively to load the bases. He struck out old friend(?) Delmon Young, but a walked another, J.J. Hardy, to bring in the game’s first run. Chris Davis then launched a 3-1 pitch for a Grand Slam, and a 5-0 Orioles lead May and the Twins would not recover from.
     
    <rant> Of note in this game, was a Delmon Young (finger quotes) Home Run (/finger quotes). Replays on TV clearly showed not only fan interference to Jordan Schafer’s leaping attempt for the catch, but also the fact that said fan also caught the ball well in front of and below the wall. Ron Gardenhire had the umpires take a second look, and the home run call was inexplicably and embarrassingly upheld. I only bring this up because Major League Baseball should be ashamed. If the (finger quotes) replay official (/finger quotes) in New York is not looking at the same replays we see on TV, this is a major problem with how the system works and needs to be fixed. Gardenhire’s comments after the game on the subject were perfect, and I disagree with Roy Smalley. It was conclusive evidence. It obviously didn’t cost the Twins the game, but it is unfathomable to me with the technology we have that something like this can be botched. </rant>
     
    In the Minors, Rochester continued its hunt for a playoff spot, two affiliates had games rained out or ended early, and there wasn’t much hitting across the board. Check it out!
     
    RED WINGS REPORT
    Buffalo 2, Rochester 3
    Box Score
     
    Locked in battle for a Wild Card in the International League, this was a must win game for the Red Wings.
     
    Seam Gilmartin took the hill for Rochester, and put them in a hole by allowing two singles to start the game, with a run scoring on Sac Fly. The next two innings were scoreless for Gilmartin as he induced a double play and struck out two.
     
    In Rochester’s half of the third inning, Eric Farris provided some fireworks. After a leadoff single from Chris Rahl, Farris blasted a 2-2 pitch over the left field wall, and 2-1 Red Wings lead.
     
    Unfortunately, Gilmartin gave it right back after three singles for Buffalo in the fourth. He would pitch into the sixth inning before being replaced by A.J. Achter with one out. Achter gave up a single to the first batter he faced, but would retire the next five.
     
    In the bottom of the sixth, Chris Colabello added an insurance run for Rochester when he doubled into the corner in right field, and two wild pitches later crossed home plate.
     
    Aaron Thompson relieved Achter in eighth with one out and a man on base, and recorded out number two on a fielder’s choice, but would be replaced by Stephen Pryor with men on first and second. A wild pitch put the tying run on third base, but Pryor struck out Buffalo’s Matt Hague to end the threat.
     
    Hague and Bisons Manager Gary Allenson were ejected for arguing the call.
     
    Lester Oliveros worked a perfect ninth inning with a strikeout to earn the save, and put the Red Wings in front of the Bisons in the Wild Card standings.
     
    The team in front of them, the Pawtucket Red Sox, also won on Friday night however, so Rochester remains two games back with three games to play. Luckily for them, their last two games of the season are against Pawtucket, so they control their destiny at this point.
     
    ROCK CATS REVIEW
    New Hampshire 4, New Britain 3
    Box Score
     
    Reynaldo Rodriguez (21) and Tony Thomas (12) homered for New Britain, but as a team they only collected four other hits in the game. Stephen Wickens was 2-4 with a double and the other Rock Cats RBI.
     
    Pat Dean started and was fantastic, pitching seven quality innings. He allowed just two runs on seven hits, and struck out two. Madison Boer worked a clean eighth and pitched into the ninth inning before Manager Jeff Smith played the matchups and brought in Ryan O’Rourke to record the final out. He didn’t. A single and home run later had New Britain down 4-3.
     
    Mike Kvasnicka drew a walk to start the bottom of the ninth, but was quickly erased on a double play. Wickens then flew out to end the game.
     
    MIRACLE MATTERS
    Jupiter 3, Fort Myers 1
    Box Score
     
    Fort Myers had a scheduled double-header after their game was rained out yesterday, but they were only able to get in one due to rain again on Friday.
     
    In the seven inning game they did finish, it was D.J. Baxendale on the bump for the Miracle. He went five innings and allowed just two runs on five hits while striking out four. Alem Muren allowed 1 run on four hits in the sixth, and Todd Van Steensel pitched a scoreless seventh despite two hits. He struck out two.
     
    The Fort Myers lineup managed just five hits in the game and left eleven men on base. Max Kepler was 2-3 with a walk, and the lone run of the game was scored by Adam Brett Walker II after he singled in the fourth inning. The Miracle had the bases loaded with nobody out but were only able to push across one.
     
    KERNELS NUGGETS
    Kane County 6, Cedar Rapids 1 (six innings)
    Box score
     
    The Kernels game was finished early due to rain, and it was the Kane County Cougars who were in front on the scoreboard by a good margin when it was called.
     
    Mitch Garver put Cedar Rapids on the board first with a second inning home run, his sixteenth of the year, but it would be the only run of the game for the home team. Engelb Vielma, Alex Swim, and J.D. Williams were the only other’s to collect a hit for the Kernels.
     
    Mat Batts made the start and pitched two perfect innings, striking out two. He was replaced by Jared Wilson who was knocked around for five runs (three earned) on five hits and a walk in 2.2 innings, striking out four. An Engelb Vielma error led to the first run of the game for the Cougars. Brandon Bixler pitched the final 1.1 innings before the game was called, allowing one run on two hits and a walk.
     
    E-TWINS E-NOTES
    Kingsport 5, Elizabethton 2
    Box Score
     
    Both teams managed just five hits apiece, but the Mets were helped by the wildness of Brandon Poulson in the first and second innings to put four runs on the board.
     
    Poulson went just 1.1 innings in the start of a group effort game, allowing the four runs on five walks and three hits. He struck out two. Randy LeBlanc struck out four in 2.2 scoreless innings. Michael Cederoth allowed an unearned run in an inning. Then Josh Burris (2 IP, 3 K’s), Samuel Clay(IP, 2 K’s), and Trevor Hildenberger (IP, 2 K’s) combined to throw the final four perfect innings.
     
    Nick Gordon did not record a hit, but scored one of the two Twins runs after being hit by a pitch in the eighth inning. Tyler Kuresa brought him in with a single for the only E-Town RBI. T.J. White was 1-2 with two walks.
     
    TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY
    Pitcher – Pat Dean, New Britain Rock Cats (7 IP, 7 H’s, 2 ER’s, 2 K’s)
    Hitter – Eric Farris, Rochester Red Wings (1-4, HR, 2 RBI)
     
    SATURDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS
    Buffalo @ Rochester – TBD, 6:05PM CST
    New Hampshire @ New Britain – TBD, 6:05 PM CST
    Fort Myers @ Jupiter – Game 1: TBD, 4:05 PM CST
    Fort Myers @ Jupiter – Game 2: TBD
    Cedar Rapids @ Clinton – Stephen Gonsalves (2-2, 1.91 ERA), 6:30PM CST
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