Steve Lein

It was a long day in the Minnesota Twins' farm system on Tuesday, as three of their six affiliate’s games went into extra innings. Hits were also hard to come by overall on the night, but luckily their pitchers picked up the slack and helped them to victories in each of the contests that went extra frames. Devin Smeltzer also matched a top pitching prospect in the Blue Jays system in Triple-A, helping allow his offense to pull out a win.Keep reading to find out how all those extra innings played out and how all your favorite prospects performed on Tuesday! TRANSACTIONS There were the following player movements in the Twins system on Tuesday: In Triple-A, 3B Brian Schales was assigned to Fort Myers and RHP Griffin Jax to Pensacola, while RHP Trevor Hildenberger was activated from the injured list.With Jax returning to the Blue Wahoos, RHP Cole Sands was placed on theseven-day injured list in the Southern League.The Twins assigned their latest free agent acquisitions to the GCL Twins in the form of their latest independent league signing, C Eric Jones, and IF Adrian Guzman.RED WINGS REPORTBuffalo 1, Rochester 4 Box Score The Red Wings were able to get a big inning late to pull out a victory on Tuesday night against the Bisons at Frontier Field. Devin Smeltzer made the start and was effective for the first six innings, picking up a quality start. He allowed just one earned run on five hits and a walk, striking out three. The run came on solo homer in the second inning. In his first appearance since being promoted to AAA, Jorge Alcala worked two scoreless frames of relief. He walked one and struck out two to pick up his first Triple-A win. Off his rehab assignment in the GCL, Trevor Hildenberger closed out the ninth for his second save with Rochester on the season while allowing only a walk. Down 1-0 heading into the bottom of the eighth, the Red Wings offense finally broke through against the Bisons’ bullpen after top prospect and fireballer Nate Pearson’s day was finished. It wasn’t their bats however, but their patience as four hitters drew a walk before a Wilin Rosario two-RBI single gave them a 4-2 lead. Each team had just five hits on the game and all of the Red Wings knocks were singles. The teams combined to go just 2-for-7 with runners in scoring position and left nine men on base for the game. BLUE WAHOOS BITES Pensacola 4, Mississippi 2 (10 innings) Box Score Pensacola utilized the opener in this one, with Marcos Diplan handling the first two innings before “primary” (and scheduled starting) pitcher Edwar Colina entered the game. Diplan allowed one hit, walked one, and struck out four. Colina went the next three innings and was just as stingy by allowing only one hit and a walk while striking out three. Jonathan Cheshire got the next two frames and continued to hold the Braves scoreless by scattering three hits and striking out two. Mississippi was finally able to break the deadlock on the scoreboard in the bottom of the eighth against Alex Phillips thanks to a two-out triple that was followed by a single, a stolen base, and another single for the 2-0 lead heading into the ninth. The Blue Wahoos answer was a leadoff walk from Caleb Hamilton, an RBI triple from Mark Contreras, and sac fly from Jimmy Kerrigan to tie the game at two. Phillips delivered a one-two-three bottom of the inning to send it to extras. Royce Lewis started the inning on second base but got himself thrown out at third on a grounder to first from Alex Kirilloff, but it would not matter as Ryan Jeffers followed with his fourth home run with the Blue Wahoos to put them out front 4-2. Andrew Vasquez closed out the victory with a scoreless inning to earn his second save on the year with Pensacola, allowing only a walk. MIRACLE MATTERS Fort Myers 4, Charlotte 2 (13 innings) Box Score Just like their higher-level cousins, runs were hard to come by in the Florida State League for the Miracle and Stone Crabs on Tuesday, and they also required extra innings to declare a victor. Dakota Chalmers made the start for Fort Myers and was fantastic for his second turn in a row. He made it through 5 1/3 innings in this one, allowing just one run on three hits and three walks while striking out seven. In his past two outings he’s allowed just the one run on six hits and four walks in 11 1/3 innings while striking out 16. Calvin Faucher and Moises Gomez combined to hold Charlotte scoreless over the next 4 2/3 innings. Gomez allowed the only hit between them and struck out three, with Faucher punching out the first five of the six hitters he faced. Gomez also struck out himself…I think?! Joe Record came on for the 11th frame and would finish the game for the Miracle to pick up his fourth win. In three innings he allowed only an unearned run on one hit and two walks while punching out four. The Miracle got their first run of the game in the fourth inning to tie it at one when Trey Cabbage singled to score Jacob Pearson. In the top of the thirteenth a single from Yeltsin Encarnacion brought in Cabbage and Andrew Bechtold before a wild pitch allowed a third run to scamper home for a 4-1 lead that would hold. Despite playing four extra innings, the teams combined for just ten hits on the game while striking out 36 times. They were 5-for-32 with runners in scoring position and left 20 men on base between them. Pearson picked up two hits, including a double, and stole a base to lead the way. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 3, Quad Cities 9 Box Score The Kernels fell into an early hole against the River Bandits, and then dug themselves deeper and were unable to climb out against a team they’ve been battling in the Midwest League Western Division all season. Starter Kody Funderburk was roughed up for six earned runs in the outing. He allowed seven hits, walked four, and struck out three in his 4 1/3 innings. J.T. Perez didn’t fare much better in the next 1 2/3, giving up three runs on four hits and a walk, striking out two. Jose Martinez finished the final two innings for Cedar Rapids, and they finally were of the scoreless variety. He allowed two hits and struck out four. The Kernels were finally able to put a run on the scoreboard in the top of the eighth thanks to an RBI ground out from Spencer Steer after a throwing error on a pickoff attempt put a runner on third base. In the ninth they got two more courtesy of Jared Akins 11th home run of the season to account for the final tally. Tyler Webb and Daniel Ozoria contributed two hits each to the effort. E-TWINS E-NOTES Elizabethton 7, Princeton 6 (11 innings) Box Score Starter Cody Laweryson worked around some baserunners for the first three innings, but Princeton finally broke through with a run in the bottom of the fourth to take a 1-0 lead. Elizabethton answered with two runs in the top of the fifth thanks to a Matt Wallner home run, his sixth of the season, but Laweryson gave them right back with a home run allowed in the bottom half. Laweryson finished five innings, allowing the three runs on five hits and a walk along with striking out eight. The Twins tied it back up at three in the sixth when Seth Gray launched his ninth home run of the year, then the teams traded solo home runs in the eighth with Will Holland clubbing his seventh on the season to head into the ninth tied at four. After Laweryson’s exit, Owen Griffith contributed two scoreless innings, allowing one hit and striking out three. Tyler Beck allowed one run on three hits and a walk in his inning, striking out one. Benjamin Dum came on for the ninth and got them into extra innings, finishing two total innings. He allowed an unearned run on one hit while striking out two. Both teams were able to bring in the runner starting on second base in the tenth. In the top of the eleventh, Elizabethton got a leadoff double from Janigson Villalobos that put runners on second and third, then a throwing error allowed both of them to score for a 7-5 lead. For the bottom half the Twins summoned pitcher Denny Bentley and though he allowed the runner starting the extra frame on second to score on a sac fly, retired all three hitters he faced to close out a victory. The Twins got multiple hits from six hitters in their lineuptheir and were able to pull out the win despite going just 2-for-17 with runners in scoring position. Luckily for them, the Rays were also an inept 3-for-20. GCL TWINS TAKES GCL Pirates 10, GCL Twins 2 Box Score Righthander Regi Grace made the start for the GCL Twins squad and after a leadoff walk led to a run scoring in the first inning, he held the Pirates scoreless for his next two frames. In the fourth a two-out rally added two runs for a 3-0 deficit and an end to his outing. In four innings he allowed three earned runs on six hits and a walk while picking up seven strikeouts. The Pirates then poured it on against the bullpen, with Niall Windeler and Matthew Swain allowing a combined seven runs (three earned) from their two innings apiece. Jose Guevara pitched a scoreless ninth to finish the game for the Twins, walking one and striking out two. The Twins lineup wasn’t able to muster much offense with six hits and five walks on the game and finishing 0-for-5 with runners in scoring position. One of their runs scored on a throwing error, while the other came on a sac fly, both in the fifth inning. Third baseman Jake Hirabayashi picked up two hits in three at-bats, drew a walk, and scored a run to lead the way. Francisco Martinez contributed the sac fly, a walk, and the Twins only extra-base hit, a double, in the loss. TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY Pitcher of the Day – Calvin Faucher, Fort Myers Miracle (2.0 IP, 5 K) Hitter of the Day – Ryan Jeffers, Pensacola Blue Wahoos (2-for-5, go-ahead HR in 10th inning) PROSPECT SUMMARY Here’s a look at how the Twins Daily Midseason Top 20 Twins Prospects performed: #1 - Royce Lewis (Pensacola) - 1-for-4, BB, K #2 - Alex Kirilloff (Pensacola) - 1-for-5, R #3 - Brusdar Graterol (Pensacola) - Did not pitch #4 - Trevor Larnach (Pensacola) - 0-for-4, BB, 3 K #5 - Wander Javier (Cedar Rapids) - Did not play #6 - Jordan Balazovic (Fort Myers) - Did not pitch #7 - Keoni Cavaco (GCL) - Did not play (quad) #8 - Brent Rooker (Rochester) - Injured List (groin) #9 - Jhoan Duran (Pensacola) - Did not pitch #10 - Blayne Enlow (Fort Myers) - Injured List (hamstring) #11 - Lewis Thorpe (Minnesota) - Did not pitch #12 - Nick Gordon (Rochester) - Injured List (leg contusion) #13 - Ryan Jeffers (Pensacola) - 2-for-5, R, HR, 2 RBI, 3 K #14 - Luis Arraez (Minnesota) - 1-for-4, R #15 - Matt Wallner (Elizabethton) - 2-for-6, 2 R, HR, 2 RBI, 2 K #16 - Ben Rortvedt (Pensacola) - Did not play #17 - Akil Baddoo (Fort Myers) - Injured List (Tommy John surgery) #18 - Jorge Alcala (Rochester) - (W, 2.0IP, BB, 2 K) #19 - Misael Urbina (DSL) - 1-for-2, K #20 - Travis Blankenhorn (Pensacola) - 0-for-5, 3 K WEDNESDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Buffalo @ Rochester (6:05PM CST) - LHP Charlie Barnes (1-0, 5.79 ERA) Pensacola @ Mississippi (1:05PM CST) - RHP Bailey Ober (1-0, 1.29 ERA) Charlotte @ Fort Myers (6:00PM CST) - LHP Tyler Watson (1-5, 3.74 ERA) Cedar Rapids @ Clinton (6:30PM CST) - RHP Luis Rijo (5-7, 2.63 ERA) Elizabethton @ Johnson City (5:30PM CST) - TBD GCL Orioles @ GCL Twins (11:00AM CST) - TBD Please feel free to ask questions and discuss Tuesday’s games! 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My opinion, is consider the situation, and is mainly why I think this in particular is BS. What does a walk do at that point? Absolutely nothing. Should be throwing strikes and letting them swing at everything to get the game over with. My favorite opinion I saw anywhere on this was from Todd Van Steensel: He's exactly right.

I honestly have never heard of this "unwritten rule," therefore, I dont actually think it is one, which makes this even weirder. Why would I let a grooved pitch go in this situation? A walk does nothing at that point. If you dont want me to swing, then purposefully walk me.

You're not saying anything I wouldn't also. I just like the guy for what he does, and he's been pretty good

It's gotta be Alvarez from the Astros right now. Guerrero has the name recognition, but as a power hitter, Arraez is beating him in OPS by .050+ points. I'd probably have it as Alvarez, Lowe, Arraez.

Absolutely not. He's in double-A, turned just 20 a few months ago, and was the 2nd youngest player at the start of the season... in the Florida State League. Definitely want to see the stat line come together at some point, but that's not much of a problem for me now. He's still flashing all those tools.

That's been Zander's MO. Doesn't necessarily stand out at any point, but when you look at his seasons in aggregate you'll be surprised! He's one of my favorite's for that reason.

Two different Minnesota Twins affiliates had doubleheaders scheduled on Tuesday as rain wreaked havoc on the Florida panhandle on Monday. Rain continued to affect the schedule in the Florida State and Gulf Coast Leagues on Tuesday, but both teams managed to get both games official when all was said and done. Pitching lines owned the box scores on the night, but there were also multiple walk-off games, and a couple that may have gone that way if not for being completed early.To find out everything that happened with all your favorite Minnesota Twins prospects on the day, keep reading! TRANSACTIONS There were a few transactions in the upper levels of the minor leagues with RHP Sam Dyson’s activation from the injured list into for the Minnesota Twins on Tuesday: The Rochester Red Wings activated C Wynston Sawyer from the seven-day injured list while placing RHP Sean Poppen on it with a right elbow contusion. RHP Cody Stashak was also optioned to AAA in a corresponding move with Dyson’s activation.C Caleb Hamilton was assigned to the Pensacola Blue Wahoos from AAA with the placement of SS Jordan Gore on the seven-day injured list.RED WINGS REPORTRochester 3, Indianapolis 6 Box Score The Red Wings plated single runs in third, seventh, and eighth innings but that was all they could muster as the Indians doubled them up with two crooked innings on the scoreboard. Rochester got their runs in the form of a balk after Zander Wiel led off the third with a triple, an RBI single from Mike Miller in the seventh, and Brandon Barnes’ 26home run on the year in the International League in the eighth. Each of Wiel (2-for-4, 2 R, 3B), Ronald Torreyes (2-for-4), and Barnes (2-for-4, R, HR, RBI) had two hits on the game while Tomas Telis added a double. Lefty Lewis Thorpe got the start in this one and in what one might consider major league roster strategic fashion, went just three innings. This despite throwing only 42 pitches (29 for strikes) and allowing only one earned run on a solo homer and striking out four hitters. Adam Bray came on for the fourth and went the next two innings, giving up one hit and one walk with two strikeouts. Fernando Romero got the sixth and was charged with three unearned runs after an infield error was followed by a two-out bases-clearing triple. He walked one, allowed two hits, and struck out two. Jeremy Bleich finished out the final two innings, allowing two earned runs on five hits while striking out four. BLUE WAHOOS BITES Chattanooga 6, Pensacola 3 Box Score The Twins former Southern League affiliate used a big third inning to take it to the Blue Wahoos on Tuesday, while also doubling them up on the hit tally, twelve to six. Top prospect Jhoan Duran took the mound for Pensacola but ran into trouble in multiple frames as the Lookouts had his number early and often. In just 2+ innings Duran was charged with six earned runs on seven hits and two walks. He struck out two and left the game in the third after loading the bases with a hit-by-pitch and two walks, a wild pitch, then allowing two run-scoring singles before being lifted in favor of Jovani Moran. Moran went 1 1/3, allowing a hit and walk along with striking out one. Andrew Vasquez went the next 1 2/3 scoreless, allowing two hits and a walk while striking out three. Jonathan Cheshire and Alex Phillips combined for four scoreless innings to close the game. Cheshire struck out two and Phillips K'd four. Big-name prospects got it started on the right foot with two runs in the bottom of the first when Alex Kirilloff led off with a double and scored on a Royce Lewis single before Trevor Larnach brought Lewis around with a double. From there the next fourteen Blue Wahoos hitters were retired and a Lewis sac fly in the eight was all the offense they could muster on the game. Ryan Jeffers and Jimmy Kerrigan also added doubles to the effort. MIRACLE MATTERS Game 1: St. Lucie 7, Fort Myers 4 (7 innings) Box Score After their rainout yesterday, the Miracle had a doubleheader on Tuesday that also got started a bit late due to the weather. This one went back and forth until the Mets broke it open with a three-run sixth inning to take the lead for good, 6-4. Cole Sands made the start and left in line for the win after five innings. He allowed three runs (two earned) on four hits and two walks while striking out four. Melvi Acosta was summoned in for the sixth when things went south. He allowed three runs (two earned) on two hits and a walk in his inning, striking out one. Cuban signee Yennier Cano allowed an insurance run for the Mets in the seventh when he gave up a solo home run. He walked one and struck out one otherwise to finish the game. The lineup responded to the Mets in the second inning thanks to a two-RBI single from David Banuelos to tie it, then took their first lead in the fourth when he brought in another runner with a double. Tied at three going into the bottom of the fifth, the Miracle took their last lead of the game on an RBI-double from Trey Cabbage before the Mets' rally in the sixth. Game 2: St. Lucie 2, Fort Myers 3 (9 innings) Box Score The Miracle got back at the Mets in game 2, but it took extra innings as part of their shortened game doubleheader. Starter Dakota Chalmers was brilliant for the first six innings, allowing just one run (unearned) on three hits and a walk, while punching out nine St. Lucie hitters. Of his 88 pitches, 59 went for strikes (67%) and he racked up 15 swinging strikes. Zach Neff came on and took Fort Myers into extra innings, picking up his third win for his efforts. He allowed an unearned run on two hits and a walk, notching three K’s in three innings pitched. The Miracle got on the scoreboard first in the second inning when Taylor Grezalowski drove in Jacob Pearson with a single. The score remained tied until the top of the ninth when St. Lucie went up 2-1, but the home team answered in the bottom half with a two-out rally. Yeltsin Encarnacion brought in the tying run with a single, then Gabriel Maciel followed with an RBI single of his own to walk it off in Hammond Stadium. Grezalakowski was the only batter with multiple hits, finishing 2-for-4 with an RBI and a double. They drew six walks as a team and in the end took advantage when they needed to by finishing 4-13 with runners in scoring position compared to 1-for-7 for the Mets. KERNELS NUGGETS Scheduled Day Off The Kernels just finished off the start of August by winning eight games in a row and will look to extend that perfect month against the Los Angeles Dodgers-affiliated Great Lake Loons on Wednesday at home. Lefthander Kody Funderbunk is scheduled to start the game. E-TWINS E-NOTES Pulaski 1, Elizabethton 0 (8+ innings) Box Score Hits were at a premium in this one as the teams combined for just five hits on the game. The only run of the game scored when Twins catcher Jonigson Villalobos’ attempted to pick a runner off third base and his throw got into the outfield in the fourth inning. Elizabethton left nine men on base compared to Pulaski’s three. As the leadoff man Willie Joe Garry Jr. finished 1-for-3 with a walk. He ended up stranded on third in the first inning when the Twins were unable to capitalize on loading the bases with two-outs. That was their best threat of the game despite four walks and three hit-by-pitches. Parker Phillips and Max Smith picked up the other singles while Seth Gray drew two of those four walks. 2019 fourth-round draft pick Cody Laweryson got he start for Elizabethton and was brilliant four five innings. His only run allowed was unearned, surrendering only two hits and a walk while striking out five. It was his fourth appearance (three starts) in a row without allowing an earned run, and seventh of nine appearances in his professional career. As a professional he’s pitched 35 innings with a 1.29 ERA, 0.80 WHIP, and 40 strikeouts to just nine walks. Unfortunately, this game was made official after two-outs were recorded in the top of the ninth inning thanks to rain, so Elizabethon never got their final chance at pulling out a victory. GCL TWINS TAKES Game 1: GCL Rays 2, GCL Twins 3 (8 innings) Box Score In the early morning game of their doubleheader, the Rays and Twins needed an “extra” inning to close it out, with the Twins coming out on top in walk-off fashion. Making his second rehab appearance since hitting the injured list all the way back on May 25th, left-hander Stephen Gonsalves got the first inning in this one and set the Rays down in order, including striking out the first two hitters of the game. Another rehabber followed him for the second in the form of Trevor Hildenberger, who gave up a run on two hits while striking out one. From there, primary pitcher Miguel Rodriguez shouldered the rest of the game's load. In six bulldog innings, he allowed just one run on four hits and a walk along with striking out five to pick up his second win in the Gulf Coast League. The Twins scored first in this one thanks to an error by the Rays to the leadoff man in the bottom of the opening frame. Victor Heredia drove him in with a single two batters later. Down 2-1 in the bottom of the sixth Jesus Feliz tied the game with his third home run of the season. In the extra frame it was a two-out RBI single from Wander Valdez that brought in the walk-off run for the Twins. The home team collected just five hits on the game but made them count by finishing 2-for-5 with runners in scoring position. Alec Craig scored two runs out of the leadoff spot and nine-man Jake Hirabayashi drew two walks. Game 2: GCL Twins 3, GCL Rays 0 (6+ innings) Box Score The teams made up for that extra inning in game one by finishing only six innings in game two thanks to the rain that also delayed the Miracle’s start. The teams combined for just seven hits in this one, but the advantage went to the Twins by finishing 2-for-6 with runners in scoring position while the Rays went 0-for-5. The Twins scored all three of their runs in the second inning, with Luis Milla driving in one with a single through the right side, and Erick Rivera following later with a two-RBI single to center. Francisco Martinez finished his day 1-for-1 with a run scored and a pair of walks. On the bump in this one was right-hander Niklas Rimmel and he took it to the Rays hitters. In five innings he scattered four hits and allowed zero runs while striking out four. Steve Theetge came out for the sixth inning but before he could record an out the rains came and the contest was ruled official. TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY Pitcher of the Day – Dakota Chalmers, Fort Myers Miracle (6.0 IP, 0 ER, 3 H, BB, 9 K) Honorable Mention: Miguel Rodriguez, GCL Twins (W, 6.0 IP, ER, 4 H, BB, 5 K) Niklas Rimmel, GCL Twins (W, 5.0 IP, 0 R, 4 H, 4 K) Cody Laweryson, Elizabethton Twins (L, 5.0 IP, 0 ER, 2 H, BB, 5 K) Hitter of the Day – Gabriel Maciel, Fort Myers Miracle (1-for-4, RBI, BB, walk-off single in extra innings) PROSPECT SUMMARY Here’s a look at how the Twins Daily Midseason Top 20 Twins Prospects performed: #1 - Royce Lewis (Pensacola) - 1-for-3, R, 2 RBI, SF #2 - Alex Kirilloff (Pensacola) - 1-for-4, R, 2B #3 - Brusdar Graterol (Pensacola) - Did not pitch #4 - Trevor Larnach (Pensacola) - 1-for-4, 2B, K #5 - Wander Javier (Cedar Rapids) - No game #6 - Jordan Balazovic (Fort Myers) - Did not pitch #7 - Keoni Cavaco (GCL) - Did not play #8 - Brent Rooker (Rochester) - Injured List (groin) #9 - Jhoan Duran (Pensacola) - 2.0+ IP, 6 ER, 7 H, 2 BB, 2 K #10 - Blayne Enlow (Fort Myers) - Did not pitch #11 - Lewis Thorpe (Rochester) - 3.0 IP, 1 ER, 2 H, 4 K #12 - Nick Gordon (Rochester) - Injured List (leg contusion) #13 - Ryan Jeffers (Pensacola) - 1-for-3, 2B, BB #14 - Luis Arraez (Minnesota) - Game in progress #15 - Matt Wallner (Elizabethton) - 0-for-3, K #16 - Ben Rortvedt (Pensacola) - Did not play #17 - Akil Baddoo (Fort Myers) - Injured List (Tommy John surgery) #18 - Jorge Alcala (Pensacola) - Did not pitch #19 - Misael Urbina (DSL) - No game #20 - Travis Blankenhorn (Pensacola) - 0-for-4 WEDNESDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Rochester @ Indianapolis (12:35PM CST) - RHP Griffin Jax (1-0, 6.00 ERA) Chattanooga @ Pensacola (6:35PM CST) - LHP Bryan Sammons (4-5, 4.60 ERA) St. Lucie @ Fort Myers (6:00PM CST) - LHP Tyler Watson (1-5, 3.87 ERA) Cedar Rapids @ Wisconsin (7:05PM CST) - LHP Kody Funderburk (0-2, 4.45 ERA) GCL Braves @ GCL Twins (11:00AM CST) - TBD Please feel free to ask questions and discuss Tuesday’s games! 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I'm for Graterol in bullpen. I tend to believe this was the type of plan for him this year all along even if he hadn't got injured. He would be at or past his career high IP right now if healthy, and likely in triple-A or the majors by now. All things considered, you need Perez, Thorpe, or Smeltzer (or 2 of them) in the bullpen too. Rogers as only lefty is playing with fire.

To play contrarian, he has missed time on several occasions from running into walls. In these past 2 years he just didn't get placed on the IL and missed only a few games: April 3rd through 5th (pinch ran on the 3rd) -> http://www.startribune.com/postgame-buxton-bruises-his-back-by-colliding-with-center-field-wall/508040142/, May 28th & 29th -> https://www.mlb.com/news/byron-buxton-slams-into-wall-leaves-game May 27th, 2018 -> https://www.mlb.com/twins/video/buxton-leaves-game-with-injury-c2087940783 My 4th, 2017 (missed 2 days) -> https://www.mlb.com/twins/news/byron-buxton-exits-game-due-to-injury-c228309144 July 8th, 2016 (missed basically 3 weeks) -> (http://www.espn.com/espn/wire/_/section/mlb/id/16905241 He's gotten lucky that these recent events haven't put him out longer, in my opinion. The events mentioned in the article I agree are mostly unlucky, but he continues to walk a very tight rope that he has fallen off of several times already when it comes to walls.

Ding, ding, ding. We have a winner!!! (Sorry, I don't have a prize )

GCL League/MiLB Gameday does not track total pitches. Any at-bat with a ball in play counts 1 pitch as a strike. A walk counts as 4 balls, and a strikeout is 3 strikes. So, don't trust the GCL pitch counts in the box scores.

Something so rare I don’t recall happening in the five years I’ve been writing MiLB reports for Twins Daily happened on Tuesday in the Minnesota Twins farm system. No, it wasn’t the grand slam from a former major leaguer that led his team to a victory, or the three games that ended in walk-off fashion on the night, but something…else. It’s really a testament to the amount of talent the system has at a certain level…I caught some flak for mentioning the reason on Twitter last night, but I’m going to leave it to you guys to see if you can figure it out after reading Tuesday’s minor league report! TRANSACTIONS There were a few transactions leading into the games on Tuesday: Griffin Jax was promoted to the Rochester Red Wings and would be on normal rest on Wednesday.The Fort Myers Miracle activated pitcher Jordan Balazovic from the temporary inactive list after winning a silver medal at the Pan Am Games with Team Canada. He may start on Wednesday.The Cedar Rapids Kernels activated RHP Josh Winder from the injured list and he made the start.In the Appalachian League, 2B Edouard Julien was also activated from the temporary inactive list after bringing home a silver medal in the Pan Am games.The GCL Twins placed RHP Seth Pinkerton and RHP Rogelio Reyes on the 7-day injured listRED WINGS REPORTGwinnett 3, Rochester 8 Box Score The Red Wings came out swinging and never looked back as a grand third inning propelled them to an 8-3 victory on Tuesday night. Although they were outhit 13-10 on the game, Rochester got the bigger hits in the form of a grand slam from Alejandro De Aza in that third inning, and a solo home run and two-run double from Ramon Flores. Recent trade acquisition from the Cleveland Indians organization, outfielder Brandon Barnes contributed two hits (2-for-4, R, 2B, BB) to the effort along with Flores (2-for-4, R, 2B, HR, 3 RBI, BB). De Aza drew a bases-loaded walk in the first inning to start the scoring. Sean Poppen gave the Red Wings 3 2/3 in the start, allowing two runs on six hits and two walks as he ran up his pitch count to 74 (44 strikes). He struck out six. Ryan Eades got the next 1 1/3, allowing one run on four hits and striking out three. Preston Guilmet picked up the win with two scoreless frames, allowing one hit and one walk along with three K’s. Ian Krol finished the game with two scoreless of his own, allowing two hits and striking out two. BLUE WAHOOS BITES Scheduled Day Off The Blue Wahoos took four of five games from the Birmingham Barons at home in the last week, and hit the road on Tuesday toward Mobile, Alabama to face the Southern League South Division bottom-dwelling BayBears on Wednesday. MIRACLE MATTERS Fort Myers @ St. Lucie - Postponed: Wet Grounds Rains wreaked havoc on multiple games in the Florida State League on Tuesday, including the Miracle’s tilt against the Mets in St. Lucie. Dakota Chalmers will make the start in game one, with Jordan Balazovic originally scheduled on Wednesday though the MiLB.com schedule is “TBD” for game two. KERNELS NUGGETS Burlington 5, Cedar Rapids 6 Box Score Starting pitcher Josh Winder retired the first nine Bees hitters he faced, but when an error on first baseman Albee Weiss opened the fourth inning, the game went off the rails for the 2019 standout. Despite finishing the inning, before it was over he had allowed five unearned runs as two singles, a walk, a triple and a home run led to all those runs when three outs should have already been recorded. Those runs came on four hits and one walk while he punched out four. Just as quickly as his defense let him down, his bullpen and offense picked him up. Relievers J.T. Perez, Nate Hadley, and Austin Schulfer combined to shut Burlington out for the rest of the game. Perez allowed two hits and a walk in two innings, striking out two. Hadley walked one and struck out two in his two innings. Shulfer struck out one in a scoreless ninth. Down three runs after Winder’s exit, the lineup closed the gap to 5-4 in the fifth inning via a two-run blast from Wander Javier, his eighth of the season. It remained that way until the bottom of the ninth where Gabe Snyder led off the frame with his thirteenth home run of the season to tie the game at five and ignite a rally. Javier then reached on an error, moved to second on a Jared Akins single before Trevor Casanova drove him in with a double to snuff out the Bees. The Kernels got three hits from Snyder (3-for-5, 2 R, HR, RBI) and Casanova (3-for-4, R, 2B, RBI, BB). Gilberto Celestino also contributed a solo home run, his eighth of the season in the first inning to put the home team up 1-0 early. E-TWINS E-NOTES Elizabethton 8, Kingsport 9 Box Score Elizabethton took a big early lead with a crooked number in the third inning as they strung together a walk, and error, three singles, a double, and a sac fly that put four runs on the scoreboard. Unfortunately, starter Andriu Marin ran into even bigger trouble in the bottom of the fourth as before it was all said and done, Kingsport had put seven runs of their own on the board. Marin went 3+ innings, allowing six runs (four earned) all in the fourth, on five total hits and four walks. He did strike out four. Frandy Torres came in to the game with runners on second and third and nobody out and did his best to limit further damage, but one inherited runner scored on a groundout before he gave up a two-run homer. Torres went go on to pitch 2 2/3, being charged with only one earned run. He allowed two hits and struck out two. The E-Twins were then able to mount a comeback, as they scored single runs in the fifth and sixth innings, then Will Holland delivered a two-run double to take back the lead 8-7 in the seventh. Tyler Beck got Elizabethton through the eighth inning with 2 1/3 scoreless innings, scattering three hits and striking out two, then Benjamin Dum was summoned for the bottom of the ninth and his first save opportunity. He struck out the first batter he faced, but a single followed by a double tied the game and saddled him with a blown save. After a mound visit led to a strikeout for the second out, he gave up a run-scoring single to also get charged with the loss. Anthony Prato led the batting order with three hits in five at-bats, including a triple, while scoring two runs. Parker Phillips (2-for-4, R, 2B, RBI, BB) and Kyle Schmidt (2-for-4, R, RBI) also added two hits in the loss. Willie Joe Garry Jr. also contributed a triple. GCL TWINS TAKES Game 1: GCL Twins 4, GCL Pirates 2 Box Score With yesterday’s game postponed, the Twins and Pirates faced off in a doubleheader hosted by Pirates, with the Twins the visitor in game one. The Twins got on the board in the first inning thanks to an RBI single from Victor Heredia that was followed by an RBI double from Wander Valdez that made it 2-0 early. Righthander Anthony Escobar held the Pirates down for the first four innings, allowing only one run on three hits and a walk, along with striking out three. The run came on a solo home run in his final inning. Niklas Rimmel finished off the game with three innings of work to pick up his first professional win. He allowed one run on one hit while striking out two. Heredia added two more runs in the top of the fifth with a two-run double to account for the final score. He led the way with two hits in four trips to the plate and three RBIs. Valdez and Jeferson Morales also contributed two hits apiece. Game 2: GCL Pirates 0, GCL Twins 1 Box Score It was even more of a pitcher’s duel in game two, as the teams metaphorically swapped dugouts with the Twins as the home team for this one. They got a fantastic start from Miguel Rodriguez, who went the first six scoreless innings, holding the Pirates to four singles while striking out nine. Rodriguez has made a strong initial impression in the States, having now pitched 21 total innings with a 26:6 strikeout to base-on-balls ratio, 1.00 WHIP, and .192 batting average against. He was done with the score still tied at zero in this one though. Bradley Hanner got the seventh inning and with a scoreless frame also picked up his first professional win. He walked one and struck out one. The Twins literally walked this one off thanks to a bases-loaded free pass drawn by Heredia in the bottom of the seventh. Keoni Cavaco and Luis Milla each had two hits to account for all hits on the game for the good guys. They did draw six walks as a team, with Morales drawing two. TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY Pitcher of the Day – Miguel Rodriguez, GCL Twins (6.0 IP, 0 R, 4 H, 9 K) Hitter of the Day – Alejandro De Aza, Rochester Red Wings (1-for-3, R, GS HR, 5 RBI, BB) PROSPECT SUMMARY Here’s a look at how the Twins Daily Midseason Top 20 Twins Prospects performed: #1 - Royce Lewis (Pensacola) - No game #2 - Alex Kirilloff (Pensacola) - No game #3 - Brusdar Graterol (Pensacola) - Rehab assignment with GCL #4 - Trevor Larnach (Pensacola) - No game #5 - Wander Javier (Cedar Rapids) - 1-for-4, 2 R, HR, 2 RBI, 2 K #6 - Jordan Balazovic (Fort Myers) - Game postponed #7 - Keoni Cavaco (GCL) - 2-for-4, K #8 - Brent Rooker (Rochester) - Injured List (groin) #9 - Jhoan Duran (Pensacola) - Game postponed #10 - Blayne Enlow (Fort Myers) - Game postponed #11 - Lewis Thorpe (Rochester) - Did not pitch #12 - Nick Gordon (Rochester) - Did not play #13 - Ryan Jeffers (Pensacola) - No game #14 - Luis Arraez (Minnesota) - Game in progress #15 - Matt Wallner (Elizabethton) - Did not play #16 - Ben Rortvedt (Pensacola) - No game #17 - Akil Baddoo (Fort Myers) - Injured List (Tommy John surgery) #18 - Jorge Alcala (Pensacola) - No game #19 - Misael Urbina (DSL) - Did not play #20 - Travis Blankenhorn (Pensacola) - No game WEDNESDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Gwinnett @ Rochester (6:05PM CST) - LHP Lewis Thorpe (5-4, 5.02 ERA) Pensacola @ Mobile (6:35PM CST) - TBD Fort Myers @ St. Lucie, Game 1 (3:00PM CST) - RHP Dakota Chalmers (0-0, 36.00 ERA) Fort Myers @ St. Lucie, Game 2 (makeup of 8/6 postponement) - TBD (Jordan Balazovic) Cedar Rapids @ Kane County (6:30PM CST) - LHP Kody Funderbunk (0-2, 5.33 ERA) Elizabethton @ Kingsport (5:30PM CST) - TBD GCL Twins @ GCL Orioles, Game 1 (9:00AM CST) - TBD GCL Twins @ GCL Orioles, Game 2 (makeup of 7/25 postponement) - TBD Please feel free to ask questions and discuss Tuesday’s games! 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Davis hit home runs in his next two games in the PCL. Still crushing and I hope he's called up for the Giants soon! He landed in a great spot.

A friend of mine has been down in Florida the last week following the Twins organization around Florida, hitting up games in Jacksonville, Miami, and in the front row behind home at the doubleheader in Fort Myers last night. Some comment's worth sharing from him on Vallimont: "Damn he's got some good movement on his pitches" (I asked him about breaking ball movement) "[movement] more apparent vertical so far, but it breaks both planes. (then how hard he was throwing) "Hit 93 so far in the first two, but he's fooling everyone" As for the game going badly for him, sounds like the defense helped put him down that track: "He's had a bad third, but it started with a ball 3 guys converged on and somebody shoulda caught"

What he is now and what he could be remind me a lot of Jorge Polanco's tragectory when it comes to defense. This is a comment I would have after watching some of Lewis there last night. Gordon is better than Lewis at this point in time (which is not unexpected).

They also basically promised they'd make moves when the team proved they were good/the window was open. Well, it's been pretty breezy in this house all year already... (Edit: Not saying I'd abandon this team, heck no I wouldn't. But those statements amount to used-car salesman tactics if they don't do something. I'm sick of those types around sports here)

I kind of agree with you on the hitters. They're not really that good. Nelson Cruz as a DH has over twice the WAR of them combined.

For me, what they do today is going to decide how much I've earned their trust when it comes to the major league team. I like just about everything they've done related to the minors and prospects. They struck out on their MLB deals last year as a whole I think, at least how it pertains to how this year has now gone. Just imagine how good this team would be Eduardo Escobar and Ryan Pressly still here.

Still dislike it on the whole for the trade of Ryan Pressly, and I would have made keeping Escobar a priority. Celestino and Alcala are certainly prospects and Jhoan Duran looks legit, but the Twins would be even better this year if they had held onto those chips.

I think all three can. I watched the last half of the Pensacola game last night, so I missed most of Colina's outing, but it looked to me when he threw hard he didn't know where it was going. But he also had a sharp downward breaking ball. Probably was better before I started watching. I might put the odds on Duran being the best starter when it's all said and done, but all of them have floors of high-leverage relief I think.

I ranked him #29 in my midseason rankings. At the time he was OPS-ing just .612 on the season. He's come alive in July with a .993 OPS on the month, but his high before that was .694. I'm probably not moving him very far unless he keeps it up.