Steve Lein

Happy Father’s Day to all of those across Minnesota Twins Territory! For myself on Father’s Day, I’m thankful that my dad introduced me to the outdoors, hunting, fishing, and appreciating what hard work is while growing up. Also, for putting up with all of my shenanigans. I hope you’re catching some fish up at the cabin and I can’t wait to join you several more times through the summer! In the minor leagues on Sunday afternoon there was extra baseball(!) for all those fathers bringing their families to the games in Rochester and Cedar Rapids. Those teams each won both of their games, and in the process one of them clinched a wild card behind the big bat of an outfielder. In addition, a lefty who Twins fans got familiar with not long ago struck out double-digit hitters in his outing.To find out how all of that went down and what happened in the rest of the action in the minors on Sunday, keep reading! TRANSACTIONS The following transactions were made after the Kernels doubleheader (and subsequent celebration): AWARDS The Twins on Sunday also announced their minor league player of the week awards: Willians Astudillo was named the hitter of the week after demolishing triple-A after being optioned from the bigs. He went 15-25 in six games on the week with three home runs, nine RBI, six runs scored and a 1.553 OPS.For the second week in a row, Sean Poppen was named the pitcher of the week after striking out nine and allowing just one earned run on five hits in six innings on Thursday against the Columbus Clippers.RED WINGS REPORT Charlotte 5, Rochester 11 (completion of game suspended 6/15) Box Score The bats for both teams got going early in this one before it was suspended in the bottom of the third inning yesterday. The Knights knocked around Red Wings Starter Chase De Jong for five runs on five hits in his three innings, including a solo home run. De Jong struck out four. On the flip side Rochester’s lineup responded with a six-run bottom of the inning before the rains took over with two outs and a runner still on base. Four singles were followed by consecutive doubles from Winston Sawyer and Jordany Valdespin that led to the outburst and 7-5 lead for the home team. When play resumed on Sunday Ryan Eades was the pitcher and it was his first action since being optioned back to Triple-A. He was perfect in two innings, striking out three along the way and as he completed the fifth inning he was in line for the win. Fernando Romero then went three innings to get his team through the eighth, and he allowed two hits and walked two, but no runs along with striking out one. He threw 46 pitches with 29 of them going for strikes (63%). Preston Guilmet finished the game with a one-two-three ninth, including a strikeout to punctuate the victory. The Red Wings offense added plenty of insurance in the bottom of the seventh as LaMonte Wade and Tomas Telis each clubbed a two-run homer, leading to the final score of 11-5. Valdespin (3-for-4, 2 R, 2B, RBI) and Willians Astudillo (3-for-5, 2 R) paced the offense with three hits apiece. Every hitter in the lineup collected a base hit and they struck out only four times. Charlotte 2, Rochester 3 (regularly scheduled game, 7 innings) Box Score With the extra game being played on the day, this one went only seven innings, and it was just the right amount for the home team. Down 2-0 heading into the bottom of the seventh, the Red Wings put together a rally capped off by RBI single from Luis Arraez that walked it off. Jake Cave got the rally started by leading off the inning with his fifth home run. LaMonte Wade later tied the game at two with a sacrifice fly before Arraez stepped in with two outs and a runner on third. Arraez (2-for-4, RBI) and Drew Maggi (2-for-3, 2B) each had multiple hits while the team finished 3-for-6 with runners in scoring position to capitalize on their chances when it counted as they left only five men on base for the game. Making the start for Rochester was lefthander Devin Smeltzer, and he finished one out shy of another quality outing. In 5 2/3 he allowed two runs on five hits while cutting down 10 Knights hitters. He gave up a leadoff home run in the sixth that was followed by a double but buckled down to strike the next two men out (including #OldFriend Daniel Palka) before his day was done. Jake Reed came on for the final out of the sixth and finished the seventh to pick up his third win of the year. He allowed no hits, walked one, and struck out one. BLUE WAHOOS BITES Tennessee 3, Pensacola 2 Box Score Griffin Jax took the mound for the Blue Wahoos on Father’s Day and cruised through the first three innings. But the Smokies chipped away at him to start the fourth with three straight singles and a sac bunt led to his exit after picking up a strikeout for the second out. Jax finished 3 2/3 innings, allowing one run on five hits and striking out just one. Andro Cutura came on and walked a batter to load the bases before getting a strikeout to escape the jam. Cutura would finish the next four innings and ended up allowing two runs (one earned) on four hits and a walk while striking out two. Anthony Vizcaya pitched a one-two-three ninth, striking out one, and gave a chance to his team in the bottom of the ninth down by just one. Penscola closed the lead in this game to 3-2 in the bottom of the seventh inning as three singles, a walk, and a sac fly led to two runs scored. But that was just about all for the Blue Wahoos on the day as they combined for just six hits (all singles) and three walks. They finished 1-for-6 with runners in scoring position and left only seven men on base. First baseman Randy Cesar was 2-for-4 with a run scored while Tanner English went 2-for-4 with an RBI. MIRACLE MATTERS Scheduled day off The Fort Myers Miracle had the day off on Sunday as the Florida State League All- Star break comes to a close. The defending champions were the South Division first half winners, so they have already clinched a playoff spot at the end of the year to defend that title. They will open up the second half of the season against the Charlotte Stone Crabs at home on Monday. KERNELS NUGGETS Clinton 1, Cedar Rapids 4 (completion of game suspended 6/15) Box Score Like their friends in Triple-A, the Kernels also had their game from yesterday suspended early, this one in the top of the second with Cedar Rapids up 2-0. They had taken that lead in the bottom of the first thanks to a two-run bomb from left fielder Jared Akins, his eighth of the year that would prove to be enough for the home team. Andrew Cabezas had started the game and walked one and struck out one. When play resumed, Kai-Wei Teng was on the mound for the Kernels. He went 4 1/3 innings, allowing one run while scattering three hits and three walks and striking out six. His day was done after a one-out hit-by-pitch that was followed by a single, bringing in Jose Martinez from the bullpen. He finished the sixth and the seventh, walking one and striking out one. With the score then 4-1 Cedar Rapids went to Moises Gomez to finish the game. In two innings he struck out five of the six hitters he faced, including all three in the bottom of the ninth to pick up his fourth save of the season. In his last 10 appearances, Gomez has gone 2+ innings seven times (1 2/3 IP in two others) while allowing just two runs in 19 innings. That’s good for a 0.95 ERA while allowing only seven hits and six walks but racking up 25 K’s. His WHIP is 0.94 on the season and I’d venture he has a good chance to be moving up to Fort Myers after the Midwest League All-Star break that starts on Monday. The Kernels offense added insurance runs in each of the fifth and sixth innings thanks to an error that allowed Gabriel Maciel to scamper home after stealing second base, and a sac fly from Andrew Bechtold that followed a triple from Akins. Bechtold and Gabe Snyder joined Akins with two hits on the day. Clinton 1, Cedar Rapids 8 (regularly scheduled game, 7 innings) Box Score The Kernels jumped out to an early 3-0 lead thanks to a big blast from Ben Rodriguez in the bottom of the first. His three-run shot scored Gabriel Maciel who had doubled to lead off the game for the home team and Gabe Snyder who drew a walk. Starting pitcher Austin Schulfur kept the LumberKings at bay for the first four innings. He allowed one run on a solo homer in the second inning, but otherwise allowed no other hits or walks while striking out three. Zach Neff went the next two innings, striking out three and allowing two hits. Derek Molina was summoned for the seventh inning and closed it out with a scoreless frame. He allowed one hit and struck out two. Cedar Rapids’ lineup tacked on three more runs in the fifth thanks to an RBI triple from Maciel, a fielder’s choice ground ball from Snyder that scored another, and an RBI single from Wander Javier. In the sixth, a two-RBI double from Snyder capped off the scoring for the Kernels. The victory clinched a first-half wild card for the Kernels, so they will join the Fort Myers Miracle in postseason action in the Twins system. Congratulations fellas! TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY Pitcher of the Day – Devin Smeltzer, Rochester Red Wings (5.2IP, 6 H, 2 ER, 10 K) Hitter of the Day – Jared Akins, Cedar Rapids Kernels (2-for-4, 2 R, 3B, HR, 2 RBI) PROSPECT SUMMARY Here’s a look at how the Twins Daily Top 20 Twins Prospects performed: #1 - Royce Lewis (Ft. Myers) - No game (All Star Break) #2 - Alex Kirilloff (Pensacola) - Injured list #3 - Brusdar Graterol (Pensacola) - Injured list #4 - Trevor Larnach (Ft. Myers) - No game (All Star Break) #5 - Wander Javier (Cedar Rapids) - 1-for-8, RBI, 3 K (2 games) #6 - Brent Rooker (Rochester) - 2-for-7, 2 R RBI, BB, 3 K (2 games) #7 - Jhoan Duran (Ft. Myers) - Did not pitch #8 - Lewis Thorpe (Rochester) - Did not pitch #9 - Blayne Enlow (Fort Myers) - No game (All Star Break) #10 - Akil Baddoo (Ft. Myers) - Injured list (Tommy John surgery) #11 - Nick Gordon (Rochester) - 1-for-3, 2 K #12 - Stephen Gonsalves (Rochester) - Injured list #13 - Ryan Jeffers (Ft. Myers) - No game (All Star Break) #14 - Ben Rortvedt (Pensacola) - 0-for-4, K #15 - Yunior Severino (Cedar Rapids) - Injured list #16 - Gilberto Celestino (Cedar Rapids) - 2-for-7, R, 3 K (2 games) #17 - Zack Littell (Minnesota via Rochester) - Did not pitch #18 - LaMonte Wade Jr. (Rochester) - 2-for-6, 2 R, HR, 3 RBI, K (2 games) #19 - Jorge Alcala (Pensacola) - Did not pitch #20 - Jose Miranda (Ft. Myers) - No game (All Star Break) MONDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Pensacola Blue Wahoos - Southern League All Star Break Charlotte @ Fort Myers (6:00PM CST) - TBD Cedar Rapids Kernels - Midwest League All Star Break Please feel free to ask questions and discuss Sunday’s games! Click here to view the article

He's had issues with his command and allowing walks (and some injuries), but he's got the stuff. He's not throwing 88-90 MPH slop fastballs like Achter and others, his is in mid-90's. Torii Hunter called him "nasty" in Spring Training few years ago.

I don't either. Always remember him as a fastball (straight and runner/sinker) and slider guy. I always had to go more overhand to make my changeup or 2-seamer move, but sidewinders seem to always have crazy movement in both directions (see Pat Neshek), maybe that alteration is the secret sauce for him.

Changeup is nasty.

Just a year? I'm at like 3 years now, haha

Yeah, Severino is a name I mention for being in the potential range of prospect ranking or whatever you want to call it I think it would cost. Usually in trades like this the team puts out a list of guys they might want. Then as the team acquiring the MLB-er you say no or take some guys off and give them their pick between a few of them. Definitely always comes down to the guy the team would prefer when multiple suitors.

The Giants "trade chips" aren't actually very good ones because MadBum and Smith are half-year rentals. The market prices, as long as the team is really willing to deal them (sounds like may not be the case with Bumgarner) for these types of guys are not really high (see Familia and other deals from last year). In my opinion Smith should cost a prospect in the Twins range of 10-20. MadBum a little higher or multiple 10-20 guys. I'd propose Yunior Severino for Smith. Rooker for MadBum -If they want a pitcher Jhoan Duran. Piece that together however you want for both and maybe add in someone like Jose Miranda. The highest guy I'm offering for any rental, no matter whom (including these two in one package), is in Trevor Larnach's range, and they wouldn't be getting much of anything more after that if he's the target. (My current top 10 would go something like: Lewis, Kirilloff, Graterol, Javier, Balazovic, Larnach, Duran, Rooker, Thorpe, Enlow) Honestly though, in the Twins current situation (1 starting pitcher under contract for 2020?) I might be shooting a bit higher for guys with control for this year and the future. So now we're starting to talk prospect names people might not like, as in Graterol, Javier, Balazovic, and possibly even Lewis/Kirilloff if it's the right guy (not sure who that would be at this point).

"Jake turned in another quality start and bolstered his case for being the AL starter in the All-Star Game as well as the front-runner for the AL Cy Young. His final line was: 6 IP, 5 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 8 K. He lowered his season ERA to 1.91." Jake's been awesome, but he's hurt by the fact he's averaging only 5.41 innings/start. Largely because he's striking a lot of guys out, but you look at Justin Verlander and he has him beat in WHIP (0.74 to 0.97), K rate (10.57 to 9.98), and batting average against (.151 to .186) and that's all while Verlander is pitching over an extra inning per start than Jake is (6.61 to 5.41). Odo's definitely high in the conversation for both, but I don't think he's the front-runner (Not something I want to point out but I do think it's the reality).

Yes, he had a shoulder issue last year. In the offseason it was pretty cool seeing him posting videos of himself pitching left-handed because he couldn't throw righty at the time: He was always a quick-mover candidate as a pure reliever with the deception/stuff to dominate younger minor leaguers.

Yes. From time to time I actually go back and look at these numbers for the guys we consider studs in the majors at the position right now. Almost nobody had "great" fielding numbers in A-ball. Not even Andrelton Simmons.

I believe that the Twins have confirmed they plan to use Littell in this role for now.

I don't think I've ever penalized a player when making the hitter of the day selection for errors committed in a game. Especially when his bat was a big reason his team came back to win it

Minnesota Twins affiliates finished Tuesday with a 3-1 record as several hitters throughout the system had multiple hit efforts. A top international signing infield prospect led a comeback win with his first home run of the season, while another big international pitcher signing of a few years ago made his full season debut, and another top pitching prospect delivered his second quality start in as many games with his new affiliate after his recent promotion. It was also a busy day for transactions with player movement at every level.To find out everything that happened in the minors on Tuesday, read on! TRANSACTIONS It was a busy day for player movement in the Minnesota Twins organization on Tuesday: In Rochester RHP Chase De Jong was activated from the injured list while left-handed reliever Andrew Vasquez was placed on the injured list due to a shoulder strain.In Double-A the Blue Wahoos added several new names to their roster, including first baseman Ryan Costello from Fort Myers, shortstop Michael Davis from Cedar Rapids, and RHP Zack Weiss from Rochester.In exchange for Costello, the Miracle received back center fielder Ernie De La Trinidad who had some struggles after starting the year in Double-A after just 27 games in the Florida State League last season.In the Midwest League the Cedar Rapids Kernels were assigned shortstop Ricky De La Torre who will be making his full season debut after spending his first two years in the rookie leagues.RED WINGS REPORTRochester 9, Syracuse 3 Box Score Rochester scratched the first run of the game across in the top of the third thanks to a Luis Arraez RBI single in his first game back in Triple-A. They later found themselves down 2-1 until the sixth when they took the lead for good after Jake Cave led off the inning with a triple. Wilin Rosario promptly drove him in with a single and would later score the go-ahead run on an error. Starting the game on the mound for the Red Wings was RHP Chase De Jong, who was making his first appearance since May 10th. He went three innings, allowing two runs on five hits and two walks, along with notching two strikeouts. He threw 58 pitches with 34 of them going for strikes. Zack Littell also made his first appearance back in Triple-A and picked up the win by finishing the fifth inning before his teammates took the lead back. He went two innings, walking just one and striking out three. The Red Wings offense blew this one open with six runs in the top of the seventh as they loaded the bases with one out. Rosario scored two with a double and was followed by a 2-RBI single from Brent Rooker. Randy Cesar and Tomas Telis then added RBI singles of their own to make the final of 9-3. Jake Reed got the defense through the seventh with two scoreless frames. He allowed three hits and struck out one. Fernando Romero then finished the final two innings, allowing one run on three hits and a walk. Cave, Rosario, Rooker, and Wade Jr., and Jordany Valdespin all had multiple hits. As a team they were 6-for-15 with runners in scoring position. Arreaz also drew two walks in addition to finishing 1-for-4. BLUE WAHOOS BITES Jacksonville 5, Pensacola 7 Box Score The Blue Wahoos got multiple hits from four hitters including Travis Blankenhorn, Jimmy Kerrigan, Jaylin Davis, and Caleb Hamilton en route to a 7-5 victory on Tuesday. They scored runs in each of the second, fifth, sixth, and eighth innings to outlast their seafood brethren in the Southern League. Blankenhorn slugged his seventh and eighth doubles of the year while scoring two runs with a 3-for-4 night at the dish, while Kerrigan was 2-for-5 and drove in three to lead the offense. Ben Rortvedt also scored two runs and drove in another with a 1-for-2 night at the plate that included a walk. Jorge Alcala got the start on the mound and went 5 2/3 innings. He allowed three runs on eight hits and a walk while striking out four. Of his 95 pitches, 66 went for strikes (69%) with 12 of them the swinging variety. Tom Hackimer picked up his second win of the season by finishing 1 2/3. He walked one and struck out two. Jeff Ames came on in the eighth with one out and escaped a jam with two men on base. Back out for the ninth he gave up two runs and was replaced by Sam Clay with the tying run coming up to bat. Clay shut the door with a three-pitch strikeout to pick up his fourth save. MIRACLE MATTERS Florida 8, Fort Myers 2 Box Score While the Miracle outhit the Fire Frogs 8-6 on the game, it was the eight free passes they surrendered that made the difference as the visitors took advantage of their pitching mistakes. Right-hander Blayne Enlow made his second start since being promoted to the FSL, and delivered his second quality start. He lasted 6+ innings and gave up three runs (two earned) on just two hits and two walks. He struck out five and threw 63 of his 94 pitches for strikes (67%) including 12 swinging. He left the game responsible for two runners on base and his team up 2-1. Johan Quezada came on for him and proceeded to give up two bases-loaded walks, a two-RBI single, and a run-scoring wild pitch before they could get another reliever warmed up. That was Tanner Howell who got the final out of the inning, but the damage was done. Howell then got bit by the same control bug in the eighth and allowed two more runs for Florida’s final tally. Joe Record came on in the eight and finished the final 1 1/3. He walked one and struck out two. Royce Lewis was the only batter in the lineup with multiple hits, finishing 2-for-5 with an RBI and his 12th double on the season. Ernie De La Trinidad contributed a double and scored a run in his first game back with the Miracle. As a team they finished 3-for-13 with runners in scoring position and left eight men on base. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 8, Clinton 6 Box Score Making his full season debut for the Kernels in this one was starting pitcher Kai-Wei Teng who the Twins signed in December of 2017 out of Taiwan for a $500,000 international signing bonus. He had a solid rookie league debut in the GCL last year and skips the Appalachian League with this promotion. It was a mixed bag for him, as the first three hitters he faced got hits, with a 2-RBI double putting Clinton up 2-0 before he recorded an out. But he got the next three to limit the damage, including his first strikeout, added two more Ks in the second, then had a one-two-three third before more trouble found him in the fourth. An error from Wander Javier cracked opened the floodgates, and another from Andrew Bechtold blew them open. The LumberKings capitalized with four runs, all unearned, to take a 6-1 lead. Teng finished 3 2/3 innings, allowed six runs (two earned) on six hits and two walks. He struck out four. Reliever Zach Neff calmed it down after that going the next 2 1/3 scoreless innings and striking out three. That’s when the Kernels lineup also woke up. They cut the lead to 6-4 in the top of the fifth behind a two-out, three-run blast from Javier, his first home run of the season. In the eighth inning Bechtold led off with an infield single and advanced to second base on an errant throw, before Gabe Snyder drove him in to cut the lead to 6-5. Gabriel Maciel then delivered a game-tying triple before scoring the go-ahead run on an error off the bat of Gilberto Celestino. Jose Martinez had relieved Neff to start the seventh and had a one-two-three inning on just seven pitches. Back out for the eighth he got one out before he deflected a comeback toward short and was removed from the game due to injury (since there was no update provided from the Kernels, it may have been just for precautionary reasons). Derek Molina replaced him and finished the game to pick up his sixth save. He allowed one hit and struck out two. With the win Cedar Rapids moved to above .500 for the first time this season at 29-28. The Kernels added an insurance run in the ninth for the final score and Maciel, Javier, Snyder, and Estamy Urena finished the game with two hits. Ben Rodriguez also clubbed his fourth home run of the year. TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY Pitcher of the Day – Blayne Enlow, Fort Myers Miracle (6+ IP, 2 H, 2 ER, 2 BB, 5 K) Hitter of the Day – Wander Javier, Cedar Rapids Kernels (2-for-5, R, HR, 3 RBI) PROSPECT SUMMARY Here’s a look at how the Twins Daily Top 20 Twins Prospects performed: #1 - Royce Lewis (Ft. Myers) - 2-for-5, 2B, RBI, K #2 - Alex Kirilloff (Pensacola) - Injured list #3 - Brusdar Graterol (Pensacola) - Injured list #4 - Trevor Larnach (Ft. Myers) - 1-for-4 #5 - Wander Javier (Cedar Rapids) - 2-for-5, R, HR, 3 RBI, 2 K #6 - Brent Rooker (Rochester) - 2-for-3, R, 2 BB, K #7 - Jhoan Duran (Ft. Myers) - Did not pitch #8 - Lewis Thorpe (Rochester) - Did not pitch #9 - Blayne Enlow (Fort Myers) - 6+ IP, 2 H, 2 ER, 2 BB, 5 K #10 - Akil Baddoo (Ft. Myers) - Injured list (Tommy John surgery) #11 - Nick Gordon (Rochester) - Did not play #12 - Stephen Gonsalves (Rochester) - Injured list #13 - Ryan Jeffers (Ft. Myers) - 1-for-3, BB #14 - Ben Rortvedt (Pensacola) - 1-for-2, 2 R, RBI, BB #15 - Yunior Severino (Cedar Rapids) - Injured list #16 - Gilberto Celestino (Cedar Rapids) - 1-for-5, R, 2 K #17 - Zack Littell (Rochester) - W, 2.0 IP, BB, 3 K #18 - LaMonte Wade Jr. (Rochester) - 2-for-3, R, BB, K #19 - Jorge Alcala (Pensacola) - 5.2 IP, 8 H, 3 ER, BB, 4 K #20 - Jose Miranda (Ft. Myers) - 0-for-4 WEDNESDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Rochester @ Syracuse (9:35AM CST) – LHP Lewis Thorpe (3-3, 6.27 ERA) Jacksonville @ Pensacola (6:35PM CST) - TBD Florida @ Fort Myers (12:00PM CST) – LHP Tyler Watson (1-4, 4.24 ERA) Cedar Rapids @ Clinton (6:30 PM CST) - RHP Austin Schulfur (4-2, 2.95 ERA) Please feel free to ask questions and discuss Tuesday’s games! Click here to view the article

Nice nod to a couple of hitting prospects from Baseball America for the last week:

I almost always want the Twins to take high ceiling starting pitching because they haven't ever been a team to buy it on the MLB market and you need to find it somewhere, but where they're picking this year probably means hitter (like Kirilloff's draft). I like Alek Manaoh, Nick Lodolo, and Jackson Rutledge too. But if they're there, Langeliers and Carrol strikes me as the Falvine's pick.

While the Minnesota Twins were busy putting away the Tampa Bay Rays for a big series win on the road, Twins affiliates struggled on Sunday afternoon as they went 0-4 on the day. Despite that record, there were still some home runs from a few sluggers, and a pitcher making his debut in a new league had a solid outing, even though at the end it went a bit sour.To find out how all of your favorite Minnesota Twins prospects performed on Sunday, keep reading! TRANSACTIONS Before the Twins game on Sunday afternoon, they optioned RHP Zack Littell back to Rochester to clear room for Mitch Garver who was activated from the injured list.In Cedar Rapids, RHP Kai-Wei Teng was assigned to the Kernels from the GCL roster.RED WINGS REPORTBuffalo 9, Rochester 5 Box Score With Kohl Stewart on the mound for Rochester, the lineup gave him an early lead in the bottom of the second as Drew Maggi and Nick Gordon each drew bases-loaded walks with two outs. Stewart gave those runs right back in the third however on a double with the bases loaded. He would go on to allow another run in the fourth, then two more on a home run in the fifth before being pulled. In total Steward finished 4 1/3 innings, allowing five runs on six hits and three walks while striking out four. Zack Weiss came on to finish the fifth and added a scoreless sixth. In his 1 2/3 innings he allowed one run on four hits and struck out one. Trevor Hildenberger replaced him to start the seventh and he got a double-play ball after a leadoff single to end a threat. Back out for the eighth Hildy got two outs before giving way to Preston Guilmet while responsible for a runner on second base. Guilmet promptly gave up a home run to make the score 8-3 in favor of the Bisons. In the bottom of the eighth Zander Wiel led off the frame with a single, was tripled in by Jake Cave, and then Wynston Sawyer added an RBI double that made it 8-5 before any further threat was snuffed out. The Bisons added another home run off Guilmet in the ninth to make it 9-5, and the Red Wings needed a big rally to come back. Maggi singled to lead off the inning then Gordon drew a walk, but the next three hitters went down swinging and that was it for the ballgame. Sawyer finished the game 2-for-4, Brent Rooker went 1-for-2 with a run scored and two walks, and Gordon finished 1-for-3 with a run scored, triple, RBI, and two walks to lead the offense. BLUE WAHOOS BITES Jacksonville 9, Pensacola 6 Box Score The Jumbo Shrimp took a 3-0 lead against Blue Wahoos starter Bryan Sammons after scoring two in the third inning and one in the fourth while Pensacola’s offense was held at bay. Sammons finished five innings, allowing those three runs on five hits and two walks while striking out seven. The home team took the lead in the bottom of the sixth thanks to a big blast from Jaylin Davis, a three-run home run and his eighth of the year to make it 4-3. A batter earlier, Alex Kirilloff had got the Blue Wahoos on the scoreboard with an RBI single. The score stayed that way until the ninth inning as reliever Anthony Vizcaya delivered two scoreless frames, and Sam Clay followed with a scoreless eighth. Up by one, Clay was back out for the ninth inning, but some small ball after a lead-off walk led to an RBI single and a tie game. After going down one-two-three in the bottom half, this one was sent to extra-innings. Cody Stashak came on in the top of the 10th, and after recording an out, an error allowed a run to score for Jacksonville and they added another with an RBI double for a 6-4 lead. That’s when this happened: Before the inning was done Jacksonville had a 9-4 lead. All the runs in the inning were charged to Stashak, who recorded one out and allowed five runs (three earned) on two hits and a walk. Gore got a double-play ball to finally escape the inning. In the bottom of the tenth Travis Blankenhorn did his best to make it interesting by slugging his ninth home run with the Blue Wahoos, a two-run blast to cut the lead to three, but that was it for the home team. Blankenhorn has been pretty good so far with the Wahoos: As a team the Blue Wahoos had just six hits on the game and struggled to threaten in any other inning than the sixth. Kirilloff finished 2-for-5 with a run scored and an RBI, and is batting .351 in his last 10 games. MIRACLE MATTERS Fort Myers 2, Lakeland 9 Box Score For the first six innings on Sunday starting pitcher Cole Sands was in complete control while making his Florida State League debut. He had retired fourteen hitters in a row, including six strikeouts, when he came back out for seventh. The first batter of that inning reached on an error by Lewin Diaz at first base and may have thrown off his, and the entire teams, mojo from there. The next batter singled, and after a mound visit Sands gave up a three-run home run that put his team behind on the scoreboard and his day was done. The Miracle were holding a 2-0 lead before the seventh thanks to a solo home run from Trevor Larnach in the second inning, and an RBI single from Aaron Whitefield in the fifth to score Royce Lewis who had led off the inning with a single. Whitefield also stole second and third base in the inning but would end up stranded 90-feet away. There wasn’t much offense beyond that, as Fort Myers managed just six hits and a walk as a team, finished 1-for-4 with runners in scoring position, and left only four men on base for the game. Sands was replaced in the seventh by Joe Record, and the game unraveled even further for him as he allowed six runs (five earned) on five hits and a walk before medic Calvin Faucher brought some tourniquets with him to the mound. A sac fly and a strikeout from Faucher finally ended the inning. Faulcher added a one-two-three eighth inning, including two more Ks to finish the game for the Miracle. In his second rehab game with the Miracle, DH Nelson Cruz finished 1-for-3 with a strikeout. It’s looking likely he could rejoin the Twins in Cleveland. Lewis finished 2-for-4 and stole his 10th base of the season. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 1, Beloit 6 Box Score The Kernels offense was held in check all day as they managed just four hits as a team and went 0-for-7 with runners in scoring position. They got on the scoreboard thanks to a Gilberto Celestino home run in the third inning, his third of the season, but that was it. Celestino finished the game 2-for-3 and drew a walk and stole a base in addition to the home run. Chris Williams added a double and two walks. Andrew Cabezas got the start for Cedar Rapids and was solid for the first five innings. His only run allowed to that point had come on a solo home run in the second inning. In the sixth however, he was greeted by four consecutive singles and his day was done. In total, he pitched 5+ innings and allowed five runs on six hits and three walks. He struck out only one. Carlos Suniaga allowed three more singles in the sixth and a run of his own before getting out of the frame. Brian Rapp then came on and pitched two scoreless innings, allowing one hit and one walk while striking out two. TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY Pitcher of the Day – Cole Sands, Fort Myers Miracle (L, 6+ IP, 4 H, 2 ER, 0 BB, 6 K’s) Hitter of the Day – Gilberto Celestino, Cedar Rapids Kernels - 2-for-3, R, HR (3), RBI, BB, SB (9) PROSPECT SUMMARY Here’s a look at how the Twins Daily Top 20 Twins Prospects performed: #1 - Royce Lewis (Ft. Myers) - 2-for-4, K, SB #2 - Alex Kirilloff (Pensacola) - 2-for-5, R, RBI, 3 K, outfield assist #3 - Brusdar Graterol (Pensacola) - Injured list #4 - Trevor Larnach (Ft. Myers) - 1-for-4, HR (5), K #5 - Wander Javier (Cedar Rapids) - 1-for-4, K #6 - Brent Rooker (Rochester) - 1-for-2, R, 2 BB, K #7 - Jhoan Duran (Ft. Myers) - Did not pitch #8 - Lewis Thorpe (Rochester) - Did not pitch #9 - Blayne Enlow (Cedar Rapids) - Did not pitch #10 - Akil Baddoo (Ft. Myers) - Injured list (Tommy John surgery) #11 - Nick Gordon (Rochester) - 1-for-3, R, 3B, RBI, 2 BB #12 - Stephen Gonsalves (Rochester) - Injured list #13 - Ryan Jeffers (Ft. Myers) - 0-for-1 (pinch ran for Nelson Cruz) #14 - Ben Rortvedt (Pensacola) - R (pinch ran for DH) #15 - Yunior Severino (Cedar Rapids) - Injured list #16 - Gilberto Celestino (Cedar Rapids) - 2-for-3, R, HR (3), RBI, BB, SB (9) #17 - Zack Littell (Rochester) - Did not pitch #18 - LaMonte Wade (Rochester) - 0-for-5, K, outfield assist #19 - Jorge Alcala (Pensacola) - Did not pitch #20 - Jose Miranda (Ft. Myers) - Did not play MONDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Rochester @ Syracuse (5:35PM CST) – TBD Jacksonville @ Pensacola (6:35PM CST) - LHP Charlie Barnes (0-0, 0.00 ERA) Florida @ Fort Myers (6:00PM CST) – RHP Edwar Colina (2-1, 3.57 ERA) Please feel free to ask questions and discuss Sunday’s games! Click here to view the article

They're not that different. Sale has the height, but Smeltzer is actually bigger. It has always fascinated me how Sale can throw 95+, because he's one of the skinniest guys you'll ever meet. Their deliveries are very similar, and I imagine the change in mechanics Twins coaches implemented with Smeltzer had some influence from Sale.

There were only three games on Tuesday as the Pensacola Blue Wahoos had the day off and another contest was rained out. In Fort Myers, the game that was suspended due to rain yesterday was finished, in addition to a regularly scheduled bill. In the games that were played, a top pitching prospect in Triple-A made his first start of the 2019 season, while a slugger in the Florida State League continued a scorching hot stretch with another home run (though technically he hit it yesterday).Keep reading to find out how all of your favorite Minnesota Twins prospects performed on Tuesday! TRANSACTIONS Stephen Gonsalves was activated from the injured list and made the start for Rochester.Nick Gordon also was activated for the Red Wings and was back atop their batting order on the lineup card.RED WINGS REPORT Buffalo 5, Rochester 0 Box Score Left-handed starter Stephen Gonsalves made his much anticipated 2019 debut for the Red Wings on Tuesday night, but he definitely looked rusty. He only allowed one run but was able to finish only two innings as he walked five while striking out two as just 23 of his 51 pitches went for strikes (45%). D.J. Baxendale was the first man up in relief and delivered three perfect innings. 25 of his 36 pitches went for strikes (69%) as he switched up the mojo on the Bisons and struck out four. Zack Weiss went the next two frames and also struck out four, but a double-steal from Buffalo was followed by a wild-pitch in the sixth to put them up 2-0. Trevor Hildenberger was brought in for his second appearance back in Triple-A in the eighth and delivered a one-two-three inning, striking out two. But the ninth didn’t go nearly that well. He finished the game for the Red Wings but in the process allowed three runs on five hits for the final score of 5-0. He finished with three K’s. While the Bisons only outhit the home team 7-6, they were able to cash in some of their opportunities by going 2-for-6 with runners in scoring position compared to the Red Wings 0-for-10 effort. Randy Cesar (2-for-3, 2B) and Jordany Valdespin (2-for-3, BB) each had two hits and Zander Wiel also added a double. Nick Gordon went 0-for-5 in his return from the injured list. BLUE WAHOOS BITES Scheduled day off Pensacola lost their first series of the season against the Mobile BayBears over the weekend but that can’t overshadow one of the best starts in Southern League history since they switched their schedule format to five games series. They did win the final two games of that series and got the day off on Tuesday as they travel to play the Tennessee Smokies and look to start another streak. MIRACLE MATTERS Bradenton 7, Fort Myers 2 (completion of game suspended on 5/20) Box Score After rains moved in on Monday causing a suspension of play, Fort Myers and Bradenton recommenced the action in the top of the fourth inning at 11:00 in the morning on Tuesday. To that point the Marauders had taken a 3-1 lead against Miracle starter Jhoan Duran who finished 3 2/3 innings. He allowed those runs on five hits and two walks while striking out three and was responsible for two runners on base when the game resumed with Calvin Faucher on the mound. He delivered 3 1/3 scoreless innings, getting them through the seventh by allowing just two hits and striking out five. When he was done the game was still in reach and the Fort Myers offense did manage to push a run across to make it 3-2, but it was not to be. Bradenton put up four runs in the eighth against Ricky Ramirez thanks to a bases- clearing double being followed by an RBI single. Ramirez wouldn’t allow another run and finished the game with a scoreless ninth, striking out three total hitters. The first run of the game for the Miracle came on a Lewin Diaz home run, his eighth of the year and continues a hot stretch that has vaulted him into the Florida State League lead in OPS at .933 (they should probably promote him

Certainly looking like a solid draft class! They still have to get to the majors, but the minors returns are great so far, especially in the top 10 picks. I think Balazovic is on his way to being that #2 guy. I still have a lot of love for Lewis Thorpe, but both are solidly in my top 10 at this point. Balazovic is on his way to top 5. I think Keith Law went out on a limb putting him at #3 based on where he's at and where's he's been, but he looks like an oracle so far.

I was a big fan of the pick. I also wrote the draft profile for him here. The big issue, is the questions there were when he was drafted, came to fruition and haven't really improved. I saw a similar path to Glen Perkins for him, but there's not much time left for him.