Jeremy Nygaard

It was a very eventful day all through Twins Territory. Read on for jammed-pack excitement... or at least a recap of what happened while you enjoyed the "unofficial" last day of Summer. ROCHESTER RED WINGS 13, SCRANTON/WB RAILRIDERS 3 Box Score[PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] From today's pregame notes: The Red Wings made a total of 140 transactions this year, which included housing 60 different players over the course of the season. That is the highest number since 1995 (62). Only five players made it through the whole season on Rochester's roster: Shairon Martis, Eric Fryer, Jeff Clement, Brian Dinkelman and Ray Olmedo. Scott Diamond will take the mound at 1:05 pm at Frontier Field in hopes of securing a win. With a win, the Red Wings also need Norfolk to lose to clinch a playoff berth. That is the only way the Red Wings season doesn't end today. In an effort to keep you up-to-date, I posted live updates throughout the Norfolk and Rochester game. If you still don't know - isn't the anticipation killing you? - you can re-live the moment. Right now. UPDATE 12:25 CT Scott Diamond gave up a run in the top of the 1st, but the Red Wings answered back in the bottom of the inning scoring three runs. They currently have runners on first and third with nobody out. Durham and Norfolk are currently tied at 0 in the top of the 6th. Durham put a runner on base with a 2-out single. Update 12:30 CT Norfolk got out of the inning. Heading to the bottom of the 6th. Still scoreless. Ray Olmedo singled home Jeff Clement. 4-1, still none out in the bottom of the first. Update 12:40 CT Norfolk started off the bottom of 6 with a double and a walk. Durham followed that with a strikeout and double-play. On to the 7th... Meanwhile, Rochester is still batting in the 1st. Eduardo Escobar has doubled twice and has four RBI so far in a 9-1 game. Scranton/WB has made a pitching move already. (These Red Wings must really not want to re-join the Twins. #jajaja) Update 1:30 CT Durham just stranded a runner on second base. He singled and later stole second. But with one out, they went strikeout/weak groundout to end the inning. Norfolk comes to bat in the bottom of the 9th. Rochester, on the other hand, continues to pull away... Update 1:34 CT Strikeout, groundout... we're one out from extra innings. Update 1:40 CT Durham is now batting in the top of the 10th. Eduardo Escobar is killing it, by the way. Two doubles and home run, so far. Update 1:45 CT Durham has a runner on first and third with one out in the top of the 10th. Update 1:47 CT A single scores the game's first runner. 1st and 2nd, one out. Red Wings gotta love this... Update 1:49 CT Inning over on double-play. Three outs from a Durham win. Update 1:55 CT Of course, Norfolk singles to lead off bottom of 10th. Former Twin Jason Pridie can't get him over to second. One out. Update 1:57 CT That's two swinging strikeouts in the bottom of 9 for closer Kirby Yates. One out to go... Update 2:00 CT It's an epic battle between Yates and Buck Britton... and it ends in another swinging strikeout. It's all on the Red Wings now... a win and they're in. Update 2:04 CT I gotta take a break from all of this excitement. Top of the 6th. 12 outs away. FINAL UPDATE They did it. They won and, by tiebreaker, are the International League Wild Card. Scott Diamond gave up three runs over seven innings and Virgil Vasquez tossed the final two frames. Diamond got a Olmedo-Beresford-Parmelee triple play behind him as well. Escobar finished with three doubles, a home run and 5 RBI. Ray Olmedo and Antoan Richardson each finished with three hits. The Red Wings will host the PawSox on Wednesday (Cole De Vries) and Thursday (P.J. Walters) before heading to Pawtucket for games Friday through Sunday, as necessary. NEW BRITAIN ROCK CATS 2, READING PHILLIES 3 Box Score Miguel Sano was getting the season finale off, until Evan Bigley was ejected. Sano finished the year with 2 Ks and a line-out to third. Brad Boyer and Kyle Knudson ended their seasons with 2-hit games. Danny Santana and Eddie Rosario each had a hit and a stolen base. D.J. Baxendale struck out nine over 7.1 innings. He gave up 12 hits and 3 runs. Ryan O'Rourke recorded the final five outs, with 1 K. FORT MYERS MIRACLE The Miracle are off today and will kick off a three-game set tomorrow with Charlotte at 6:30 ET. Game 1 is on the road with Games 2 and 3 scheduled for Fort Myers. CEDAR RAPIDS KERNELS 15, CLINTON LUMBERKINGS 6 Box Score Miguel Sulbaran improved to 9-4 on the season with a win today. He pitched five innings and allowed two runs. He struck out only one. The bullpen handled the rest of the game in small pieces and most of them threw successfully. Hudson Boyd (H, K, IP), Josue Montanez (.2 IP, 2 H), Brandon Bixler (.1 IP, K) and Brian Gilbert (IP, H) all had scoreless efforts in relief. Dallas Gallant was had a bit of a hiccup. Gallant got three outs, but also gave up back-to-back home runs and a walk for four total runs. He struck out two. The offense was pretty explosive today. They scored 15 runs on 14 hits. Adam Brett Walker (27) and Jonathan Murphy (2) both homered. Niko Goodrum, Jorge Polanco, Walker, Tyler Grimes and Michael Quesada all had doubles. Quesada actually reached base in all five of his plate appearances (two hits, three walks). The 88-50 record that Cedar Rapids finished with ties a franchise record and, to my knowledge, was the most wins in baseball this year. The Kernels will travel to Quad Cities for Game 1 on Wednesday night. Brett Lee is on the mound. The Kernels will return home for games Thursday and Friday night. Tim Shibuya and Tim Atherton (if necessary) are the scheduled starters. Leave your questions and/or comments below.

I know the picture doesn't fit, but for what might be the last time, let's give #33 another cover photo. This from a happier time. Let's hope there is more champagne in Morneau's near future... and also that none of the corks hit him in the head. If you want to weigh in on the trade and it's reactions. Go here. Tonight was a very significant night for the Rochester Red Wings. It's also a big night for Josmil Pinto, as he is with the Twins and will make his big-league debut soon.[PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] Let's look at how the four minor league teams did tonight: ROCHESTER RED WINGS 6, BUFFALO BISONS 5 Box Score The Red Wings did nearly everything possible to blow this game late, but instead held on to win (and eliminate Buffalo from Wild Card contention). The Red Wings currently find themselves a half-game behind Norfolk, who is playing here. If Norfolk loses, the Red Wings pull into a tie for the Wild Card, but have the tiebreaker. If Norfolk wins, the Red Wings will have to make that one-game disadvantage up in the next two days. P.J. Walters gave up two runs early, but settled down and made it six innings. Aaron Thompson gave up an unearned run and Shairon Martis allowed the Bisons to battle back (and get the go-ahead run in scoring position with two outs) before Michael Tonking recorded the final out. Aaron Hicks was 3-for-4 with two doubles and a stolen base. Eric Fryer homered and Eduardo Escobar, Chris Parmelee and James Beresford all added doubles. Pat Dean looks to keep the Red Wings in the hunt tomorrow night at 6:05 ET. NEW BRITAIN ROCK CATS 4, READING PHILLIES 5 Box Score Reading scored a 9th inning run to win a game that no one actually knew was going on. So you better read about it here... Trevor May pitched and was solid. He struck out 10 in seven innings, scattering four runs on six hits and a walk. Matt Hauser gave up the run to pick up the loss. Miguel Sano was busy. He tripled, was hit by a pitch, grounded into a double play and committed an error. Eddie Rosario got two hits, including a double. Angel Morales hit his 5th AA home run. Stuart Turner made his AA debut and collected two singles. Kyle Davies pitches tomorrow at 6:35 ET. FORT MYERS MIRACLE 2, BRADENTON MARAUDERS 3 Box Score The Miracle's bullpen blew a save, allowing three runs in the bottom of the eighth inning. David Hurlbut scattered nine hits over 7.1 innings, but only allowed two runners (inherited by Tyler Jones) to score. He struck out six. Tyler Jones finished the inning, but not before allowing a run of his own to score as well. he took the loss. Byron Buxton had a hit and scored a run out of the 3-hole. Kennys Vargas had the only extra base hit for the team (his 33rd double). Tomorrow afternoon (12:05 ET) is the Miracle's regular-season finale. Their playoffs start Tuesday. CEDAR RAPIDS KERNELS 5, CLINTON LUMBERKINGS 0 Box Score Lots of offense from the Kernels tonight, led by leadoff hitter Jonathan Murphy. Murphy had two hits, including a triple and scored two runs. Tyler Grimes, Mike Gonzales and Bo Altobelli all had two-hit games and an RBI as well. Gonzaelez hit a long home run. After returning to the lineup with a bang last night, Niko Goodrum took today's game off. Tim Shibuya went the distance today. He struck out six. He allowed four hits and only walked one. The Kernels have set their playoff rotation and it looks like this: Brett Lee in Game 1, Tim Shibuya in Game 2, and Tim Atherton in Game 3. It was believed that Jose Berrios would be one of the guys in the rotation, but it was reported earlier today that he wouldn't be included. Nothing specific to report, as it appears that Berrios is completely healthy, but has worn down later in the year. The Kernels have two more games at Clinton before starting their playoffs. Tim Atherton starts tomorrow at 2:00 CT. If you have any questions or comments, please leave them below.

The Twins were off today. In other baseball news, it was announced that Matt Harvey of the Mets has a partially torn UCL. He's getting the dreaded "rest and recovery" treatment many Twins fans are too familiar with. It's an unfortunate development for one of the best young arms in the game today. Eddie Rosario was named Eastern League Player of the Week after his stellar week last week. There was also a nice write-up about a few Twins prospects on Baseball America as well as a can't-miss (Insider-only) piece that discusses the "scout's divide" on Adam Brett Walker. [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] Let's look at the action around the farm today which included both very good and very bad performances: ROCHESTER RED WINGS 5, SYRACUSE CHIEFS 15 Box Score Not only has Rochester squandered their division lead, but they have now fallen a game behind the Norfolk Tides in the IL Wild Card Race. It was another brutal night for the Wings, who gave up a 6-spot in the first inning for the second consecutive game. P.J. Walters got the start and only lasted two innings. He gave up eight runs (four earned) on five hits and four walks. (His error lead to the unearned runs.) He was replaced by the recently-activated Luis Perdomo. Perdomo didn't fair much better. He was chased after 2.2 innings. He allowed three runs (two earned) on four walks and two hits. Edgar Ibarra even gave up a run in his 1.1 inning of work. The Red Wings turned to outfielder Jermaine Mitchell to work the 8th inning and, of course, he pitched around a walk and single to have a shutout inning. Mitchell returned for the 9th and gave up a two-run double. Plug pulled. Ray Olmedo replaced Mitchell and allowed an inherited run to score before retiring the side. Deibinson Romero had three hits, including a home run and had three RBI. Eduardo Escobar followed up Romero's home run with a home run of his own. Josmil Pinto, who is in a cold-stretch, was moved down to 9th and posted a double. Jeff Clement also doubled. Pat Dean will look to right the ship tomorrow at 7:05 ET. NEW BRITAIN ROCK CATS 5, TRENTON THUNDER 3 Box Score Trevor May had a very solid outing tonight for the RockCats. He didn't give up a hit for the first five innings, completing six total. He struck out nine, while allowing only two hits walking two batters. www.milb.com It will be interesting to see if May's name is included tomorrow when the Arizona Fall League Rosters are announced. If not, I think there is a pretty good shot that May will join the Twins when rosters expand next week. May is short of 140 innings after pitching around 150 innings the previous two minor league seasons. Getting him 25-30 Major League innings could be very valuable as May figures to compete for a spot in the Major League rotation next spring. There is also a chance that May could join Rochester as they continue to push - and struggle - in their attempt to make the International League Playoffs. Daniel Turpen allowed three runs in relief, which allowed the game to get close. Ryan O'Rourke recorded the last four outs to secure the save. Offensively, the 6-7-8 hitters: Reynaldo Rodriguez, Brad Boyer and Dan Rohlfing all had three hits and combined to go 9-for-11. Boyer drove in three runs. Danny Santana and Jordan Parraz each had two hits. Eddie Rosario was 1-for-5 with an RBI. Miguel Sano went 0-for-3 with two walks. Cole De Vries starts tomorrow at 7:05 ET. FORT MYERS MIRACLE vs PALM BEACH CARDINALS - rained out; doubleheader tomorrow. Matt Tomshaw is in line to get one of the starts. The other starter is TBD. CEDAR RAPIDS KERNELS 3, PEORIA CHIEFS 1 Box Score With Max Kepler on the shelf for a couple days with a badly cut finger, the Kernels rolled out a makeshift infield, which included two catchers - Tyler Grimes (2B) and Bo Altobelli (1B) - playing out of position. Turns out their big hits and timely pitching were enough to secure another Kernels victory. Grimes doubled twice and Jeremias Pineda was 3-for-4 with an RBI to lead the offense. Altobelli drove in a run on two hits and Michael Quesada also doubled in a run. Tim Atherton picked up the win going seven strong innings, striking out seven. He allowed one run. Mason Melotakis pitched the 8th and allowed only a hit when striking out two. Brian Gilbert picked up his fifth save, striking out one in a single frame. Miguel Sulbaran will make his third start for the Kernels tomorrow night at 6:35 CT. ELIZABETHTON TWINS 11, PRINCETON RAYS 3 Box Score The E-Twins got a nice outing from their offense (11 runs on 14 hits), but were helped by the five errors that Princeton committed. The Princeton offense wasn't bad either (12 hits), but only managed three runs. The win keeps the E-Twins hanging onto their playoff hopes by a thread. (Elimination number remains four with Greeneville still playing.) Zach Granite had three hits tonight, including a double and was also caught stealing. Engelb Vielma scored three runs on two hits. Bryan Haar drove in two runs on two hits (a double) and also walked twice. Match Garver and Zach Larson also added doubles. Hein Robb allowed three runs on ten hits. He struck out five in five innings. Austin Malinowski struck out four in three innings of work. Brandon Peterson finished it off with a hit and K. Kohl Stewart will pitch tomorrow at 7:05 ET. GCL TWINS 2, GCL RAYS 8 Box Score Despite jumping out to a quick lead, the Twins dropped this one after surrendering four runs in the bottom of the third inning. Starter Derrick Penilla gave up four runs (two earned) in 2.1 innings. Chih-Wei Hu also allowed two earned runs in 2.2 innings, but Hu was able to strike out six. In relief, Zach Hayden made his 10th appearance (9 IP) and still hasn't allowed a run. Alex Swim led the offense with two hits. Both Nelson Molina and Ryan Tufts doubled. At 27-30, the GCL Twins have been eliminated from postseason contention. If you have questions or comments, fire away!

We've been dealing with dreadful pitching in the major leagues pretty much everyday since... well... 2011. Today was more of the same. In fact, Kyle Gibson was sent back to Rochester after today's outing. There were some other minor league moves as well. A.J. Pettersen was moved from New Britain to Fort Myers along with Matthew Summers. To make room, Fort Myers sent Alex Swim back across the street. [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] On a positive note, those in the FSNorth viewership got to see a glimpse into the Twins future as they broadcast the RockCats game this evening. Another positive was how some rehabbing pitchers fared. ROCHESTER RED WINGS 7, LOUISVILLE BATS 0 Box Score If you're looking for meaningful September baseball (and want to cheer for wins), this is one team for you to follow. The Red Wings have been playing very good baseball (and doing it with familiar names). Tonight, old friend Liam Hendriks was dialed in. Eight innings, eight strikeouts, no runs, four hits. He's probably earned the right to earn a major league salary again. Aaron Thompson pitched the final frame. Mid-season addition Jermaine Mitchell collected three hits out of the nine-hole. Chris Parmelee and Josmil Pinto each homered. The team had 12 hits tonight, including six extra-base hits. Pawtucket also won to keep the gap at two games. PJ Walters is scheduled to take the ball at 1:05 ET. NEW BRITAIN ROCKCATS 3, TRENTON THUNDER 10 Box Score The story of this game was that it was the first chance for many fans to see Miguel Sano and/or Eddie Rosario. (Unless you travel to MiLB games or watched the WBC on MLB Network (Rosario) or the couple of Spring Training games that Sano got into.) Neither did a lot tonight, but "rehabbing" Pedro Hernandez might have been the best you've seen him. He allowed only five baserunners in four innings and struck out four. He left with the RockCats up 2-0. After B.J. Hermsen pitched out of trouble in the 5th, but bullpen imploded. The trio of Blake Martin, Daniel Turpen and Jose Gonzalez allowed 10 runs on 11 hits and five walks. Not pretty. There were also some fielding gaffes that wouldn't make your daddy proud. Offensively, Danny Santana showed his wheels on both advancing on a sac fly from first to second and by tripling. Eddie Rosario hit a gapper to the left-center field wall that scored two runners. Miguel Sano didn't have any hits but had a loud out in the first and made a nice charging defensive play to nab a runner at first. Trevor May is on the bump tomorrow as the RockCats take on Trenton again at 7:05 ET. FORT MYERS MIRACLE - Day Off CEDAR RAPIDS 2, PEORIA CHIEFS 1 Box Score While the bats never fully woke up, they did just enough to get the win. The win, however, is credited to Tim Shibuya who pitched a great game. Shibuya went 8-plus innings, allowing only a run on five hits. Though he only struck out two batters, Shibuya only had to throw 76 pitches. Madison Boer earned the save by abandoning a runner on the third to end the game. Michael Gonzales had a sacrifice fly to score Jonathan Murphy in the first and added a double later. Jeremias Pineda singled in Joel Licon in the second inning. Niko Goodrum and Tyler Grimes added singles. Goodrum also stole two bases (now has 20) and committed his 25th error on the season. ELIZABETHTON TWINS 2, GREENEVILLE ASTROS 0 Box Score The E-Twins won again and are currently 1.5 games out of second-place and a shot at the Appy League playoffs. The pitching was the story of this game too. Hein Robb went the first six innings. He struck out six, walked two and allowed five hits. Luke Bard walked one and struck two. Carson Goldsmith secured the save by striking out four batters for four outs. The E-Twins bats offered a balanced attack. Seven of the nine starters accounted for a hit. Zach Larson provided the only extra-base hit (double). Bryan Haar had two hits while playing third base. ...and sit down for this one: Kohl Stewart is making his Appy League debut tomorrow night at 7:05 ET. Seth is currently making calls to see if the FSN crew from New Britain can be re-routed to Elizabethton. It would simply replace the Twins game and no one would even notice. GCL TWINS 2, GCL RAYS 2 Box Score And of course, if you're into good Twins "future" news, I've saved the best for last. Alex Meyer rehabbed today for the GCL Twins. He pitched the first 3.2 innings. (Eh.) He only allowed two hits. (Good.) Of the 11 outs he recored, nine came by strikeout. (Nine.) Nine! Not a bad afternoon. www.baseballamerica.com Lewis Thorpe relieved him and struck out six in 3.1 innings. And not to be outdone, Jared Wilson and Jose Abreu struck out three in the final two innings. That's 18 strikeouts. Today. The Twins have struck out 18 batters the whole month of August. (That's exaggerated... I think.) Hitting-wise, more of the same. Not a lot of action. Amaurys Minier didn't play again today. He's been nursing injuries on-and-off all season. Don't choke on your peanuts when I tell you that Nelson freaking Molina led the squad with two hits today. He was 2-for-2 and is batting .290 over his last 10 games. Not bad after starting the year 1-for-52. (He did get caught stealing twice - once after a pickoff. At least that's what the box score called it. I call it "he was so excited to be on base he forgot what to do next".) Chad Christensen homered. Christensen is a Big 10 guy (Nebraska) and local-ish (Cedar Rapids). He's also versatile (can play any corner). I would think there is a chance he could be promoted aggressively in 2014 and get a chance to play the season in his hometown. Continue the conversation below.