Jeremy Nygaard

Seth and Jeremy will be live at 9pm on Tuesday. (There may or may not be a baseball game to watch in the background.) We'd love to take your questions and you can leave them down below. Some topics we'll likely cover are: -The current state of the pitching staff (and possible solutions). -Will this walk rate continue? -How about Monday night's minor league pitchers!? -Minor league roundup (including a look at the Futures Game) -Buyers or Sellers (or both or neither?) -and more... [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK]If you miss the live show, you can always catch up on our webpage or on iTunes. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r9lqFmZkfzY

With the Twins off on Monday, the focus of the sports world in the state of Minnesota is on the Wild, as they work to force a game seven against the Avalanche. Byron Buxton returned to Extended Spring games yesterday and was rusty. Minor League Director Brad Steil said today that Buxton should be joining the Miracle within two weeks. [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] RED WINGS REPORT Rochester 1, Charlotte 0 Box Score Alex Meyer was brilliant again tonight. Up to 100 pitches (65 strikes), Meyer picked up AAA win #1 tonight. He fanned 11 (for the second straight game) and allowed no earned runs. In six innings, he allowed six runners - two hits, three walks and a hit by pitch. With this newfangled change-up, Meyer might just be forcing his way into the Twins starting rotation. Of course, my personal opinion is that the Twins will probably hold off bringing Meyer up until the Super-2 deadline passes (in early- to mid-June). The Matts (Hoffman and Guerrier) closed out the final three innings, with Guerrier picking up a Triple A save. Chris Parmelee doubled to drive in the only run of the game. Doug Bernier doubled, Danny Santana and James Beresford added singles in the Red Wings four-hit game. Santana also stole a base. In his third rehab game, Oswaldo Arcia went 0-for-2 with two strikeouts and a walk. At 13-11, the Red Wings are tied for second in the IL South, a half game behind the PawSox. ROCK CATS REVIEW New Britain 0, Harrisburg 9 Box Score You could pretend that the Rock Cats didn't play today and skip down to the Miracle recap... Otherwise, if you're looking for good news, you could stop reading after hearing the the Rock Cats pitchers struck out 15. (Summers 1, Fuller 4, Salcedo 7, O'Rourke 3.) If you want the full story though, Summers got rocked (six runs - five earned - and five outs), Salcedo had an interesting night (with all the strikeouts, he still gave up three runs in 2.2 innings), and the offense was brutal (Matt Koch and A.J. Pettersen provided all two of the New Britain hits). MIRACLE MATTERS Ft. Myers 7, Bradenton 0 Box Score Jason Wheeler had a night worthy of the "Pitcher of the Day" award. His performance tonight - a complete game shutout - might be the first of its kind in the whole organization this year. Wheeler allowed only two hits and struck out three. Offensively, there are a number of guys who fit in the PMKI category. Niko Goodrum led the way, going 4-for-4 with a double, two stolen bases and three RBI. Dalton Hicks hit his first home run of the year. Levi Michael and Jorge Polanco both had two-hit games. Polanco, who also stole a base, is now hitting .364. Mike Gonzales and Travis Harrison added doubles. The Miracle (14-10) are now in a three-way tie for first in the FSL South Division. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 1, Kane County 0 (6 innings - RAIN) Box Score Ryan Eades had arguably his best professional outing tonight in a rain-shortened, complete game shutout. Eades went all six innings, striking out six, walking one and allowing only three hits. The offense did just enough, getting a Bryan Haar sac fly RBI to follow up a Mitch Garver double to score the game's lone run. The win cuts the Kane County lead over the Kernels to 3.5 games. TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day – (three-way Twitter-vote tie) Alex Meyer, Rochester; Jason Wheeler, Fort Myers; Ryan Eades, Cedar Rapids Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day – Cartier "Niko" Goodrum, Fort Myers MONDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Charlotte @ Rochester (10:35 CST) – Kris Johnson (Listen) New Britain @ Harrisburg (6:00 CST) – Taylor Rogers (Listen) Bradenton @ Ft. Myers (6:05 CST) – Tyler Duffey (Listen) Kane County @ Cedar Rapids (6:35 CST) – Ethan Mildren (Listen)

This is the second in a series of (somewhat) weekly installments leading up to the June 5th through 7th draft. The focus is intended to be very Twins-specific. --- We’re getting to the point of the draft season where the focus really gets focused down to a handful of players. Teams drafting at or near the top will send out their most-trusted decision makers to get an idea of how they stack up compared to the best around the nation. The Twins are no different. If you haven’t been paying attention to the early-season rumors and rankings, you can start right here. There’s a ton of draft stuff out – not only on this site – but everywhere. I’m going to do my best to get you caught up-to-date on the guys most likely to hear their name called by the Twins in early June. Last week I previewed the local prospects that could get drafted. [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK]--- We entered this season with what was perceived to be a sure-fire 1.1 in Carlos Rodon. Jeff Hoffman made waves in the Cape Cod League and early in the college season Tyler Beede showed that his command issues might be things of the past. Then the high school season kicked off and the top right- and left-handed pitchers (Tyler Kolek and Brady Aiken) both took significant steps forward. Not to mention, the lone position player that we’ll talk about, Alex Jackson, has answered some questions about his bat that seemed to pop up earlier this spring. There have also been some other college pitchers who have gained some steam lately. So where does that leave us? Well, it leaves us with six (and you could make the argument for more) names that should figure to be front and center a handful of Thursdays from now. Before we go through the names, let’s look at the teams that draft before the Twins. #1 – Astros – This marks the 3rd straight season that the Astros have the pick of the litter. But this year should be different. The window should begin to open for the Astros to compete. They recently called up top-prospect George Springer and more may be on the way up in the near-future. The Astros went high-ceiling in 2012 and followed that up with best current player in 2013. Which way will they go this time? It’s hard to say, but history suggests that the least likely route to go with 1.1 is a prep pitcher. Could they buck that trend? #2 – Marlins – Who knows what this group is thinking? This group also has the most available money to spend on the draft. I don’t know what they’re going to do, but I’d bet they try to make a splash. (See what I did there?) #3 – White Sox – This is the pick that intrigues me the most because it’s a team the Twins face roughly 67 times each year. The White Sox have typically shied away from prep pitchers and, really, prep players in generally, for the last 20 years. Of course, this is the highest the White Sox will have picked since 1990. #4 – Cubs – Theo and Co. have only been in charge a few years, but the patterns still remain: When picking in the single digits, they Cubs go with bats. There have been a couple notable exceptions over the last 25 years (Mark Prior and Kerry Wood), but those are the only exceptions. It might be hard to argue against it, too. Kris Bryant and Javier Baez figure to be the heart of the Cubs order for years to come and they’ll be driving in Albert Almora in frequently. Those three guys? The Cubbies last three first draft picks. So again, where does that leave the Twins? Well, actually, it leaves the Twins in a pretty enviable position. Maybe. In their most recent draft rankings, all of Perfect Game, Baseball America and ESPN (Keith Law) ranked prep LHP Brady Aiken as the #1 prospect. A former high-school teammate of current Twins farmhand Stephen Gonsalves, Aiken came out of the chute with improved velocity to go with two other quality pitches. Earlier reports indicated that Aiken had been clocked as high as 97 mph, but in his latest start was low-90s with his max speed hitting 94 mph. My personal take on Aiken is that if the draft were today and he made it to the Twins at #5, they would take him. My other take is that he won’t, and the Twins will be OK with it. The UCLA commit, who is being represented by Casey Close (he of the recent $700 million summer), will never set foot on campus. If the Astros pass (I think they will), I think the White Sox are Aiken’s landing spot. Entering the season, prep RHP Tyler Kolek was the big body with the big fastball. He was also the most highly-regarded prep pitcher in the 2014 class. Despite being jumped over by Aiken by all of Perfect Game, Baseball America and ESPN, Kolek has still seen his prospect star rise and is the consensus #2 prospect on all the draft boards. One report had him clocked at 103 at one point in his last start, though that’s been disputed by a reputable source. Regardless, 100 mph fastballs, 90 mph sliders and 80 mph curveballs coming from a big, durable frame is not going to get passed up by many teams. (Keith Law offers a slightly different scouting report in his latest piece, but point remains the same: He’s a stud.) According to a recent draft chat at Perfect Game, one area scout said there is no way that the Twins don’t take Kolek if he is available to them. I’d believe that as there is no way they have a lower grade on Kolek than they did on Kohl Stewart last year, the #4 overall pick. The problem is, I don’t see any way that Kolek falls past the Cubs and he probably doesn’t even make it that far. Kolek doesn’t live far from Houston and I could see him going first overall. North Carolina State LHP Carlos Rodon had been one of the best collegiate pitchers in both his freshman and sophomore years. The problem is that Rodon hasn’t been nearly as consistently good this spring. He doesn’t throw the gas that either Aiken or Kolek do, but he’s got a nasty slider. Also in the nasty column: his pitch count. He’s been abused this year, but I don’t think it’s going to matter at the end. It almost makes too much sense for the Marlins to take him and pair him up with Jose Fernandez (somewhat quickly) and try to make a run before Giancarlos Stanton hits his walk year. Rodon was drafted by the Brewers out of high school and is advised by the one and only Scott Boras. This is where, from the Twins perspective anyway, things get interesting. RHP Jeff Hoffman (East Carolina) had a crazy Cape summer. In his first go-around in the league (2012), he pitched 30 innings and struck out 30. He had two rough outings in the walk category, but still only ended up with 10. To go along with the 21 hits he allowed, his WHIP was still barely over 1.00. Fast-forward to 2013, down went the walks (5) and up went the strikeouts (33) in 24.1 innings. After starting off this spring slower than expected, Hoffman really picked it up in his last start, fanning a career-high 18 batters in eight innings. If he was the guy that fell through to the Cubs, I figured that would be his landing spot. Today, however, news broke that Hoffman started experiencing pain in his throwing arm – with some reports saying it’s his elbow – and that he’ll miss his next two starts. This could be a monkey wrench that really screws with the Twins plans. Someone that could enter the mix is prep C Alex Jackson. Jackson, who is committed to Oregon, is also represented by Scott Boras. His tools, which consist of a strong arm, the ability to stick at catcher, and a bat that offers both average and the potential for power, could get him into the Top 5 picks. There’s also some who believe he could take the Wil Myers path to the bigs. You know, the path that starts at catcher but the bat plays so well you have to move him quickly. The Cubs could be chomping at the bit to add him to the stable of talented hitters. So, what if Hoffman’s injury is more serious and the three pitchers and Jackson are off the board? Enter Evansville LHP Kyle Freeland. Get this: Freeland has thrown 64 innings so far this year and only walked four batters. I’m not going to say those words. But the Twins value guys that don’t issue walks. But wait there’s more! He’s struck out 87 batters, too. You might say, “Evansville?” But I might say, “San Diego State?” or “FGCU?” Freeland could be a stud. Are there questions right now? Sure. Delivery questions due to a lower arm angle that takes more effort that you want to see. But the combination of a low-90s fastball with a swing-and-miss slider/cutter and a changeup in the works, don’t sleep on this guy at #5. There are other players too that should get some consideration. Guys like RHP Tyler Beede , Vanderbilt and RHP Aaron Nola, LSU are guys that should come off the board in the Top 10 picks. Feel free to leave your thoughts, comments and questions below. ~~~ Since the Twins outlasted the Rays 9-7 on Thursday, today (Friday) you can get 50% off a L or XL pizza from PapaJohns.com if you use the 'TWINSWIN' promo code. ~~~

Join Seth and I tonight at 9:00 pm. If you have any questions or comments, please leave below. Miss the live show? No problem! You can listen here or download here. Some topics on the agenda include: The fast start of Kyle Gibson, a new Trevor Plouffe, who's Sam Fuld?, and a glimpse into the future with the draft just a couple months away. [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pkZenKxXMf0

The title of today's article is based on Rihanna's "Diamonds", which I heard on KDWB today and which was written in less than 15 minutes. Not a coincidence, it took longer than 15 minutes to write the following report. The Twins had an off day yesterday and return to action this evening against the Tampa Bay Rays. Kyle Gibson will look to continue his early season success. [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK]All apologies for having this go up later than normal. But now that we're back up and running, the report goes up as usual. RED WINGS REPORT ROCHESTER 5, SYRACUSE 2 Box Score A couple who were recently dismissed from the 40-man roster helped the Red Wings get back over .500. Scott Diamond turned in his best outing of the season (by far!) en route to picking up his first victory this year. His six solid innings, where he allowed seven hits and two walks, were enough for Rochester’s bats to pick up the win. Diamond allowed two runs and struck out three. He threw 90 pitches (61 strikes). A.J. Achter picked up a three-inning save. He struck out four batters while allowing one hit. He also hit a batter. Chris Parmelee has continued his hot play. Parmelee was 3-for-4 tonight and hit his third home run of the season. He drove in two and also reached base after he was hit by pitch. Over his last four games, he is 10-for-17 with three extra base hits (two home runs), a walk and five runs batted in. Danny Santana and Eric Farris both added two hits and a stolen base. Doug Bernier and Wilkin Ramirez doubled. ROCK CATS REVIEW NEW BRITAIN 4, NEW HAMPSHIRE 7 (14 innings) Box Score The Rock Cats have been pretty terrible this year, but were having so much fun today they decided to play 14 innings (or 4 hours, 37 minutes). Pat Dean got the team off to a good start, scattering three runs (two earned) over 5.1 innings. He allowed six hits and three walks. He struck out three and gave up two home runs. The bullpen did an excellent job. Cole Johnson (two Ks) went 1.2 innings. Matt Guerrier was charged with a blown save, but the run was unearned. Lester Oliveros pitched two scoreless frames. Dan Turpen (5 outs) and Ryan O’Rourke (1 out) contributed hitless outings. Adrian Salcedo was asked to pitch a longer outing and struggled. He got six batters out, but walked one, allowed three hits, threw two wild pitches and committed a throwing error. This led to three runs (two earned) and his second loss of the season. The defense behind the pitchers was shaky at best. Aderling Mejia and Kennys Vargas both had “missed catch” errors. But the pitchers didn’t help themselves either, with both Salcedo and Turpen committing errors of their own. The bats went cold after the 4th inning. The Rockcats scored four in the first four innings, but managed zero runs over the final 10 frames. Nate Hanson had two hits, including a home run. Brandon Waring doubled in his multi-hit game. Tony Thomas, Danny Ortiz and Vargas also had two-hit games. Of issue was the team going 3-for-16 with RISP and leaving 13 runners on base. MIRACLE MATTERS FORT MYERS 2, JUPITER 3 Box Score Alex Wimmers had another solid start, though this one wasn’t as good as the last one. He pitched five innings, allowing five hits and walking three. He allowed two runs and struck out four in a no-decision. Steven Gruver took the loss, giving up a run in two innings. Madison Boer walked one in a scoreless inning. Offensively, the Miracle struggled, going 2-for-11 with RISP and left 10 men on base. Levi Michael hit his fifth double. Niko Goodrum hit his third triple. Mike Gonzales and Max Kepler both had two hits. Jorge Polanco went 0-for-3, but is still batting .333. He hasn’t been without struggles though. Tonight he committed his 10th error, and was picked off/caught stealing. It’s a tribute to him that he’s been able to keep his troubles out of the batter’s box though, and you have to wonder how long he’ll get a shot to continue at shortstop (especially when neither Michael or Goodrum would be any worse). Doug Mientkiewicz was ejected in the 8th inning. KERNELS NUGGETS CEDAR RAPIDS 3, PEORIA 5 Box Score The Kernels blew an early lead and then regained it… only to lose it again in the 8th inning. They were unable to battle back in the 9th inning and fell to 9-8 on the season. Aaron Slegers went 5.2 innings allowing three runs on five hits and three walks. He struck out five before turning the ball over to Brandon Bixler. Bixler walked two and struck out two, allowing one hit in 1.1 innings. Christian Powell took the loss, surrendering two runs on two hits and a walk. He struck out three in his first decision of the year. Jason Kanzler was the lone player to get multiple hits. Kanzler also doubled. Bryan Haar doubled. Chad Christensen tripled and Zack Larson homered. TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day – Scott Diamond, Rochester Red Wings Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day – Chris Parmelee, Rochester Red Wings TUESDAY’S PROBABLES: Rochester at Pawtucket (5:15 CST): Logan Darnell Fort Myers vs Jupiter (5:35 CST): Jason Wheeler New Britain at New Hampshire (5:35 CST): Virgil Vasquez Cedar Rapids at Peoria (6:30 CST): Ryan Eades

After yesterday's off-day, the Twins are back tonight and so is the newest edition of Twins Hangouts. Seth and I will cover the last week of action in Twins Territory - the .500 big league club and the early success of the four affiliates. So grab your favorite beverage, pop some popcorn, turn down the lights and the volume on the television and join us as we hangout and talk Twins. [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7P5hrSwbtTQ If you have questions for us to answer, please leave them below.

The Twins enjoyed an off-day today. Tomorrow is Jackie Robinson Day around baseball and the Twins kick off a three-game series with the Blue Jays. On the farm, it was a big day for multiple former first-round picks. Make sure you're checking out the other stories featured on the front page and if you're so inclined, join Seth and me tomorrow night on the latest edition of Twins Hangouts. [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] RED WINGS REPORT Rochester 5, Pawtucket 9 Box Score The Wings dropped a rain-shortened game to the PawSox tonight (at least it appeared like it was going to be rain-shortened when they pulled the tarp in the top of the 9th). Trevor May couldn't build off the gem he had last game and was only able to retire one batter in the 5th inning of tonight's game. He gave up four runs on five hits and two walks. He struck out four and threw 84 pitches (54 strikes). Brooks Raley, who currently holds the belt as the 40th man on the 40-man, gave up five hits, a walk and three runs in one inning. Edgar Ibarra and A.J. Achter didn't do much better, both allowing runs in their innings-plus of work. Danny Santana was the offensive highlight, with his two triples and three total hits. Eduardo Nunez added a double and Eric Fryer had a two-hit game. ROCK CATS REVIEW New Britain 2, New Hampshire 3 Box Score The highlight of this game was likely the debut of former (and potentially future Twin) Matt Guerrier. Matt Guerrier was recently activated from Rochester’s DL and sent to New Britain. He pitched one innings, throwing 20 pitches, 16 for strikes. He struck out two. Pat Dean made the start and allowed one run in four innings. He struck out one and was removed after only 60 pitches. The weather was not great, with a 35-minute delay likely playing into the short start. Dan Turpen took the loss in his season debut. He allowed two runs in two innings. Jim Fuller pitched a hitless final frame. The offense turned in a pretty dismal performance. Reynaldo Rodriguez provided two of the team’s four hits, including a home run. Brandon Waring added a double and Kennys Vargas drove in the team’s other run. To make room for Matty G., the Rock Cats removed B.J. Hermsen from the roster and sent him to Extended Spring Training. MIRACLE MATTERS Ft. Myers 7, Charlotte 3 Box Score The Miracle improved to 7-4 with a convincing win over Charlotte Stone Crabs. The story of tonight’s game was the start of Alex Wimmers. I was clearly excited about Wimmers getting back into the rotation, as the following message I sent to Seth last night shows: As always, Seth the Optimist shared my enthusiasm. It got off to a bit of rocky start when Wimmers allowed a double to the first batter he faced and then balked that runner over the third. Of course, the former Big Ten Pitcher of the Year has faced his share of adversity over the last handful of years, so he barely blinked… and then retired the next 18 (!) batters he faced. His final line of six innings looked fantastic: 6 IP, H, 6 K. He was sitting in the high-80s, but throwing his changeup and curveball effectively. If you remember, as an amateur he could dial it up to the mid-90s and had a silly changeup. He’s starting to piece it all back together, so don’t fall asleep on Wimmers as a prospect yet. Matt Tomshaw picked up the three-inning save despite giving up three runs on three hits. He struck out four. The offense came to play tonight too. Despite slow starts by both Max Kepler (0-for-5, now batting .094) and Adam Walker (0-for-5 and batting a powerful .205), the Miracle offense has still shown life. Tonight’s 18-hit, 7-extra-base-hit performance was solid proof of that. Travis Harrison, batting 8th, went 5-for-5 with two runs, a double and an RBI. He’s now batting .286. He was 5-for-30 (.167) with a double and an RBI for the season before the game. Levi Michael is showing some prospect-life too. Tonight, he provided a 4-for-5 night with two runs, a double and a walk. Jorge Polanco drove in two runs and is now batting .400 after a two-hit game including a double. Dalton Hicks came up a home-run short of the cycle. He also walked twice and drove in three. (But somehow failed to score a run.) Niko Goodrum also had two hits and is still batting a robust .325. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 5, South Bend 4 Box Score The Kernels improved to 8-3, winning their sixth straight, with a walk-off win tonight on a chilly night in Cedar Rapids. Aaron Slegers made the start and allowed four runs in five innings. He walked one and struck out three. The bullpen combo of Brandon Bixler (2 IP, BB, 3 K) and Hudson Boyd (2 IP, BB, 2 K, Win) closed out the game with four hitless innings. Bryan Haar led the offense (again) with three hits, including a triple. Mitch Garver also added three hits, his last an infield hit to the pitcher that scored the winning run. Tanner Vavra had two hits (one double). The Kernels entered the ninth inning down two runs. The winning sequence started with a Joel Licon walk. Logan Wade advanced Licon to second on a pinch-hit single. Jeremias Pineda failed to advance the runners on a bunt attempt before flying out. Jason Kanzler drove in Licon with a single. Tanner Vavra followed that with another single to load the bases. That brought Zack Larson, who has been the Kernels most dangerous hitter. Larson coaxed a walk to tie the game. Finally, Garver drove in Kanzler to win the game. TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day – Alex Wimmers, Fort Myers Miracle Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day – Travis Harrison, Fort Myers Miracle MONDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Pawtucket @ Rochester (6:05 CST) – Scott Diamond (Listen) New Britain @ New Hampshire (4:35 CST) – D.J. Baxendale (Listen) Ft. Myers @ Charlotte (5:30 CST) – Jason Wheeler (Listen) South Bend @ Cedar Rapids (6:35 CST) – Ryan Eades (Listen)

This is the first in a series of weekly installments leading up to the June 5th through 7th draft. The focus is intended to be very Twins-specific. --- As we are all well aware, the Twins have been very active in drafting players out of their own backyard. While this includes Joe Mauer and Glen Perkins, it's also happened 10 times in the last five drafts. [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] That is only the players drafted directly from the state and doesn't count players such as Madison Boer and Brandon Peterson, two players who played in the state as preps before moving out of state to play collegiately. All told, the Twins still seem smitten by the talent that's developed in-state and while they don't necessarily take these players early in the draft, they still seem to take them. The point of the following list is to make you aware of some players who are competing locally who are considered draft prospects for the 2014 draft. The Twins may select one, three, five or none of them. But it's fun to know about them nonetheless. There are no Ryan Boldts or Logan Shores in this draft. Or even Mitch Browns. But there still a handful of preps to keep your eyes on as the early June draft approaches. Sam Hentges (LHP, Mounds View HS) is a big-bodied (6-6, 240) lefty who is committed to going to Arkansas next fall. Though Hentges doesn't possess the blazing fastball you might expect from such a big guy (mid-80s who occasionally hit 88 last fall), he does have good mechanics and good control. He's also developing a decent curveball. Hentges also handles the bat well (as a first baseman), so it wouldn't be at all surprising to see him take his two-way ability to Fayetteville for three seasons. The #1-ranked prep in the state according to Perfect Game, Hentges could slip into the back half of the Top 10 rounds if he shows a willingness to sign, though the likelihood is he won't sign and that will push where he gets drafted into the 20-30 round range (much like it did to Shore last year). Nick Rooney (OF, Minnetonka HS) checks in as Perfect Game's #2 prospect in the state. Rooney was Minnetonka's starting quarterback on the football team and is known for his confident - we'll call it - flair. Rooney, who isn't committed anywhere in either football or baseball, shows up to school each day decked out in a suit and tie. Not overly big (6-1, 185) or fast, Rooney gets the most out of what he has and will be someone to keep an eye on this spring. It wouldn't be surprising to see him take his two-sport ability to St. Cloud State, where both his parents attended and his dad played football. Connor Herd (LHP, Holy Family (Victoria) Catholic HS) is a long, projectable (6-4, 180) lefty who is committed to Mercer. Some other preps to keep an eye on in the state of Minnesota are: C Toby Hanson (Delano HS committed to Minnesota), LHP Dalton Lehnen (Lakeville HS committed to Cincinnati) and RHP Michael Baumann (Mahtomedi HS committed to Jacksonville). The player who may be the best "local prep" out of this class, though, falls just on the other side of the Mississippi from Winona. Jeren Kendall (OF, Holmen (WI) HS) is the son of former Phillies farmhand Jeremey Kendall. The Minnesota tie - if proximity isn't good enough - is that his dad was drafted out of Winona State. Though his mom attended school there too, it's not going to be enough to keep him (near) home. If he forgoes signing - which he's recently said he isn't even thinking about - he'll spend the next three seasons at Vanderbilt, a school which traditionally gets most of its commits to sign. Kendall is already showing sub-4.0 second speed from home to first and that speed plays up on the basepaths and in center field. That just leaves his bat to question and even that has shown a lot of improvement. Kendall currently isn't showing up in National Top 50s, but once his season gets going, we could see a guy who starts to get Top 2 Round consideration. Do the Twins need another center fielder? Well, if they make their first two picks count with impact arms, Kendall could be a steal in Round 3 regardless of what's already on the Twins' shelves. There is also one more very intriguing name. And it's intriguing because his grandfather was one of, if not the greatest Minnesota Twin ever: Harmon Killebrew. Grant Hockin (RHP, Pomona, CA) is a 6-3, 195 righty with good baseball in his genes. He's not overpowering, but he throws four solid pitches that he commands well. Doesn't this just sound like something the Twins need to do? Already 18, Hockin is committed to UCLA. Let's just make him a Twin right now. There are also some college guys with Minnesota pasts to know about as the draft comes around: Pat Kelly (2B, Nebraska by way of Red Wing HS) was probably the lead recruiter when it came to getting Ryan Boldt to Lincoln. But Kelly's not a bad ballplayer himself. He just returned to his home state and helped the Cornhuskers sweep the Gophers. While he didn't do a ton offensively over the course of the series, he's still batting over .300 as the cleanup hitter. Kelly might be best off returning for his senior year of college, but could easily be someone that piques the Twins interest on the 3rd day of the draft. Ben Meyer (RHP, Minnesota by way of Totino-Grace HS) is a tall, skinny (6-5, 180) pitcher who is probably the only draft-eligible Gopher to make a positive impression on area scouts. LHP Dalton Sawyer (Waconia HS) is only a sophomore, but he will be sure to draw attention next season. --- If you have any questions or comment, please feel free to leave them below. I'll also take suggestions on where you'd like to see this series go next. ~~~ Thanks to the Twins win over the Royals on Sunday, it means that on Monday you can get 50% off a Large or Extra Large pizza when you use the “TWINSWIN” promotion code at PapaJohns.com.

It was another fantastic day in Twins Territory. I’m obviously talking about today’s weather in comparison to the weather we had over the past six months. Oh, you came to read about baseball? Well, in that case, just be happy that you have a job that required you to work this afternoon. If you happened to watch the game, I’m sorry. The A’s completed their three-game sweep in convincing fashion. And Mike Pelfrey needed 104 pitches to get through five innings. No, you’re not coming down with the flu. We all taste vomit in the backs of our mouths right now.[PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] On the other hand, the season is still early and – as I said on Tuesday night’s Twins Hangout – it literally can’t get worse. I mean, technically, it could get a little worse. But that’s just not likely to happen. So we’ll all watch tomorrow night. And we’ll all pretend that we didn’t feel a little bit excited when the Twins were tied for an AL Wild Card spot only four days ago. But let’s think about happier times. Like the future! And let’s talk about those Future Twins. "How do you feel about winters in Minnesota, Ryan?" "You're joking right?" RED WINGS REPORT Rochester 4, Lehigh Valley 2 Box Score After losing their first two games at Buffalo, the Red Wings have now extended their winning streak to four games. Ah, the much-anticipated debut of Eduardo Nunez. Nunez started at third base and batted sixth. While he did go 2-for-3, he did commit a fielding error and was removed in what appeared to be a defensive replacement-type move later in the game. If you’re scoring at home, most future starting shortstops aren’t replaced for defensive purposes late in AAA games. (Which is why Nunez doesn’t fit into that category in the first place.) Offensively, the Red Wings were paced by Deibinson Romero (3-for-4, BB, 2B, RBI) and Wilkin Ramirez (2-for-2, R, 2 BB, 2 2B). Eric Fryer also had two hits, including a double, while driving in two runs. Logan Darnell pitched a gem, but exited too early to get credit for the win. In four innings (and 70 pitches), Darnell allowed only one hit and one unearned run. He walked three and struck out five. Because it was his season debut after a long layoff, he was on a strict pitch limit. Edgar Ibarra struck out three in two scoreless innings to earn the win. Brooks Raley gave up a run on two hits and two walks in 1.2 innings. He also struck out three. Michael Tonkin closed it down with a four-out save. ROCK CATS REVIEW New Britain 4, Portland 6 Box Score New Britain drops to 3-4 after their comeback fell short. Daniel Ortiz grounded out to end the game with runners on the corners. Kennys Vargas had his second consecutive multi-hit game and second consecutive game with an extra base hit. Tonight, it was a double. He added an RBI, but also struck out twice. Nate Hanson and Aderling Mejia (who committed his fourth error) both added two-hit games as well. Corey Wimberly stole two bases. D.J. Baxendale battled through six innings and 93 pitches. His final line included five earned runs on eight hits and a walk. He struck out four. Virgil Vasquez, who earlier in the day was activated off Rochester’s DL, pitched an inning in relief and gave up a run. Adrian Salcedo pitched the final scoreless frame, striking out one. MIRACLE MATTERS Fort Myers 6, Charlotte 1 Box Score The Miracle improved to 6-1 on the season and all Dougie Baseball does is win, win, win, no matter what. There was something that jumped out of the box score. It’s probably unique to tonight’s writer, but it’s a crazy stat that has to be talked about. I’m talking about Adam Walker getting caught stealing. Yes, you’re not reading about the home run that Walker hit tonight. You’re reading about him stealing. Or more accurately not stealing. Here’s what’s crazy about it. As a collegiate, Adam “Forrest” Walker was successful 40 times in 41 tries. So far as a pro, he was 14-for-14. So tonight’s “CS” was only the second time he’s been caught in 56 attempts since leaving the state of Wisconsin after high school. Maybe he just thought he'd run until he stopped feeling like running. And tonight, he didn't feel like running. But enough of that, Walker did hit another home run (his 3rd). Levi Michael, Dalton Hicks and Stuart Turner all doubled. Jorge Polanco had two singles. Max Kepler… well, he went 0-for-3. Niko Goodrum continues his hot start (1-for-3, RBI), but also committed a fielding error at 3rd, his second of the year. Tyler Duffey improved to 2-0. He went six innings, allowing an unearned run on four hits and two walks. He struck out four and lowered his ERA to 2.25. David Hurlbut pitched two scoreless frames. Madison Boer pitched around a walk to pick up his first save of the season. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 11, Great Lakes 2 Box Score The Kernels jumped out to a quick start (3 runs in the first two innings) and continued to score runs (including 4 in the fourth and 3 in the ninth inning) to cruise to an 11-2 victory and put together their first multi-game winning streak of the season. The lineup – which included three players playing a position for the first time this year – collected 11 hits, including five extra-base hits and was led by Jason Kanzler, who was making his first appearance of the season. Batting leadoff, Kanzler, who joined the Kernels from EST after starting CF Zack Granite was placed on the 7-day DL with a left rotator cuff strain, went 3-for-5 with a double and a walk, scoring two runs and driving in three. He also stole his first base of the season. In a balanced lineup, where only Bo Altobelli failed to get a hit, Logan Wade (single, triple, two RBI) was the only player besides Kanzler to produce a multi-hit game. Mitch Garver, Chad Christensen and Tanner Vavra added doubles. Engelb Vielma stole his first base of the young season. While the offense certainly came to play today, so did starting pitcher Ryan Eades. A 2nd rounder from LSU, Eades made his second appearance of the year. (He took a loss in his first start.) Today, he was very impressive. Throwing seven(!) innings, Eades only allowed six hits. He struck out five, walking none. And the lone run he allowed, well, that was unearned. An ERA that entered the day at 5.79, exited at 2.31. (Call him up! Right?) “Life Ain’t Easy for a Boy Named” Josue Montanez pitched a perfect eighth inning before giving way to Brandon Peterson. Peterson allowed his first three batters to reach base (giving up a run), but finished off the game by striking out the last two batters. While MiLB.com lists Ethan Mildren as tomorrow’s starter (so that’s what you see below), the Kernels post-game release had tomorrow’s starter listed as “Do I Make You" Randy Rosario (0-1, 7.36) the probable pitcher. Either way, somebody will pitch. And that somebody might be able to do back flips from a standing position. TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day: Ryan Eades, Cedar Rapids Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day: Deibinson Romero, Rochester FRIDAY'S PROBABLE STARTERS New Britain @ Portland (5:00 CST) – Taylor Rogers (0-1, 15.75) Fort Myers @ St. Lucie (5:30 CST) – Brett Lee (1-0, 3.18) Cedar Rapids @ Lansing (6:05 CST) – Ethan Mildren (1st appearance) Rochester @ Lehigh Valley (6:05 CST) – Alex “There’s Hope for the Future” Meyer (0-0, 3.60)

Join Seth and Jeremy tonight at 9pm. We'll talk all about the activity over the last seven days. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U7oH_iXkAW0 [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK]Here's the event page if you would rather watch it there. If you have questions or comments, please leave them below.

Well, Opening Day didn't produce a win, but at least we know that for the next six months, we will have Minnesota Twins games to watch five to seven days a week. You also now that each Tuesday night, you can join Seth and I at 9:00 p.m. CST to talk about the Twins, their minor league affiliates and more. This week, we will recap the Twins Season Opener and preview the minor league affiliates. . Interact with us by asking questions here, on Twitter or during the live show. It will also be available on iTunes tomorrow. [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kv0ee-J-v10 As always, leave us your questions and/or comments.

Join Seth and I tonight as we talk about the latest developments in Twins Territory. Tonight's episode is brought to you by the Talk2Contact podcast. Yeah, those guys! We're less than a week from Opening Day, so we will have plenty to talk about. We also welcome any and all questions that you may have. Feel free to answer them here, or on Twitter, or live during the show. NOTE THE TIME CHANGE: We'll be pushing back the start time to 9pm, which will be our "regular-season-so-the-minor-league-games-are-finished-start-time." Cool? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GLbYsQnK3B8 [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] You can view tonight's episode .If you have any questions or comments, please leave them below.