Steven Buhr

I imagine the Twins see Hermsen's future, assuming he has one, as a reliever at this point, but the Miracle need to have arms to fill their rotation. I imagine the Twins expected someone in CR such as Slegers or Eades (or both) to be ready for promotion by now and that has not happened.

I guess I think the point DocBauer was making is that there are plenty of top-tier starting pitching prospects ahead of Berrios in the pipeline so it's not like there's a need to rush him in order to get him up to the Big Leagues as soon as humanly possible. But that, if he continues to perform like he is this season, he may force his way in to consideration for a Big League rotation spot sooner than any of us expected to be the case. It's a compliment to Berrios' efforts. And if he DOES continue to dominate higher levels like he is at A+ and makes it difficult for the Twins to keep him out of their rotation, regardless of how good Gibson, May, Meyer and whoever else might current be ahead of him in the pecking order might be, that would be a "problem" the Twins would welcome. Berrios is going to be promoted and I doubt it will be much longer. If I were in Ft Myers, I'd keep an eye out to see when Terry Ryan shows up for a personal look at the Miracle and Berrios in particular. He trusts his scouts, but I think he also likes to see some things for himself (Buxton was promoted at the end of the first series Ryan saw him play in person last year).

Just saw this thread for the first time. Silly me, thinking TD was just for baseball. Just thought I'd add that I heard or read somewhere that Martin was quoted as saying something to the effect of, "Every time I get asked when the next book is coming out, a Stark dies." I guess he gets asked that a lot.

If Rosario is included, I guess BA is lumping in suspension time as "due to injury."?

I guess we can just disagree on some of this. I don't think it's unreasonable for an organization to call up whatever pitcher(s) they believe give them the best chance to win games now in to July if they're still within shouting distance of being competitive. Again, it's perfectly reasonable to feel that May (and Gibson last year) could be considered the best option to win now AND the best prospect and I think anyone who feels strongly that way can make that argument. I just think getting 2+ months of experience facing Major League hitters is probably sufficient for a true top-line prospect to come to spring training the following year ready to be a Big League pitcher. If May doesn't collapse, I suspect he'll be in Minnesota long before August, so I'm really just not going to get bent out of shape yet.

Given the weather situation, they'd be crazy to make a roster move until they absolutely know whether tonight's game is going to be played (or at least started). If it's not, Pino might not even be the starter they decide to promote. If they don't make the game up with a doubleheader this weekend, they wouldn't necessarily even need to promote anybody until the next time Deduno's spot comes up in the rotation.

I haven't asked Jake about JD since I was over in Kane County almost 2 weeks ago, but at that time, Williams was still feeling some soreness. They had been sending guys down to Extended to get some swings in right before re-activating them and I know he was still in CR prior to the All-Star break. That might seem to indicate it could still be a while.

From where I sit, the Twins wanted someone specifically to pitch tonight in Deduno's spot and Pino got the call because (a) he's been pitching very well and ( it coincided with his regular rest, where promoting May would require him to work on either short rest or longer than normal rest - neither is ideal for a MLB debut when you have an acceptable option, which Pino certainly is. He shouldn't be considered because he doesn't throw the ball as hard as someone else? Seems to me that someone looked at all the factors and determined the best guy to pitch this particular game was Pino. Reasonable people can agree or disagree with that determination, but I don't feel level or degree of future prospect-ness should even be considered in that discussion. If May is still tearing up AAA in August instead of getting called up, while someone else is ineffective in the Twins' rotation, I'll rant along with you. I just don't see Pino's call up this week to be anything that is going to cause catastrophic harm to May's future performance with the Twins. It's a little disturbing to me that after years of criticizing the Twins for always playing for "next year" instead of trying to win this year, we're now criticizing them for trying to win now rather than doing what we think would be in their best interests in the future.

If Thorpe doesn't start the 2nd half with CR stronger than he's been in his first 2 starts, I'd look to see he and Gonsalves swapped pretty quickly.

If Rosario and Vargas are playing together in Target Field by August-September and doing reasonably well, with Buxton & Sano on the doorstep, it could set off an off-season frenzy unlike anything we've seen in Twinsville in some time.

Just to clarify, there aren't actually "first half playoffs." Teams can qualify for the postseason by finishing first or second in the first half standings, but the postseason games themselves aren't played until September.

Upgrading the stadium to AAA would require, among other things, seating expanded to 10,000+. I'm not sure the Twins would want their AAA club across the river. In down years at Target Field, a AAA team in St. Paul could potentially canibalize attendance in ways that an indy team doesn't and a Class A team wouldn't. And the Saints couldn't go shopping for a different MLB affiliate the way other minor league teams can because the only way they (or anyone) can put an affiliated team anywhere close to Minneapolis is if the Twins waive their territorial restriction rights. The Twins certainly would not do that for any team they weren't affiliated with.

In September of 2012, the Minnesota Twins announced a four-year affiliation agreement with the Cedar Rapids Kernels, with the Twins’ then-Senior Director of Minor Leagues Jim Rantz telling the media, “We are confident that this relationship will grow into one of the strongest affiliations in minor league baseball.” Less than two years later, the Twins organization appears to be flirting with another minor league ownership group with an eye toward moving their Class A Midwest League affiliation to nearby St. Paul, Minnesota, and potentially leaving the Kernels to shop for another new Major League affiliate when their current Player Development Contract expires following the 2016 season. (This article was originally published at Knuckleballsblog.com.) According to a story Tuesday in the Business Journal, Minnesota Twins President Dave St. Peter and Derek Sharrer, the General Manager the St. Paul Saints, an independent minor league team, expressed mutual interest in a future affiliation agreement between the two teams. Their comments were made at the Business Journal’s Business of Sports Power Breakfast Tuesday morning. http://knuckleballsblog.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/KernelsTwins.jpg But what about 2017 and beyond? (Image: Kernels.com) “Long-term, there are aspects that make a lot of sense,” St. Peter is quoted as telling the group. “Short-term, it’s more challenging. We have a tremendous partnership with Cedar Rapids and the Kernels. It’s been a home run for the Twins. It’s been strategic for the Twins relative to marketing in the state of Iowa. “I think it’s something that will require some additional discussions and I’m guessing that dialogue will take place.” The Twins President did point out that the potential arrangement comes with challenges. “It’s a bus league, and when you’re in St. Paul and there are teams east of Cleveland, that’s a tough bus trip for your players,” St. Peter said. “Things like that need to be addressed long-term.” The Saints are in the process of building a new 7.000 seat stadium in St. Paul that’s being built to meet or exceed standards required by baseball for Class AA and lower affiliated teams. The stadium is scheduled to open in 2015. The Saints are owned by a group that recently agreed to sell the Twins’ Class high-A affiliate in Fort Myers, Florida. “Our organization has a tremendous amount of respect for Derek and his team,” St. Peter said of the Twins’ relationship with the Saints organization. “We’ve worked very closely with the Saints’ ownership … for 20 years.” As the Twins President alluded to, there are a number of obstacles that the Twins and Saints would need to overcome before placing an affiliate in St. Paul. The most likely arrangement would be for the Twins to place their Class A Midwest League affiliate in St. Paul. There are no high-A or AA leagues located in the Midwest and the new Saints stadium is not being built up to AAA standards. However, putting a Midwest League team in St. Paul would not be a simple matter, either. For the Twins and Saints to make the plan work, they would need to either seek to have the Midwest League expand by two teams (to keep the number of league teams at an even number for scheduling purposes) or acquire an existing MWL team and move it to St. Paul. Every Major League team already has a full season Class A affiliate, which would seem to make expansion unlikely. Acquiring a team and moving it would only be somewhat easier. Under the current Professional Baseball Agreement between the Major and Minor League governing bodies, every current affiliated minor league team is guaranteed an affiliation. Baseball can’t just tell an existing affiliated team that they’re being kicked out of affiliated minor league baseball. The Saints ownership would likely need to acquire an existing Midwest League team and relocate it to St. Paul, rather than looking to acquire a team currently competing in another Class A league. While it would not be totally unheard of for a team to move from one minor league to another, the same scheduling issues that affect expansion would also require any movement between leagues to result in each affected league retaining an even number of teams. With the eastward migration of Midwest League teams over the past two decades, virtually every club in the Eastern Division of the league is playing in relatively new ballparks and before generally larger crowds than is the case among their Western Division brethren. This would make it much more likely that a current Western Division club would be targeted. With relatively new or recently renovated ballparks in Appleton WI, Kane County IL, Peoria IL and Iowa clubs in the Quad Cities and Cedar Rapids, it would be unlikely that the teams in those communities would go on the sale block. That leaves Beloit WI, Clinton IA and Burlington IA, three teams with, perhaps, the most difficult stadium situations left among potential MWL targets. However, all three of those teams are, like the Kernels, long-time MWL members. More importantly, also like the Kernels, all three clubs are community owned. Prying ownership away from those communities would likely be no easy task. Finally, even if an existing ownership group were made an offer they can’t refuse, the team would need approval of the other members of the MWL to relocate. That hurdle might not be so easy to overcome, either. St. Paul is well outside the current MWL footprint. Cedar Rapids is the closest current league city and it’s a good 250 miles from the Twin Cities. Every other MWL community, except Appleton (270 miles) is at least 300 miles from St. Paul. South Bend IN, at 495 miles, would be the only MWL Eastern Division location less than 500 miles away. That’s an important consideration for the league, too, because under the terms of the Professional Baseball Agreement rules, players must be given an off day any time they are bused 500 miles or more. Having a team that far outside the league’s current footprint could present a nightmare for MWL schedule-makers. It also would increase travel costs, not only for the team that relocates, but for every other team in the league that would have to send teams to St. Paul on road trips. Those travel costs are primarily the responsibility of the local team, not their Big League affiliate. St. Peter is certainly correct in cautioning Twin Cities fans that putting an affiliate in St. Paul would be difficult to arrange, but if the Twins were to decide to make such a move a priority, it’s not beyond the realm of possibility that they could throw enough weight around to get what they want. It remains to be seen whether the Twins and Saints are truly interested enough in a marriage to overcome the obstacles. The agreement between the Kernels and Twins will have young Twins prospects calling Cedar Rapids their summer home for two more years after the current season. Nevertheless, it’s no doubt disappointing to Twins fans in Eastern Iowa to learn that at least one Twins executive may no longer be interested in seeing the relationship between the Twins and Kernels, “grow into one of the strongest affiliations in minor league baseball.” Kernels General Manager Doug Nelson, reached Tuesday afternoon while in Comstock Park MI for the Midwest League All-Star game, was asked for his reaction to St. Peter’s statements to the Business Journal. “The Kernels view our affiliation with the Twins as a long term partnership,” stated Nelson via email. It is less clear whether the Twins continue to share that view.

Sounds good to me, but can we add the part where he also goes on "Survivor" like Kent did? That could be interesting.

You can view the page at http://twinsdaily.com/content.php/3118-Kernels-Jason-Kanzler-Keeps-Proving-Himself

Go ahead and underestimate Cedar Rapids Kernels outfielder Jason Kanzler. He’s used to it. Having to show people they’re wrong about him is nothing new. ”I think I’ve done that my whole life, pretty much,” Kanzler said. “I was never really at the top on anyone’s priority list. I wasn’t recruited out of high school. I tried to walk on at Northeastern University and I was cut after two weeks. http://knuckleballsblog.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/Kanzler2014a.jpg Jason Kanzler "Then I went to Buffalo as kind of a recruited walk-on and I didn’t play. I guess my red-shirt freshman year, I got 10 at-bats.Then I platooned a little in left and right my sophomore year." That's not exactly the kind of start to a college baseball career that you'd expect for a guy with hopes of playing ball professionally. Things turned around for Kanzler his next two seasons at the University of Buffalo, however. "I started in center field my junior and senior year and won two gold gloves so I kind of shoved it up in everyone’s faces." If you think it sounds like Kanzler has a little chip on his shoulder over people underestimating him, you would be correct. Kanzler spent spring training with the Class A group, but got the word the last week of camp that he would not be heading north to Cedar Rapids with the others. Asked how he felt about being one of the final cuts to the Kernels' roster as spring training drew to a close in March, he quickly corrected the questioner and didn't hesitate to say exactly how he felt about it. ”I was the last guy,” he said. And he said it without a trace of a smile. “I was angry, I was really angry,” he admitted. “The coaches down in extended (spring training) told me to cool it and I’ll get my chance eventually.” You get the sense from Kanzler that "cooling it" isn't something that comes very natural to him on a baseball field. In fact, in the game the evening after giving the interview, Kanzler was ejected for arguing a called third strike late in the game. In any event, he didn't have to cool it for very long this spring before he was given a plane ticket for Cedar Rapids. Four games in to the season, Kernels center fielder Zack Granite was injured and Kanzler got the call. http://knuckleballsblog.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/Kanzler2014c.jpg Jason Kanzler Granite rejoined the Kernels last week, but it wasn't Kanzler's roster spot he took. Instead, Ivory Thomas was given his unconditional release by the Twins to make room for Granite and Kanzler in the same outfield. At the Midwest League's All-Star break, the halfway point of the Kernels' season, Kanzler is hitting .293 with an .813 OPS. He has five doubles, five triples and one night after his ejection he hit his seventh home run of the year. He has also stolen 10 bases. Kanzler was utilized as a top-of-the order hitter when he first arrived in Cedar Rapids, but the power he’s demonstrated has resulted in a move toward the middle of the lineup. How could power go unnoticed? "I’m not a 'guy' really. Just an ‘extended guy’," Kanzler explained. "I was hurt for 14 days during spring training with a hamstring, so I really only got to play like ten spring training games." The pop in his bat may have surprised others, but not Kanzler. “I knew I had it. I think it makes me even more mad that no one else really knew,” he said. Kanzler has let his play convince others he’s more than just a defensive specialist and slap hitter. “I guess I could show it off in BP a little bit,” he said, “but they kind of figured I was just a speed guy with good defense and once you get pigeon-holed, it’s hard to kind of climb your way out.” Kernels hitting coach Tommy Watkins knows Kanzler has a bit of a chip on his shoulder and that the player uses it to his advantage. “I think that’s one thing that motivated him, being the last guy left off the team,” Watkins said. “From talking to him since he’s been here and in spring training, I think he’s been a guy that people have always told him he couldn’t do it, so he set himself out to prove everybody wrong. “If you tell him he can’t do it, he’s going to work 10 times harder to prove you wrong.” Asked about his goals for this season before the year started and whether they have changed at all with his performance in Cedar Rapids, Kanzler was thoughtful with his responses. "I think my goals are just to play my game," he responded initially. "I think if I play my game, everything will kind of work itself out. I guess my main goal is to play excellent defense and kind of be a spark plug. I kind of like to do a little bit of everything. So whether it’s hit a home run or steal a base or make a diving catch, I just like to play the game hard." Watkins thinks Kanzler's on the right track with that goal. "I think for him just to work on his overall game," Watkins said. "He’s a guy that has tremendous tools, all of them. He can hit, hit with power, he can run, he can throw. He’s got all the tools, it’s just fine-tuning all of them and have them show in the game." Of course, Kanzler has longer term goals, too. "My goal is to get to the Big Leagues, but that’s more like a dream than a goal right now. Still a few too many steps away to be a goal yet." A native of upstate New York, Kanzler added another potential goal before he reaches the Big Leagues, "Fill up the Red Wings' stadium." "Maybe my (short term) goal would be to make a post-season all-star team and help the Kernels win the second half and get in the playoffs and win the playoffs. "I like that. I like to win." http://knuckleballsblog.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/Kanzlerslide2014.jpg Jason Kanzler goes in hard to break up a double play Kanzler and his team mates aren't accustomed to looking at the standings and seeing their team near the bottom. They don't like it much. "Yeah, I think especially because we have, I think, a lot more talent than a lot of the teams that are above us. We have so many games where we can’t put everything together. One or two things go right instead of all three." As intense as Kanzler can be on the field, he's capable of relaxing and enjoying his time away from the ballpark. Recently, that included a trip to a local music store with team mate and Cedar Rapids native Chad Christensen. "He (Christensen) bought a guitar and I bought a ukulele," Kanzler related. "So I’ve been practicing my ukulele a little bit. Ryan Walker has a banjo and it’s amazing, It’s an instrument I’d like to learn." How's that ukulele coming and does it sound good with Christensen's guitar? "No we haven’t tried that. The guitar is too loud and they don’t collaborate well I don’t think. "Chad’s been learning mostly country songs and I’ve been learning video game songs, like Mario and Zelda. That’s my kind of thing. Just fun little stuff." You get the feeling that all it would take for Kanzler to become the best ukulele player ever would be for someone to tell him he can't do it.

Yeah and just think of how much fun it will be around here after the Twins release Correia and he gets picked up and is productive for another team down the stretch while the Twins got nothing for him. Just reading all the "Twinss FO is stupid" comments is always so entertaining.

Not sure where you found a bride willing to make that kind of day a part of the honeymoon, but don't screw it up. She's a keeper! Thanks for the article. Good stuff.

Yeah rushing to release Correia just when he's starting to pitch well makes no sense at all. Even if the plan is to bring up Meyer and/or May mid-year, why would you release a veteran starting pitcher just when he's beginning to build some trade value?

Just guessing here, but I imagine they'll be able to find room in New Britain's rotation for both guys before too awful long.

I'm already nervous. Maybe I need to follow my fellow Knuckleballs blogger Eric's lead and start drinking this morning to get ready for tonight.

Yeah, right, cuz there's really no difference at all between striking out HS kids and striking out 22 year old professional ballplayers. At least nothing that a professional pitching coach could possibly help out with.

It really is hard to say on the velocity because, as he said, the gun on the CR scoreboard is not terribly accurate. We tend to add 2 mph to what we see on the board when we estimate what a guy is throwing, but that method is anything but reliable. I don't recall him sitting as consistently in the mid 90s earlier in the year as he is now. Then again, it's been about 35 degrees warmer lately than it was in his April starts. He's throwing the slider now. It's not getting heavy use, but it's a part of his game now. And it's a pretty darn good one.

Souhan really did a nice job with this article. Love the story and video of them fishing. If you're reaching for a silver lining (and who isn't, at this point?), maybe the fact that these two guys are going through this together will be a positive thing for them and for the Twins in the future. At the very least, it has to help them both to not feel like they're going through this summer alone.