Tom Froemming

Zach Littell threw six shutout innings in his Triple A debut, LaMonte Wade hit a three-run homer in an 11-run night for Chattanooga and Trey Cabbage was 3-for-4 with a homer in a big offensive night for Cedar Rapids. Also, Blayne Enlow returned from the DL and both Nick Gordon and Royce Lewis had multi-hit games (among many others).TRANSACTIONS With Jason Castro placed on the DL, catcher Bobby Wilson was called up from Rochester. The Red Wings activated Brock Stassi from the temporary inactive list. The Kernels activated Blayne Enlow from the DL and assigned Rickey Ramirez to he E-Town roster. Enlow was recovering from a lower back strain. RED WINGS REPORT Rochester 8, Lehigh Valley 0 Box Score W: Zack Littell (6.0 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 4 BB, 6 K) HR: Taylor Featherston (2) Multi-hit games: Jake Cave, James Ramsey, Jermaine Curtis, Featherston. Zack Littell impressed in his Triple A debut, shutting out the IronPigs for six innings. He walked four batters, which is very uncharacteristic for the 22-year-old, but he also racked up six strikeouts. Altogether, Littell now has 38 strikeouts and 11 walks over 29 innings this year. The Wings’ bats provided Littell with a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the second inning, thanks to RBI singles from Sean Miller and Jermaine Curtis. Then they really took the pressure off with a five-run fourth inning that was highlighted by a two-run single from Leonardo Reginatto and a Jake Cave double that also plated a pair of runs. The Rochester lineup has gotten off to a sluggish start, posting a league-worst .620 OPS as a team, so the offensive outburst is an encouraging sign. Cave and James Ramsay both had three hits while Curtis and Taylor Featherston each collected two hits, with Featherston socking his second homer of the season. Alan Busenitz threw two scoreless innings and struck out four batters and John Curtiss also delivered a scoreless frame. CHATTANOOGA CHATTER Chattanooga 11, Mobile 5 Box Score W: Randy LeBlanc (5.0 IP, 4 H, 3 ER, 2 BB, 5 K) HR: LaMonte Wade (4) Multi-hit games: Edgar Corcino, Nick Gordon, Chris Paul, T.J. White, Alex Perez, Tanner English. Oh what a night for the Lookouts’ lineup. They combined to score 11 runs on 14 hits and drew nine walks. The biggest blow came from LaMonte Wade, who blasted a three-run homer with two outs in the fifth inning. Chris Paul hit a pair of doubles, Edgar Corcino drove in three runs and Tanner English scored three times. Nick Gordon was 2-for-3 with a pair of walks and is now hitting .337 for Chattanooga. Randy LeBlanc held the BayBears scoreless over the first four innings, but then ran into a bit of trouble in the fifth. He gave up three runs over five innings and had five strikeouts. He earned his fourth victory of the year. Williams Ramirez gave up two runs in his two innings of relief. Todd Van Steensel was perfect over the final two innings and had three strikeouts. MIRACLE MATTERS Jupiter 2, Fort Myers 1 Box Score SP: Brady Anderson (6.0 IP, 5 H, 2 ER, 0 BB, 5 K) HR: None Multi-hit games: Taylor Grzelakowski Brady Anderson turned in a quality start but the Miracle offense struggled. The only run Fort Myers scored was on a wild pitch. Anderson was going right after hitters, needing just 71 pitches to complete six innings. He has a 5.59 ERA on the year, but has walked just two batters in 25 1/3 innings pitched. Ryan Mason, who was the runner up for Twins Daily’s Minor League Relief Pitcher of the Month award for April, turned in two shutout innings, striking out three batters in the process. Andrew Vasquez pitched a scoreless ninth to finish up a strong performance from the pitching staff. The Miracle had some scoring chances, but they were 0-for-7 with runners in scoring position and left nine men on base. Catcher Taylor Grzelakowski had a great night, going 2-for-2 with a double and a pair of walks. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 7, West Michigan 6 Box Score W: Randy Dobnak (5.0 IP, 5 H, 2 ER, 1 BB, 5 K) SP: Blayne Enlow (2.0 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 3 K) HR: Trey Cabbage (2), Ben Rortvedt (1) Multi-hit games: Trey Cabbage, Royce Lewis, Ben Rortvedt. Blayne Enlow was on a short leash, this being his first start off the DL, but he showed some good signs. He struck out three batters and threw 73.2 percent of his pitches for strikes (30 of 41). On the down side, he also gave up a run on four hits and a walk over his two innings. It was a big night for the Cedar Rapids offense, led by Trey Cabbage, who was 3-for-4 with a homer and three RBI. Ben Rortvedt also hit a homer, drove in two runs and scored three times. Royce Lewis was 2-for-5 and stole his ninth base. Akil Baddoo was 1-for-3 with two walks and a couple of stolen bases. Randy Dobnak did a great job shouldering the load after Enlow’s exit, holding the Whitecaps to two runs over five innings while striking out five batters. STARS OF THE DAY Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day: Zack Littell (6.0 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 4 BB, 6 K) Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day: Trey Cabbage (3-for-4, HR, 3 RBI, R) TOP PROSPECT SUMMARY Here’s a look at how the Twins Daily Top 20 Prospects performed: #1 Royce Lewis: 2-for-5, SB #3 Nick Gordon: 2-for-3, 2B, 2 BB, #5 Alex Kirilloff: 1-for-3, 2B, BB, R #8 Blayne Enlow: 2.0 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 3 K #10 Akil Baddoo: 1-for-3, 2 BB, R, 2 SB #11 Zack Littell: 6.0 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 4 BB, 6 K #13 Lewin Diaz: 1-for-4 #14 LaMonte Wade: 1-for-5, HR, BB, 3 RBI, 2 R #16 Ben Rortvedt: 2-for-4, HR, 2 RBI, 3 R #17 Travis Blankenhorn: 1-for-4 SUNDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Rochester vs. Lehigh Valley, 12:05 pm CT: Stephen Gonsalves (0.00 ERA, 0.26 WHIP) Chattanooga at Mobile, 2:05 pm CT: TBD Fort Myers vs. Jupiter, 3:00 pm CT: Clark Beeker (2.76 ERA, 1.35 WHIP) Cedar Rapids va. West Michigan, 2:05 pm CT: Bryan Sammons (3.06 ERA, 1.36 WHIP) Please feel free to ask any questions and discuss the games. Click here to view the article

The Twins needed this. Not just a victory, but a blowout so the top bullpen arms could all have a night off. Lance Lynn needed this too. He’d been about as bad as anyone could have imagined in his first five starts as a Twin. And it was all thanks in large part to Eddie Rosario.Snapshot (chart via FanGraphs) Download attachment: Snapshot55.png Download attachment: WinEx55.png The Twins jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the top of the first, but Lynn did his best to make things interesting in the bottom of the inning. The White Sox scored a run on four hits, but with the bases loaded, Daniel Palka grounded into a double play. That was a huge turning point for Lynn in this game, and hopefully ends up representing the turning point in his season. Over the next five innings, Lynn only gave up four hits and one more run. The biggest plus sign was his control. After issuing 23 free passes in his first 23 2/3 innings, Lynn didn’t walk a single batter. He threw 71 of his 97 pitches for strikes. Bullpen Usage Here’s a quick look at the number of pitches thrown by the bullpen over the past five days: Download attachment: Bullpen55.png Next Three Games Sun at CHW, 1:10 pm CT Mon at STL, 7:10 pm CT Tue at STL, 12:15 pm CT Last Three Games MIN 6, CHW 4: Twins Slug Four Homers in Victory CHW 6, MIN 5: Twins Blow 5-1 Lead MIN 4, TOR 0: Fernandomania! Click here to view the article

Eduardo Escobar slugged two homers and a double while Brian Dozier was a double shy of the cycle to lead the Twins to victory in a nice night for the bats. Jose Berrios still didn’t look his best, but managed to pitch six innings, and Fernando Rodney nailed down the save.Snapshot (chart via FanGraphs) Download attachment: Snapshot54.png Download attachment: WinEx54.png It was home run derby early on at Guaranteed Rate Field (yuck), as the Twins slugged four home runs in the first three innings. Logan Morrison joined Escobar and Dozier in the tater parade. Bullpen Usage Here’s a quick look at the number of pitches thrown by the bullpen over the past five days: Download attachment: Bullpen54.png Next Three Games Sat at CHW, 6:10 pm CT Sun at CHW, 1:10 pm CT Mon at STL, 7:10 pm CT Last Three Games CHW 6, MIN 5: Twins Blow 5-1 Lead MIN 4, TOR 0: Fernandomania! TOR 7, MIN 4: WHAT IS HAPPENING!?!?!? Click here to view the article

It didn't work out, but it was because of Grossman. If that's Max Kepler out in right field and he makes the catch, or at the very least prevents Abreu from scoring from first base, things probably would've worked out just fine. Davidson was going to be the last batter Odorizzi was going to face anyway.

Yep. Waaaaaaay behind the plate. Past the seats, past the concourse and right out onto 7th St.

Robbie Grossman since 6/14/2017 326 PAs .217/.309/.335 .644 OPS Just for some perspective ... Jason Castro since 6/14/2017 303 PAs .223/.315/.341 .655 OPS

These are valid points, but I think Molitor saw this as an opportunity to squeeze a little more out of his starter to try and take some pressure off the pen. if Grossman catches that ball, or if the offense had been able to keep things rolling, nobody's talking about Odorizzi today. This kinda ties into my point above. If you're not wasting space on the roster, maybe your manager doesn't have to try and avoid using his bullpen. Much like with Tyler Kinley, it's really difficult to hide a pitcher in a MLB bullpen these days. It seems like that's going to be the plan with Hughes. And for what? You gotta either use him, or let him go. Guy hasn't been out there for six days, and his last time out he only threw 61 pitches. There are a lot of Twins fans that have guys like Lynn, LoMo, Rodney or Sano in their crosshairs, but the guys who are hurting this team and have shown very little reason for optimism are Hughes and Grossman.

Agree on both points. When your team is is trouble it needs to be your stars, your clubhouse leaders, that find a way to bring everybody out of the darkness. Not only is Dozier not hitting, there just doesn't seem to be much life to him. I don't know, maybe he's holding meetings and trying to rally the troops behind close doors, but this team either needs him to get going or for another another guy to step into that role. Grossman is a square peg trying to fit into a round hole right now. He's not an everyday outfielder and this year's team doesn't have a need at DH, so once everybody's healthy he'll become redundant anyway. Might as well find another player to call up who better suits this team's needs right now.

The Twins opened up a 5-1 lead at one point, but Thursday night’s series opener against the White Sox ended with Addison Reed serving up a walk-off homer to Trayce Thompson. Reed, pitching in his third straight game, has now given up five earned runs over his last seven outings.Snapshot (chart via FanGraphs) Download attachment: Snapshot53.png Download attachment: WinEx53.png The more level-headed segments of Twins Territory have been preaching that things will get better once we start playing our lowly divisional opponents. Well, things aren’t off to a great start. Reed gave up the walk-off homer, but it was primarily the defense that allowed Chicago to sneak its way back into this game. Chicago scored its first run of the game in the third inning thanks to a missed catch error on shortstop Gregorio Petit. Adam Engel had drawn a one-out walk and stole second. Petit couldn’t corral the throw, allowing Engel to advance to third. He scored on a ground out the very next play. That didn’t seem like it’d be a big play after the Twins went up 5-1 in the top of the fourth inning thanks to a Logan Morrison homer. Bullpen Usage Here’s a quick look at the number of pitches thrown by the bullpen over the past five days: Download attachment: Bullpen53.png Next Three Games Fri at CHW, 7:10 pm CT Sat at CHW, 6:10 pm CT Sun at CHW, 1:10 pm CT Last Three Games MIN 4, TOR 0: Fernandomania! TOR 7, MIN 4: WHAT IS HAPPENING!?!?!? TOR 7, MIN 5: Twins Can’t Recover After Another Poor Start by Lynn More From Twins Daily Twins Minor League Report (5/3): Royce Lewis Continues to Crush in A-Ball Twins Minor League Starting Pitcher Of The Month - April 2018 The Beginning of the End for Phil Hughes Click here to view the article

Mr. Post Hawk Ergo Proptor Hawk is Ken Harrelson's other nickname.

You're right, control is going to be the big thing to watch. But, Toronto did an excellent job of making Romero throw in the zone yesterday, which makes this start all the more encouraging. The Blue Jays only swung at 25.5 percent of Romero's pitches that were outside of the zone. If they did that every game, they'd have the second-best O-Swing% in baseball.

Great to see Marnon and Mason emerge. Ryan Mason has some intensity to him and has been going right after batters. Per his MiLB profile, he's thrown 74.1 percent of his pitches for strikes. That's just bonkers especially for a guy who had a very modest 2.32 K:BB ratio in college, though I suppose we shouldn't be too surprised to see that from a guy who can do stuff like this.

Rochester was probably just looking for an extra bat while Brock Stassi is on the temporary inactive list. Kerrigan is a guy who can play all three outfield positions, so he's well suited to serve in a reserve role.

This has now been updated to include all the regular game recap features as well as a bunch of video. Make sure to check out Seth's analysis he shared on Twitter/Periscope, which I embedded at the very end of the article.

Fernando Romero provided a much-needed boost to a slumping Twins team, firing 5 2/3 shutout innings in his Major League debut to set the tone. The bullpen followed suit, combining to hold Toronto to two hits over the final 3 1/3 frames, and the offense scratched across four runs to give the Twins a relatively low-stress victory on getaway day.SnapshotDownload attachment: Snapshot52.png Win Expectancy Chart via FanGraphsDownload attachment: chart.png Romero pitched as well as anybody could have expected. The 23-year-old came into his major league debut with just 208 1/3 innings under his belt at the three highest levels of the minor leagues. To put that into some perspective, Jose Berrios threw more innings than that at Triple A alone and more than 450 innings at the top three levels combined. Fellow 23-year-old prospect Stephen Gonsalves has logged over 350 innings combined at those top three levels. Simply put, it would have been reasonable to suspect that Romero wasn’t ready to be exposed to major league hitters. Romero answered the bell, however, and delivered 5 2/3 shutout innings. He racked up five strikeouts, gave up four hits, walked three and had one hit batsman. He threw 59 of his 97 pitches for strikes. He topped out at 98.4 mph and he got 12 swinging strikes, which were fairly evenly distributed among his four offerings. Click here to view the article

2017 runs scored innings 6-9: 1.83 2018 runs scored innings 6-9: 1.90 I believe the overall league average for runs scored innings 6-9 so far in 2018 is 1.95 per game.

2017 Twins 3.25 runs per game through the first five innings. 2018 Twins 2.16 runs per game through the first five innings. It's a lot easier to pitch, and especially conserve pitches, when you have a lead.

Just shortstop. From what I've been able to see I think he's looked good there. Definitely has the arm.

There's still a lot of season to unfold, but I do honestly feel like this is worse so far. That 2000 Twins team may have had a really bad record, but they had a lot of guys who could catch the ball and there were positive developments that laid the groundwork for the successful years that followed. Hopefully things turn around, but this team is really hard to watch right now.

League average innings per start is 5.5. The Twins are at 5.2. League average pitches per start is 90, which is also where the Twins are at. It's not unreasonable for a starter to not pitch into the sixth, especially if he's thrown 96 pitches as Gibson had last night. Toronto starter Marco Estrada only went five innings because he had thrown 99 pitches. Things worked out for them just fine.