Tom Froemming

Just updated to include some highlights of what Rooker's been doing the past few days.

That fire? Oh, don’t worry, that’s just Brent Rooker. In today’s doubleheader for Rochester, Rooker reached safely in six of his seven plate appearances. Hit hit a home run for the fourth straight day and added a pair of doubles for good measure. Come see what else happened across the system Friday.TRANSACTIONS -Free agent RHP Drew Hutchison signed, assigned to Rochester. -Fernando Romero placed on the IL (back strain) -RHP Andro Cutura promoted from Pensacola to Rochester. -LHP Kody Funderburk (oblique strain) and SS Ricky De La Torre (hamstring strain) placed on IL for Cedar Rapids. -Added to the Miracle roster is RHP and 2019 draftee Tyler Beck. -Added to the Kernels’ roster are SS Daniel Ozoria and LHP Petru Balan. RED WINGS REPORT Game 1: Toledo 1, Rochester 0 (7 innings) Box Score Drew Hutchison: 5.0 IP, 3 H, 0 ER, 2 BB, 6 K, 65.9% strikes (56 of 85 pitches) HR: None Multi-hit games: None Welcome to the organization, Drew Hutchison. On the same day his signing is announced, Hutchison throws five shutout innings for the Wings. He’d pitched to a 5.14 ERA in 63.0 innings with the Yankees’ Triple-A affiliate, making his final appearance with them Jun 11. Jake Reed gave up a leadoff triple in the sixth. Jaylin Davis lost a high fly ball in the sun, recovered to make an effort at a diving catch, but couldn’t come up with it. That was followed by an RBI single. Reed managed to induce a double play, then struck out the final batter he faced. Other than that, not much doing in the first half of this twinbill. Brent Rooker reached base in all three of his plate appearances. He hit a double, drew a walk and was hit by a pitch. Game 2: Rochester 9, Toledo 8 (7 innings) Box Score Andro Cutura: 4.0 IP, 7 H, 4 ER, 2 BB, 0 K, 59.4% strikes (51 of 69 pitches) HR: Brent Rooker (11) Multi-hit games: Brent Rooker (2-for-3, 2B, HR, BB), LaMonte Wade (2-for-2, 2 BB), Wilin Rosario (2-for-4), Jaylin Davis (2-for-3) Ah, I see now. The Red Wings were just saving all their runs for Game 2. And they needed them all. Andro Cutura had a rough start to his Triple-A debut, giving up four runs in the first inning. But Rochester answered with two runs in the bottom of the first, then added three more to take the lead in the third. Toledo regained the lead in the fifth inning, but the Wings counterpunched again. A big four-run fifth inning was highlighted by a Brent Rooker two-run homer. He’s been on fire, and is now hitting .301/.412/.590 on the season. Here are some highlights of what he's done over the past few days, including today's homer. BLUE WAHOO BITES Pensacola 8, Jacksonville 1 Box Score Randy Dobnak: 7.0 IP, 7 H, 1 ER, 0 BB, 7 K, 70.3% strikes (64 of 91 pitches) HR: None Multi-hit games: Aaron Whitefield (3-for-5, 2B), Travis Blankenhorn (2-for-4, 2B, 2 BB), Lewin Diaz (2-for-5) Pensacola had a 5-1 lead by the middle of the second inning. Randy Dobnak and Tom Hackimer knew what to do from there, as they combined to shut out Jacksonville from there forward. The Blue Wahoos did not issue a walk in this game. Pensacola was 6-for-17 with runners in scoring position. Travis Blankenhorn, Lewin Diaz and Aaron Whitefield drove in a pair of runs each. Blankenhorn also scored three times. MIRACLE MATTERS Fort Myers 11, Jupiter 7 Box Score Tyler Watson: 4.1 IP, 10 H, 7 ER, 1 BB, 4 K, 68.4% strikes (54 of 79 pitches) HR: None Multi-hit games: Gabriel Maciel (2-for-4, BB), Royce Lewis (2-for-5), Trevor Larnach (2-for-4, 2B), Ryan Jeffers (2-for-4), Ernie De La Trinidad (2-for-5) This is about a week’s worth of runs in the Florida State League. The Miracle jumped out to a 6-0 lead in the top of the second and never looked back, despite a few nice comeback efforts from Jupiter. The first eight batters reached safely for Fort Myers in that big second inning. Trevor Larnach hit his 23rd double of the year, putting him just one shy of the team-leading mark from last season, which was shared by Travis Blankenhorn and Alex Kirilloff. Gabriel Maciel has gotten off to a hot start in his first exposure to the FSL. He’s reached base five times in his first two games with the Miracle, and stole his first base after swiping eight bags down in Cedar Rapids. Zach Neff pitched 3 2/3 scoreless innings and struck out four batters to earn the victory in what was his High-A debut. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 3, Peoria 2 (11 innings) Box Score Luis Rijo: 5.0 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 5 K, 67.1 K% (47 of 70 pitches) HR: None Multi-hit games: Estamy Urena (2-for-3, BB) The Kernels entered the bottom of the ninth up 2-0, but Peoria hit back-to-back solo homers to send it into extras. Gilberto Celestino delivered the go-ahead run with a double in the 11th inning and Alex Schick managed to pitch around the “bonus” runner starting the inning at second base in both the 10th and 11th innings to earn the win. Shick struck out three of the seven batters he faced. Luis Rijo is on quite the roll. He’s pitched five shutout innings and surrendered just one hit in all three of his most recent starts now. E-TWINS E-NOTES Kingsport 7, Elizabethton 2 Box Score Andriu Martin: 4.0 IP, 7 H, 4 ER, 1 BB, 7 K, 75% strikes (57 of 76 pitches) HR: None Multi-hit games: Anthony Prato (2-for-5), Charles Mack (2-for-5), Seth Gray (2-for-5), Tyler Webb (2-for-4), Willie Joe Garry Jr. (2-for-4, 2B) The Twins had plenty of traffic on the bases and Andriu Martin pitched pretty well for the most part, but Kingsport hit a couple of big homers off him. Charles Mack extended his season-opening hit streak to four games, and Tyler Webb now has recorded multiple hits in three of E-Town’s four games. Seth Gray had his second straight multi-hit game. Matt Wallner was 1-for-4 with a walk. Max Smith, the Twins’ 31st-round pick, picked up his first professional hit tonight. STARS OF THE DAY Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day: Alex Schick, Cedar Rapids Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day: Brent Rooker, Rochester TOP PROSPECT SUMMARY Here’s a look at how the Twins Daily Top 20 Twins Prospects performed 1. Royce Lewis (FM): 2-for-5, RBI, R, K, E (throw) 2. Alex Kirilloff (PNS): 1-for-5, RBI, R, K 4. Trevor Larnach (FM): 2-for-4, 2B, 2 RBI 5. Wander Javier (CR): 0-for-4, 2 K 6. Brent Rooker (ROC): 1-for-1, 2B, BB, HBP | 2-for-3, 2B, HR, BB 3 RBI, 2 R 11. Nick Gordon (ROC): 0-for-3 13. Ryan Jeffers (FM): 2-for-4, 3 RBI, R 14. Ben Rortvedt (PNS): 1-for-3, 2 BB, R 16. Gilberto Celestino (CR): 1-for-5, 2B, RBI, K 18. LaMonte Wade (ROC): 1-for-3, K | 2-for-2, 2 BB, 2 R 20. Jose Miranda (FM): 0-for-4, HBP, R, K, E (fielding) SATURDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Rochester at Toledo, 6:05 pm CT (TBD) Pensacola at Jacksonville, 5:35 pm CT (Charlie Barnes) Fort Myers at Jupiter, 4:30 pm CT (Jordan Balazovic) Cedar Rapids at Peoria, 6:35 pm CT (Josh Winder) Elizabethton at Kingsport, 5:30 pm CT (TBD) Please feel free to ask any questions and discuss the games. Click here to view the article

Fun fact: Cole Sands actually has the best FIP of anyone in the system who's throw 40 innings or more. He's ever-so slightly ahead of Balazovic right now (2.25 to 2.27). Sands has yielded a .348 BABIP, so that's a big reason why his baseline numbers aren't as sterling. I still have quite a wide difference in rankings between those two guys, for plenty of reasons, but Sands has been one of the many really encouraging starting pitcher prospects in the system this season.

Had some thoughts to share. Here's just under five minutes of big-picture Twins talk if you're interested. There are a couple things I'm starting to become concerned about.

It's no secret, the Twins will be seeking bullpen help as the trade deadline approaches. The current group of relievers has helped get the Twins where they are, but let's face it, there is plenty of evidence that suggests upgrades are required. Who may be available? Today we're going to look at a Sam Dyson of the Giants.Sam Dyson, RHP, 31-years-old San Francisco Giants (31-41, fifth in NL West) Under team control via arbitration through 2020. 2019: 2.45 ERA, 0.94 WHIP, 8.2 K/9, 1.4 BB/9 in 33.0 IP 2018: 2.69 ERA, 1.08 WHIP, 7.2 K/9, 2.6 BB/9 in 70.1 IP What’s to Like? Among the 171 relievers who’ve logged a combined 60 innings the past two seasons, Dyson ranks 26th in ERA (2.61) and 25th in WHIP (1.04). He has a five-pitch repertoire, which is unusual for a reliever. He sinker and cutter are his primary offerings, and he induces a lot of grounders. In that same sample referenced above, Dyson ranks eighth in ground ball rate (60.7%). Another attractive thing about Dyson is that he’s on a nice roll. After an uninspiring first 10 appearances of 2019, Dyson has pitched to a 1.31 ERA and 0.77 WHIP in 21 games since. He’s issued just two walks over that stretch, limiting opponents to a measly .197/.240/.296 batting line (.536 OPS). His 3.9 BB% ranks 10th among the 250 pitchers to log at least 30 innings so far in 2019. Dyson also has some experience in the ninth inning, boasting 58 career saves to his credit, and has been very durable. He’s averaged nearly 70 appearances over the past four seasons. Concerns While being a very effective pitcher, Dyson is far from overpowering. In that sample of 171 relievers who’ve thrown 60+ innings the past two years, Dyson ranks 122nd in K% (21.5) and 132nd in swinging strike rate (10.2%). The Twins could really use another lefty in the bullpen, or at the very least a right-hander who can hold his own against opposite-side hitters. Dyson has a .264/.354/.395 line against lefties for his career (.749 OPS), though he’s been a more effective so far this season (.238/.304/.357, .661 OPS). He’s been incredible at home this year (0.52 ERA, .417 OPS against) but suspect on the road (4.60 ERA, .724 OPS), though those splits were reversed to some degree in 2018. See Also Brad Hand, LHP, Indians Oliver Perez, LHP Cleveland Robert Stephenson, RHP, Reds John Gant, RHP, Cardinals Alex Colome, RHP, White Sox Seth Lugo, RHP, Mets Greg Holland, RHP, Diamondbacks Sean Doolittle, LHP, Nationals Kirby Yates, RHP, Padres 10 Relievers Minnesota Could Target Click here to view the article

He's done a really nice job controlling his plate appearances this season. If he shows any power, especially if he ends up doing it in Fort Myers, he'll definitely jump up. That's an excellent physical comp. Not the same hand, obviously, but those two certainly have similar body types. Putting together these lists is a really fun form of torture Just speaking for myself, but these things get very difficult once you expand beyond the top 30. The first thing I did for this was come up with a preliminary list of guys under consideration for a top 50. That was 75 guys, so I had to trim that back. Next up was trying to figure out around where I felt the recent draftees should go. Very difficult. After that, I really wanted to challenge myself on how I felt the pitchers ranked after Graterol. This was primarily and exercise to figure out exactly how far I felt Balazovic popped up. Then, rolling through everything else, I just didn't have a lot of time to invest to really rack my brain about splitting differences in that 31-60 range. I fell like there's not a ton that separates that group. My 40-50 range leaned more toward upside. I was hoping to find time to revisit the backend of my rankings, but I didn't get to it. The level they're playing at will tell you a lot about where the Twins think they are in that regard.

The check swings are what drive me mad. Do it or don't, man. Obviously it's really difficult to identify pitches, MLB pitchers are really good, but if you start your swing, just let it fly. Commit. If you're gonna have a swinging strike, I want all the people up in Minnie & Paul's to feel the wooosh from your swing

True, but I think in a situation like this it's always wise to just plan for an injury and go get one more guy than you feel like you actually truly need. You wouldn't want somebody to go down in August and not be able to do anything about it. Looks like Giles is on the schedule for later this week, so be on the lookout for that one ...

I guess I'm operating under the assumption that the Twins will make two bullpen additions. Who knows if that's how it shakes out, but that's certainly what I'd be aiming for if I was in the front office. I think they need one late-inning, high-leverage guy and another who's more of a specialist, like Perez. If they were to only add one arm, yeah, I'd be very disappointed if that was someone like Perez. But, Perez vs. Will Smith isn't as lopsided a matchup as you'd probably imagine in a lot of respects. Especially since (I'd imagine) the cost to acquire them would be dramatically different. BABIP .352 Perez .250 Smith LD% 27.1 Smith 21.4 Perez Hard-hit% 40.7 Smith 35.1 Perez Exit Velocity 87.7 Smith 87.4 Perez Barrel% 3.4 Smith 3.5 Perez

Perez vs. lefties 2016-19 .213/.260/.325 30.9 K%, 3.9 BB% That could be a helpful piece in a bullpen that only has one lefty at the moment.

I know Twins fans haven't come away impressed with his prior performances with the big club, but he's been doing his thing down on the farm. Here's where he ranks among the 86 Triple-A pitchers with at least 50 innings this year: ERA: 17th WHIP: 13th K%: 8th

Fidexed-zzzzzzzzzzz

How I would rank them at this exact moment* Rogers May Harper Duffey Parker Morin Magill Littell *This is the type of thing that should be ever-changing. Guys get hot, guys go cold and you have to be willing to react to that. That doesn't mean to the extremes of DFA a guy who's cold and promote a guy who's hot to closer, but you do have to let things evolve quickly if the situation calls for it. My main concern with May is the walks. He's only walked one of the last 15 men he's faced, so I'm going to slide him up. If Duffey's going to continue to get chances ... actually give him chances. See what's there. If you just know he's not a guy you're ever going to trust, might as well get somebody else up here or give a guy like Littell an extended look as opposed to all these cameo appearances they've been doing.

I will put myself in the precarious position of Blake Parker defender. It's not a glamorous job, but somebody's gotta do it! Before I start, I just want to say that in no way am I trying to advocate for him to continue pitching in high-leverage situations. But, I am going to back down from an earlier take I had saying that he needs a 10-day stay on the IL. Why? I'm encouraged that we're seeing the splitter more. His usage of that pitch has gone up from 20.3% and 20.7% in April and May to 33.6% in June. If he's going to be productive, he needs that pitch. I was also happy to see his four seamer averaged 92.6 mph last night, nearly a full mph above where it's been sitting on the season. He should slide down in the pecking order, and each outing should continue to be monitored very closely, but I actually think last night was a good step forward. The Bogaerts RBI double came on a pitch that was a few inches off the plate, exactly where Castro wanted it. I think that was more a good piece of hitting than a bad pitch. We've seen Parker pitch much worse and not give up any runs. Hmm ... somehow I feel like that may not make people feel any better, ha!

The Cardinals are third in their division and eighth in the NL. They're 13-17 over their last 30 games, which is 13th in the NL. No, they're not likely to be selling off pieces right this minute, but if they can't break out of this funk, I'm sure they'll start to entertain the idea of selling off pieces. Gant is a guy to keep on the radar over the coming weeks.

On Schoop being thrown out, it looked bad, but I thought that was more of a good play by Whit Merrifield than a foolish decision by Schoop. Here's a link to the video, I was impressed with how quickly Merrifield transferred the ball over and got rid of it.

It's crazy. I started to outline an article on that topic of most underrated Twin, but I ended up with about 75% of the roster in consideration. A lot of these guys are among the best players in baseball this year, and most of them could probably stroll around MPLS and go unrecognized, let alone on the bigger, national scale. People are most definitely taking notice of the Twins' success, but to your point, there's no superstar carrying the team by himself. It's a team effort. One of the guys the team marketed the most (La Tortuga) is in Triple A right now.

Here that is for anybody who missed it:

With this lineup, you can never count out the Twins. They fell behind 4-1 tonight, but rallied back to tie the game in the fifth and took the lead in the sixth. Working with just a one-run lead over the final three innings, the bullpen not only got the job done, but even managed to pitch around a couple of errors.Box Score Odorizzi: 6.0 IP, 7 H, 4 ER, 2 BB, 7 K, 71.7% strikes (66 of 92 pitches) Bullpen: 3.0 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 2 K Home Runs: Kepler (17), Gonzalez (9) Multi-Hit Games: Gonzalez (2-for-4, HR) WPA of +0.1: Gonzalez .205, Rogers .170, Cron .120, Polanco .102 WPA of -0.1: Odorizzi -.111, Schoop -.122, Cruz -.126 Download attachment: Win615.png (chart via FanGraphs) No Lead is Safe The Twins fell behind 4-1 heading into the bottom of the fifth. They were within a run of the Royals by the time an out was recorded that inning. Mitch Garver singled and Marwin Gonzalez socked a two-run bomba. Later that inning, Jorge Polanco provided a game-tying RBI double with two outs. The comeback was complete when C.J. Cron hit an RBI double in the bottom of the sixth inning. Bullpen Secures Victory Sometimes that “no lead is safe” statement applies to the Twins’ bullpen, but not tonight. After the bats stormed back, the bullpen managed to protect that lead. Trevor May pitched around an error to record a scoreless seventh inning. There was another error committed in the eighth, but Blake Parker and Ryne Harper combined to keep Kansas City off the board that inning. Taylor Rogers gave up a one-out single and issued a two-out walk in the ninth, but worked around them to earn his eighth save. Odorizzi is Human Jake Odorizzi gave up as many earned runs tonight, four, as he had in those previous eight outings. He looked a little more human tonight, though he did still provide the Twins with six innings. Odorizzi gave up seven hits, walked two batters and struck out seven. He gave up multiple home runs for the second time this season, but to his credit, never flew completely off the rails. I’ve Got a Riddle for You Who’s the most underrated Twin? I started brainstorming an article around this question, but it was too difficult. There are so many guys on this 2019 teams that are doing so well, but still have such low profiles across the landscape of baseball. Now of course, if you’re here at Twins Daily reading a game recap, you’re obviously more invested than the average sports fan. But how many people actually realize that, say, Max Kepler is doing what he’s doing? Anyway, Kepler hit his 17th home run tonight. He entered this game with a 134 OPS+ so far. He’s never even cracked 100 before (which is league average). People around town are definitely starting to take notice of what this team is doing collectively, which is tremendous, but it’s pretty incredible what so many of these guys are doing on an individual basis, as well. No.7 Retired Before tonight’s game, the Twins put together a ceremony that was pretty neat. Joe Mauer’s No. 7 was retired. Bullpen Usage Here’s a quick look at the number of pitches thrown by the bullpen over the past five days: Download attachment: Bullpen615.png And One More Thing ... I try really hard to avoid ump talk, but I’m sorry, we have to go there tonight. It’s a tough job, I get that, and both teams are stuck with the same umpire, so things typically even out. But, my word, is Angel Hernandez terrible. If anybody needs a retirement party, it’s that guy. Here’s a look at the called strikes on Twins hittters: Download attachment: KCPitcherCalledStriks.png And below are the called strikes on Royals hitters: Download attachment: MINPitcherCalledStrikes.png The guy basically made a joke of this game. How can MLB allow this to continue to happen? Click here to view the article

Just updated the article with a Tweet from Jeff Johnson of the Cedar Rapids Gazette. Does not sound significant.

You shoulda said something! I think I've been sitting on it for about that long

Travis Blankenhorn ended Pensacola’s night on a high note, hitting a walk-off single in the 11th inning. Also, Josh Winder pitched well, Willians Astudillo had four more hits and Brent Rooker provided a game-winning base knock. Come check out what else happened across the system Friday night.TRANSACTIONS -Twins recall RHP Zack Littell from Rochester. -RHP Fernando Romero optioned to Rochester. -RHP Jacob Blank retired. -Several more drafted players signed. Again, you can keep up with them on the Twins Daily Draft Signing Tracker article. RED WINGS REPORT Rochester 7, Charlotte 6 Box Score Kohl Stewart: 5.1 IP, 7 H, 5 ER, 2 BB, 4 K, 66.3% strikes (65 of 98 pitches) HR: None Multi-hit games: Willians Astudillo (4-for-5), Luis Arraez (3-for-5, 2B), Jake Cave (2-for-3, BB), Wilin Rosario (2-for-5, 2B) These two teams traded blows, with the lead changing hands four times in the first six innings. Charlotte knotted it up in the eighth, but a Brent Rooker RBI single to score Willians Astudillo in the bottom of that inning was the difference maker. Kohl Stewart surrendered five runs in his 5 1/3 innings, but Gabiriel Moya did a great job stabilizing this game. He provided 1 2/3 perfect innings, striking out three batters in the process. Cody Stashak was credited with both a blown save and the win. He gave up a run in the eighth, but struck out a pair of batters in a scoreless ninth to protect the one-run lead. Astudillo had four singles in this game, and now has a 1.553 OPS since being sent down to Rochester. Jake Cave had another two-hit night, and has a 1.174 OPS so far in June. Luis Arraez had three hits, including a double, lifting his batting average up to .351 in his time with the Red Wings. BLUE WAHOO BITES Pensacola 5, Tennessee 4 (11 innings) Box Score Charlie Barnes: 5.0 IP, 4 H, 3 ER, 4 BB, 4 K, 60.9% strikes (56 of 92 pitches) HR: None Multi-hit games: Travis Blankenhorn (2-for-6, 2B) Tennessee jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the top of the first inning and held that advantage until the bottom of the sixth. A Travis Blankenhorn leadoff double sparked a two-run rally in the bottom of the sixth. The Blue Wahoos still trailed heading into the bottom of the ninth. Michael Davis led off the inning with a six-pitch walk, was bunted over to second base by Jimmy Kerrigan and scored the game-tying run on a Taylor Grzelakowski single. Tyler Palm pitched a scoreless 10th inning, but gave up the go-ahead run in the 11th. The Pensacola bats had one more comeback in them. Kerrigan hit a game-tying RBI single and scored the winning run on a Blankenhorn walk-off single. Clinton committed four errors in this game. Their poor starter, George Soriano, pitched a complete game and still got the loss despite giving up zero earned runs. STARS OF THE DAY Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day: Josh Winder, Cedar Rapids Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day: Travis Blankenhorn, Pensacola TOP PROSPECT SUMMARY Here’s a look at how the Twins Daily Top 20 Twins Prospects performed 5. Wander Javier (CR): 1-for-2, R, RBI, K 6. Brent Rooker (ROC): 1-for-3, 2 RBI, K 11. Nick Gordon (ROC): 1-for-4, BB, R 14. Ben Rortvedt (PNS): 1-for-4, BB, R, RBI, 3 K 16. Gilberto Celestino (CR): 0-for-4, K 18. LaMonte Wade (ROC): 0-for-3, BB SATURDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Rochester vs. Charlotte, 6:05 pm CT (Chase De Jong) Pensacola vs. Tennessee, 6:05 pm CT (Jorge Alcala) Fort Myers OFF - FSL All-Star Game, 6:05 pm CT Cedar Rapids vs. Clinton, 6:35 pm CT (Andrew Cabezas) Please feel free to ask any questions and discuss the games. Click here to view the article