My son (Dastard Junior) and I made the one-day trip down-and-back to Cedar Rapids to catch a glimpse of the Twins High-A Kernels. The four-hour drive (one-way) proved to be a small price to pay. As others have mentioned on TD, the ballpark is great, the fans are friendly and the Kernels are well worth watching. Our tickets were on the first deck, just to the 3rd base side of home plate, so we had a great view of the action. Temps were near 90 degrees but our seats were in the shade (thank God!) so we didn’t fry.
Dastard Jr. had seen the Kernels play several times before hand but at other stadiums, so a home Kernels game was a first for both of us. Junior, because he’d seen the team play before, and me, from the info I’d picked up reading the Minor League reports on TD, both had a general idea of the Kernels’ caliber of play and which players we might find most interesting, but even then we were still surprised.
Here, in no particular order, is a brief synopsis of the players that caught our eye.
Noah Cardenas - DH. The question we kept asking ourselves was “Why is this guy here?” Not that we thought Cardenas was overmatched, but rather why he was still in High A. Normally a catcher, Cardenas was DHing this day, and if I remember correctly, he went 3 for 3. Batting prowess: in the later innings the opposing team brought in a pitcher with an exaggerated overhand motion (the ball seemed to come out of his hand above his head) which baffled a couple Kernel batters. Then Cardenas stepped up to the plate and calmly rifled a single into right field; easy peasy. Best comparison: Arraez. Pre-game stats: 3 hr .283 ave 16 dbl .803 OPS
Not sure how well Cardenas does defensively as a catcher (has also played 1st base) since he was DHing, but this kid is going to be a major league hitter even if they have to find him a spot on the grounds crew.
Andrew Cossetti - Catcher- Cossetti is built like the typical catcher but has surprising speed on the base paths. We saw him go 1st to 3rd on what you’d expect to be an advance to 2nd on a single to RC. In fact I was following the ball, expecting to see Cossetti standing on 2nd when the throw finally came in, only to be stunned to find him standing on 3rd. My son and I exchanged a wide-eyed look of amazement: a catcher with wheels? Good receiver behind the plate. Seems to know how to handle pitchers. Got a “presence” on the field. The only negative, if there was one, he short-hopped a throw to 2nd on a steal attempt. Saw him do the same thing several times on the last throw to second in pre-inning warm-ups. Also he might have lost a high foul ball behind the plate, Ross charged in from 3rd to get it, but that might’ve been one of those “sun-in-the-eyes” things. Whatever. We think this guy’s got a future behind the plate. Power hitter more than a spray hitter like Cardenas, 10 hr, 19 dbl .297 ave .981 OPS.
Can’t imagine how the Kernels are getting enough playing time behind the plate for both Cossetti and Cardenas.
Noah Miller - Shortstop. This young man took our breath away on two different plays. He’s fast, rattlesnake quick, got a good glove, excellent range and a cannon for an arm. He was deep in the hole when one of those broken bat hits dribbled past the pitcher… thought for sure it was going to be a cheap infield hit when all of sudden Miller appears on the infield grass, snags the ball and guns it over to first in time to nail the runner by a stride. Later a hot grounder just got past an extended Ross at 3rd, again looking like a sure hit, when Miller swooped in from nowhere, nabbed the ball at the edge of the outfield grass and fired a bullet to first that nailed the runner. My old timers first comparison reaction: Greg Gagne. And like Gagne, Miller isn’t much of a hitter. 5 hrs 9 doubles. .208 Ave. .588 OPS But you don’t have to hit .300 to play short in the Majors. Just ask Correa.
Ben Ross - 3rd base. Excellent range, good glove, another cannon arm, hit the walk-off single that won the game. This prospect has played every position (mostly 1st and 3rd) except catcher and we watched him play a very good 3rd base this day. An excellent athlete, obviously, but from what we saw today 3rd base just might become his permanent home. With him at 3rd and Miller at shortstop nothing will ever get through the left side of the infield. And he has power. 14 hr, 19 dbls .255 ave., .778 OPS.
Kala’i Rosario - RF. Explosive contact! Before the game began my son told me the ball explodes off Rosario’s bat, has this different angry whack sound. First time at bat Rosario smoked a line drive to center field that if a few feet lower would’ve decapitated the center fielder. As it was it screamed over the center fielder’s head (already playing deep) and whacked into the wall like an anti-tank rocket. This kid’s got power! 13 hr, 20 dbls, .271 ave. .862 OPS. Oh, and he’s got an arm, too. A cut-off man’s wasted on this guy.
Emmanuel Rodriguez - CF. Speedy - covers a lot of ground. Good arm. Kind of reminds you of a younger Buxton. Defensively that is. Got some pop, too. 6 dbls, 11 hrs, .228 Ave .827 OPS
All in all, an entertaining trip, saw some good baseball and we agreed to make Cedar Rapids an annual outing. Maybe extend the trip to follow the Kernels to Beloit; baseball roadies.
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