A year ago, Cedar Rapids Kernels starting pitcher Michael Cederoth was neither a Minnesota Twins prospect, nor was he a starting pitcher. But times change. Cederoth was wrapping up his college career at San Diego State in May of 2014, looking forward to entering the June amateur player draft and getting his professional career started. The 6’ 6” tall pitcher spent his junior season as the team's closer and his 20 saves tied the Aztecs' school record. A year later, he's a starting pitcher in
After the Cedar Rapids Kernels finished batting practice on a warm, humid July 4 afternoon, two of the most productive players on their roster agreed to sit down and talk about the season. http://knuckleballsblog.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/GoreDobnak070418-600x400.jpg Jordan Gore and Randy Dobnak go through Kernels pre-game workouts on July 4, 2018 (Photo by SD Buhr) One, an infielder, has been hitting over .300 with an on-base percentage around .400 virtually all season. (And three
While the current edition of the Cedar Rapids Kernels have been making their way through the Midwest League playoffs this week, a group of 20 Kernels alumni are on the verge of claiming the first Florida State League championship in franchise history for the Fort Myers Miracle. (Click here for David Dorsey's story on the Miracle's pursuit of a championship) http://knuckleballsblog.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/Walker1.jpg Adam Brett Walker lines a home run vs Clinton on September 2,
Heading into their four-game series with Midwest League Western Division leaders Kane County on Thursday, the Cedar Rapids Kernels were one game under .500, trailed the Cougars by two games in the standings and were tied for second place in their division. (This article was originally posted at Knuckleballsblog.com) After trouncing Kane County 11-2 in the series finale on Sunday to earn a split of the four-game series, Cedar Rapids was one game over .500 (at 9-8), trail the Cougars by two ga
There was no rain in Fort Myers on Wednesday. That’s the good news. The bad news is that it was pretty breezy and high temperatures for the day barely, if at all, reached 70 degrees. I know that sounds good to a lot of people, but I had to wear long sleeves much of the day at the ballpark and was a bit chilly eating dinner outdoors tonight! But I toughed it out, because I know my readers expect me to do whatever it takes to get the story. Today, that story comes from the minor league side
Today, I want to revisit something I wrote in a prior post. The subject (as so many things written by so many people has been) was centered around what the Twins should do with regard to Miguel Sano and Byron Buxton. Maybe you take them aside and say, “Guys, if you’re healthy in April, you’re going to be Minnesota Twins. You may perform like Kennys Vargas or you may look more like Aaron Hicks, but you’re going to stay in Minnesota. You will not be sent back to the minors. From this point forw
There really isn't a "category" here at Twins Daily for a post of this type (and maybe it's not appropriate here at all), but I posted this over at Knuckleballsblog.com this morning and thought I would share it here, as well. Just a few reflections on this, the 15th anniversary of 9/11. It's incredible to think that there is now almost a complete generation of Americans who have little or no direct recollection of the day the United States was attacked and thousands of people lost their lives
The final week of spring training is a big week for the new batch of Kernels getting ready to head north to Cedar Rapids. On Thursday, four days before the Kernels will break camp in Fort Myers and head north, the roster for the Kernels still included 29 names. That’s four more than the 25 players that will make up the club’s Opening Day roster. That means at least four of the current group being managed by Jake Mauer on the back fields of the Lee County Sports Complex will be staying behind
We’ve reached the end of the Dog Days of Summer, that period that stretches from 20 days before Sirius (the Dog Star) is precisely in conjunction with the sun until 20 days after those bodies are in alignment. http://knuckleballsblog.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/Gibbons2015e.jpg Sam Gibbons (Photo: SD Buhr) Those 40 or so days are typically the most cruelly hot of the summer and, coincidentally or not, the days when young professional baseball players often hit the proverbial “wall” du
When I posted Part 3 of this "Bet On It!" series back on March 8, it's unlikely any of us could have foreseen that four months later we still wouldn't have seen Major League Baseball's Opening Day. Within just a couple of weeks from the time that article was posted, pretty much all MLB bets had been taken off the board at the sportsbooks. Now, as we try to celebrate our nation's birthday, the two books that I'm a member of have begun to post some MLB baseball action, though neither William H
In case you missed it, there's a new Commissioner of Major League Baseball. I know that, for many fans, that may come as a shock. There are fans that legally enjoy a brew or two at ballgames who have never attended a big league game that wasn't played under rules dictated by Bud Selig. If it's true that, "the exception proves the rule," then that applies to Bud Selig's role in "proving" the Peter Principle. There's no other way to explain that man surviving 22 years as Commissioner of Baseball
The Cedar Rapids Kernels passed the midpoint of the first half of their 2015 season over the past weekend, making it an appropriate time to get manager Jake Mauer’s assessment of how their season is progressing. There’s not a lot for the manager to complain loudly about, with his team vying for the second best record in the entire Midwest League. Then again, his guys have consistently remained several games behind Western Division leading Quad Cities in the standings, so there’s certainly room
With Opening Day of the 2020 Major League Baseball season now upon us, I thought I would take a quick peek at what, if any, adjustments the sportsbooks I subscribe to have made compared to those I posted in Part 4 of this "Bet On It!" series earlier in July, as teams were making their way back into their abbreviated summer camps. It turns out, however, that my fellow betting subscribers have given the oddsmakers at William Hill and Elite Sportsbook very little reason to make adjustments to the
Tuesday night was a big deal at Veterans Memorial Stadium in Cedar Rapids. Twins Joe Mauer and Ricky Nolasco were in the Kernels’ line up together and at least twice the usual Tuesday night crowd squeezed in to the ballpark to watch them. I don’t know that from witnessing it first hand, but only from accounts from media and family members that used my season tickets that night. Seems I had foolishly committed to making a business trip to St. Louis Sunday through Wednesday this week. So I
Whew! We made it! I know I can’t be the only person who wouldn’t have bet much money a couple of months ago on the chances of MLB even having a Postseason in 2020. It looked pretty bleak when the Marlins and Cardinals started things off with a bunch of postponed games. But here we are. The American League starts their first round on Tuesday and the National League gets going on Wednesday. And, yes, the Minnesota Twins will be participating in this rather strange endeavor, having squeaked t
I got a bit video crazy Thursday night and if you'd like to see a bit of the result, click here to head over to Knuckleballsblog.com for a look. Video of Jake Reed's work on the mound in the 9th. Mitch Garver's leadoff double in the 11th. Bryan Haar's game winner, driving in pinch runner Jon Murphy to beat Kane County 4-3.
Every minor leaguer's goal entering the season is to develop his game to the point where he earns a promotion to the next higher level in the system. Sometimes, that call comes when a player has dominated play within their league. Other times, circumstances align to create an opportunity for players to move up the organizational ladder, at least temporarily. Such circumstances allowed Cedar Rapids Kernels third baseman TJ White and catcher/first baseman Brett Doe to spend a few weeks each in
During a routine physical exam early this year, Minnesota Twins General Manager Terry Ryan asked his doctor to take a look at a lump on his neck. Testing found Ryan to have squamous cell carcinoma. Ryan had surgery in February and has undergone radiation treatment as well. In the meantime, Assistant General Manager Rob Antony has filled in as the interim GM for the Twins, though Ryan has been in regular contact with Antony and others in the Twins front office. http://knuckleballsblog.com/blo
Minnesota Twins General Manager Terry Ryan had surgery for squamous cell carcinoma in February and has undergone radiation treatment as well. In the meantime, Assistant General Manager Rob Antony has filled in as the interim GM for the Twins, though Ryan has been in regular contact with Antony and others in the Twins front office. During the past Cedar Rapids Kernels homestand, Ryan was in town observing the Twins’ young Class A prospects and sat down Sunday for an interview that covered a ran
For the third year, I've made the trip top the Phoenix area to watch a little November baseball in the Arizona Fall League and, while I have no pearls of wisdom to pass along, I thought the least I could do is share a few photos during the week. The AFL consists of six teams that each use one of the Phoenix area MLB spring training sites and each big league team sends six or seven minor league prospects to participate. Representing the Twins this fall are pitchers Stephen Gonsalves, Randy Rosa
Yeah, I really should have looked at the Surprise Saguaros' schedule before I reserved my hotel for this trip. After Saturday night's Fall Stars Game and Monday afternoon's Surprise game, the Saguaros (for whom all of the Minnesota Twins AFP prospects play this fall) have no more home games while I'm in town. The game today was the first of four games that Surprise is playing in some other distant part of the Phoenix area. Just means I'll be doing a lot of driving between now and Friday. Live
The Cedar Rapids Kernels opened their 2014 season with a split of their four-game series with the Clinton Lumber Kings. The weather over the weekend was tolerable, with highs in the mid 50s to around 60 degrees, but Thursday’s Opening Night was far from delightful, with temperatures in the 30s and occasional rain. On Friday, the weather forced the season’s first postponement. On Monday, the team boarded their bus for their first road trip. They’ll play six games in Michigan before retur
One of the things the Minnesota Twins and Cedar Rapids Kernels organizations have in common is an emphasis on community service and that commonality was on display Saturday morning on Perfect Game Field at Veterans Memorial Stadium in Cedar Rapids. http://knuckleballsblog.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/WilsonTheofanopoulos2-600x400.jpg Jared Wilson and Michael Theofanopoulos working in the bullpen with young pitchers After playing a night game on Friday night, Kernels hitting coach Tommy
I made the 3+ hour trip to Beloit this week for the Kernels' three-game series with the Snappers. Cedar Rapids entered the game tied for second place in the MWL Western Division with the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers, both a single game behind Divison leaders Kane County. Outside of how it would be nice to be able to say the Twins' Class A club won their Division in the second half of the season, it really doesn't matter where the Kernels finish relative to Kane County because the Cougars won a
Jose Berrios has shot up the national "top prospect" rankings based on his performance the past couple of years in the Minnesota Twins organization and on Wednesday night, Berrios joined his former manager with the Cedar Rapids Kernels, Jake Mauer, and Twins farm director Brad Steil to participate in a “roundtable” discussion at the Kernels’ annual Hot Stove Banquet. http://knuckleballsblog.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/MauerSteilBerrios-600x400.jpg Jake Mauer, Brad Steil and Jose Berrios
I really hold back what I would like to say about then payroll arguments here. The fact that people don't accept the amount taken in dictates the amount going out requires one of two things. Extreme financial ignorance or fanatical bias that prevents the acceptance of something some basic. I did not change the argument. It's the same idiocy over and over. Do you really want to be on the side that suggests revenues does not determine spending capacity?
At this point in the pre-season, I’m just so happy to be seeing games again, I don’t care about the Twins record in 2023. I think they’ll win it all, unrealistically speaking 🙂
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I really hold back what I would like to say about then payroll arguments here. The fact that people don't accept the amount taken in dictates the amount going out requires one of two things. Extreme financial ignorance or fanatical bias that prevents the acceptance of something some basic. I did not change the argument. It's the same idiocy over and over. Do you really want to be on the side that suggests revenues does not determine spending capacity?· 0 replies
