The Twins and Red Sox are battling in a suddenly-close game in the late innings of the final game of what has been an immensely frustrating series for the Twins and their fans. Which is another good reason to follow the Twins minor league games. There’s always plenty of positive to be taken from the games, even if three of the four Twins affiliates lost.

Here is a look at the Twins minor league scores and highlights from Wednesday:

ROCHESTER 5, SYRACUSE 10

The Red Wings hadn’t played for two days due to a scheduled day off and a rain-out, and it showed somewhat on Wednesday against the Nationals’ AAA affiliate. Daryl Thompson started and gave up four runs on five hits and four walks in five innings. He struck out four. Anthony Slama came in and struck out the side in the 6^th and another in a scoreless 7^th. Tyler Robertson had a rough one. He didn’t get anyone out and gave up four runs on three hits and a walk. Brendan Wise got out of the 7^th and also pitched the eighth. He gave up two unearned runs on three hits in those two innings.

Darin Mastroianni led the offense. He went 3-4 with a walk and stole two bases. Ray Chang was 2-4. Matt Carson went 1-3 with two walks. Aaron Bats got on three times via the walk.

The Red Wings were especially hurt by the long ball. In this game, former big leaguers Mark Teahen and Jason Michaels each hit a grand slam. Bryce Harper was 1-3 with a walk and a, ahem… sacrifice bunt.

NEW BRITAIN 3, PORTLAND 7

Luke French was back on the mound for the Rock Cats in a Wednesday morning game. The lefty went 6.1 innings and gave up two runs on seven hits. He walked none and struck out four. Daniel Turpen pitched well until the ninth. In all, he gave up four runs on six hits in 2.1 innings. He walked none and struck out three. Bobby Lanigan gave up an unearned run on one hit and got the final out.

James Beresford went 2-3. Estarlin de Los Santos and Chris Colabello each hit a double. Nate Hanson walked twice.

FT. MYERS MIRACLE 2, PALM BEACH 6

It’s been a struggle for the talented Adrian Salcedo this early season and his Wednesday start was very rough. In just 2.2 innings, he gave up six earned runs on five hits. Most concerning, he walked five batters which is alarming because he has always displayed very good control. Jose Gonzalez struck out two in 2.1 scoreless innings. Bruce Pugh struck out two in three scoreless, hitless innings. Caleb Thielbar pitched another scoreless inning.

The Miracle managed just four hits in the game. Jairo Perez hit his second home run of the season.

BELOIT 9, BOWLING GREEN 3

The Snappers returned home from West Michigan to take on Bowling Green on Wednesday night. The offense certainly showed up and scored nine runs. What is most impressive is that the offense scored nine runs despite the 3-4-5 hitters (Sano-Rosario-Ortiz) combining to go 1-11 in the game. Eight-hitter Jairo Rodriguez led the way. He went 3-4 with his third double and three RBI. Ninth hitter, AJ Pettersen, was 2-3 with his second double and two RBI. Lead-off man, Wang-Wei Lin, was 2-5 with his third double and two RBI. Adam Bryant (2^nd hitter) drove in the other two runs. Tyler Grimes added a triple.

Jason Wheeler improved to 2-0 with a Quality Start. He gave up three runs on 10 hits in six innings. He walked none and struck out two. Michael Tonkin was perfect for two innings. Corey Williams struck out two (and walked one) in a scoreless ninth.

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Players of the Day for Wednesday, April 25, 2012

Hitter of the Day – Jairo Rodriguez

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Pitcher of the Day – Bruce Pugh

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A Look Ahead – Thursday, April 26, 2012 Schedule

Rochester vs Syracuse (DH) – RHP Cole DeVries, RHP Sam Deduno

New Britain – No Game Scheduled, Travel Day

Ft. Myers vs Palm Beach – RHP Marty Popham

Beloit vs Bowling Green – RHP Matt Summers

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If you have any questions or comments on the Twins minor league system, players, teams, etc., leave them in the Comments and I’ll try to answer them!