Article: Twins Minor League Report (6/1): Gonsalves Flirts With No-No, Then Promoted

[Cody Christie]

With a rainout in Boston and the Red Wings having a scheduled off-day, the Twins' two highest clubs didn't take the field on Monday night. There wasn't much to be excited about down on the farm with the teams that did take the field.

 

Two offenses struggled to score runs and it took a nearly perfect pitching performance for the other affiliate to come out victorious. Luckily, most of the team's affiliates are still holding on to division leads as the calendar turns to June.

 

Here's the action from down on the pond.TRANSACTIONS

• Late on Monday, we learned that after another stellar outing on Monday afternoon, Stephen Gonsalves has been promoted to Ft. Myers. In a tweet, Gonsalves wrote, "I want to thank the @CRKernels fans for my time here and ending it with a standing ovation. I'm on my way to Florida to continue my year."

RED WINGS REPORT

Rochester (Scheduled Off Day)

 

The Red Wings have lost six of their last nine games and their last three series in May to end the month on a sour note. Rochester still leads the International League North by one game with a 27-23 record. Rochester ends their road trip with a two-game series at Lehigh Valley starting on Wednesday before an important series against second-place Pawtucket.

 

 

CHATTANOOGA CHATTER

Chattanooga 3 Tennessee 13

Box Score

 

Miguel Sano cracked his tenth home run of the season but it wasn't nearly enough to keep Chattanooga in this one. David Hurlbut was charged with the loss after allowing four runs on four hits in four innings. Jake Reed allowed nine runs (five earned runs) on five hits while collecting only three outs in the seventh and eighth innings.

 

A trio of fielding errors from Jorge Polanco, Jake Reed, and Adam Brett Walker didn't help stop the bleeding. On a brighter note, Byron Buxton picked up his fifteenth steal and reached base two times. Walker hit his twelfth double but the team was only 1-for-8 with runners in scoring position.

 

The loss dropped Chattanooga to 29-20 but the club has four more games against Tennessee in the next four days so there will be plenty of chances for redemption. The Lookouts still hold a two game lead over Tennessee for the top spot in the Southern League North.

 

 

MIRACLE MATTERS

Fort Myers 1, St. Lucie 5

Box Score

 

The Miracle offense took a while to wake up in this one as the team found themselves down five runs before they were able to push one across the plate. The team went 0-for-7 with runners in scoring position and they left eight runners on base. Marcus Knecht was the lone player with multiple hits. Mitch Garver reached base three times while Alex Swim and Bryan Haar each cracked a double.

 

Mat Batts started and allowed four runs (two earned) on eight hits with seven strikeouts and no walks. Brian Gilbert and Alex Muren combined to throw the last 2.1 frames while striking out six. Gilbert allowed the only other run of the game.

 

The Miracle have now lost a season-high five games in a row and they finished their road trip 2-5. Fort Myers returns home on Tuesday to face the first place Charlotte Stone Crabs as they look to get back to playing winning baseball.

 

 

KERNELS NUGGETS

Cedar Rapids 5, Clinton 0

Box Score

 

Stephen Gonsalves took a no-hitter into the seventh inning and the Kernels were able to complete a four-game sweep of Clinton. Gonsalves continued his strong start of the season by tossing seven scoreless frames on the way to his sixth victory. He struck out 11 and walked four while lowering his ERA to 1.15. Randy LeBlanc finished off the shutout with two scoreless frames.

 

Zack Larson drove in two runs and collected his eleventh double. Edgar Corcino knocked a triple and a double and reached base three times. Nick Gordon scored two runs and went 1-for-5 at the plate. Brett Doe drove in two runs. T.J. White had an interesting line as he collected three walks and was officially 0-for-0 at the dish.

 

The Kernels have an off-day on Tuesday before beginning a six-game road trip on Wednesday. When Cedar Rapids takes the field at South Bend, Felix Jorge is scheduled to be on the mound to keep the win streak going.

 

 

TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY

 

Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day – Stephen Gonsalves, Cedar Rapids Kernels

Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day – Edgar Corcino, Cedar Rapids Kernels

 

 

TUESDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS

 

Rochester vs. Durham (6:05 CST) – LHP Jason Wheeler

Chattanooga vs. Montgomery (6:15 CST)- RHP Alex Wimmers

Ft. Myers vs. Bradenton (6:05 CST) – RHP Ryan Eades

Cedar Rapids - Scheduled Off-Day

 

 

Please feel free to ask any questions and discuss the Monday games.

 

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[ShouldaCouldaWoulda]

Was reading somewhere that they didn't think Gonsalves' stuff would play up very well. Hope that's wrong.

[Steven Buhr]

This Tweet just came through from Gonsalves:

 

Stephen Gonsalves ‏@TheSGonsalves  10 minutes ago
I want to thank the @CRKernels fans for my time here and ending it with a standing ovation. I'm on my way to Florida to continue my year.

[Pitz]

Congrats to Gonsalves on the promotions. I'm sure we're all excited to see what he can do at the next level. Hope he continues to develop his stuff as he faces new challenges.

 

Corcino is off to quite the start with the Kernels! Bit of an interesting journey for the 22 year old as Seth writes here. Obviously its a very small sample size this year, but it would be terrific if the Twins have found a late bloomer to add to their prospect talent.

[h2oface]

I sure hope to see Alex Meyer get some innings. Since the move to the pen, and with Fien needed the rehab and the rain, it seems like he is on the DL or something. They need to get him in some games. Not pitching is not progressing.

[Seth Stohs]

 

I sure hope to see Alex Meyer get some innings. Since the move to the pen, and with Fien needed the rehab and the rain, it seems like he is on the DL or something. They need to get him in some games. Not pitching is not progressing.

 

I may agree, but after the struggles he had in the season's first six weeks, I think working on the side and getting into some low-leverage game situations (which has has done 2-3 times, and done well) is the right thing to do.

[clutterheart]

Why does the Southern Leauge play 5 game series? Is that a cost cutting move?

 

[nytwinsfan]

This Tweet just came through from Gonsalves:

 

Stephen Gonsalves ‏@TheSGonsalves  10 minutes ago

I want to thank the @CRKernels fans for my time here and ending it with a standing ovation. I'm on my way to Florida to continue my year.

 

#%€? Yeah!

[Seth Stohs]

It will be interesting to hear what the corresponding move(s) are for Cedar Rapids and Ft. Myers. 

 

 

[Brock Beauchamp]

Looks like we're officially into promotion season. I can't imagine that Berrios will remain in Chattanooga much longer.

[nater79a]

Am I wrong or did Jake Reed have a much improved May before last night's....ahem, hiccup?

[Clyde123]

Last season's disappointment was the injuries to Buxton and Sano.  This season it seems to be the performances of Meyer, Reed and Burdi.  Coming off last season and the fall league, I imagined Meyer as a number one or two starter (if only for five or six innings) and Burdi and Reed as a couple of seventh, eighth, or ninth inning guys.  An ace and a shutdown bullpen possibly all with the Twins in 2015.

 

Hope all get their seasons turned around.  Baseball is a hard game.

[Steven Buhr]

 

  Baseball is a hard game.

It is.

 

From discussions I've had, my sense is that the Twins organization (and probably all organizations, really) are not all that disappointed when their top prospects struggle for a period. Difficulties expose character (and, sometimes, lack thereof). A lot of "top" players begin their pro careers having seldom, if ever, endured many difficulties between the lines. When they begin to struggle, you find out how open they really are to coaching and how hard they're willing to work to succeed. Perhaps better to find that out in Cedar Rapids, Fort Myers and Chattanooga than later on.

 

Having to struggle a bit is not necessarily a bad thing (or at least that's what I keep telling myself).

[DJL44]

I'm impressed with how Cedar Rapids keeps winning without a whole lot of top offensive talent. Let's see if they can keep it up without Gonsalves.