Twins Video
Down in the minor leagues it was a little bit of a mixed bag on Thursday evening. Aaron Hicks, Eddie Rosario, Byron Buxton and Miguel Sano all had notable performances, as well as a great pitching performance from Chih-Wei Hu. But Nick Burdi struggled again, and Dalton Hicks and Adam Brett Walker II combined to go 0-9 with seven strikeouts.
RED WINGS REPORT
Columbus Clippers @ Rochester
At home at Frontier Field, in front of just shy of 4,000 fans, Mark Hamburger and the Rochester Red Wings came back from an early deficit to move to 12-8 on the season. The Red Wings chased the Clippers' starter Jordan Cooper after 3.2 innings, sending him to his first defeat of the season, surrendering nine hits and four runs (three earned). Those nine hits were part of a season high outburst of 17 hits for Rochester. Hamburger gave up three early runs (two earned) but hung around to finish the sixth, throwing 110 pitches, but just 65 for strikes. Hamburger walked three and struck out six and gave up just five hits. Lester Oliveros, who many have been clamoring to have join the Twins' bullpen, worked two innings of relief, striking out four, but he walked two and gave up a run. Ryan O'Rourke pitched the ninth to finish the game for the Red Wings.
It was a pretty balanced attack from the Rochester hitters with eight of nine starters picking up at least one base hit, and seven of nine picking up two or more. Aaron Hicks led off for the Red Wings and extending his hitting streak to 11 games by going 3-5, bringing his average up to .310 on the year. Eddie Rosario had three hits of his own, 3-5 with a pair of RBIs. How nice would those two look in the Twins outfield right now?! Despite the season-high 17 base hits, the Red Wings managed just two extra-base hits, a double apiece from Reynaldo Rodriguez and James Beresford. Rochester was 7-18 with men in scoring position and still managed to strand twelve runners.
Final Score: Clippers 4, Red Wings 8
LOOKOUTS LOOK-IN
Jacksonville Suns @ Chattanooga
Former first-round draft pick Alex Wimmers had the start for Chattanooga on Thursday evening and pitched well through the first five innings, but ran into trouble in the sixth, giving up three runs and leaving with two outs in the sixth. His line for the night included eight hits, two walks, four strikeouts and four earned runs. Wimmers was replaced by D.J. Johnson who held the Suns scoreless through the seventh. Nick Burdi came on in the eighth, but struggled again, giving up two runs. He struck out one and walked one. Burdi's ERA is now 10.13, fairly disappointing for a guy who many suggested could slot right into the Twins bullpen before the end of 2015. Those two runs gave Burdi the loss on the evening, his third of this young season. Dallas Gallant pitched a perfect ninth to finish the game.
Byron Buxton continues to heat up, he went 2-4 with a triple and a walk, plus two stolen bases. Miguel Sano was 1-3 with a solo home run and a walk, but he also had a pair of strikeouts. In all, the Lookouts struck out thirteen times, including four for Dalton Hicks as part of an 0-5 night and three from Adam Brett Walk as part of his 0-4 night.
Final Score: Suns 6, Lookouts 4
MIRACLE MATTERS
Charlotte Stone Crabs @ Fort Myers
Chih-Wei Hu continues to impress every time out. On Thursday night in Fort Myers he mowed down the Stone Crabs, struck out eight, walked two, and gave up two runs (just one earned) on four hits. Hu is now 3-0 on the season and his ERA is down to 1.50. Todd Van Steensel pitched two scoreless innings of relief and struck out four to pick up his second hold of 2015. J.T. Chargois gave up a hit, a walk, an unearned run, struck out a batter and earned his second save of the year, throwing 19 pitches in the ninth.
The Miracle scored five runs, all earned, on just eight hits despite being 0-9 with runners in scoring position and stranding 10 runners. In the first inning the Miracle scored a run without any hits thanks to a couple walks, a groundout and an eventual sac fly from Mitch Garver. Niko Goodrum hit his third home run of the year, a two-run round-tripper off of German Marquez in the third inning. Right fielder Chad Christensen had a perfect night for Fort Myers, going 3-3 with a double.
Final score: Stone Crabs 3, Miracle 5
KERNELS KORNER
Cedar Rapids @ Quad Cities River Bandits
The Kernels could not figure out how to attack the River Bandits pitching, picking up just four hits on the evening. The trio of Brock Dykxhoom, Jose Montero and Joshua James kept the Kernels guessing all night long. No Kernels hitter had multiple hits and only Max Murphy (1-3 with a double and a walk) reached safely twice. Shortstop of the future, Nick Gordon, was 0-3 with a strike out and a walk. Zach Granite, Cedar Rapids' leadoff hitter, was 1-4 and extended his hitting streak to 10 games with a first inning double.
Kernels starter John Curtiss only made it through the fourth inning. He gave up six hits, three earned runs, struck out four and served up a pair of home runs. Samuel Clay and Zach Tillery each pitched two innings of relief and both gave up only one hit. Clay, however, also walked three hitters and was charged with an earned run.
Final Score: Kernels 2, River Bandits 4
TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY
Hitter of the Day - Byron Buxton - Chattanooga Lookouts
Pitcher of the Day - Chih-Wei Hu - Fort Myers Miracle
FRIDAY'S PROBABLES
Norfolk @ Rochester - Mike Wright vs. Pat Dean (2-0, 0.90)
Jacksonville @ Chattanooga- Jake Esch vs. Tyler Duffey (0-2, 3.16)
Fort Myers @ Charlotte - Ethan Mildren (0-2, 5.28) vs TBD
Clinton @ Cedar Rapids - Daniel Missaki vs. Stephen Gonsalves (2-0, 0.90)
MORE FROM TWINS DAILY
— Latest Twins coverage from our writers
— Recent Twins discussion in our forums
— Follow Twins Daily via Twitter, Facebook or email
— Become a Twins Daily Caretaker
Recommended Comments
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.