Twins Minor League Report (5/6): Miracle Win Wild One

Find out everything and more that happened happened in the Twins system on Saturday.

Before diving into the minor league stuff, we veer off just a little. Following a bad Twins loss on Saturday, the Twins announced that Michael Tonkin had been designated for assignment. Now that that is complete, the question must become, who will the Twins add to the 40 man roster and the 25-man roster before tomorrow's game?

Well, if the team is looking for a reliever, then the options would include DJ Baxendale, Trevor Hildenberger, Alex Wimmers, Alan Busenitz, and maybe even Nick Burdi. Of course, the team really doesn't have a long relief option should they need one, so it's also possible that the team could lean to a starting pitcher to be able to eat some innings in an emergency. If that's the case, then the Twins could call up Jason Wheeler, David Hurlbut, Nik Turley or even Aaron Slegers to fill that role short term.

RED WINGS REPORT

Rochester, Pawtucket

Box Score

Game postponed by rain. They will play a doubleheader on July 5th.

CHATTANOOGA CHATTER

Chattanooga 5, Pensacola 1

Box Score

The Lookouts had a nice offensive day on Saturday. Pitching is what wins, so we’ll start there. Lefty Matt Tracy gave up only an unearned run on three hits over six innings. He struck out four and issued no walks. Luke Bard came on and struck out three over two perfect innings. Mason Melotakis threw another scoreless inning, giving him 12.2 innings over 10 appearances without allowing a run.

Edgar Corcino led the offense. The outfielder went 2-4 with a walk, his sixth double and two RBI. Tanner English also went 2-4. LaMonte Wade went 1-2 and walked three times. Engelb Vielma and Dan Rohlfing both walked twice. Nick Gordon had a big, two-run single as well.

These teams were suppose to play a second game on Saturday, but the second was postponed. They will now play two games on Sunday.

MIRACLE MATTERS

Ft. Myers 11, St. Lucie 10

Box Score

It was a wild game in St. Lucie on Saturday night. The Miracle scored seven runs in the 3rd inning and led 9-1 after four innings. However, their pitchers allowed four runs in each of the fifth and sixth innings.

Chris Anderson made another start. He gave up five runs on 13 hits and a walk in five innings. He struck out four. Anthony McIver started the sixth inning and recorded just one out. He gave up four runs (three earned) on three hits and two walks. Sam Clay stranded the two inherited runners in the sixth inning and went two more innings. He didn’t allow a run, a hit or walk a batter, and he struck out two. Jonny Drozd gave up a run on two hits and a walk in the ninth, but he recorded the save.

Zander Wiel led the offense. The first baseman went 4-5 with his 11th double and two RBI. He also stole a base. Shane Kennedy was a triple shy of the cycle. He went 3-5 with his second double and second home run. Sean Miller went 2-5. Rafael Valera added a triple. Playing in front of his hometown family and friends, Casey Scoggins added a double.

KERNELS NUGGETS

Cedar Rapids 3, Ft. Wayne 4

Box Score

It was a frustrating loss for the Kernels on Saturday night in front of over 3,000 fans at Veteran’s Memorial Stadium.

The team had a series of miscues that cost them outs and therefore runs.

Domenick Carlini started. The left-hander was charged with four runs (two earned) on five hits and two walks in 5.1 innings. He struck out six. Colton Davis came on and worked two scoreless innings, issuing one walk and recording one strike out.

Manager Tommy Watkins thinks Davis can be good and can be a late-inning option for his team. “Yeah, he can (be a late inning guy). He hadn’t pitched in a few days, so we got him in earlier today. He can be really good.”

Alex Robinson got the final five outs, and four of them came on strikeouts. His fastball was sitting 95-96 and touched 97 as well. He also has what can be a devastating slider. Control has been a problem for him in recent years, but the Twins have put a lot of time into helping him develop. He’s got great velocity!

Regarding Robinson Watkins said, “He’s been very good at locating his fastball.”

The Kernels had six hits in the game. They scored one run in three innings, but they were unable to sustain any big innings. Ariel Montesino went 2-4 including a line drive between the first and second basemen. He hustled out of the box and turned it into his third double.

Of the hustle, Watkins said “I was pumped about that. I think that will hopefully get him going. He got off to a slow start.”

Travis Blankenhorn kept hitting the ball hard and was rewarded with two hits. Jermaine Palacios added his sixth double.

Watkins said, “Very good. We talked to him about not trying to get a hit on every pitch. Wait for his pitch and put a good swing on it instead of trying to make it happen. He’s been doing that a lot better the past couple of games, against a lefty no less.”

Following Sunday's game, the players will remain on the field and sign autographs for a bit. However, they have quite the road trip ahead. On Sunday early evening, the Kernels will get on their bus and they should arrive in Dayton, Ohio, at approximately 4:00 a.m. Ah, the glamorous life of minor league baseball.

TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY

Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day – Matt Tracy, Chattanooga Lookouts

Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day – Zander Wiel, Ft. Myers Miracle

SUNDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS

Rochester @ Buffalo (12:35 CST) - RHP Jose Berrios

Pensacola @ Chattanooga (DH at 12:15 CST) - Randy LeBlanc, TBD

Ft. Myers @ St. Lucie (12:00 CST) - RHP Dereck Rodriguez

Lake County @ Cedar Rapids (2:05 CST) - RHP Clark Beeker

Please feel free to ask any questions and discuss Saturday night’s games.