Twins Minor League Report (5/8): Graterol Impresses and Scares in Early Action

TRANSACTIONS

Rochester Red Wings

LHP Andrew Vasquez placed on IL with left shoulder impingement

RED WINGS REPORT

Rochester 7, Toledo 1

Box Score

Zack Littell toed the rubber in this contest, and despite twirling a gem, the bats put him at ease when he exited after six strong innings of work. Littell didn't allow an earned run, and he fanned seven while allowing just three hits and three walks.

Trailing 1-0 entering the home half of the fourth inning, Rochester jumped out in front for good. Zander Wiel continues to hit, and his single drove in Brent Rooker for the Red Wings first run. John Andreoli then notched his third dinger of the season and the crooked number was a three.

https://twitter.com/RocRedWings/status/1126317938963824645

The rest of the scoring was done in the next inning. Rooker came across on a wild pitch, Jordany Valdespin singled in Wiel, and the hot-hitting Nick Gordon ripped a two RBI double to give us the eventual final score of 7-1. Gordon posted another multi-hit evening, and is now batting .417 on the season, being completely on fire since his activation off of the Injured List.

Some of the middle of the order bats are really settling in for Rochester, and guys like Wiel and Rooker could make compelling cases for the Twins in 2019 should they continue with this momentum.

Also, it's a good thing that the Red Wings didn't let this fan pitch tonight.

https://twitter.com/byrnes22/status/1126303173331836929

BLUE WAHOOS BITES

Pensacola 1, Mississippi 0

Box Score

Star prospect Brusdar Graterol was on the bump for the Blue Wahoos in this one, and he looked dominant once again. Working with a fastball that sat around 98 mph most of the day, he gave up just two hits while striking out three and walking one in 5 1/3 innings of work. Graterol did leave the game early, and was just at 69 pitches, but according to KSTP’s Darren Wolfson it doesn’t sound too serious.

https://twitter.com/DWolfsonKSTP/status/1126181293824278528

Luis Arraez singled in the game's only run, driving in Taylor Grzelakowski in the fourth inning. Getting shutdown work from the recently promoted Tom Hackimer, as well as Sam Clay and Ryan Mason, Pensacola was able to close out a tight contest. Picking up his sixth save, Mason has now pushed his scoreless innings streak to 15 in 2019. Since converting to a reliever in 2017, he’s been lights out.

https://twitter.com/SLeagueBaseball/status/1126194011197321216

It’s worth noting that Miguel Sano did not play in this game. He wasn’t in the lineup, but was reportedly still in Pensacola. The plan could be for him to be promoted up to Rochester prior to Thursday’s action, with a light knock on the Twins door beginning to be heard.

MIRACLE MATTERS

Fort Myers 4, Charlotte 3

Box Score

Started by Jhoan Duran, the outing was an abbreviated one with mother nature wreaking havoc in the 4th inning. One out into the frame, a rain delay forced the tarp onto the field. Duran finished with five strikeouts and three walks allowing two runs on four hits.

Trailing by two, and now without their starting pitcher, the Miracle needed to come up with answers. On the mound, that was Melvi Acosta. Working four and one-third innings of relief, he allowed just one run while fanning four. Because of his lockdown performance, the bats were able to chip away.

Jose Miranda drove in Trevor Larnach to get Fort Myers on the board, and then Lewin Diaz followed with his 6th double of the season tying things at 2. Trailing again after the lone run crossed against Acosta, the Miracle responded. In the 6th, it was a Diaz single driving in Larnach, and the 7th featured the go ahead tally on a Michael Helman single to left field.

The bats seem to have come alive in recent days for the Miracle, and the hope is that they'll continue to pace what should remain a very impressive lineup.

KERNELS NUGGETS

South Bend 2, Cedar Rapids 1

Box Score

Andrew Cabezas came just one out shy of completing seven innings in this one and allowing just one run on six hits during his day of work. He put the Kernels in a great spot to win. The bats were cold as Cedar Rapids generated just four hits, and the one run wasn’t enough to come out on top.

Trailing 1-0 after the first, Cedar Rapids was able to knot things up when Gabriel Maciel scampered home on a wild pitch in the sixth. Looking to force extras, the Kernels found themselves on the wrong side of a walkoff with a throwing error spelling their eventual demise.

Cedar Rapids heads to West Michigan to begin a new series with the Whitecaps tomorrow.

TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY

Twins Daily Pitcher of the Day – Brusdar Graterol (Pensacola) – 5.1 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 3 K

Twins Daily Hitter of the Day – Zander Wiel (Rochester) - 3-4, 2 R, RBI, 2B

PROSPECT SUMMARY

Here’s a look at how the Twins Daily Top 20 Twins Prospects performed:

#1 - Royce Lewis (Ft. Myers) - 0-4, K

#2 - Alex Kirilloff (Pensacola) – 0-5, 3 K

#3 - Brusdar Graterol (Pensacola) – 5.1 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 3 K

#4 - Trevor Larnach (Ft. Myers) - 1-3, 2 R, BB

#5 - Wander Javier (EST) - No Game

#6 - Brent Rooker (Rochester) - 2-4, 2 R, 2B, K

#7 - Jhoan Duran (Ft. Myers) - 3.1 IP 4 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 3 BB, 5 K

#8 - Lewis Thorpe (Rochester) - Did Not Pitch

#9 - Blayne Enlow (Cedar Rapids) - Did Not Pitch

#10 - Akil Baddoo (Ft. Myers) – Did Not Play

#11 - Nick Gordon (Rochester) - 2-5, 2 RBI, K

#12 - Stephen Gonsalves (Rochester) - Injured list

#13 - Ryan Jeffers (Ft. Myers) - 0-3 K

#14 - Ben Rortvedt (Ft. Myers) - 0-2, R, K

#15 - Yunior Severino (Cedar Rapids) - Injured List

#16 - Gilberto Celestino (Cedar Rapids) – 0-3, BB, K

#17 - Zack Littell (Rochester) - 6.0 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 3 BB, 7 K

#18 - LaMonte Wade (Rochester) - 0-3, BB

#19 - Jorge Alcala (Pensacola) – Did Not Pitch

#20 - Jose Miranda (Ft. Myers) - 2-4, R, RBI

THURSDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS

Toledo @ Rochester (6:05PM CST) – RHP Chase De Jong (0-3, 16.20 ERA)

Pensacola @ Mississippi (6:35PM CST) – RHP Randy Dobnak (0-0, 4.50 ERA)

Tampa @ Fort Myers (5:30PM CST) – LHP Tyler Watson (1-3, 5.06 ERA)

Cedar Rapids @ West Michigan (6:05PM CST) – TBD

Please feel free to ask questions and discuss Wednesday’s games!