With that, let's get to know these starting pitchers. Below are the Top 4 Starting Pitchers for April.
We begin with a few players deserving of mention.
- Rochester LHP Taylor Rogers – 4 GS, 2-0, 2.00 ERA, 1.11 WHIP, 27.1 IP, 20 H, 10 BB, 23 K
- Ft. Myers RHP Ryan Eades – 3 GS, 1-0, 1.50 ERA, 1.11 WHIP, 18.0 IP, 16 H, 4 BB, 9 K
- Cedar Rapids LHP Mat Batts – 4 GS, 2-1, 2.19 ERA, 0.85 WHIP, 24.2 IP, 16 H, 5 BB, 24 K
- Cedar Rapids RHP Felix Jorge – 3 GS, 1-1, 1.50 ERA, 0.89 WHIP, 18.0 IP, 11 H, 5 BB, 24 K
TOP 4 STARTING PITCHERS IN APRIL
Number 4 – Chattanooga – RHP D.J. Baxendale - 4 GS, 2-0, 1.07 ERA, 1.07 WHIP, 25.1 IP, 21 H, 6 BB, 24 K
When he has been healthy, DJ Baxendale has been a very good starting pitcher. The problem is that he hasn’t been healthy for a couple of years, really since the beginning of the 2013 season. He appears to be at 100% again to start the 2015 season, and he is pitching very well for the Lookouts. He’s got a full mix of pitches and has been able to miss bats this year as well.
Number 3 – Rochester – LHP Pat Dean - 3 GS, 2-0, 0.90 ERA, 0.85 WHIP, 20.0 IP, 12 H, 5 BB, 22 K
Dean was the Twins third-round pick in the 2010 draft out of Boston College. By the end of the 2011 season, he was pitching in AA. However, aside from six starts in 2013, he has remained in AA the last two years. This year, he has made the move to AAA, but he wasn’t even in the Red Wings starting rotation to start the season. However, Trevor May got promoted before he made a start and Dean took his place. He’s been lights out through April. In his first three starts, he had allowed just two earned runs in 20 innings. In nearly 500 innings between High-A and AA, he averaged 4.9 strikeouts per nine innings. So his 22 strikeouts in 20 innings is noteworthy.
Number 2 – Ft. Myers – RHP Chih-Wei Hu - 4 GS, 3-0, 1.50 ERA, 0.71 WHIP, 24.0 IP, 14 H, 3 BB, 28 K
Hu gave up two runs in five innings in his first start of the season. In his next three April starts, he gave up two earned runs in 19 innings. He was a bit of a surprise in 2014 when he spent two-and-a-half months in Extended Spring Training. He went 1-0 with a 1.69 ERA in three starts with Elizabethton. He moved up to Cedar Rapids where he went 7-2 with a 2.29 ERA. Hu will be 21 years old throughout the 2014 season. He’s got all the pitches, including a palm ball. He throws 91 to 93 mph and touches 94 and 95, and everything he throws moves a lot. Opponents hit just .167 against him in April and he had more than a strikeout each inning. Most months, that would earn him the Pitcher of the Month award.
And the Twins Minor League Starting Pitcher of the Month is:
Cedar Rapids Kernels – LHP Stephen Gonsalves - 3 GS, 2-0, 0.90 ERA, 0.65 WHIP, 20.0 IP, 11 H, 2 BB, 30 K
The Twins got, potentially, the steal of the 2013 draft when they selected lefty Stephen Gonsalves in the fourth round of the draft. He dominated in the GCL and at Elizabethton that year. In 2013, he made 14 starts between Elizabethton and Cedar Rapids and was very good.
After making eight starts for the Kernels at the end of 2014, he returned to Iowa to start this season. He gave up a run in six innings in his first start. He has gone seven innings in each of his three starts since. In his 20 April innings, he issued just two walks and struck out 30. Opponents hit just .174 against him during the month.
He has been impressive on several levels. First, just look at those April numbers again. They’re remarkable. Secondly, the San Diego native says that he had never made a start when the game time temperature is under 60 degrees.
Gonsalves said, “I was pretty fortunate. My first two starts I pitched with warm weather and was able to sit during the colder days for my body to adjust. Other than that, it was just about being aggressive inside with the fastball because no one wants to get their hands busted in this weather.”
He’s been quite aggressive in his pitch mix early in the season. “I’ve been able to get away with 75% fastballs here, just being down in the zone, going early in. Then 25% changeups away to follow up.”
He likes to give credit to his catchers for his success. He worked with a good one last year and continues into 2015.
“I believe working more with (Mitch) Garver last year was the big difference. Other than the league itself, picking his brain for those final two months was a big help in plan-of-attack. I’ve been able to introduce that to (Brian) Navarreto this year."
Gonsalves has a lot of confidence. He also has a very high baseball IQ. Teammates talk about his knowledge of how to pitch and he has a plan. He has set some goals for himself for 2015.
“My goals for the season are to get my K/BB ratio to 4/1, and maybe even drop below one walk per nine (innings).”
I would be surprised if the 20-year-old spends much more time in Cedar Rapids. As soon as there is a need in Ft. Myers, he should be the first one promoted. Right now, he is posting the types of numbers that say there might not even need to be a need with the Miracle for him to be promoted. That said, Gonsalves is thinking even bigger.
“Level-wise, I’m always thinking as far as possible, so getting to AA would be truly amazing.”
Amazing? Yes. Surprising at this point? Not really.
Please feel free to post your comments on Gonsalves, Hu and the rest of the Twins minor league starting pitchers that pitched well in April. How do you feel about the rankings? We’ll be back tomorrow with the Minor League Hitter of the Month of April.
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