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With that, let's get to know these starting pitchers. Below are the Top 5 Starting Pitchers for May.
We begin, however, with a few players deserving of mention.
- Rochester LHP Pat Dean – 6 GS, 3-3, 3.07 ERA, 1.27 WHIP, 41.0 IP, 45 H, 7 BB, 11 K
- Chattanooga/Rochester – RHP Tyler Duffey – 6 GS, 2-2, 2.56 ERA, 1.19 WHIP, 38.2 IP, 37 H, 9 BB, 37 K
- Ft. Myers LHP Brett Lee – 5 GS, 1-2, 2.70 ERA, 1.23 WHIP, 33.1 IP, 29 H, 12 BB, 16 K
- Cedar Rapids/Ft. Myers LHP Mat Batts – 4 GS, 1-1, 1.96 ERA, 1.30 WHIP, 23.0 IP, 21 H, 7 BB, 23 K
TOP 5 STARTING PITCHERS IN MAY
Number 5 – Cedar Rapids – RHP Felix Jorge - 5 GS, 2-1, 2.97 ERA, 0.96 WHIP, 30.1 IP, 25 H, 4 BB, 20 K
21-year-old Jorge really struggled in his early-season showing with the Kernels last year but went on to be the Appy League Pitcher of the Year. He came back to Cedar Rapids this year and has been very good. Overall, the lanky right-hander is 3-2 with a 2.42 ERA. In 48.1 innings over eight starts, he has a 0.93 WHIP due to just 36 hits and nine walks. He has very good mechanics and sits in the low-90s. He has a good feel for pitching.
Number 4 – Chattanooga – RHP JO Berrios - 6 GS, 4-1, 2.61 ERA, 1.02 WHIP, 41.1 IP, 33 H, 9 BB, 42 K
May is a big month for JO Berrios. On the 27
th
, he turned 21 years old. On the 15
th
, his daughter turned one. I believe even his wife’s birthday is on the 13
th
, and on that day, he threw a nine-inning, complete game, two-hit shutout at Birmingham. He was able to go at least six innings in all but one of this six starts. Through the end of May, Berrios had gone 6-2 with a 2.84 ERA. Opponents had hit just .242/.305/.360 off of him in May. He continues to pitch in the low-to-mid 90s with really good secondary pitches and control. Berrios has solidified himself as the Twins top pitching prospect. Could a move to Rochester be imminent?
Number 3 – Ft. Myers/Rochester – RHP Chih-Wei Hu - 4 GS, 2-0, 0.78 ERA, 1.00 WHIP, 23.0 IP, 16 H, 7 BB, 18 K
Hu had a very interesting month. The right-hander from Taiwan made two starts at Ft. Myers before it was announced that he was going to make a spot start for the AAA Rochester Red Wings. Hu pitched better than anyone could have hoped or expected. He gave up just one run on two hits in six innings. He walked four, but he also struck out six. He quickly returned to Ft. Myers where he didn’t make his next start for 11 days. He didn’t miss a beat. He gave up two runs (one earned) in that start. The stocky right-hander tops out about 95 mph though he sits 91-93. He’s got a palm ball, a couple of breaking pitches and everything he throws gets a lot of movement.
Number 2 – Cedar Rapids – LHP Stephen Gonsalves - 5 GS, 3-1, 1.61 ERA, 0.89 WHIP, 28.0 IP, 16 H, 9 BB, 36 K
Gonsalves was our choice for Starting Pitcher of the Month for April. Overall, he is now 6-1 with a 1.15 ERA and a 0.80 WHIP in nine starts this year for Cedar Rapids. He has dominated the Midwest League all year. In fact, his only loss came on May 1. In that start, he gave up two runs over seven innings. However, that was the game that the Kernels were no-hit by Clinton. Batters hit .165/.257/.206 (.463) in the month of May. Gonsalves has an advanced baseball and pitching knowledge. He is tall, strong and has the pitches and good control to be very successful as he continues to advance and grow. He won’t turn 21 for another month, so he’s got a lot of room yet for growth. Following his June 1 start, he announced that he has been promoted to Ft. Myers to continue his season.
And the Twins Minor League Starting Pitcher of the Month is:
Rochester Red Wings – LHP Tommy Milone - 5 GS, 4-0, 0.70 ERA, 0.72 WHIP, 38.2 IP, 25 H, 3 BB, 47 K
At the end of April, when Ricky Nolasco came off of the disabled list, the Twins needed to open up a spot in the starting rotation. The decision was made to have Tommy Milone continue to start, so he was sent back to Rochester because he had an option remaining. Understandably, he was disappointed, but he said all the right things.
He also performed on the field as you would hope. OK, that’s not true. There’s no way that there could be any hope that he would be as incredible as he has been with the Red Wings.
In his first start, he threw 6.1 shutout innings. He just got better from there. In start number two, he threw eight shutout innings. Then he threw his first professional complete game shutout. In his next start, he went another 8.1 innings without giving up a run before giving up a solo home run with an out in the ninth. To summarize, he went 37.2 innings without giving up a run in AAA. In those 31.2 scoreless innings, he gave up just 20 hits, walked two and struck out 41.
He made one more start in May and pitched “just” a regular quality start. He gave up two runs in seven innings.
Milone was promoted to the Twins and will make the start in Boston this afternoon (Thursday). Before the game, Ricky Nolasco will throw a bullpen and the team will determine whether or not he will go on the disabled list. If they decide that Nolasco is all right, he will start on Saturday. That means that this could be a spot start for Milone with the Twins and he could be returned to the Red Wings after the game.
If Nolasco does go on the DL, Milone will have at least a couple more opportunities to stake his claim on a rotation spot with the Twins. The 28 year old is a big league pitcher. He’s not a AAA pitcher and he’s not a AAAA pitcher. He should be in a starting rotation. It’s strange for the Twins and their fans to have pitchers throwing so well that a legit big league starter is sitting in AAA waiting for an opportunity.
However, because he was in the minor leagues for the full month, his incredible numbers simply can’t be ignored. What a tremendous month for the left-hander.
Please feel free to post your comments on Milone, Gonsalves, Hu, Berrios, Jorge and the rest of the Twins minor league starting pitchers who pitched well in May. Let us know what you think.
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