Steven Buhr

The Minnesota Twins' front office is going to be faced with making some difficult decisions this offseason - decisions they are woefully ill-prepared to make. http://knuckleballsblog.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/GardenhireBrunansky2012.jpg Ron Gardenhire and Tom Brunansky (photo: Knuckleballs) Many professional sports organizations change their on-field management at least as often as they change accounting firms. It's just part of the way they do business. When you lose more games than you win for a couple years in a row, you change managers/head coaches and even front office leadership. It just becomes second nature. Much the way swimming becomes second nature to anyone who has spent much time in the water. But the very idea of changing field management/coaching staff must, for the Twins ownership and front office, seem as incomprehensible as diving off a cliff in to a river would be to someone who doesn't know how to swim. For those of you who don't know how that scene of Butch Cassidy & the Sundance Kid turned out, both outlaws survived their jump and their trip down river just fine and lived happily ever after (at least until they decided to move to Bolivia). The most famous quote from that movie scene is, "the fall will probably kill you." But, for the Twins' purposes, I'd focus on Butch's earlier point. "We've got to, otherwise we're dead." I think the same is true of the Twins if they foolishly decide to keep the status quo regarding their field management. I know that changing managers and coaching staff just is not something the people who run the Twins are comfortable with. They know the guys they have. They may not be winning much, but they HAVE won in the past, so they MIGHT win again, no matter how hopelessly unlikely that may seem to be at the moment. If the people who run the Twins decide to (shudder) make changes, there is no guarantee that the new guys will be any better. After all, how many people in the Twins front office have actually gone swimming in the deep waters that go along with the process of interviewing candidates for a Major League manager? Figuratively, they don't know how to swim! At some point, though, they're going to have to realize that NOT taking that leap means the organization is almost certain to continuing their current death spiral. Once you consider that the worst thing that can happen when you take that big jump off a cliff is the same thing that's going to happen if you don't, it's really not that hard to just holler, "Ohhhhh (expletive)," and make the leap. Once you've taken the leap and decided you will not simply go on doing business the same way you have for the past three decades, you can get down to the business of figuring out who is best suited to turn the next group of raw-but-talented young ballplayers in to a contending Major League team. Maybe it's someone on the Twins' current big league bench, such as Paul Molitor or Tom Brunansky. Maybe it's one of the organization's excellent full-season minor league managers (all four of which guided their respective team to a winning record in 2014, by the way). Maybe it's someone from outside the Twins organization altogether. But first things first. If they haven't already, the Twins' decision makers need to conclude that there is literally nothing that can happen that would be any worse than continuing to fight it out with the status quo. To do so would send a terrible message to a fan base who simply will not tolerate another do-nothing offseason and continue to buy tickets for a 2015 season that does not come with the benefit of All-Star Game tickets. There is a lot of talent set to arrive at Target Field in the next couple years. Names, both familiar and unfamiliar to Twins fans, like Buxton, Sano, Meyer, Berrios, Polanco, Gordon, Burdi, Kepler, Harrison, Kanzler, Stewart, Thorpe, Gonsalves, Turner, Garver, Walker and many more, could well become cornerstones of the next great Minnesota Twins team. The class of Mauer, Morneau, Cuddyer, Baker, et al, has been wasted. We could discuss "why" this class failed to bring a championship to Minnesota, but that's pointless. What matters now is making sure that the upcoming class is not similarly wasted and that process begins with asking ourselves who would be the best choices as manager and field coaches to get the most of their talent. I'm not sure who that person is, though I certainly have some favorites among the likely possibilities. What I think has become abundantly clear, however, is that manager Ron Gardenhire and pitching coach Rick Anderson are not the right choices. The decision to dismiss them is not easy for a front office like that of the Twins. I respect that, actually. Letting go of loyal and, at times, effective employees should not be easy - certainly not as easy as it seems to be for many owners and General Managers in professional sports. But sometimes, it's absolutely necessary. Even the most devoted fans of Gardy and Andy in the front office must, by now, be having a hard time envisioning that duo effectively leading the upcoming group of 20-year-olds to championships. With fresh talent, fresh eyes and fresh approaches are necessary. It's possible (and perhaps even quite likely) that Gardenhire and Anderson could provide that fresh approach to another organization. I hope they can (as long as it's not in the AL Central), because I think they're good men who know something about baseball. But just as a young Tom Kelly was the perfect fit for a young group of Twins in the mid-late 1980s, it's time to find new management to work with the next wave of young Twins. There's no reason to wait another year, prolonging the inevitable. It's time for the Twins' front office and ownership to take the leap off that cliff and live to fight another day. (Just don't move the team to Bolivia. That would not end well.)

Tough crowd in here. Guess I just don't see how this list can be considered a disappointment. Because there's a lack of presence of "top prospects?" BFD. I choose to be encouraged by this list. I think we all recognize that Buxton and Sano would have been at/near the top, had they played this year. Vargas and Pinto would have been if they hadn't "graduated." So this top 6 is, realistically, a group that constitutes perhaps the bottom half of the top 10 of minor league hitters in the organization right now. To relegate them, as a group, to potential bench player status is a bit myopic, I think. Every good MLB team needs to find and develop good, regular, starting position players from among guys who didn't get huge money signing bonuses and, from what we've seen this year, there are a lot of players who have the potential to be exactly that. Not all of them will, obviously, but I doubt many organizations have this much potential in that area. I wish more of them were knocking on the Target Field clubhouse door, of course. 9 of the 15 spent time in Fort Myers (gosh, wonder if that had anything to do with that FSL championship) and three others didn't get beyond low A. But Sano and Buxton make me feel a little better and you can hope for a better season out of Rosario next year, too, so when you add them to Arcia, Santana, Vargas and Pinto, even the near-term doesn't look as hopeless on the offensive side of the diamond as it has in recent years.

While the current edition of the Cedar Rapids Kernels have been making their way through the Midwest League playoffs this week, a group of 20 Kernels alumni are on the verge of claiming the first Florida State League championship in franchise history for the Fort Myers Miracle. (Click here for David Dorsey's story on the Miracle's pursuit of a championship)Since their permanent home, Hammond Stadium, is undergoing major remodeling, the Miracle won the first two games of their best-of-five championship series with Daytona (Cubs) on Thursday and Friday in their temporary home park, JetBlue Stadium. They will need to win one of the next three games, all in Daytona, to claim the championship title. Thirteen active members of the Miracle suited up for the Cedar Rapids Kernels in 2013, when the club put together an 88-50 overall record before getting bounced from the Midwest League playoffs by eventual MWL champion, Quad Cities. Two additional ‘13 Kernels are currently on the Miracle Disabled List. The Kernels can also claim Fort Myers pitching coach Gary Lucas as an alum. Lucas was the Kernels’ pitching coach a year ago. Six current members of the Miracle (and one on their DL) were promoted to Fort Myers this season after spending time with the Kernels. The recent addition of outfielder Jeremias Pineda to the Miracle roster from Elizabethton accounts for the 20th former Kernel on their roster. Pineda spent time on the Cedar Rapids roster in both 2013 and 2014. Here’s a list of the Kernels alumni currently pursuing a FSL championship ring: 2013 (1 coach, 13 active, 2 DL) Gary Lucas - pitching coach Madison Boer P Steven Gruver P David Hurlbut P (DL) Tyler Jones P Zack Jones P Brett Lee P Tim Shibuya P (DL) Matt Tomshaw P Tyler Grimes C/IF Jairo Rodriguez C Niko Goodrum IF Dalton Hicks IF Travis Harrison OF Max Kepler OF Adam Brett Walker II OF 2014 (6 active, 1 DL) Nick Burdi P Ethan Mildren P Alex Muren P (DL) Brandon Peterson P Todd Van Steensel P Bryan Haar IF Jason Kanzler OF BOTH 2013 and 2014: Jeremias Pineda OF Click here to view the article

While the current edition of the Cedar Rapids Kernels have been making their way through the Midwest League playoffs this week, a group of 20 Kernels alumni are on the verge of claiming the first Florida State League championship in franchise history for the Fort Myers Miracle. (Click here for David Dorsey's story on the Miracle's pursuit of a championship) http://knuckleballsblog.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/Walker1.jpg Adam Brett Walker lines a home run vs Clinton on September 2, 2013. Walker led the FSL in HR and RBI this season for the Fort Myers Miracle Since their permanent home, Hammond Stadium, is undergoing major remodeling, the Miracle won the first two games of their best-of-five championship series with Daytona (Cubs) on Thursday and Friday in their temporary home park, JetBlue Stadium. They will need to win one of the next three games, all in Daytona, to claim the championship title. Thirteen active members of the Miracle suited up for the Cedar Rapids Kernels in 2013, when the club put together an 88-50 overall record before getting bounced from the Midwest League playoffs by eventual MWL champion, Quad Cities. Two additional ‘13 Kernels are currently on the Miracle Disabled List. The Kernels can also claim Fort Myers pitching coach Gary Lucas as an alum. Lucas was the Kernels’ pitching coach a year ago. Six current members of the Miracle (and one on their DL) were promoted to Fort Myers this season after spending time with the Kernels. The recent addition of outfielder Jeremias Pineda to the Miracle roster from Elizabethton accounts for the 20th former Kernel on their roster. Pineda spent time on the Cedar Rapids roster in both 2013 and 2014. Here’s a list of the Kernels alumni currently pursuing a FSL championship ring: 2013 (1 coach, 13 active, 2 DL) Gary Lucas - pitching coach Madison Boer P Steven Gruver P David Hurlbut P (DL) Tyler Jones P Zack Jones P Brett Lee P Tim Shibuya P (DL) Matt Tomshaw P Tyler Grimes C/IF Jairo Rodriguez C Niko Goodrum IF Dalton Hicks IF Travis Harrison OF Max Kepler OF Adam Brett Walker II OF 2014 (6 active, 1 DL) Nick Burdi P Ethan Mildren P Alex Muren P (DL) Brandon Peterson P Todd Van Steensel P Bryan Haar IF Jason Kanzler OF BOTH 2013 and 2014: Jeremias Pineda OF

Yeah, St. Peter chose to react indignantly, which doesn't surprise me. I get that he wanted to have his marketing staff's back, but showing some semblance of a sense of humor would have been good. The survey thing is what it is. I doubt the survey was drafted by anyone with the Twins. Typically, these things are done by a consultant group. In most cases, I would bet they use the same survey questions every year and they use them for all of their client companies. Only by applying that level of consistency will they be able to both compare their own results from year to year AND compare themselves with other clients of that consultant group, both within their own sports/entertainment industry and outside their industry. So the media essentially picked one question out of perhaps hundreds and used it to poke some fun at the Twins by removing all context. Wow, how unusual, right? Frankly, I don't think the survey question was nearly as reflective of organizational tone deafness as St. Peter's reaction was. The Twins president can repeat, "We get it," over and over if it makes him feel better, but there are just so many examples out there that they really don't "get it." And his reaction is just another example demonstrating that.

Assuming the core does go to AA (wherever the Twins affiliate may be) next year, they'll really just be a phone call away from Target Field. They should be reunited with Polanco and Buxton at AA to start the season anyway (maybe even Sano?). Frankly, that's your next batch of contending Twins position players.

That core group of players is pretty special. They won the Appy title together in '13 and won a ton of games in CR before a disappointing early playoff exit last year. Winning is important to them and I like to see that in minor leaguers.

Admittedly biased, but I might have chosen Batts as the POD over Tomshaw. The CR starting pitchers remain on some pretty strict pitch counts and Batts knew he had to attack the zone rather than work for Ks. He was pretty impressive doing so.

I'm not sure anyone suggested it's a prayer he'll attain mop-up reliever status. The suggestion that he may eventually be best utilized as a closer or other back-end bullpen arm has been out there since he was acquired. I think Meyer is still the most promising hope for a top-of-the-rotation pitcher with an ETA of 2015 that the Twins have in their system. But I don't feel he lived up to my lofty hopes coming in to the season. Admittedly, my hopes may have been unrealisticly influenced by a few AzFL appearances.

For the little that it's worth, I believe the gap has narrowed a little, because Thorpe has been more impressive than I expected, while Stewart has been about right what I hoped he would be. In November, I put out my personal "Top 15" Twins prospects. I had Stewart at 5 and Thorpe at 11. I haven't really given a lot of thought to this year's list yet, but just eyeballing, I'd guess Stewart will stay about where he was and Thorpe will move up 2-3 spots. Stewart's year might normally warrant a little jump, but that's tough to do when guys like Buxton, Sano and Meyer didn't "graduate" from prospect status ahead of him, as we might have hoped 1 or 2 would have. Just means the top 5-6 guys this coming year are probably even stronger than the top 5-6 were coming in to the current season, and that's pretty encouraging.

As the person who probably started the thread regarding the Kernels' dilema re starting pitchers bumping up against inning limits, I think we need to understand one thing. The approx 70 innings that the 3 lefties involved (Thorpe, Gonsalves and Batts) have thrown is a bit misleading. Batts threw something like 100 innings at UNC-Wilmington this spring, so he's north of 160 IP on the year. The official innings count on Gonsalves and Thorpe didn't start until June when they joined E'town and CR, respectively. They didn't spend April and May playing soccer. They were in Extended Spring Training getting regular work in live situations. They just don't keep public/official stats for those outings, so there's no way for the public to really know how many innings they went before their official seasons started. I think it's probably safe to assume they each threwat least 20 innings per month, putting them both at somewhere around 100 innings on the season right now. That's a fair amount more than what they threw a year ago when they both split time between rookie league rotations and bullpens. It's the additional workload this year over the innings put on their young arms a year ago that the Twins are closely regulating. All of that said, I think you can usually tell when a young pitcher is hitting a wall and should be shut down. (see Berrios, Jose, Aug 2013) and none of these 3 pitchers seems to be laboring all that much at all their last few starts, to my admittedly amateur eyes. Thorpe's pressed a bit with his command and ended up walking a couple more guys than usual in each of his last couple starts, but that's been about the only notable thing I've seen with any of them. Anyway, my point really was simply that you can't just go by official IPs for guys whose seasons didn't start until June. They were pitching somewhere before that.

I'm certainly no expert on the Cards' philosophy, but the question that always comes to my mind when I think about this approach is, "how does that work if you also have a policy of not allowing a young pitcher's innings to exceed their prior season's by more than X%?" If we assume the Twins won't allow a Meyer or a May or a Berrios to exceed, say for example, 130% of the innings pitched the previous year, wouldn't putting that pitcher in a MLB bullpen for a year (or even half a season) lower his innings pitched that season to a level where he would be significantly limited whenever you did determine he should be a starter? How do the Cards deal with this? Do they really have a promising potential starter throw 70-80 innings out of the pen one year and then plug him in to the rotation with no innings limit the next? If we would want to see Meyer in the Twins' pen to open 2015 and, as a result, he throws maybe 100 innings (including some late season or spot starts), would he be limited then in 2016 to 130-140 innings? Is that what we would want? I'm not taking a side on this argument. I genuinely want to know if that would be deemed a good approach.

So I guess the question you have to ask yourself is, would an elite FA pitcher be more likely to view the Twins as a possible landing spot with the same Manager/Pitching Coach they've had for years and, most recently, through soon-to-be 4 years of 90+ loss seasons OR with a brand new Manager/Pitching Coach duo? Honestly, I think different pitchers could look at that different ways, but I'm not sure either one lends itself to being a real selling point. But I suspect elite pitchers are less concerned about who the pitching coach is than we might think. They don't view themselves as likely to need much coaching. Also, re: the "no team outside the top 10 in revenue has bought elite pitching" debate. I think that's a pretty bad comp to make. How many of those teams clearly had the payroll space to spend (and even overspend if necessary) in a bidding contest for an elite pitcher? Few, if any. But the Twins find themselves in a unique spot right now in that regard. For the next several years, the only significant salary they are likely to have on the books is Joe Mauer's. Perhaps, depending on your definition of "significant," you might add Glen Perkins. But for years the studs on this team will be cost controlled. The Twins ranking among MLB teams in revenues is dropping every year. There's a reason for that. But they aren't THAT far behind some of the teams that are in the top 10 and they SHOULD be in that range. They WOULD be with a competitive team. I get that it's unlikely an elite FA pitcher would want to pitch for Minnesota right now. I understand that it's equally unlikely that the Twins would pursue such a pitcher anyway. Just saying I believe that not having such a pitcher IS a flaw in the roster that the FO at least could/should be attempting to remedy via trade or free agency.

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I do understand that difference. That said, when a team like the Twins is in a situation like they are right now, having failed to develop such a pitcher for over a decade AND with the payroll flexibility to afford to take a chance or two, I still believe it's something they need to do IF the situation presents itself where it's an option. They obviously can't force any elite pitcher to go to Minn. That top of the rotation leader is just about as important to a true contending MLB team as a QB is to a contending NFL team. Maybe even moreso.

At the risk of cross-pollenating MinnCentric boards, daanderson20 over at VikingsJournal has a good article posted concerning the QB position that, to some degree, expresses how I feel about the Twins' starting pitching situation. http://vikingsjournal.com/_/minnesota-vikings-news/a-lesson-from-the-ponder-era-r66 I quote: The quarterback position isn't "settled" until you have a top-10 guy that can win playoff games. Don't reach for guys, don't use first round draft picks necessarily, but the Vikings should be drafting or finding a young QB to develop every year or two until they find the Guy. There should be a quarterback competition in every training camp until they have the Guy. That's pretty much how I feel about the importance of the Twins continuing to look for a true ace starting pitcher. Not just a "potential #1," but an elite SP. Hughes has been great. Better than any of us had any right to expect, even those of us who liked the signing. The Twins' SPs for years have been so bad that, by comparison, he certainly LOOKS like an ace at times. And maybe he will be, with improved defensive support around him and a full season of offense along the lines of what we've seen in August. Or maybe Alex Meyer will be a true ace. Or maybe JO Berrios. Or maybe Kohl Stewart some day. Maybe. But, if you're really serious about being an elite baseball team, you can't be satisfied with maybes. I largely agree with much of Nick's premise. There aren't many obvious holes to fill. But I'm going to be honest and say that I will only believe the Twins are serious about competing in 2015 if they make a concerted effort to lure an elite SP to Minnesota. I don't even know what may be available, via FA or trade, but not making that effort will tell me the FO is continuing a "slow build" and will be satisfied with something close to a .500 record in 2015 while they merely hope for the arrival of their ace in 2016 or later.

I suppose "resigning" from an unpaid writing gig just to avoid some icewater would be an over-reaction, wouldn't it?

Sorry, Seth (et al), but I didn't see the question before I went to the ballpark this afternoon. Fortunately (and perhaps a bit scary), I was thinking along the same lines as Seth and asked Jake pretty much this same question before the Kernels game Friday night. Mauer wasn't going to say what exactly the innings limit is for his pitchers, but he did confirm that EST innings are factored in to the limits the team places on the young arms once they are assigned to an affiliate. After the game, Mauer indicated that he's hopeful he'll get the okay from the Twins for Batts to pitch game 2 of the first playoff series on Thursday. Absolutely, the Twins put a priority on development and protecting the arms of their young assets. But innings pitched are just one factor that go in to measuring how much stress has been placed on a guy's arm. I get the sense that there may be a little bit of wiggle room that may allow some the pitchers to contribute something to the playoff efforts. The Kernels players have their exit physicals scheduled for 9 am Saturday morning. The results may well influence who is allowed to do what in the playoff run.

Welcome to life as a minor league manager. The Cedar Rapids Kernels have some of the best pitching in Class A baseball right now. So why isn't Jake Mauer smiling and confident heading in to the MWL playoffs next week? Jim Ecker's report (click to read) following Thursday night's loss to Kane County reflects one of the challenges Mauer and other minor league managers face at this time of year. One night, your team is popping chamgagne corks (or in this case, sparkling cider), celebrating earning a top playoff seed and the next night you're slapped in the face with the cold reality of organizational innings limits on the young arms on your pitching staff.The Twins have generally been using 6-man rotations at their Class A levels to hold their young starters' innings down, theoretically allowing them to get through entire full-season schedules without having to be shut down early. However, for various reasons, the Kernels have not had the luxury of utilizing a 6-man rotation through most of the second half of their season. That appears to be catching up to the team and its manager now, as three young rotation lefties are nearing their organizationally determined innings limits for 2014. Lewis Thorpe, Stephen Gonsalves and Mat Batts have all been major contributors to the Kernels success in the second half of the season. With Kohl Stewart sidelined by two trips to the DL, those three pitchers have been crucial cogs in the machinery that is the Kernels' rotation. Earlier this week, Chih-Wei Hu was tabbed as the likely starting pitcher for Wedneday's game 1 of the 3-game first round series against Burlington. "We're still staying with Hu," Mauer said after Thursday's game. "The other guys we don't know yet. We haven't gotten word from on top (from the Twins). "We're running into some innings issues with the three lefties. We're going to need clearance to figure out who can go and who can't." Thorpe has thrown 67.2 innings this season, all with the Kernels since joining the team during the first week of June. Gonsalves has notched 62 innings, split relatively evenly between Elizabethton and Cedar Rapids. Batts has 58.2 innings under his belt after spending time with the GCL Twins and E'town before joining the Kernels. Of course, all three pitchers did some pitching in extended spring training before starting their official seasons in June. Batts is the scheduled starter against Kane County in Friday night's regular season home finale in Cedar Rapids. Gonsalves and Thorpe are scheduled to start games Saturday and Sunday in Clinton. If the three left-handers are not available to start postseason games, it leaves just Hu and Ryan Eades available among the current rotation members. Stewart is scheduled to throw a bullpen session today (Friday) and could be reactivated over the weekend if that session goes well. Beyond that, it's guesswork. Josue Montanez has filled a swingman role in his career with the Twins organization. Hudson Boyd was stretched out to three innings of work Thursday night. Obviously, priority 1 for the Twins is making sure this stable of promising young arms remain healthy on what is, at best, a precarious route to Target Field. The situation in Cedar Rapids, if nothing else, serves as an answer to the questions that come up during the season from fans wondering why some of the lower level minor league teams use 6-man rotations or why certain pitchers are only throwing 4-5 innings per start. In the meantime, you get the feeling maybe Jake Mauer wouldn't mind seeing Clinton, Iowa, get about three days of torrential rain over the Labor Day weekend. Click here to view the article

Welcome to life as a minor league manager. The Cedar Rapids Kernels have some of the best pitching in Class A baseball right now. So why isn't Jake Mauer smiling and confident heading in to the MWL playoffs next week? Jim Ecker's report (click to read) following Thursday night's loss to Kane County reflects one of the challenges Mauer and other minor league managers face at this time of year. One night, your team is popping chamgagne corks (or in this case, sparkling cider), celebrating earning a top playoff seed and the next night you're slapped in the face with the cold reality of organizational innings limits on the young arms on your pitching staff. The Twins have generally been using 6-man rotations at their Class A levels to hold their young starters' innings down, theoretically allowing them to get through entire full-season schedules without having to be shut down early. However, for various reasons, the Kernels have not had the luxury of utilizing a 6-man rotation through most of the second half of their season. That appears to be catching up to the team and its manager now, as three young rotation lefties are nearing their organizationally determined innings limits for 2014. Lewis Thorpe, Stephen Gonsalves and Mat Batts have all been major contributors to the Kernels' success in the second half of the season. With Kohl Stewart sidelined by two trips to the DL, those three pitchers have been crucial cogs in the machinery that is the Kernels' rotation. Earlier this week, Chih-Wei Hu was tabbed as the likely starting pitcher for Wedneday's game 1 of the 3-game first round series against Burlington. "We're still staying with Hu," Mauer said after Thursday's game. "The other guys we don't know yet. We haven't gotten word from on top (from the Twins). "We're running into some innings issues with the three lefties. We're going to need clearance to figure out who can go and who can't." Thorpe has thrown 67.2 innings this season, all with the Kernels since joining the team during the first week of June. http://knuckleballsblog.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/P8150251-2-600x449.jpg Stephen Gonsalves Gonsalves has notched 62 innings, split relatively evenly between Elizabethton and Cedar Rapids. Batts has 58.2 innings under his belt after spending time with the GCL Twins and E'town before joining the Kernels. Of course, all three pitchers did some pitching in extended spring training before starting their official seasons in June. Batts is the scheduled starter against Kane County in Friday night's regular season home finale in Cedar Rapids. Gonsalves and Thorpe are scheduled to start games Saturday and Sunday in Clinton. If the three left-handers are not available to start postseason games, it leaves just Hu and Ryan Eades available among the current rotation members. Stewart is scheduled to throw a bullpen session today (Friday) and could be reactivated over the weekend if that session goes well. Beyond that, it's guesswork. Josue Montanez has filled a swingman role in his career with the Twins organization. Hudson Boyd was stretched out to three innings of work Thursday night. Obviously, priority 1 for the Twins is making sure this stable of promising young arms remain healthy on what is, at best, a precarious route to Target Field. The situation in Cedar Rapids, if nothing else, serves as an answer to the questions that come up during the season from fans wondering why some of the low level minor league teams use 6-man rotations or why certain pitchers are only throwing 4-5 innings per start. In the mean time, you get the feeling maybe Jake Mauer wouldn't mind seeing Clinton, Iowa, get about three days of torrential rain over the Labor Day weekend.

It's a technicality, perhaps, but Kane County would likely take exception to saying CR has clinched the 2nd half Division title, since the Cougars still have a 2 game lead over the Kernels in the standings. But CR did clinch a 1 seed in the playoffs by virtue of having the best record of any team that didn't clinch a spot in the 1st half. Kane County won the first half West title, so they automatically have a 1 seed locked up anyway. Of note, the Gazette's Jeff Johnson reported after the game that manager Jake Mauer said that Chih-Wei Hu would pitch game 1 on Sept 3 and that they are hoping Kohl Stewart will be activated before the end of the regular season.

Sounds like whoever released the full roster didn't get the word that the Twins were reconsidering Burdi.

Sorry, I did not drive down to the QC game. I don't believe the Kernels pitchers retaliate for every HBP their batters get. That said, if in fact the team believed that one or more of the two HBPs were intentional, then I absolutely believe it would be possible (perhaps even likely) that the Bandit was plunked intentionally. Nobody goes head-hunting, but yeah, I think they would send a message that you can't go gunning at their hitters without consequence.