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It was a shock to see the Twins elect to designate Byungho Park for assignment. There was plenty of speculation over who would be removed from the 40-man roster to make room for Matt Belisle, but nobody suggested it would be Park, who was just signed last winter.Looking at some of the other moves made under Derek Falvey, maybe we should have known better. It's becoming clear a goal of this offseason has been to eliminate redundancies. Last offseason, the Twins were faced with the challenge of figuring out what to do with Miguel Sano, thanks in large part to the assumption Park would take over at DH. The team could have been faced with a similar situation this year, but among Falvey's first moves was to non-tender Trevor Plouffe. Boom, problem solved. For better or worse, the team is now firmly committed to Sano at third base, his natural position. It appears, for now at least, the same could be said in regard to Kennys Vargas at DH. It remains to be seen whether or not the team signs a veteran slugger such as Mike Napoli, but it's clear now they have made the decision to prioritize Vargas over Park. There was really no reason to make that call this early, especially since Vargas has another option year. But the previous regime was criticized for dragging its feet in regard to making a decision on Plouffe's future, so it's difficult to argue with this move. As unnecessary as it seems, it does provides clarity. Of course, it's entirely possible Park remains in the Twins organization. But at that point he will no longer be on the 40-man roster, creating an even greater obstacle for him to return to Target Field. Regardless of any unforeseen additions, Vargas will not have that same issue. There have been a couple of other, minor moves this offseason in which Falvey and Co. have made tough decisions on similarly skilled players. It was unlikely both Adam Brett Walker and Daniel Palka were ever going to coexist, given their similarities. Walker had a crazy ride on the waiver/DFA roller coaster before landing with the Braves. That leaves Palka as the team's lone young slugging outfielder in Triple A. Behind the plate, the careers of Mitch Garver and Stuart Turner were intertwined, but much like with Walker/Palka, it was clear at some point the team would have to pick between the two. Turner was selected in the Rule 5 Draft by the Reds and will compete for the backup catcher spot in spring training. Turner has a realistic opportunity to break camp with the Reds, but if he's returned to the Twins it's more clear now than ever that he's behind Garver in the catching pecking order. Given the team's new depth behind the dish, Turner may even have to go back to Double A if he's returned to the organization. It never seems to be a good thing when an organization loses a player and receives nothing in return, which could be the case with Park. But sometimes such a departure can create huge opportunities just by opening up playing time for other guys in the org. So, looking ahead, what could be next for the Twins' roster makeover? Overshadowed by the Park DFA was the news that Trevor May is going to be given every opportunity to be a starting pitcher this season. With May in the mix, the Twins have no shortage of starting pitching options. Somebody will more than likely be pushed to the bullpen (Tyler Duffey?). With the addition of Belisle, however, things are looking very competitive among the reliever corps, as well. Some time between now and Opening Day, it's entirely possible we'll see another surprise move or two by the front office in order to provide clarity on the pitching staff. Click here to view the article

Today, we continue to look at and recognize Minnesota Twins prospects. We've already discussed my choices for prospects 21-50, and now we enter the Top 20. This is a diverse group in that there are two prospects who will remain teenagers until at least spring training of 2017. They have already performed well for full-season teams. The other three in today's list are players that we could very well see in a Twins uniform sometime in 2017 thanks to putting up numbers in the upper levels. If you've missed any of the previous installments, check them out here: Part 1 (41-50) Part 2 (31-40) Part 3 (26-30) Part 4 (21-25) And then feel free to join the conversation. Ask questions, start thinking about your Top 30 or Top 50 list.Players eligible to be on this list include players who remain eligible for Rookie of the Year voting in 2017. That is to say, hitters with less than 130 at-bats and pitchers with less than 50 innings. (The list is preliminary. Following research for the Minnesota Twins Prospect Handbook 2017 - which Cody Christie, Jeremy Nygaard and I are working on - I’ll provide my final Top 30 prospects list.) Top Prospects 21-25 #20 – Lachlan Wells - 19 – LHP – Cedar Rapids Kernels The Twins signed Wells out of Australia in August of 2014. He came to the States in 2015 and pitched very well in the GCL. He went 5-2 with a 2.09 ERA in 47.1 innings. He began the 2016 season back in Extended Spring Training, but just as the short-season leagues were starting, he was promoted to Cedar Rapids. He was very good. In 12 starts, Wells went 6-4 with a 1.77 ERA and a 1.02 WHIP. In 71.1 innings, he walked 16 and struck out 63. Wells works in the low-90s, has three pitches and gets good movement from a somewhat funky delivery. Wells won’t turn 20 until the end of February. #19 – Luis Arraez - 19 – 2B – Cedar Rapids Kernels Arraez had a solid US debut in 2015 in the GCL. He hit .306/.377/.388 (.765) with 15 doubles and a triple. He began the 2016 season in Cedar Rapids. He was just 18 years old for the first ten days of the season. He became an everyday player about a week into the season and didn’t give it up. He hit, and hit, and hit, and hit. He ended the season hitting .347/.386/.444 (.830) with 31 doubles, three triples and three home runs. Signed as a 16-year-old from Venezuela in 2013, Arraez is listed at 5-10 and 155 pounds. He weighs more than that. Arraez is a hitter. He is a solid leadoff hitter despite not taking a lot of walks. He knows the strike zone and he is able to work a lot of long at-bats. He’s not fast. He played mostly second base, but they also had him DH quite frequently. He’s got work to do, but he can hit. #18 – Jake Reed - 24 – RH RP – Chattanooga Lookouts/Rochester Red Wings Jake Reed was the Twins fifth-round pick in 2014 out of Oregon. His pro debut was very impressive. He gave up one earned run in 31 innings. He then went to the Arizona Fall League where he gave up one run in 12.2 innings. He skipped Ft. Myers to start the 2015 season, but late in the year, he was sent back to the Miracle where he found things again. He returned to the AFL and gave up zero runs over 10.2 innings. He was invited to big league spring training and started in Chattanooga again. He struggled for the season’s first two months, but he posted WHIP under 1.00 the final three months of the year. He spent August in AAA Rochester where he posted a 1.69 ERA and a 0.94 WHIP. Reed throws hard, hitting 98 often. He’s got a very sharp slider. He also gets a ton of movement which sometimes can lead to some walks, and some strikeouts. Reed just turned 24 last week. He should be invited to big league camp again this year with an opportunity to make his debut sometime in 2017. #17 – Adam Brett Walker - 24 – OF – Rochester Red Wings No prospect in recent years has given readers of Twins Daily more to discuss. Walker has become a polarizing talent in the system. And there is no question that he has talent. The Twins used their third-round pick in 2012 on the slugger from Jacksonville University. There is the bad, for sure. He strikes out a lot and isn’t a great defensive outfielder. However, he has continued to move up one level each year and continued to produce despite the strikeouts. However, there is the good too. Walker has as much power as anyone in the organization, big leagues or minor leagues. He led his league in home runs his first four minor league seasons. His 27 homers in AAA this year was good for second in the International League. He is a run producer. He will most likely spend a significant amount of time in Rochester again in 2017. Over the first three months, he struck out 42% of the time. After July 1, he struck out 34% of the time. Staying at the same level, will he be able to continue adjusting and reduce that percentage even more? #16 – Mitch Garver - 25 – C/1B – Chattanooga Lookouts/Rochester Red Wings Garver was the Twins ninth-round draft pick in 2014 out of New Mexico. In his first full season, he was the Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Year in 2014 in Cedar Rapids. He moved up to Ft. Myers for 2015. He hit very well in the Arizona Fall League a year ago. For the second straight year, he was brought to big league spring training. He began 2016 in Chattanooga where he hit .257/.334/.419 (.753) with 25 doubles, 11 homers and 66 RBI in 95 games. He was promoted to Rochester where he hit .329/.381/.434 (.815) with five doubles and a homer in 22 games. Garver is a solid, doubles hitter who could provide value as a catcher. The question with some earlier in his career was his defense. It was a work-in-progress early, but word started coming out in 2016 that his defense had improved to the point where there was much more comfort in his ability to catch in the big leagues. His pitching framing and caught-stealing percentage numbers were very strong in 2016. He heads back to the Arizona Fall League, and he is certain to be added to the Twins 40-man roster in November. He’ll head back to big league spring training and, pending free agent moves or trades, he will have a chance to be a big leaguer early in 2017, if not on Opening Day. So there you have it, my choices for Twins prospects 16-20. We’ll be back tomorrow with Part 6, Prospects 11-15. Click here to view the article

I can’t believe that it is already Labor Day. For most of our Minnesota readers, that means school starts tomorrow! The Dog Days of August can be difficult in a long minor league season. We saw yesterday how the starting pitchers were excellent during the month. Today, we consider the top hitters in the Twins system in August. Who ended the season strong? In case you missed it, here were the previous August winners: Starting Pitcher of the Month, Stephen GonsalvesRelief Pitcher of the Month, Jake ReedWhile the pitching did seem to be a bit above the hitting during the month, there were several hitters that had strong August performances as well. Congratulations to all of the players mentioned below. HONORABLE MENTION OF Shane Carrier (Elizabethton) - .296/.327/.454 (.781). 32-108 with seven doubles, two triples, two home runs and 13 RBIs.OF Jaylin Davis (Cedar Rapids) - .253/.333/.451 (.784). 23-91 with six doubles, four homers and 10 RBIss.IF Nelson Molina (Cedar Rapids) - .319/.376/.429 (.805). 29-91 with four doubles, two homers and seven RBIs.C John Ryan Murphy (Rochester) - .328/.361/.448 (.809). 19-58 with one doubles, two homers and ten RBIs.OF Daniel Palka (Rochester) - .228/.282/.525 (.807). 23-101 with six doubles, eight home runs and 13 RBIs.C Stuart Turner (Chattanooga) - .303/.321/.434 (.755). 23-76 with seven doubles, one homer and 12 RBIs.THE TOP SIX HITTERS Number 6 – Ft. Myers/Chattanooga – 3B TJ White - .312/.360/.473 (.833). 29-93 with six doubles, three triples, one home run and 15 RBIs. White was set to have a big season. At 5-11 and 230 pounds, he is incredibly strong, but he also runs very well. After a few games with the Miracle, he was moved up to AA due to some injuries. He struggled for a couple of months before finally being sent back to Ft. Myers where he again played quite well. He was again promoted to Chattanooga mid-month and has been very good since, much more ready. He’s got power potential, but for such a big, strong young man he gets a lot of triples and runs real well. A high school teammate of Rangers prospect Joey Gallo, White went to UNLV. The Twins used their 18th-round pick in 2014 on him. Number 5 – Ft. Myers – OF Joe Maloney - .330/.367/.477 (.845). 29-88 with seven doubles, two home runs and 14 RBIs. Maloney was the independent leagues player of the year in 2015. The Twins signed the catcher following the season. After a strong showing in spring training, he began the year in Chattanooga. With Mitch Garver and Stuart Turner on the roster, Maloney spent his time at DH and in the outfield. Midseason, he was struggling and was sent back to Ft. Myers where he started slow. However, he took off in August, hitting for average and showing good power in the Florida State League. Number 4 – Chattanooga – OF Zack Granite - .316/.354/.410 (.765). 37-117 with five doubles, three triples and 14 RBIss. Granite is no stranger to these hitter of the month awards articles. The speedy center fielder has had a terrific season with the Lookouts. He has been everything you would want from a leadoff man. He’s hit for average, been able to get on base, and even shown a little more pop in his bat than he has in the past. For the month, he hit over .300 and displayed his speed with the extra- base hits. He also stole 15 bases during the month. He currently sits at 55 steals for the season. He was also named to the Southern League’s postseason All-Star team this month. Granite was the team’s 14th-round pick in 2013 out of Seton Hall. Number 3 - Elizabethton/Cedar Rapids – 2B Travis Blankenhorn - .320/.371/.495 (.866) 31-97 with seven doubles, two triples, two homers and 15 RBIs. Blankenhorn has had a very good year with the bat in 2016. He was the Twins tihrd-round pick last year out of high school in Pennsylvania. He split last season between the GCL and Elizabethton. He began this season at extended spring training, in part learning to play second base. He demolished the Appy League and was soon promoted to Cedar Rapids where he has continued to hit. While his defensive position remains uncertain, his bat has kept him in the lineup most days. He had a big month in August, hitting for average, showing some speed and hitting a couple of Kernels homers. Number 2 - Elizabethton – 1B Lewin Diaz - .333/.381/.564 (945). 26-78 with four doubles, one triple, four homers and 13 RBIs. Late last week, we named Lewin Diaz our Short Season Hitter of the Year. When the season is just over two months, a strong month can propel a guy to such an award. Diaz was terrific in August. He hit for average, got on base and showed the tremendous power potential one might hope for in a 250 pound young man. The 19-year-old maybe should be ranked higher this month, but with playing time split more in the rookie leagues, he has 20-30 fewer plate appearances than others. However, Diaz is starting to become what the Twins envisioned when making him a big-money sign from the Dominican in 2014. Number 1B - Cedar Rapids – 2B Luis Arraez - .425/.444/.487 (913). 48-113 with seven doubles and 18 RBIs. Update - Due to Labor Day and the author of this article apparently began researching for the Hitter of the Month with the B's instead of the A's. Arraez had an incredible season with the Kernels and he has had many multi-hit games. His .347 average led the Midwest League. He became the youngest player to lead the MWL in hitting since Mike Trout. Still just 19, Arraez will advance to Ft. Myers in 2017. And the Twins Minor League Hitter of the Month is: Rochester – OF Adam Brett Walker - .269/.314/.537 (.851). 29-108 with four doubles, two triples, seven home runs and 21 RBI. Walker is not a stranger to appearing in hitter of the month award articles. He’s won a few and ranked highly several other times. In August, he again showed the type of power that he has. While he’ll never hit for a big average, and he’ll strike out too much, he has come a long way since the Twins used their third-round pick in 2012 on the strong outfielder. As I wrote last week, this is the fourth straight full-season that Walker has hit 25 or more home runs. He and Daniel Palka provided the Red Wings with some massive power in the middle of their lineup. When it comes to pure power, Walker (and Palka) are right up there with Miguel Sano for biggest in the organization. Walker was added to the Twins 40-man roster last November. With today being the last day of the Rochester season, it is possible he will earn his first big league call up today. There were a lot of real solid hitting performances in the Twins system in August. While there may not have been any 1.000 OPS months, there were quite a few in the .800-.900 range. Consolidating full-season players with the short-season players can be difficult. So, let me know what you think. Feel free to discuss the winner or any of the mentions in the comments. Congratulations to the Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Month for August, 2016, Adam Brett Walker. Click here to view the article

Daniel Palka enters the final weekend of the minor league season with 34 home runs. Can he rack up any more over the final four games of the season? 34 home runs is a pretty large number. I was chatting with Rochester radio man Josh Whetzel and we wondered aloud how often Twins minor leaguers have had that many home runs in a minor league season. You know me. I had to go do a little research, and it was a lot of fun! I went all the way back to 1961 when the Senators came to Minnesota and became the Twins. Do you remember the last time a Twins minor leaguer had as many as 34 home runs in a season?Well, give it some thought before continuing. Spend a couple of minutes thinking about the power hitting minor leaguers in your lifetime. If you’re my age you may remember that 1986 FLEER Major League Prospect card of Brewers prospect Billy Joe Robidoux and Twins prospect Mark Funderburk. Funderburk had debuted with the Twins late in the 1981 season and remained a prospect through the 1985 season. He had a little time with the Twins and hit a lot of minor league home runs. After Funderburk, you may remember Bernardo Brito. How about all those years when the Twins had some strong prospects in the late 90s in the Pacific Coast League? But how about minor leaguers in the ‘60s and ‘70s? How many of them hit 30 or more home runs? And, if you study the minor leagues from those early years, you’ll notice that there were a lot more minor league teams and levels like B, C and D and some A ball clubs and more. Here is a list of the Twins minor leaguers in their history who have hit 30 or more homers in a season. 1.) Tim Laudner - 42 in AA Orlando in 1981 2.) Moe Hill - 41 in A Wisconsin Rapids in 1977 3.) Stan Holmes - 37 in A Visalia in 1983 3.) Cotton Nash - 37 in AAA Portland in 1971 5.) Richard Means - 36 in A Charlotte in 1962 6.) Miguel Sano - 35 in FM/NB in 2013 6.) Danny Walton - 35 in AAA Tacoma in 1974 6.) Luis Lagunas - 35 in A WRK in 1966 9.) Daniel Palka - 34 in AA/AAA in 2016 9.) Mark Funderburk - 34 in AA Orlando in 1985 9.) Andy Kosco - 34 in AAA/WRK in 1965 12.) Cotton Nash - 33 in AAA Evansville in 1970 13.) Chad Rupp - 32 in AAA Salt Lake City in 1997 13.) Moe Hill - 32 in A Wisconsin Rapids in 1974 15.) Adam Brett Walker - 31 in AA Chattanooga in 2015 15.) Garrett Jones - 31 in A/AA (Ft. Myers/New Britain) in 2004 15.) Michael Ryan - 31 in AAA Edmonton in 2002 15.) David Ortiz - 31 in FM/NB/SLC in 1997 15.) Mark Funderburk - 31 in A Visalia in 1979 15.) Moe Hill - 31 in A Wisconsin Rapids in 1975 15.) Andy Kosco - 31 in A Wisconsin Rapids in 1964 15.) Chuck Weatherspoon - 31 in Class B Wilson in 1961 23.) Michael Cuddyer - 30 in AA New Britain in 2001 23.) David Ortiz - 30 in AAA Salt Lake City in 1999 23.) Matthew Lecroy - 30 in Ft. Myers/SLC in 1999 23.) Gary Gaetti - 30 in AA Orlando in 1981 23.) Moe Hill - 30 in A Wisconsin Rapids in 1976 23.) Randy Bass - 30 in A Lynchburg in 1974 23.) Gary Ward - 30 in A Wisconsin Rapids in 1974 23.) Bob Gorinsky - 30 in A Wisconsin Rapids in 1970 23.) Frank Leja - 30 in AAA Syracuse in 1961 So the answer to the question, who was the most recent Twins prospect to his 34 or more homers in a season is… Miguel Sano in 2013. Who knew? FSN Twins analyst, and 1987 World Champion Tim Laudner is on the top of this leaderboard with 42 home runs in AA in 1981. He debuted with the Twins in late August that year and in 14 big league games, he added two more home runs. In the 55 years since the Twins moved to Minnesota, 31 Twins minor leaguers have had seasons in which they hit 30 or more home runs. Some have done it multiple times, but the list of names is certainly interesting. There are some players who have become stars. Some have had solid MLB careers. A few had cups of coffee, and several never saw the big leagues. Some are familiar names to Twins fans and many likely have caused the word “Who?” to be uttered. MULTIPLE 25 HOME RUN SEASONS Did you know that there are ten players in Twins minor league history who have had multple seasons with 25 or more homers in the minor leagues? Here is that list. Andy Kosco - 1964-65 In 1964, Kosco hit 28 home runs in the Northern League. In 1965, he hit 27 in AAA Denver and seven more in Winter Rookie League ball. He had come to the Twins before the 1964 season . He played 89 games for the Twins between 1965 and 1967, hitting a combined 3 home runs. After leaving the Twins, he played for the Yankees, Dodgers, Brewers, Angels, Red Sox and Reds. He hit a combined 73 MLB home runs. Cotton Nash - 1970-71 The Twins have always had a connection to the University of Kentucky. . Cotton Nash played basketball for Adolph Rupp there and then played a year in the NBA. After two years, he played a season in the ABA. At the same time, he was playing minor league baseball in the White Sox system. He played three games with them, then came to the Twins organization. In 1970 in AA Evansville, he was 27 and hit 33 homers. He played four games for the Twins. The following year, he hit 37 homers in AAA Portland as a 28 year old but didn’t get called up to the Twins. In all, he played 10 games for the Twins between 1969 and 1970. He had no home runs in MLB. Randy Bass - 1974, 1977 Randy Bass was the Twins seventh-round pick in 1972. In 1974, he hit 30 homers for Lynchburg in the High-A Carolina League. He jumped to AAA and hit 18 and 21 in 1975 and 1976 , respectively. Then in 1977 at AAA Tacoma, he hit 25 homers. As a 23-year-old, he hit .321/.456/.560 (1.016). He was called up to the Twins late in the season and went 2-19. He hit a total of nine MLB homers for the Twins, Royals, Expos, Padres and Rangers. In 1983, he went to play in Japan and over the next six seasons, he hit a lot of home runs . In 1986, he hit 54 homers, and he hit another 47 homers in 1987. Stan Holmes - 1983 -1984 In 1983, Holmes was a 23-year-old and hit .302/.397/.586 (.983) with 37 homers. In 1984, he moved to Orlando and hit .280/.358/.485 (.843) with 25 homers. He spent several more years in the minors but never played in the major leagues. Moe Hill - 1974-1978 In five straight seasons Moe Hill hit 25 or more home runs. For eight straight seasons, he played for Class A Wisconsin Rapids. He had been in the Orioles organization from 1965-1968. He started playing for Wisconsin Rapids in 1971 and stayed there through the 1978 season. Remember, it was Low Class A ball. As a 24-year-old in 1974, he hit .339/.418/.621 (1.038) with 32 homers. He hit 31 homers in 1975, and 30 homers as a 29-year-old in 1976. As a 30-year-old and still in Low A, he hit .304/.420/.610 (1.030) with 41 homers. Then he hit 25 homers in 1978. The Twins let him go and he spent the next two seasons in the Royals system. It was such a strange situation that I had to go to an expert on Twins history. I contacted 1500 ESPN personality and Star Tribune columnist Patrick Reusse. Apparently Hill was a folk hero in Wisconsin Rapids. Since the Twins didn’t see him as much of a prospect, they kept him there. Not that there weren’t a few big supporters for Hill getting a call up to the big leagues. According to Reusse: “Twins didn't like to take advice from sports writers in those days, so the more (Tribune writer Mike) Gelfand wrote about it, the less chance there was the Twins would embrace such a gesture to a minor-league legend.” Mark Funderburk - 1978-80, 1985, 1987 Funderburk certainly had an interesting career. In 1978, he was a 21-year-old in Wisconsin Rapids. He hit .258 (.774) with 25 homers. In 1979, he moved up to Visalia where he hit .310/.384/.548 (.931) with 31 homers. He was a 23-year-old in 1980, playing in AA Orlando. He hit .250 (.762) with 26 home runs. He spent most of 1981 in AAA before spending eight games at season’s end with the Twins. He then spent 1982 in AA Orlando. He went to the Royals system in 1983 and ended up playing in Mexico that year too. He was out of baseball in 1984. He returned to the Twins in 1985> He was 28-years-old and in AA Orlando. He hit .283/.343/.520 (.863) with 34 homers. He finished the season by hitting .314 with an .879 OPS, and two home runs , in the big leagues. He hit just ten combined home runs between AA and AAA in 1986. In 1987, he was 30 and hit .250/.306/.498 (.863) with 28 homers. And that was the end of his pro baseball career. Bernardo Brito - 1990-92, 1994 Brito came to the Twins organization following the 1987 season from Cleveland. In 1990, he was a 26-year-old at AAA Portand. He hit .282/.330/.566 (.897) with 25 homers. In 1991, he was 27. Still in Portland, he hit .259/.311/.498 (.808) with 27 homers. In 1992, Brito hit .270/.313/.480 (.794) with 26 homers. In 1993, he hit 20 AAA homers and added four in the big leagues for the Twins. In 1994, he was 30 and played for Salt Lake. There, he hit .309/.353/.572 (.925) with 30 homers. Brito played in 40 games for the Twins between 1992, 1993 and 1995. He hit .219/.237/.466 (.703) with five homers in 76 plate appearances. I recall hearing about how much he struck out in the minor leaguers. He struck out between 20% and 25% of his plate appearances. David Ortiz - 1997, 1999 In 1997, Ortiz was 21 years old and split the season between Ft. Myers, New Britain and Salt Lake. He hit .317/.372/.568 (.940) with 31 homers. He hit 13 for the Miracle, 14 for the Rock Cats, four for Salt Lake. And, he added one more with the Twins. He spent most of 1998 with the Twins but returned to AAA in 1999. There, the 23-year-old hit .315/.412/.590 (1.002) with 29 homers. Miguel Sano - 2012-2013 In 2012, Sano was a 19-year-old playing in Beloit. He hit 28 home runs and hit .258/.373/.521 (.893). 2013 was even better. .He split the season between Ft. Myers and New Britain and hit a combined .280/.382/.610 (.992) with 35 homers. 16 came with the Miracle. 19 came with New Britain. Since then he missed a year with Tommy John surgery. He came back in 2015 and by July 1st, he was in the big leagues. Still just 23, he should have years of 30 home run seasons. Adam Brett Walker - 2013-2016 Walker was drafted in the third round of the 2012 draft out of Jacksonville, and he’s been hitting homers ever since. In Cedar Rapids in 2013, he hit .278 (.844) with 27 homers. As a 22-year-old in Ft. Myers in 2014, he hit .246 (.743) with 25 homers. In 2015 he moved up to AA Chattanooga and hit .239 (.807) with 31 homers. He led his league in homers each of those years. He is currently one homer behind the International League leader with 27 home runs for Rochester this year. Four more games to go! The 24-year-old is on the Twins 40-man roster and could be up by Tuesday for September. SUMMARY So, Palka has been one of the most prodigious home run hitters in Twins minor league history. Does it mean he’ll be a big, power-hitting big leaguer? Maybe, or maybe not. These lists are a good reminder that even with major minor league success, big league success isn’t guaranteed. However, the Red Wings power combination of Daniel Palka and Adam Brett Walker is very, very exciting. Hopefully we’ll see them both spend the majority of September in a Twins uniform. Click here to view the article

A couple of affiliates have already claimed playoff spots. A couple more still have a chance including the GCL Twins. The Rochester Red Wings had a tremendous last-inning comeback to keep their slim playoff choices alive. It was the return to the Red Wings’ mound for Jose Berrios. How did he do?There were seven games played by the six Twins affiliates on Wednesday. Enjoy today’s Twins Minor League Report. RED WINGS REPORT Rochester 4, Syracuse 3 Box Score Jose Berrios made his first start since returning to the Red Wings last week. It didn’t start out well. He gave up two runs in the first inning. Both came on a home run. Then in the sixth frame, he gave up a solo homer. All told, in eight innings, Berrios gave up three runs on five hits. He walked one and struck out 14 batters, including three in that eighth inning. 71 of his 100 pitches were strikes. Alan Busenitz worked a perfect ninth inning. The Red Wings offense didn’t do a lot. They didn’t have a run until the 7th inning when they got a single run. Down 3-1 going into the bottom of the ninth inning, the Red Wings were not ready to give in. Following singles from James Beresford and Kennys Vargas, Adam Brett Walker hit a two-run double to tie the game at three. Daniel Palka walked and Mitch Garver lined a single to center to load the bases. John Ryan Murphy played hero with a game-winning single to end it. In the 6th inning, Reynaldo Rodriguez pinch hit for Byron Buxton. There was no injury so the assumption is that he’s heading back to Minnesota to join the Twins. I’m certain we’ll find out more soon. UPDATE - per multiple sources, Buxton has indeed been called back up to the Twins. CHATTANOOGA CHATTER Chattanooga 2, Mississippi 6 Box Score Big innings are great when they happen for your team, less so when they happen to your team. Unfortunately, the Lookouts gave up a four-run second inning and were unable to complete the comeback. Felix Jorge gave up the four, second-inning runs, but then he threw five shutout innings after that. He came back out for the eighth inning but two batters in, he gave up a two-run homer to stretch the deficit. In all, Jorge was charged with six runs on 14 hits over the first seven innings. He walked none and struck out three. Brandon Peterson came on to get the final six outs. He gave up one hit and hit one, but gave up no runs over the final two innings. Engelb Vielma led the offense with his three-hit game. Edgar Corcino went 2-3 with a walk and his sixth double, which drove in a run. Niko Goodrum went 1-3 with a walk and an RBI triple. MIRACLE MATTERS Game 1 - Ft. Myers 2, Palm Beach 5 Box Score Miles Nordgren started for the Miracle in the first of two games on Wednesday. In four innings, he gave up four runs on seven hits, a walk and a hit batter. He struck out two. He had given up just one run in the first four innings. However, the first three batters of the fifth reached. One of the runs had already scored when John Curtiss entered. He allowed both inherited runners to score and one more of his own before getting the inning’s three outs. He pitched a scoreless sixth inning. The Miracle had just four hits in the game. Brian Olson was 1-2 with a walk and an RBI double, his second of the Miracle season. Brian Navarreto went 1-2 with a walk and his eighth double. Joe Maloney was 1-2 with a walk. Trey Vavra went 1-3 with a walk. Game 2 - Ft. Myers 1, Palm Beach 0 Box Score The two teams completed the game they had started a day before. On Tuesday, Cody Stashak started and threw 3.2 scoreless innings before the rains came. Those innings dropped his Miracle ERA to just 0.54. When they resumed play on Wednesday night, Michael Theofanopoulos entered. He got five outs and gave up only a walk. He struck out two.Nick Anderson picked up the final five outs to record his ninth save. He struck out two. As you can tell from the score, there wasn’t much offense. The lone run came when Christian Ibarra hit his fourth Miracle double to score Sean MIller who also had hit his fourth Miracle double. Alex Perez went 1-1 with two walks. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 2, Wisconsin 3 Box Score Sean Poppen made the start in Appleton for the Kernels. The right-hander went five innings and gave up three runs on four hits. He struck out seven without issuing a walk. Andrew Vasquez went the next 2.1 innings and didn’t allow a run. He gave up one hit, walked three and struck out three. Tom Hackimer came on and struck out the two batters he faced. Luis Arraez and Kevin Garcia each went 2-4. JJ Fernandez hit his eighth home run. Jaylin Davis drove in Arraez for the team’s first run. The loss ended the Kernels eight-game winning streak. E-TWINS E-NOTES Elizabethton 2, Greeneville 6 Box Score The E-Twins fell behind early. Domenick Carlini gave up five runs on nine hits over five innings. He struck out four. Johan Quezada threw the next three innings. The only base runner he allowed was a hit batter. He struck out two. Hector Lujan gave up a run on two hits in the ninth inning. Ariel Montesino led the offense. He went 2-4. Lewin Diaz added his 15th double. Andre Jernigan went 1-2 with a walk. GCL TWINS TAKES GCL Twins 1, GCL Rays 5 (10 innings) Box Score There certainly wasn’t a lot of offense in this game, at least not until the Rays batted in the 10th inning. In fact, the Twins had just four hits in the game. Jean Carlos Arias went 3-3 with a walk. He stole his sixth and seventh bases. He also drove in the team’s lone run. The other hit came off the bat of Aaron Whitefield. It was his seventh double. Jordan Balazovic started for the Twins. The Canadian gave up just one run over the first 3.1 innings. He gave up five hits, walked none, hit two batters and struck out five. Callan Pearce worked the next five innings without allowing a run. He gave up three hits and struck out four. Onas Farfan got the final two outs of the ninth inning. He came back out for the 10th inning and gave up four runs on four hits, a walk and a hit batter. The big blow was a grand slam off the bat of Jonathon Arrowood. He struck out three. TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day – Jose Berrios, Rochester Red Wings Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day – Jean Carlos Arias, GCL Twins THURSDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Syracuse @ Rochester (6:05 CST) - LHP Nick Greenwood Mississippi @ Chattanooga (1:15 CST) - LHP Stephen Gonsalves Ft. Myers @ Palm Beach (5:30 CST) - RHP Cody Stashak Cedar Rapids @ Wisconsin (7:05 CST) – LHP Lachlan Wells Greeneville @ Elizabethton (6:00 CST) - RHP Jose Martinez GCL Rays @ GCL Twins (11:00 am) - TBD Please feel free to ask any questions and discuss Wednesday's games. Click here to view the article

You get an award, you get an award, everybody gets an AWARD! While this might not be completely true, two full-season leagues announced their post-season All-Star teams on Tuesday. Daniel Palka and Zack Granite were both named to the Southern Leage Post-Season All-Star team. It was the second career Post-Season All-Star selection for both players. The Rochester Red Wings had one representative make the International League Post-Season All-Star team. Relief pitcher Edward Mujica only signed with the club in August and has pitched in three games for the squad. During that time he has not given up a run and he's struck out four. Before joining the Twins organization, he had been pitching in the IL for the Phillies organization and he leads the IL in saves.RED WINGS REPORT Rochester 5, Syracuse 1 Box Score After a third inning injury to starter David Hurlbut, Rochester used an interesting conglomeration of pitchers to make it through this victory. Hurlbut cruised through the first two frames as he only allowed two base runners and struck out one. He didn't make a pitch in the third. Omar Bencomo replaced Hurlbut and pitched well as he struck out seven and limited the Chiefs to one run across 4.2 innings. Bencomo ran into a little trouble in the top of the seventh inning as he surrendered the first Syracuse run. Neil Ramirez came on in relief and left a runner in scoring position. Ramirez pitched the next inning as well and racked up three strikeouts along the way. Daniel Palka and Adam Brett Walker continued to match each other in the home run department. Palka hit a solo shot in the seventh inning, his 33rd of the year and his 13th with Rochester. Walker is keeping the home run race close as he smacked his 27th long ball an inning later. Rochester is 3.5 games behind Lehigh Valley for the IL Wild Card spot with six games to play. Luckily five of their remaining games are against Lehigh Valley so their fate is in their own hands. CHATTANOOGA CHATTER Chattanooga 3, Mississippi 6 Box Score Chattanooga held a slim 3-2 lead entering the final frame but Raul Fernandez struggled to get out of his second inning on the mound. After getting the last out of the eighth, Fernandez came back for the ninth and was charged with four runs on five hits with a strikeout and a walk. Ryan Eades started and went six strong innings, giving up two earned runs and striking out seven. Luke Bard pitched two shutout frames with three strikeouts. Tanner Witt went 3-for-4 with a triple and a run scored. Zack Granite and Edgar Corcino were both 2-for-4 while Granite stole his 53rd base on the season. D.J Hicks reached base three times and scored a run. Overall, the team went 3-for-11 with runners in scoring position and left six runners on base. The loss drops the Lookouts to 71-63 on the season and they currently sit at 35-28 in the second-half standings. With six games to play, the Lookouts are 2.5 games behind Montgomery for a playoff spot. MIRACLE MATTERS Fort Myers --, Palm Beach -- (Postponed) The Miracle and the Cardinals were postponed on Tuesday night due to rain. The game will be made up as part of doubleheader (two seven-inning contests) on Wednesday with the first game beginning at 5 p.m. Fort Myers sits three games back of the St. Lucie Mets for first place in the FSL South second-half standings. Their elimination number currently stands at four with the Jupiter Hammerheads also ahead of them in the standings. E-TOWN E-NOTES Elizabethton 4, Greeneville 10 Box Score The E-Twins never held a lead in this game until the bottom of the eighth inning. With the club trailing 3-1, Luis Martinez and Ariel Montesino walked to start the frame. After a fly out, Mitchel Kranson brought home a run to make the score 3-2. A two-out wild pitch scored the tying run before Shane Carrier drove in the go-ahead run to cap a three-run inning. Elizabethton was limited to three hits but the team coaxed seven walks. Montesino, Martinez, and Amaurys Minier drew two walks each. Kranson, Carrier, and Caleb Hamilton were the lone batters with a hit to their name. After allowing five runs in five innings the last time out, Alex Schick put the E-Twins in position to win. He was charged with two earned runs and struck out five. It was his first appearance without giving up a walk since July 16. Austin Tribby took over for Schick and went 2.1 innings while giving up a run. Things blew up in the ninth. Colton Davis struck out the first batter before a walk, a single, and a hit by pitch left the bases loaded. Patrick McGuff came into the mess and allowed four runs to score. That isn't counting the three inherited runs that were charged to Davis. Overall, seven runs crossed the plate and the game was out of hand. GCL TWINS TAKES GCL Twins 7, GCL Rays 4 Box Score Earning a win is a weird statistic for pitchers. Bo Hellquist had given up a total of three earned runs in his last two starts (9.2 innings) and he took the loss in both of those appearances. In this game, he gave up three earned runs and came away with a win. Those three earned runs pushed his season ERA over 2.00 for the first time since the beginning of August. He struck out six and walked none. Zach Strecker earned his sixth save after pitching 3.2 innings while striking out three. Justin Hazard and Gorge Munoz led the way on the offensive side. Both players went 2-for-5 with a home run and Munoz drove in three RBIs. The top three batters in the order (Aaron Whitefield, Lean Marrero, and Kidany Salva) combined to go 7-for-14 with each batter collecting multiple hits. Marrero reached base three times and picked up his fifth double along with two RBIs. With the win the GCL Twins are tied with the GCL Red Sox for the top spot in the GCL South standings. This is the only division in the league that has yet to be determined. The GCL Twins have two games remaining on their schedule and both are against the GCL Rays. TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY Pitcher of the Day – Omar Bencomo, Rochester Red Wings Hitter of the Day – Gorge Munoz, GCL Twins WEDNESDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Rochester vs. Syracuse (6:05 CST) - RHP Jose Berrios (10-5, 2.44 ERA) Chattanooga vs. Mississippi (1:15 CST) - RHP Felix Jorge (2-4, 4.17 ERA) Fort Myers @ Palm Beach (4:00 CST) - RHP Miles Nordgren (1-4, 5.08 ERA) Fort Myers @ Palm Beach (Game 2) - TBD Cedar Rapids @ Wisconsin (7:05 CST) - RHP Sean Poppen (0-0, 1.00 ERA) Elizabethton vs. Greenville (6:00 CST)- LHP Domenick Carlini (0-0, 0.00 ERA) GCL Twins vs. GCL Rays (11:00AM CST) - TBD Please feel free to ask any questions and discuss Tuesday’s games. Click here to view the article

As August comes to a close, the minor league season is dwindling. For many of the Twins affiliates, playoff races are starting to heat up as teams try to stay in the hunt while holding off opponents. Minnesota might not be playing the best baseball so let's turn our attention to the future of the Twins. Would contending teams be able to pick up wins on Thursday night? Or would other teams push Minnesota's affiliates closer to being eliminated?RED WINGS REPORT Rochester 6, Norfolk 2 Box Score The home run party got started early for Rochester as Byron Buxton homered on the first pitch of the game. It was the second straight game Buxton has hit a home run. In the third, Buxton beat out an infield hit in front of a Tommy Field home run, his tenth of the season. One inning later, Daniel Palka blasted his 33rd home run of the season to push the lead to 4-1. Any Rochester home run party would not be complete without a bomb from Adam Brett Walker. He hit his league-leading 26th homer of the season. Walker has now hit safely in 11 straight games, the longest streak by a Red Wings player this season. Home runs were not the only story in this one. Omar Bencomo pitched into the seventh inning on the way to his second victory with the club. His final line read 6.2 innings pitched while allowing one earned run on six hits with four strikeouts. D.J. Baxendale and Alex Wimmers combined for 2.1 shutout frames to close out the game. Baxendale struck out three. Even with the win, Rochester is four games away from being eliminated from earning first place in the International League North. However, the club also trails the Lehigh Valley IronPigs by four games for a wild card spot. CHATTANOOGA CHATTER Chattanooga 7, Jacksonville 6 Box Score After jumping out to a 5-0 lead in the middle innings, the Lookouts did their best to give this one back to the Suns. Chattanooga used an error and four singles to push across three runs in the top of the third. Zach Granite doubled to lead off the fifth frame and later came around on an Edgar Corcino two-run double. Things got a little dicey from there as Jacksonville mounted their comeback. Ryan Eades had put up zeros through the first four frames but ran into a little trouble in the fifth and seventh innings. He ended the night after 6.2 innings and allowed four earned runs. Todd Van Steensel picked up his second hold since being promoted but he was charged with a run in 0.2 innings. Raul Fernandez blew the save in the eighth but earned the win after an interesting ninth. Chattanooga capitalized on the opportunities they were given in the ninth. Niko Goodrum singled to start the frame. Tanner Witt sacrificed Goodrum to second before a wild pitch moved him to third. Levi Michael walked to put runners on the corners. Zach Granite singled to score Goodrum and move Michael into scoring position. A wild pitch moved both runners up a base and Engelb Vielma drove in Michael on a fielder's choice. The Lookouts are 3.5 games out of first place in the Southern League North but there are currently two teams in front of them in the second-half standings (Jackson, the first half champs, and Montgomery). MIRACLE MATTERS Fort Myers 1, Palm Beach 0 Box Score Fernando Romero was masterful on the mound in this contest. In seven scoreless innings, Romero faced just two batters over the minimum while striking out nine and walking none. Both hits he allowed were infield singles and 60 of his 87 pitches were for strikes. While Romero was pitching well, Fort Myers wasn't able to strike until the seventh inning. Joe Maloney knocked a one-out double to put a runner in scoring position. After a strikeout, Christian Ibarra hit one up the middle and Maloney cruised around to score the lone run of the game. Luke Westphal allowed one batter to reach on a walk with one out in the eighth. Luckily, he got a strike-him-out, throw-him-out double play to end the frame and keep the Miracle on top. Confesor Lara earned his third save with a scoreless final frame. Fort Myers is one game out of first place with 10 games remaining on the regular season schedule. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 12, Quad Cities 1 Box Score Cedar Rapids supported their pitchers very well in this one. The team pounded out 12 runs on 12 hits on the way to their 72nd victory of the season. Travis Blankenhorn drove in three runs and hit his first triple with Cedar Rapids. Luis Arraez went 2-for-3 with three RBI and two runs scored. Jaylin Davis and Rainis Silva both had doubles to add to the scoring barrage. Lachlan Wells had some control problems as he issued four walks in six innings. However, he limited the River Bandits to one hit and no earned runs on the way to his career-high sixth victory. Max Cordy collected strikeouts for five of the six outs he was called on to get. He walked one and allowed a run on two hits. Logan Lombana struck out the first two batters he faced in the ninth before back to back doubles pushed across a run. With a second-half record of 35-24, the Kernels are currently in second place in the Midwest League Western Division. If the playoffs started today, Cedar Rapids would be in based on finishing second. They are currently 3.5 games ahead of third place Burlington. E-TOWN E-NOTES Elizabethton 0, Johnson City 11 Box Score Things got ugly in a hurry in this one and never improved from that. Elizabethton allowed runs in all but two innings and the team committed four errors. All but one batter in the E-Twins line-up reached base at least once but no one had multiple hits and there weren't any extra-base hits. Alex Kirilloff reached base twice with two walks. Amaurys Minier went 1-for-3 with a walk. Jose Martinez took the bulk of the damage on the mound. Eight runs were scored while he pitched with six of them being earned. He allowed two home runs and struck out one. Austin Tribby was charged with two earned runs on five hits with three walks and a couple strikeouts. Johan Quezada pitched the last 2.2 frames and limited Johnson City to three hits and one earned run. Even with the loss, the E-Twins would be in the playoffs if they started today. They currently sit in second place in the Appalachian League West and the top two teams in the division make the playoffs. Elizabethton is 5.5 games up on the third place Greeneville Astros. GCL TWINS TAKES GCL Twins 2, GCL Orioles 9 Box Score The GCL Twins found themselves down 6-1 after three innings in this one and they didn't have enough in the tank to make a comeback. Huascar Ynoa took his fifth loss of the season after not being charged with a loss since July 27. He allowed five earned runs in 2.2 innings with five strikeouts and two walks. Zach Strecker surrendered three earned runs on five hits in 4.1 innings with a pair of strikeouts. Juan Gamez ended the game with two scoreless frames. No Twins batter had more than one hit and the team went 2-for-12 with runners in scoring position. Aaron Whitefield reached base three times out of the lead-off spot and he is still batting over .300 for the season. Gorge Munoz had the team's only extra-base hit, a double. Akil Baddoo walked twice and scored a run. Even with the loss, the GCL Twins only trail the GCL Red Sox by one game for first place in the GCL South Division. TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY Pitcher of the Day – Fernando Romero, Fort Myers Miracle Hitter of the Day – Byron Buxton, Rochester Red Wings FRIDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Rochester @ Scranton/WB (6:05 CST) - LHP Adalberto Mejia (1-2, 4.66 ERA) Chattanooga @ Jacksonville (6:05 CST) - RHP Felix Jorge (1-4, 4.38 ERA) Fort Myers @ Jupiter (5:30 CST) - RHP Dereck Rodriguez (1-1, 1.83 ERA) Cedar Rapids @ Clinton (6:30 CST) - RHP Tyler Beardsley (0-2, 3.60 ERA) Elizabethton vs. Burlington (6:00 CST)- RHP Miguel De Jesus (0-2, 3.21 ERA) GCL Twins vs. GCL Red Sox (11:00AM CST) - TBD Please feel free to ask any questions and discuss Thursday’s games. Click here to view the article

With less than a month left in the minor league season, teams need to make their moves for any potential playoff run. For Minnesota's affiliates, Tuesday's action came with a ton of roster moves throughout the system. Infielders Travis Blankenhorn and Brandon Lopez moved up from Elizabethton to Cedar Rapids. In a corresponding move, Christian Ibarra was promoted to Fort Myers and Manuel Guzman was moved down to Elizabethton. Rochester sent out quite the updated list of roster moves. Three players were added to the roster. Byron Buxton was optioned from Minnesota and Mitch Garver and Leonardo Reginatto were transferred from Double-A Chattanooga. Infielder Heiker Meneses came off the disabled list and was sent to Double-A while RHP Marcus Walden was added to the DL with a right shoulder strain. TJ White was also moved from Fort Myers up to Chattanooga.Baseball can be a cruel game too for players trying to find a spot on a roster. After all the other moves of the day, outfielder Darin Mastroianni and infielder Buck Britton were released from their contracts. RED WINGS REPORT Rochester 4, Syracuse 6 Box Score Pat Dean ran into a little bit of a buzzsaw in the third inning of this contest. After making it through the first two innings, Dean was knocked around for six runs in the third while collecting only one out. He did not make it out of the frame after allowing 10 hits. The Rochester bullpen trio of DJ Baxendale, Ryan O'Rourke and Pat Light didn't allow a run the rest of the way as the Red Wings attempted their comeback. Daniel Palka had gotten Rochester out to an early lead with a solo home run to lead off the top of the second. Tommy Field doubled to start the sixth but was left at second with two outs. Adam Brett Walker didn't leave him hanging as he cracked his third triple of the season. James Beresford joined Walker with a triple of his own in the seventh inning before a Wilfredo Tovar single brought him home. Rochester got the tying run on base in the ninth inning but the comeback stopped there. Walker and Field both collected three hits while Beresford crossed the plate twice. Byron Buxton wasn't in the starting line-up but made an appearance as a pinch runner in the final inning. CHATTANOOGA CHATTER Chattanooga 0, Jacksonville 3 Box Score Before tonight's action, the Lookouts reset their rotation for the rest of the season. LHP Stephen Gonsalves was given an extra day of rest before re-entering the rotation. RHP Felix Jorge starts tonight's contest followed by Gonsalves, RHP Aaron Slegers, RHP Kohl Stewart, and LHP David Hurlbut. Jorge and the Lookouts were locked up in a pitchers' duel in this one. Jorge put up zeros through five innings before allowing a solo home run in the sixth. He came out for the seventh and collected the first two outs quickly before three straight hits pushed across two runs and he exited the game. Jorge struck out two and walked one. Zack Jones finished off the seventh inning and worked a perfect eighth frame while collecting three strikeouts. Jake Reed pitched a shutout ninth inning with a strikeout. The Lookouts were limited to five hits in the game with no batters collecting multiple hits. The team only had one opportunity to bat with runners in scoring position and it came with two outs in the inning. Every batter besides Shannon Wilkerson reached base at least once. MIRACLE MATTERS Fort Myers 0, St. Lucie 1 (7 Innings- Game 1) Box Score After being rained out on Monday night, the Miracle found themselves in a pitchers' duel in the first game of their double header. Keaton Steele pitched all seven innings for Fort Myers but ended up taking the tough luck loss. After allowing a lead-off double in the fourth frame, he almost wriggled out of the inning unscathed. Unfortunately, a two-out double pushed across the only run of the game. Steele dropped to 5-10 with the loss but it was his third straight start where he pitched at least six innings and gave up two earned runs or fewer. He struck out three and walked one. Only three Miracle batters were able to record hits. AJ Murray reached base twice in his three plate appearances before being lifted for a pinch runner. Joe Maloney and Chris Paul both went 1-for-3. Fort Myers never had a runner reach second base. Fort Myers --, St. Lucie -- (PPD- Game 2) Tuesday's second game was washed out and has been rescheduled as part of a doubleheader on Wednesday night. The Miracle will try to play two seven-inning games on Wednesday if the weather cooperates. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 6, Peoria 8 Box Score Cedar Rapids looked to be sailing to their 62nd victory as they took a 5-2 lead into the final inning. Brady Anderson pitched six solid innings as the only run scored against him was unearned. He found his way out of four walks and five hits but the Kernels were in position to win when he left the mound. Zander Wiel got the scoring started with a two-run home run in the bottom of the first. It was his 14th home run of the season. Cedar Rapids pushed another run across in the fourth. Casey Scoggins walked in front of a Sean Miller single to put two runners on base. Luis Arraes doubled to score Scoggins from second but the Kernels left two runners on base in the frame. JJ Fernandez started the seventh with a triple before being knocked in by a Rainis Silva single. Silva later scored on a fielding error to make the lead 5-2. The ninth inning got ugly in a hurry for the bullpen. Andrew Vasquez pitched the seventh and eighth without any issues but he allowed the first two batters to reach in the ninth. Max Cordy didn't fare much better as the first two batters he faced collected singles before a Jaylin Davis fielding error allowed another run to score. After coaxing two outs, Cordy hurled a wild pitch that was followed by a single and a double as the game slipped out of reach. E-TOWN E-NOTES Elizabethton 6, Danville 3 Box Score The E-Twins took advantage of six (yeah, count'em... six) fielding errors by Danville on their way to their 23rd victory of the season. Elizabethton didn't record an extra-base hit but the team went 3-for-8 with runners in scoring position. Ben Rortvedt was the lone batter with multiple hits, including an RBI. Shane Carrier scored two runs and first-round pick Alex Kirilloff was 1-for-4. Tyler Wells put together his best start of the season for his second win. He went six strong innings while scattering five hit and two earned runs. Wells struck out four and walked two. Domenick Carlini earned his first save in unconventional fashion by tossing three frames. He allowed one unearned run and struck out four. TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY Pitcher of the Day – Keaton Steele, Fort Myers Miracle Hitter of the Day – Adam Brett Walker, Rochester Red Wings WEDNESDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Rochester at Syracuse (5:35 CST) - LHP Adalberto Mejia (0-1, 2.57 ERA) Chattanooga- Scheduled Off Day Fort Myers vs St. Lucie (4:00 CST) -RHP Randy LeBlanc (4-5, 4.25 ERA) Fort Myers vs St. Lucie (Game 2- Makeup of 8/9 PPD)- LHP Sam Clay (1-1, 4.15 ERA) Elizabethton at Kingsport (6:00 CST) - TBD GCL Twins @ GCL Orioles (11:00AM CST) - TBD GCL Twins vs. GCL Orioles (Game 2- Makeup of 8/9 PPD)- TBD Please feel free to ask any questions and discuss Tuesday’s games. Click here to view the article

Not every prospect is going to make it to their ultimate goal. That's the nature of baseball. However, last year's Southern League MVP Max Kepler is sure making hitting at the big league level look pretty easy. A night after becoming the fifth Twins player with three home runs in a game, Kepler cranked another one out in Cleveland. His 13 home runs since June 26 are the most in the American League (two ahead of Brian Dozier). Minnesota's 49 home runs are the most during that same stretch. Are any players following in Kepler's footsteps? Read on to find out.RED WINGS REPORT Rochester 6, Pawtucket 3 Box Score With Monday's trade deadline passing, there were a flurry of roster moves that impacted the Rochester roster. Newly acquired pitchers Adalberto Mejia and Pat Light were both assigned to the Red Wings. Trevor Plouffe also joined Rochester as part of his rehab assignment. On Tuesday, Jason Wheeler didn't have his best stuff but he was still able to put the Red Wings in position to come out on top. While pitching into the sixth frame, he gave up three runs on nine hits with two strikeouts and a walk. DJ Baxendale, Sean Burnett and JT Chargois put up zeros the rest of the way to close out the win. Chargois allowed two base runners in the ninth but still earned his ninth save. Trevor Plouffe helped get things started for Rochester as he singled to start the second frame. Adam Brett Walker followed with his 21st home run. Things kept moving with Logan Schafer singling before stealing second base. Wilfredo Tovar doubled in Schafer and John Ryan Murphy capped the four-run inning with an RBI single. Schafer had a three-hit night, reaching base in all four plate appearances. He also threw out a runner for his fourth outfield assist. Plouffe finished 2-for-4 with a run scored. Daniel Palka and Byung Ho Park each added a double as part of the Triple-P (Palka, Park, Plouffe) middle of the line-up. CHATTANOOGA CHATTER Chattanooga --, Mobile -- (Postponed- Rain) After being rained out on Tuesday, the Lookouts sit at 56-51 on the season and 20-17 in the second half. Kohl Stewart was a tough luck loser as he threw six innings and allowed one earned run but still took the loss. Monday's trade deadline impacted the Chattanooga roster as Alan Busenitz, the minor league player included with Hector Santiago, was assigned to the Lookouts. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 5, Burlington 11 Box Score The Kernels tied things up in the top of the seventh inning at 5-5 but the bullpen imploded in the bottom half of the frame. Kuo Hua Lo allowed nine runs, six earned, on eight hits including two home runs. Sam Gibbons started and scattered six hits while limiting the Bees to two earned runs. He struck out two and walked three. Tom Hackimer pitched 1.1 scoreless innings to end the game. Even in victory, the Bees couldn't get Luiz Arraez out in this game. Arraez finished with a career-high five hits along with two RBIs. He is hitting .335 with the Kernels this year. JJ Fernandez collected his 22nd double as part of a two-hit effort. Chris Ibarra also had a double and those were the only extra-base hits for Cedar Rapids. E-TOWN E-NOTES Elizabethton 6, Princeton 12 Box Score The E-Twins offense had plenty of opportunities with runners in scoring position but the club went 2-for-16 in those situations and left nine runners on base. Shane Carrier led the way offensively by going 3-for-5 with a home run, a double and two RBIs. Alex Kirilloff, Amaurys Minier and Travis Blankenhorn all went 2-for-5 with each player adding a double. It was Kirilloff's eighth double and he's up to 21 RBIs. Blankenhorn had a very rough night in the field as he was charged with three errors, one fielding and two throwing. Add an Ariel Montesino throwing error and there were seven unearned runs scored against the E-Twins pitching staff. Tyler Wells couldn't make it through four innings and allowed six earned runs on eight hits. Alex Robinson pitched 2.1 innings and limited the Rays to one run on a solo home run. Austin Tribby was asked to get a few extra outs as four unearned runs were scored with him on the mound. Quin Grogan finished the game with a pair of strikeouts in 1.1 innings of work. GCL TWINS TAKES GCL Twins 6, GCL Orioles 1 Box Score Huascar Ynoa put the GCL Twins in a great position to win after hurling five shutout frames. He limited the Rays to one hit with five strikeouts and one walk. Onas Fanfar kept the shutout going with three scoreless frames while striking out three. Moises Gomez ran into a little trouble in the ninth by giving up a run on two hits and two walks. Garrett Kelly finished off the final frame for his second save. Every Twins hitter reached base at least once but the club didn't manage a single extra-base hit. Gorge Munoz drove in two runs as part of a two-hit effort. He also stole his fifth base. Aaron Whitefield scored three runs out of the the lead-off spot. The win moves the GCL Twins to two games over .500 and the team is in the midst of a three game winning streak. TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY Pitcher of the Day – Huascar Ynoa, GCL Twins Hitter of the Day – Shane Carrier, Elizabethton Twins WEDNESDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Rochester vs Pawtucket (6:05 CST) - LHP Pat Dean (4-6, 5.29 ERA) Chattanooga @ Mobile (5:05 CST) - TBD (Rain delay could alter rotation) Chattanooga @ Mobile (Game 2) - TBD Fort Myers @ Bradenton (5:30 CST) -LHP Randy Rosario (6-6, 3.60 ERA) Cedar Rapids vs Clinton (6:35 CST) - TBD GCL Twins vs GCL Rays (11:00AM CST) - TBD Please feel free to ask any questions and discuss Tuesday’s games. Click here to view the article

I can’t believe that it is already August. The trade deadline came this afternoon. There is just over a month left in the minor league seasons. However, it is time to look back at July and recognize some great performances. We start today by posting our choices for Twins Minor League Hitter of the Month. Last month’s choice, Daniel Palka, was promoted from AA to AAA, posted an .828 OPS, and “only” warranted honorable mention. It was a great month for hitters.As I said, there were a lot of great hitting performances. Here are nine more hitters who are very deserving of recognition for their strong July performances. Congratulations to all of the players mentioned below. OF Daniel Palka (Rochester) - .259/.347/.481 (.828). 28-108 with six doubles, six homers and 16 RBIs.OF Edgar Corcino (Chattanooga) - .300/.349/.475 (.824). 24-80 with three doubles, one triple, three homers and 12 RBIss.SS Nick Gordon (Ft. Myers) - .330/.359/.420 (.779). 37-112 with five doubles, one triple, one homer and 20 RBIs.2B Luis Arraez (Cedar Rapids) - .306/.331/.423 (.754). 34-111 with six doubles, two triples, a home run and 22 RBIs.OF Jaylin Davis (Cedar Rapids) - .245/.336/.520 (.856). 25-102 with five doubles, a triple, seven homers and 23 RBIs.2B Travis Blankenhorn (Elizabethton) - .287/.320/.521 (.841). 27-94 with five doubles, a triple, five home runs and 19 RBIs.OF Shane Carrier (Elizabethton) - .288/.310/.500 (.810). 23-80 with eight doubles, three homers and 16 RBIs.1B Lewin Diaz (Elizabethton) - .288/.333/.538 (.871). 23-80 with eight doubles, four homers, and 20 RBIs.SS Brandon Lopez (Elizabethton) - .353/.489/.426 (.938). 24-68 with three doubles, a triple and eight RBIs.THE TOP SIX HITTERS Number 6 – Rochester – 1B Byung Ho Park - .250/.333/.591 (.924). 22-88 with three doubles, nine homers and sixteen RBIs. Despite hitting 12 home runs through 62 games with the Twins this season, Byung Ho Park and his .191 batting average were sent to Rochester on July 1. He began his Red Wings stint by hitting .190 in his first six games, but since then he has been really good off. On July 28th, Park hit three home runs in one game to give him eight over a ten game stretch. He ended the month 0-11, but it was a strong showing for Park as the 30-year-old as he attempts to get back to the Twins in the near future. Number 5 – Chattanooga – OF Adam Brett Walker - .311/.368/.538 (.905). 33-98 with seven doubles, one triple, five home runs and 16 RBIs. Walker can be inconsistent from month to month, as we all know, but Walker continues to be pretty consistent in his overall numbers from year to year. With a strong July, Walker is now hitting .244/.314/.477 (.791) which is just a little behind where he has been the last couple of years. While he is still striking out too much, he cut down his K-rate to 28% in July. The Twins third- round pick in 2012 out of Jacksonville and he has moved up one level each year since. He is still just 24 years old and could be an option for a September call up. Number 4 - Ft. Myers – OF LaMonte Wade - .341/.400/.538 (.938). 31-91 with six doubles, four homers and 24 RBIs. LaMonte Wade’s first full season started out very strong. In fact, he was our choice for Minor League Hitter of the Month of April in Cedar Rapids. He ended his stint with the Kernels in a 1-28 slump but was still called up to Ft. Myers. And his first 27 games with the Miracle have been terrific again. He’s been hitting for average, getting on base, and showing a lot of extra base power. He ended the month with a two-homer game on Sunday. Wade has mostly been playing centerfield, though he is most likely a future left fielder. Number 3 - Elizabethton – OF Alex Kirilloff - .373/.374/.545 (.919). 41-110 with seven doubles, four homers and 20 RBIs. To say that 2016 top pick Alex Kirilloff got off to a fast start might even be an understatement. Upon signing, he skipped the GCL and jumped straight to Elizabethton. This is not unusual as the Twins typically send first-round hitters from high school to the Appy League, most recently Nick Gordon in 2014. He started his career with hits in eight straight games. He hit in 23 of 27 games in July. He had six two-hit games and six three-hit games.While he hasn’t yet walked much, he also puts the ball in play and does so with authority. Impressive debut for the 18-year-old. Number 2 – Chattanooga – C/1B Mitch Garver - .314/.392/.559 (.950). 32-102 with 13 doubles, four home runs, and 25 RBIs. After a slow start in his AA debut, Garver has been solid since early May, and actually very good the last six weeks. In July, as you can see, he hit for average, took a bunch of walks and really drove the ball often for extra base hits. The conversation is growing stronger about the likelihood of Garver being a September call-up this year. In my opinion, it will be very disappointing if he isn’t promoted. Defensively, he is playing a lot of 1B and DHs quite a bit. He will also catch a couple of times a week, spelling Stuart Turner. Overall, Garver is hitting .276/.354/.446 (.800) with 25 doubles and he hit his 11th home run on Monday night. And the Twins Minor League Hitter of the Month is... Cedar Rapids – 1B Zander Wiel - .310/.407/.660 (1.067). 31-100 with nine doubles, one triple, eight home runs and 24 RBIs. The Twins drafted Zander Wiel in the 12th round last summer out of Vanderbilt University. His father is a basketball coach who has coached all around the world, but Zander chose baseball. After signing last year and heading to Elizabethton, Wiel was hit by a pitch and missed a month. He began the 2016 in Cedar Rapids where he followed along with the weather and was quite cold. He got better as the weather warmed up, but when July 1st hit, Zander Wiel took off. Overall in 97 games for the Kernels, Wiel has hit .253/.336/.442 (.779) with 24 doubles, five triples and 12 home runs. He went through a very short stretch where he committed a lot of errors in a few games. In general, however, he is considered a solid defensive first baseman. In July, he had a nine-game hitting streak and then ended the month with a ten-game hitting streak. At one point, he had five multi-hit games in a seven-game stretch. During those same seven games, he drove in 15 runs. Overall, it was just a terrific month for the 23-year-old. There were a lot of real solid hitting performances in the Twins system in July. Guys who hit .320 or higher “only” garnered Honorable Mention. There was seven players with OPS over .800 in July who didn’t make the Top 6. One player posted a .938 OPS with nearly a .500 on-base percentage, but fewer at bats than most left him with the Mentions. However you choose to rank the Top 5 or 6 hitters of the month, I think the choice for the top minor league hitter in July was quite easy. Feel free to discuss the winner or any of the mentions in the comments. Congratulations to the July Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Month for 2016, Zander Wiel. Click here to view the article

It was a big day for offense in the Twins minor league games. There were 11 players who had multiple-hit games for Twins affiliates. There was a game-winning home run by a big prospect in one game. One player that didn’t even start for his team on Friday night ended up with four hits and raised his batting average by .115 points. The big first baseman in Cedar Rapids had two extra-base hits and half of his team’s RBI. Of course, it isn’t all positive.One team was on the opposite end of the spectrum. Wander Javier did not play again on Friday. The first time he hurt his hamstring, he missed 16 days before playing two games. He re-aggravated the hamstring and has now not played again for two weeks.For the details of Friday in the Twins minor leagues, please continue reading. RED WINGS REPORT Rochester 8, Norfolk 6 Box Score Adam Brett Walker came through in the clutch for the Red Wings again. With the score tied at 6-6 in the bottom of the 8th Byung Ho Park recorded his first AAA double. Walker came up and belted his 17th home run of the season. It gave the Red Wings the lead and made them a winner. Walker led the Red Wings offense. He went 2-3 with a walk and his second triple to go with the home run. Darin Mastroianni was in the leadoff spot. He went 2-4 with two doubles and drove in two runs. Wilfredo Tovar went 2-3 with his 16th double. Logan Schafer went 2-4. Logan Darnell made his first start of the second half. The lefty gave up four runs on eight hits and a walk over just 3.2 innings. He struck out two as his ERA jumped to 3.53. Nick Greenwood came in and gave up one run on three hits over the next 2.1 innings. Sean Burnett threw an inning. He gave up an unearned run on two hits. Buddy Boshers gave up a hit and walked a batter in 0.2 innings. Alex Wimmers got the final out of the eighth inning and then three outs in the ninth to pick up the win. CHATTANOOGA CHATTER Chattanooga 2, Mobile 20 Box Score It happens to every team, and pretty much every year. Even the best teams have an absolute clunker. On Friday night, Chattanooga had one of those. Omar Bencomo made the start. He gave up five runs on seven hits and a walk in the first three innings. Ryan Eades came on, and he was charged with eight runs (six earned) on five hits and three walks. Luke Westphal came on and gave up seven runs (five earned) on eight hits and four walks. Jake Reed came on and got the final five outs, including two strikeouts. He gave up just one hit. The Lookouts didn’t have much offense either. They had just four hits. Dalton Hicks went 1-3 with a walk and his 20th double. Shannon Wilkerson went 1-3 with a walk and his eighth double. MIRACLE MATTERS Ft. Myers 4, Tampa 3 (7 innings) Box Score The game was called on account of rain in the seventh inning. Fortunately, the Miracle were winning at the time. Randy LeBlanc had a quality start. He gave up three runs (two earned) on four hits over six innings. He walked one and struck out four. Offensively, the Miracle had just six hits. AJ Murray hit his sixth double. Joe Maloney drove in two runs with his fourth double. Logan Wade reached base twice without a hit. He walked and was hit by a pitch. He also stole a base. Nick Gordon added a single to extend his hitting streak to 10 games. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 6, Lake County 1 Box Score Dereck Rodriguez had another solid start, and in this one, he even got the win. He improved to 2-10. He had not been the winning pitcher in a game in two months. He gave up one run on six hits over the first six innings. He walked one and struck out four. Anthony McIver gave up one hit over two scoreless relief innings. Michael Cederoth got the final three outs to preserve the win. Zander Wiel led the Kernels offense. He went 2-3 with a walk, his 17th double and his eighth home run. The other three Kernels RBIs came from Luis Arraez who had an RBI in each of his first three plate appearances. Casey Scoggins led off and went 2-4 with a walk and his third double. Jermaine Palacios is now hitting .224 after going 2-3 with a walk and a hit-by-pitch in this game. Kevin Garcia went 2-4. E-TWINS E-NOTES Elizabethton 6, Danville 8 Box Score Roberto Gonzalez wasn’t even in the starting lineup on Friday night. For some reason (we’re looking into it), Luis Martinez left the game in the first inning and Gonzalez replaced him. He came into the game hitting just .111, but the powerful outfielder went 4-4 with two doubles and raised his average to .226. That’s the beauty of small sample sizes. Bryant Hayman had the big hit. He hit his first homer of the season and drove in three runs. Alex Kirilloff went 1-3 with a walk and his fifth double. Shane Carrier went 2-4. Tyler Wells made the start. He gave up four runs (two earned) on four hits over 3.2 innings. He walked three and struck out five. Quin Grogan came on and worked 2.1 hitless innings. He walked two and struck out three. Johan Quezada struggled. He gave up four runs (3 earned) on three hits and two walks and recorded just one out. Colton Davis got the final five outs, three of them on strikeouts. GCL TWINS TAKES GCL Twins 0, GCL Red Sox 3 Box Score Huascar Ynoa started again for the GCL Twins on Friday. The young right-hander gave up three runs on five hits over four innings. All three runs came in the second inning. Ynoa walked three and struck out four. Moises Gomez came on and threw two scoreless innings. He is yet to give up an earned run (and allowed just one unearned run) in 11.1 innings this season. Callan Pearce ran his scoreless inning streak to 10 with two more scoreless innings. He struck out three. Daniel Martinez pitched a clean ninth inning. Lean Marrero went 2-4 in this game. Jhon Alvarez hit his first double. Twins 2016 second-round picks Jose Miranda and Ben Rortvedt each went 1-3 with a walk. TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day – Dereck Rodriguez, Cedar Rapids Kernels Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day – Roberto Gonzalez, Elizabethton Twins SATURDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Norfolk @ Rochester (5:05 CST) - LHP Andrew Albers Mobile @ Chattanooga (6:15 CST) - LHP Tyler Jay Ft. Myers @ Tampa (5:00 CST) - LHP Sam Clay Cedar Rapids @ Ft. Wayne (5:35 CST) – RHP Sam Gibbons Elizabethton @ Princeton (6:00 CST) - RHP Ryan Mason GCL Twins @ GCL Red Sox (9:00 am CST) - RHP Brady Anderson Please feel free to ask any questions and discuss Friday's games. Click here to view the article

My Fourth of July weekend started a bit early. A little much-needed time off from my 8-5 job (which has been more like 8-8 the last month) allows me to hang out and relax for a few days. Maybe even ride around in a truck in the woods, looking for a deer friend. Sorry! But hey, the Twins minor leaguers still play ball, and we at Twins Daily will still cover it. They gave us plenty to talk about on Thursday night. Adam Brett Walker lived up to his twitter handle (@walkoff28) with a HUGE homer in Game 1 tonight for the Red Wings. A couple of Twins' second-round picks had real solid games in Ft. Myers, where another starter has quietly had a solid season. Chattanooga played and it was still June, so of course Daniel Palka homered, again. And another 2016 pick played in his first professional game.All that, and much more, in today’s Twins Minor League Report. RED WINGS REPORT Game 1 - Rochester 5, Pawtucket 1 (8 innings) Box Score I think we know that Adam Brett Walker is what he is on the baseball field, and sometimes that works out really, really well for his team. Game 1 on Thursday was one of those times. He came up big with the walk off grand slam. The Red Wings had just five hits in the game. James Beresford went 2-4 with his 11th double. Logan Schafer hit his first Red Wings triple. Andrew Albers was very good as well. The lefty gave up one run on five hits over seven innings. He struck out three and didn’t issue a walk. JT Chargois gets the win after a perfect, two-strikeout inning. Game 2 - Rochester 1, Pawtucket 6 Box Score There was a different, less exciting script in the second game of the doubleheader, especially for the Red Wings. Nick Greenwood gave up four runs on seven hits in 5.1 innings. He struck out four without a walk. Ryan O’Rourke came on with a runner on in the sixth and got one out, on a strikeout. However he gave up an intentional walk and a hit and both runners scored. David Martinez got the final out of the sixth and worked through the seventh. Eddie Rosario went 2-3 with his 14th double. Miguel Sano added a double. Tommy Field hit his first Red Wings triple. Stephen Wickens was also 2-3. CHATTANOOGA CHATTER Chattanooga 7, Pensacola 3 Box Score The Lookouts had a touchdown and PAT and held Pensacola to just a field goal for the Thursday night win. Ryan Eades improved to 5-3 with six strong innings. He gave up just one run on four hits. He walked three and struck out six. Jake Reed worked the next two innings. He gave up two runs on three hits and two hit batters. He did strike out four. Mason Melotakis struck out two in a perfect ninth inning. Daniel Palka ended an incredible June with yet another homer, his 20th of the season and two RBI. He ends June with 13 homers and 30 RBI in the month. Not too shabby. Shannon Wilkerson entered the game in center field, replacing Zach Granite (who went 1-2). Wilkerson went 2-3 with his seventh double and his second home run. It was a two-run blast to give the Lookouts a cushion in the eighth inning. Dalton Hicks went 2-4 with his 16th double. Ryan Walker was 2-4. Stuart Turner had a single, and he also stole his first two bases of the season. MIRACLE MATTERS Ft. Myers 2, Palm Beach 0 Box Score Keaton Steele is the least known of the Miracle rotation, but he has quietly put together a solid season. He had one of his best starts on Thursday night. He threw 6.2 shutout innings. He gave up four hits, walked two and struck out two. He is now 4-6 but has a solid 3.66 ERA. Steele was replaced by Luke Bard who got the next four outs. Mike Theofanopoulos came in for the ninth inning. He gave up one hit, but he recorded his first Florida State League save. Joe Maloney led the offense. He went 2-4 and also stole his first two bases with the Miracle. AJ Murray notched his third triple. Nick Gordon recorded the lone RBI on a single. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 3, Quad Cities 6 Box Score Eduardo del Rosario started and worked six innings. However, he gave up six runs on six hits (two homers). He walked three and struck out four. Anthony McIver and Cameron Booser each worked scoreless innings. Booser did so while walking one and giving up one hit. Luis Arraez continued to hit. He went 2-4. Nelson Molina, batting third, went 2-4 with his fifth double. Zander Wiel added an RBI double, his 15th of the year. E-TWINS E-NOTES Elizabethton 1, Pulaski 3 Box Score Travis Blankenhorn gave the E-Twins a 1-0 lead in the first inning with his third homer of the season. But that was it in terms of runs scored. Jaylin Davis was 1-3 and had a walk. Lewin Diaz added his third double. Alex Kiriloff batted sixth again, but this time, he played left field. He went 1-4. Brandon Lopez made his professional debut. He signed a little later since Miami was playing in the College World Series. He went 1-3 with a walk. He batted fifth and played shortstop. Domenick Carlini actually pitched pretty well, but a couple of errors led to a couple of unearned runs, and he took the loss. He gave up the two unearned runs on just one hit. He walked two and struck out one. Hector Lujan went the final three innings. He gave up one run on three hits. He walked one and struck out two. GCL TWINS TAKES GCL Twins 2, GCL Orioles 0 Box Score Bo Hellquist, a non-drafted free agent from Savage (Burnsville HS) and Minnesota-Duluth, made his pro debut. The crafty lefty threw 4.1 scoreless innings before meeting his pitch limit. He gave up three hits, walked none and struck out five. Daniel Martinez struck out two over 1.2 perfect innings to record his first win. Callan Pearce struck out three over two shutout innings. Garrett Kelly recorded his first save. He struck out two in a perfect ninth. Akil Baddoo led off and went 2-4 with his first stolen base. Jose Miranda went 2-3 with a walk and his first stolen base. He also drove in both Twins runs. Australian Aaron Whitefield went 2-4. Jorge Munoz went 1-3 with a walk and his first steal. Manuel Guzman, in his first rehab game, went 1-3 with a with a stolen base. TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day – Keaton Steele, Ft. Myers Miracle Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day – Shannon Wilkerson, Chattanooga Lookouts FRIDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Syracuse @ Rochester (6:05 CST) - LHP Jason Wheeler Chattanooga @ Pensacola (6:30 CST) - LHP Stephen Gonsalves Jupiter @ Ft. Myers (6:05 CST) - TBD Cedar Rapids @ Beloit (7:00 CST) – RHP Cody Stashak Pulaski @ Elizabethton (6:00 CST) - TBD GCL Red Sox @ GCL Twins (11:00 am CST) - RHP Miguel de Jesus Please feel free to ask any questions and discuss Wednesday's games. Click here to view the article