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According to Jon Heyman, the Minnesota Twins have signed veteran right-handed pitcher Dillon Gee to a minor league contract. He will start with the Triple-A Rochester Red Wings.The Twins need pitching, and Gee represents another guy getting an opportunity. He was outrighted by the Texas Rangers last weekend and chose to become a free agent. Darren Wolfson was the first to note that the Twins and Gee's representation were conversing. Gee spent parts of five seasons with the New York Mets. He was a back-of-the-rotation type of starter. At various times, there were rumors of the Twins having interest in him. He spent 2016 with the Kansas City Royals, splitting time between the rotation and the bullpen. He had thoracic outlet syndrome surgery after the 2016 and signed with the Rangers this year where he pitched in just four games before being released. The Twins need arms. Any Twins fan would agree with that. They clearly do not want to push the likes of Stephen Gonsalves, Fernando Romero and Felix Jorge up to AAA quite yet. So, in the last few weeks, they have brought in guys like Chris Heston and Adam Wilk. Gee fits into that category, AAA pitchers who might just be able to give some decent innings. At least that is the hope. If not, they are AAA placeholders for the prospects. Click here to view the article

Aaron and John talk about the Indians sweeping the Twins out of first place, recapping the Twins' draft and no. 1 pick Royce Lewis signing for $6.7 million, Byron Buxton's underappreciated defense, in-house options to address the Twins' growing rotation and bullpen problems, Eddie Rosario putting the Zach Granite talk on hold, and Jorge Polanco vs. Eduardo Escobar. You can listen by downloading us from iTunes, Stitcher or find it at GleemanAndTheGeek.com. Or just click this link.http://traffic.libsy...3?dest-id=74590 Click here to view the article

The Twins held onto first place longer than anyone could have expected, but after getting swept by Cleveland in a doubleheader Saturday, they’re looking up in the division for the first time since May 9.Game 1: Cleveland 9, Twins 3 Box Score Win Expectancy (via Fangraphs) Download attachment: WE617G1.png Game 2: Cleveland 6, Twins 2 Box Score Win Expectancy (via Fangraphs) Download attachment: WE617G2.png Adam Wilk was terrible in the first game, to the surprise of basically no one. What has been surprising is how well the Twins have bounced back from adversity this year. They started the season off by winning their first four games, but quickly fell to 8-10. At the time, it seemed likely we’d never see the Twins above .500 again in 2017, but they turned things around to win 17 of their next 25 games. There have been several times since when it appeared the Twins might have faded. They haven’t. They got absolutely destroyed at home by the Astros right before a big West Coast road swing. Stick a fork in ’em? Not so fast. The Twins responded by taking three of four in Anaheim. In Seattle, they got crushed in Game 1 and lost a heartbreaker in Game 2. Write ‘em off? Nope, the Twins followed that up with a three game-winning streak. They lost their next two games in fairly embarrassing fashion, giving up 27 total runs in the process. Well clearly that led to a tailspin, right? Nope, the Twins scored 20 runs the next night. Game 1 of Saturday’s doubleheader was another one of those moments that made you feel like you were watching the beginning of the end. Wilk gave up six runs and lasted just 3.1 innings. It appeared clear as day that Cleveland was a team in a class above the Twins. They cruised to a 9-3 victory despite not having one of their main horses on the mound, either. Ryan Merritt made his 2017 debut, and lasted just four innings. Game 2 got off to a much better start for the Twins, but they lost Adalberto Mejia after 4.2 innings due to a rain delay that lasted over an hour. Maybe he should’ve started the first game. The contest resumed with Cleveland up 2-1. Tyler Duffey got the final out of the top of the fifth, Jorge Polanco led off the bottom of the inning with a nine-pitch walk and it appeared the scrappy Twins might just pull off another momentum switch. But the next batter, Jason Castro, grounded into a double play. Then Duffey gave up a three-run homer in the top of the inning. Cleveland sweeps. This is it, isn’t it? This doubleheader sweep is the knockout blow. Here’s where the Twins finally fade away, right? Well, they’ve gotten up off the mat every time they’ve been knocked down so far this season. We’ll see what happens tomorrow. Alan Busenitz made his major league debut and struck out the first batter he faced, the red-hot Jose Ramirez. Busenitz gave up a run on a Francisco Lindor solo homer over two innings pitched. He topped out at 97 mph. Bullpen Usage Here’s a quick look at the number of pitches thrown by the bullpen over the past five days. This has been updated so that instead of having the most recent games on the left side, they're now on the right. Download attachment: Pen617.png Alex Wimmers was the 26th man, so he’ll be headed back to Rochester. The bullpen combined to throw 177 pitches Saturday. The Twins have a much-needed off day coming Monday. Sunday Twins (Kyle Gibson 6.79 ERA) vs. Cleveland (Trevor Bauer, 5.85 ERA), 1:10 pm CT Gibson has a 4.58 ERA and 1.59 WHIP in June, much more palatable numbers than his 2017 season totals. Current Cleveland hitters have teed off on Gibson to the tune of a 1.028 OPS. Bauer’s strikeout rate is at a career high 10.8 K/9, but that’s come with a 5.85 ERA and 1.49 WHIP. He has given Miguel Sano fits, striking him out 10 times over 23 plate appearances. AL Central Standings Cleveland 35-31 Twins 34-32 (-1) Detroit 32-35 (-3.5) Kansas City 32-35 (-3.5) Chicago 31-36 (-4.5) Be sure to check out today’s Minor League Report, which includes some great video of Travis Blankenhorn’s game-winning steal of home. Click here to view the article

Jermaine Palacios had himself a monster night in what is shaping out to be a special season for the Cedar Rapids shortstop. It was also a great night for Chattanooga, who pulled into a tie for their division lead as the first half is nearing a close. Find out what else happened around the Twins' minor leagues on Friday.RED WINGS REPORT Rochester 9, Syracuse 3 Box Score Adam Wilk earned his first victory in the Twins organization, aided by a big day at the plate from Tommy Field. Wilk had a clean first inning, was then spotted a three-run lead, but gave it all back in the top of the second. To his credit, the 29-year-old lefty kept battling, and held Syracuse scoreless over the next four innings. Wilk ended the night having pitched six innings while giving up three runs on five hits and a walk. He struck out five. The game was tied in the bottom of the sixth when singles from Field, ByungHo Park and John Ryan Murphy produced the go-ahead run. Rochester later tacked on five runs in the eighth. Field was 3-for-4 with a pair of doubles, two runs and two RBI. Alan Busenitz followed Wilk with two scoreless innings before Drew Rucinski finished it off in the ninth. Zack Granite (2-for-5) had his eighth-straight multi-hit game. Mitch Garver started the game in left field, his first professional appearance in the outfield. CHATTANOOGA CHATTER Chattanooga 7, Montgomery 4 Box Score Fernando Romero didn’t have his best stuff or command, but he was able to hold the Biscuits at bay. Romero walked five batters, but only surrendered three hits, limiting the damage to two runs over 5.2 innings. He tallied six strikeouts. Ryan Walker hit a go-ahead, bases-clearing triple in the top of the sixth. Nick Gordon was 2-for-5 with his 17th double of the season and drove in a run. Jonathan Rodriguez was 2-for-3 and drew a pair of walks. Both T.J. White and Dan Rohlfing had three hits on the evening. Montgomery scored four of about the flukiest runs you’ll ever see. The first two came on a chopper that should have been the third out of the first inning, but instead bounced off second base and into the outfield to go down as a two-run double. The last two came in the bottom of the ninth on a bases-loaded wild pitch that should have been a strikeout to end the game. Luke Bard and Mason Melotakis both recorded four strikeouts out of the bullpen. Bard pitched 2.1 innings. Melotakis technically only recorded three outs. Baseball math is funny sometimes. The win put the Lookouts in a three-way tie with Montgomery and Tennessee for the Southern League North division lead. MIRACLE MATTERS Tampa 2, Fort Myers 1 Box Score Trailing 2-0 in the bottom of the ninth, the Miracle made a comeback attempt, but it fell short. The inning started with back-to-back singles from Max Murphy and Alex Perez. A couple of strikeouts were sandwiched between Trey Vavra reaching on a fielding error. The Miracle’s lone run came in on a bases-loaded wild pitch before Rafael Valera flied out to right field to end the game. Starter David Fischer went 4.2 innings, limiting the Yankees to just one run despite walking five batters. Andrew Vasquez had two strikeouts over 1.1 IP in his second appearance with Fort Myers. It was a tough night for the Miracle bats, as they managed just five hits (all singles) and a walk while striking out 11 times. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 15, Burlington 5 Box Score What’s better than hitting for the cycle? Whatever you want to call what Jermaine Palacios did Friday night. Palacios was 5-for-6 with two homers and two doubles. I suppose he “fell” a triple short of the cycle, but I’m sure he’s happy having to settled for 13 total bases on the night. Heck, let’s call that hitting a Palacios! The Kernels shortstop scored five runs and drove in three. Travis Blankenhorn was 3-for-6 with a home run. Lewin Diaz, Mitchell Kranson and Ben Rortvedt also had three hits each. Brandon Lopez had two hits, including a triple, as did Aaron Whitefield, who stole his 14th base. Clark Beeker gave up four runs but managed to pitch six innings, extending his streak of pitching six or more to seven-straight starts. TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day – Adam Wilk (6 IP, 5 H, 3 ER, 1 BB, 5 K) Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day – Jermaine Palacios (5-for-6, 2 HR, 2 2B, 5 R, 3 RBI) SATURDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Rochester vs. Syracuse, 6:05 pm CT, Yohan Pino (4.50 ERA, 0.93 WHIP) Chattanooga at Montgomery, 6:35 pm CT, Stephen Gonsalves (2.45 ERA, 0.82 WHIP) Fort Myers vs. Tampa, 5:05 pm CT, Lachlan Wells (4.42 ERA, 1.25 WHIP) Cedar Rapids vs. Burlington, 6:35 pm CT, Eduardo Del Rosario (5.30 ERA, 1.52 WHIP) Please feel free to ask any questions and discuss Friday's games. Click here to view the article

It's hard to believe the calendar has already turned to June. Cedar Rapids and Fort Myers need to make runs at first half playoff spots in the weeks to come. Rochester and Chattanooga need to continue to fight for their own playoff positions even though their leagues don't hand out first half playoff spots. Would any teams be able to gain some separation on Sunday? Which players would shine? Read on to find out.RED WINGS REPORT Rochester 2, Norfolk 1 Box Score It took awhile for Rochester's offense to wake up in this contest. With the team trailing 1-0 late in the game, Tommy Field finally got things rolling. He started the seventh with a single and than moved to third on a JR Murphy single. Zack Granite came up with the go-ahead, a triple, to put Rochester on top by one. Adam Wilk started and allowed one earned run, a home run, on six hits over four innings. He struck out one and didn't walk a batter. Ryan Eades improved to 2-0 on the season as he tossed three shutout innings with four strikeouts and one walk. His season ERA dropped to 1.13. Ryan Pressly picked up his first save, a two-inning affair, as he only allowed two base runners. CHATTANOOGA CHATTER Chattanooga 6, Jackson 5 Box Score Chattanooga jumped out to any early 3-0 lead in the first inning. Three of the first four batters reached without recording a hit as Jackson committed an error, walked a batter and hit a batter. Dan Gamache took advantage with a one-out single to plate a pair of runs. Levi Michael capped the inning with a run-scoring single as things were looking good for the Lookouts. Top pitching prospect Fernando Romero pitched seven innings and saw five runs scored while he was on the mound. Lucky for him, only two of the runs were earned as he struck out eight and didn't allow a walk. Nick Gordon and Gamache each had an error in the fourth which allowed three unearned runs to score. Luke Bard and Mason Melotakis combined to allow one base runner over the final two frames. Bard struck out the side in the eighth. Trailing by one in the bottom of the ninth, LaMonte Wade and Travis Harrison started the inning with doubles. Gamache was intentionally walked before Levi Michael advanced the runners with a bunt. Ryan Walker played the hero as he doubled in the winning run. MIRACLE MATTERS Fort Myers 0, Palm Beach 5 Box Score It's tough to win many games when a team is limited to three hits. Fort Myers was shut out on Sunday. Zander Wiel, Tanner English and Trey Vavra all went 1-for-3 as English and Vavra both collected doubles. The Miracle didn't collect a walk in the game and only one batter stepped into the plate with a runner in scoring position. Lachlan Wells lost two full count battles in the bottom of the first before giving up a three-run home run. He went five innings, allowing four earned runs on five hits with three strikeouts and two walks. Tom Hackimer pitched two scoreless innings with a couple of strikeouts. Sam Clay finished the game with a scoreless eighth. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 11, Burlington 6 Box Score The Kernels exploded for five runs in the second inning and they still needed a four-run eighth frame to separate themselves from the Bees. All of the Kernels second inning damage came with two outs. Caleb Hamilton and Christian Cavaness walked before a Brandon Lopez triple brought them home. Aaron Whitefield walked and stole second in front of a two-run single from Travis Blankenhorn. Jarmaine Palacios capped the inning with a run-scoring double. Hamilton played a key role later in the game as his two-run homer helped to separate Cedar Rapids. A couple of batters later, Travis Blankenhorm popped his sixth home run of the season to bust open the game. Blankenhorn finished with three hits and four RBI. On the defensive side of the ball, Cavaness threw out a runner at home in the seventh to keep the Kernels up one. Eduardo Del Rosario didn't have his best stuff but he was able to earn his fifth win. He struck out one and walked two while allowing four earned runs over five innings. Zack Tillery struggled a little as well. He walked three batters and saw a run scored without giving up a hit. Logan Lombana pitched 1.1 innings and gave up one earned run on three hits. Ryan Mason pitched two shutout innings to close out the game. TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY Pitcher of the Day – Fernando Romero, Chattanooga Lookouts (7 IP, 2 ER, 8 K, 0 BB) Hitter of the Day – Travis Blankenhorn, Cedar Rapids Kernels (3-for-5, HR, 4 RBI, 2 R) MONDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Rochester vs. Scanton/WB (6:05 CST) - TBD Chattanooga vs. Jackson (6:15 CST) - LHP Stephen Gonsalves (0-2, 3.18 ERA) Fort Myers @ Palm Beach (5:30 CST) - LHP Lewis Thorpe (0-2, 1.38 ERA) Cedar Rapids - Scheduled Off-Day Please feel free to ask any questions and discuss Sunday’s games. Click here to view the article

Wednesday afternoon, the Twins announced that they have claimed left-handed starting pitcher Adam Wilk from the New York Mets. The move puts the Twins roster back at 40. UPDATE: Following the announcement that the Twins game in Chicago on Wednesday night was postponed to August, the Twins announced that Drew Rucinski had been optioned to Rochester to make room for Wilk.There is speculation, maybe an assumption, that he will start for the Twins on Saturday. He made just one start for the Mets this season. He made five starts for the Mets AAA affiliate in Las Vegas where he went 2-3 with a 5.91 ERA. Wilk is 29 years old. He made eight appearances for the Detroit Tigers between the 2011 and 2012 seasons. He did not pitch again in the big leagues until 2015 when he pitched two innings for the Angels. He spent 2013 in Korea. His one start for the Mets was an "emergency" start on Sunday when he pitched in place of the suspended Matt Harvey. He gave up six runs (5 earned) on eight hits (including three homers) and a walk in 3.2 innings. Maybe it's just me, but this feels like a move completely meant to be a stop-gap. Maybe it's one start on Saturday. Maybe it's a couple of starts before Jose Berrios, Adalberto Mejia or Kyle Gibson are ready to come back to the Twins. UPDATE 2: Click here to view the article