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Season’s end can separate the star prospects from the rest of the roster. Many affiliated teams are fighting for a playoff spot and batters can make the difference between a playoff team and one that is sending players home in the weeks ahead. A winning culture starts in the minor leagues and Minnesota will need to rely on some of the players left in their minor league system. There are few top prospects on this list, but that’s further evidence of how deep the Twins farm system has become in recent years. From veteran cast-offs to DSL teenagers, this list has a wide array of players.Previous 2019 Hitters of the Month: April - Trey Cabbage May - Lewin Diaz June - Brent Rooker July – Jaylin Davis Let’s take a look at the Top 5 hitters for the month of August, but first here are some of the players deserving of honorable mention. HONORABLE MENTION Gilberto Celestino – Cedar Rapids Kernels/Fort Myers Miracle, 32-98, .327/.396/.500 with three home runs and eight doubles.Rhodery Diaz – DSL Twins, 13-36, .361/.477/.444 with one home run and one double.Ramon Flores – Rochester Red Wings, 29-98, .296/.434/.449 with three home runs, four doubles and one triple.Trevor Larnach – Pensacola Blue Wahoos, 30-98, .306/.395/.510 with six home runs and two doubles.Anthony Prato – Elizabethton Twins, 24-71, .338/.410/.451 with one home run, three doubles and one triple.Gabe Snyder – Cedar Rapids Kernels, 21-90, .233/.300/.478 with six home runs, two doubles and one triple.Tomas Telis – Rochester Red Wings, 31-76, .408/.439/.553 with two home runs and five doubles.Tyler Webb – Cedar Rapids Kernels, 24-75, /320/.370/.400 with one home run, one double and one triple.THE TOP FIVE HITTERS Number 5 – Pensacola Blue Wahoos – 1B/3B/OF Ryan Costello – 21-85, .247/.369/.529 with six home runs, four doubles and one triple. Costello, Seattle's 31st-round pick in 2017 (came to Twins in July 2018 trade from the Mariners (Zach Duke)), continues to show his value as he moves through the Twins system. August was his first full month at Double-A and he made sure to leave his mark. He had hits in 10 of his first 12 games of the month and that included a stretch of three straight games with a home run. He ended the month with hits in eight of his final 11 games to be one of the organization’s top five hitters for the month. Number 4 – DSL Twins – 3B/1B Rubel Cespedes – 16-46, .348/.423/.630 with one home run, four doubles, and three triples. The Dominican Summer League Twins can be forgotten about with the plethora of other affiliated minor league squads. Cespedes made sure that hitters in this league wouldn’t be forgotten. In his first taste of professional ball, the teenager finished the season on a hot streak. He collected multiple hits in five of his 12 August contests and he only failed to reach base in one August game. Through the month’s first seven games, he was hitting .423/.516/.731 with six extra-base hits and one strike out compared to four walks. Number 3 – Elizabethton Twins/Cedar Rapids Kernels – OF/3B Seth Gray – 24-92, .261/.361/.533 with five home runs and 10 doubles Gray, a 2019 fourth-round pick, ended the month with a promotion from E-Town to Cedar Rapids. He hit safely in his final six Appy League game and he had multiple hits in three of his final games with that club. Even after the promotion, he ended the month on an eight-game hitting streak which included five extra-base hits and a .977 OPS. He was only hitting .231 through the first 12 games of the month but he finished August going 15-53 (.283) with eight extra-base hits. Number 2 – Rochester Red Wings – OF Alejandro De Aza – 28-71, .394/.469/.676 with thee home runs, seven doubles and two triples De Aza is 35-years old, but he made it clear in August why the Twins picked him up in the middle of July. He ended the month on an 11-game hitting streak and there were actually only two games in the entire month where he was held without a hit. Apparently, the guy knows how to hit because he was only failed to collect a hit in six games so far in the Twins organization. He had multiple hits in nine of his 19 games. What makes it even more impressive is the fact the Red Wings were fighting for their playoff lives for a good portion of the month. And the Twins Minor League Hitter of the Month is: Rochester Red Wings – OF/1B Zander Wiel – 30-105, .286/.350/.600 with six home runs, 11 doubles and two triples. Someone had to step up and fill the offensive void left by Jaylin Davis and Zander Wiel did his best to fit this role with the Red Wings. Wiel, a 12th-round pick back in 2015, has spent the entire season in Rochester. Much like De Aza, Wiel ended the month on an 11-game hitting streak that included three multi-hit games. Overall, Wiel collected seven multi-hit efforts throughout the month. Wiel was coming off a rough July where he struggled by hitting .200/.243/.484 (.727). All of those totals were season lows for him. Something switched in August as he had a season high in OPS, SLG and extra base hits. As a 26-year old, he has also been facing older pitchers in roughly have of his plate appearances. A study was done at the University of Rochester after the Red Wings broke their franchise home run record. It was a simple experiment to see if the new Triple-A baseballs were bouncier and could be one of the reasons for the power hitting surge. Wiel was interviewed for the story and said, “These balls this year…they’ve been going and that’s why you see the rise in numbers. All the production, extra-base hits and stuff we’re seeing.” Even with a bouncier ball, Wiel still must do one of the hardest things in sports by making solid contact between a round bat and a round ball. He did it better than anyone else in the Twins system this past month so congratulations to him. Feel free to share your thoughts and ask questions in the comments below. Click here to view the article

Welcome to the final Sunday of the minor league season. Granted multiple affiliates of the Twins could be playing postseason. However, there is still work to get done in the regular season and rosters took on a very different feel after September call-ups were made on Sunday. Can the higher levels of the minor league’s survive without some of their key players? You will have to read on to find out.AWARDS The Twins announced their weekly Hitter and Pitcher of the Week Hitter of the Week: Zander Wiel, RochesterIn seven games for the Red Wings, Wiel hit .370 (10-for-27) with four doubles, three home runs, seven RBI, three walks and a 1.271 OPS. Wiel was selected in the 12th round of the 2015 MLB Draft out of Vanderbilt University.Pitcher of the Week: Cody Laweryson, ElizabethtonLaweryson made the start on Monday vs. Greeneville, pitching 6.0 shutout innings with three hits allowed, no walks and 15 strikeouts. He was selected out fo the 14th round of the 2019 MLB Draft out of the University of Main at Orono. TRANSACTIONS OF Ian Miller had contracted selected by Minnesota. RHP Brusdar Graterol had contracted selected by Minnesota. RHP Zack Littell recalled by Minnesota. RHP Kohl Stewart recalled by Minnesota LHP Devin Smeltzer recalled by Minnesota LHP Lewis Thorpe recalled by Minnesota. C Willians Astudillo ended MLB rehab assignment and returned to Minnesota. RHP Sean Poppen returned from rehab assignment, recalled by Minnesota, and placed on the MLB 60-day Injured List. INF Yeltsin Encarnacion transferred from Ft. Myers to Rochester. RHP Alex Schick transferred from Cedar Rapids to Rochester. LHP Denny Bentley transferred from Elizabethton to Rochester. LHP Jeremy Bleich reinstated from the IL with Rochester. INF Anthony Prato promoted from Elizabethton to Cedar Rapids OF Byron Buxton has ended his rehab assignment with the Kernels RED WINGS REPORT Rochester 3, Syracuse 7 (Final- 9 Innings, Rain) Box Score Rochester scored three runs in the seventh inning to tie the game before allowing four runs in the eighth inning to relinquish their advantage. In the seventh inning, Rochester plated three runs thanks to a double from Alejandro De Aza. Wilin Rosario would score in the next at-bat thanks to a wild pitch. Rochester tied the game at 3-3, but the bullpen saw that lead evaporate. With all of the roster shuffling, Preston Guilmet started and was asked to record only nine outs. He allowed three runs on four hits with three strikeouts. Denny Pentley took over and didn’t allow a hit in two innings of work. He struck out two and walked one. Ryan O’Rourke coughed up two of the late-inning runs and Jeremy Bleich also added another two runs allowed as Syracuse stretched their lead to 7-3. BLUE WAHOO BITES Pensacola 7, Montgomery 11 Box Score Pensacola’s potent offense tried to mount a late-inning comeback, but it wasn’t enough with the hole the pitching staff had dug. Charlie Barnes struggled through five innings for his fourth loss of the year at Double-A. He surrendered seven runs on nine hits with two strikeouts and two walks. The bullpen didn’t exactly help the situation for Barnes. Jonathan Cheshire did fine in his one inning of work. He didn’t allow any runs and he walked one and struck out one. Stephen Gonsalves struggled with three earned runs on two hits with the biggest hit being a home run. Alex Phillips didn’t stop the bleeding as he surrendered one run on two hits to end the eighth inning. Pensacola has already clinched a playoff spot, but the bullpen is going to need to have better outings if the club wants to find success in the postseason. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 5, Beloit 1 Box Score Cedar Rapids plated four runs in the third inning and that turned out to be enough against the Beloit lineup that went 1-for-9 with runners in scoring position. Kody Funderburk scattered five hits and allowed one earned run for his first Midwest League win. He struck out eight and walked two to lower his ERA to 4.68. Rickey Ramirez pitched the final three frames and limited the Snappers to two hits. He walked two and struck out one without allowing a run. Matt Wallner had the only extra-base hit of the night for the Kernels. He collected his third double since being promoted and drove in a run. In the third inning, Trevor Casanova was hit by a pitch before a Daniel Ozoria single moved him into scoring position. Gabe Snyder drove in the first run of the game before Wallner’s important double. A passed ball and a Seth Gray single plated enough runs to put the Kernels in the driver’s seat. The Midwest League playoffs begin on Wednesday night as Cedar Rapids hosts the Quad Cities River Bandits. First pitch on September 4 begins at 6:35 p.m. TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY TD Pitcher of the Day- Kody Funderburk, Cedar Rapids (6.0 IP, 5 H, 1 ER, 8 K, 2 BB) TD Hitter of the Day- Ryan Costello, Pensacola (2-3, 3B, 3 RBI, R, BB) PROSPECT SUMMARY Here’s a look at how the Twins Daily Top 20 Twins Prospects performed: #1 - Royce Lewis (Pensacola) – 0-5, 2 K #2 - Alex Kirilloff (Pensacola) – Did not play #3 - Brusdar Graterol (Minnesota) – 1.0 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, K, 0 BB #4 - Trevor Larnach (Pensacola) – 2-4, 2 R, K #5 - Wander Javier (Cedar Rapids) – 2-5, R, K #13 - Ryan Jeffers (Pensacola) – 1-4 #14 - Luis Arraez (Minnesota) – 2-5, 2B, 2 R #15 - Matt Wallner (Cedar Rapids) – 1-4, HR, 2 RBI, 3 K #20 - Travis Blankenhorn (Pensacola) – 2-5, R, K MONDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Rochester vs. Syracuse (12:05 CST) – TBD Pensacola @ Montgomery (12:05 CST) – RHP Bailey Ober (8-0, 0.71 ERA) Cedar Rapids @ Beloit (2:00 CST) – RHP Luis Rijo (5-8, 2.86 ERA) Please feel free to ask any questions and discuss Sunday’s games. 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Something so rare I don’t recall happening in the five years I’ve been writing MiLB reports for Twins Daily happened on Tuesday in the Minnesota Twins farm system. No, it wasn’t the grand slam from a former major leaguer that led his team to a victory, or the three games that ended in walk-off fashion on the night, but something…else. It’s really a testament to the amount of talent the system has at a certain level…I caught some flak for mentioning the reason on Twitter last night, but I’m going to leave it to you guys to see if you can figure it out after reading Tuesday’s minor league report! TRANSACTIONS There were a few transactions leading into the games on Tuesday: Griffin Jax was promoted to the Rochester Red Wings and would be on normal rest on Wednesday.The Fort Myers Miracle activated pitcher Jordan Balazovic from the temporary inactive list after winning a silver medal at the Pan Am Games with Team Canada. He may start on Wednesday.The Cedar Rapids Kernels activated RHP Josh Winder from the injured list and he made the start.In the Appalachian League, 2B Edouard Julien was also activated from the temporary inactive list after bringing home a silver medal in the Pan Am games.The GCL Twins placed RHP Seth Pinkerton and RHP Rogelio Reyes on the 7-day injured listRED WINGS REPORTGwinnett 3, Rochester 8 Box Score The Red Wings came out swinging and never looked back as a grand third inning propelled them to an 8-3 victory on Tuesday night. Although they were outhit 13-10 on the game, Rochester got the bigger hits in the form of a grand slam from Alejandro De Aza in that third inning, and a solo home run and two-run double from Ramon Flores. Recent trade acquisition from the Cleveland Indians organization, outfielder Brandon Barnes contributed two hits (2-for-4, R, 2B, BB) to the effort along with Flores (2-for-4, R, 2B, HR, 3 RBI, BB). De Aza drew a bases-loaded walk in the first inning to start the scoring. Sean Poppen gave the Red Wings 3 2/3 in the start, allowing two runs on six hits and two walks as he ran up his pitch count to 74 (44 strikes). He struck out six. Ryan Eades got the next 1 1/3, allowing one run on four hits and striking out three. Preston Guilmet picked up the win with two scoreless frames, allowing one hit and one walk along with three K’s. Ian Krol finished the game with two scoreless of his own, allowing two hits and striking out two. BLUE WAHOOS BITES Scheduled Day Off The Blue Wahoos took four of five games from the Birmingham Barons at home in the last week, and hit the road on Tuesday toward Mobile, Alabama to face the Southern League South Division bottom-dwelling BayBears on Wednesday. MIRACLE MATTERS Fort Myers @ St. Lucie - Postponed: Wet Grounds Rains wreaked havoc on multiple games in the Florida State League on Tuesday, including the Miracle’s tilt against the Mets in St. Lucie. Dakota Chalmers will make the start in game one, with Jordan Balazovic originally scheduled on Wednesday though the MiLB.com schedule is “TBD” for game two. KERNELS NUGGETS Burlington 5, Cedar Rapids 6 Box Score Starting pitcher Josh Winder retired the first nine Bees hitters he faced, but when an error on first baseman Albee Weiss opened the fourth inning, the game went off the rails for the 2019 standout. Despite finishing the inning, before it was over he had allowed five unearned runs as two singles, a walk, a triple and a home run led to all those runs when three outs should have already been recorded. Those runs came on four hits and one walk while he punched out four. Just as quickly as his defense let him down, his bullpen and offense picked him up. Relievers J.T. Perez, Nate Hadley, and Austin Schulfer combined to shut Burlington out for the rest of the game. Perez allowed two hits and a walk in two innings, striking out two. Hadley walked one and struck out two in his two innings. Shulfer struck out one in a scoreless ninth. Down three runs after Winder’s exit, the lineup closed the gap to 5-4 in the fifth inning via a two-run blast from Wander Javier, his eighth of the season. It remained that way until the bottom of the ninth where Gabe Snyder led off the frame with his thirteenth home run of the season to tie the game at five and ignite a rally. Javier then reached on an error, moved to second on a Jared Akins single before Trevor Casanova drove him in with a double to snuff out the Bees. The Kernels got three hits from Snyder (3-for-5, 2 R, HR, RBI) and Casanova (3-for-4, R, 2B, RBI, BB). Gilberto Celestino also contributed a solo home run, his eighth of the season in the first inning to put the home team up 1-0 early. E-TWINS E-NOTES Elizabethton 8, Kingsport 9 Box Score Elizabethton took a big early lead with a crooked number in the third inning as they strung together a walk, and error, three singles, a double, and a sac fly that put four runs on the scoreboard. Unfortunately, starter Andriu Marin ran into even bigger trouble in the bottom of the fourth as before it was all said and done, Kingsport had put seven runs of their own on the board. Marin went 3+ innings, allowing six runs (four earned) all in the fourth, on five total hits and four walks. He did strike out four. Frandy Torres came in to the game with runners on second and third and nobody out and did his best to limit further damage, but one inherited runner scored on a groundout before he gave up a two-run homer. Torres went go on to pitch 2 2/3, being charged with only one earned run. He allowed two hits and struck out two. The E-Twins were then able to mount a comeback, as they scored single runs in the fifth and sixth innings, then Will Holland delivered a two-run double to take back the lead 8-7 in the seventh. Tyler Beck got Elizabethton through the eighth inning with 2 1/3 scoreless innings, scattering three hits and striking out two, then Benjamin Dum was summoned for the bottom of the ninth and his first save opportunity. He struck out the first batter he faced, but a single followed by a double tied the game and saddled him with a blown save. After a mound visit led to a strikeout for the second out, he gave up a run-scoring single to also get charged with the loss. Anthony Prato led the batting order with three hits in five at-bats, including a triple, while scoring two runs. Parker Phillips (2-for-4, R, 2B, RBI, BB) and Kyle Schmidt (2-for-4, R, RBI) also added two hits in the loss. Willie Joe Garry Jr. also contributed a triple. GCL TWINS TAKES Game 1: GCL Twins 4, GCL Pirates 2 Box Score With yesterday’s game postponed, the Twins and Pirates faced off in a doubleheader hosted by Pirates, with the Twins the visitor in game one. The Twins got on the board in the first inning thanks to an RBI single from Victor Heredia that was followed by an RBI double from Wander Valdez that made it 2-0 early. Righthander Anthony Escobar held the Pirates down for the first four innings, allowing only one run on three hits and a walk, along with striking out three. The run came on a solo home run in his final inning. Niklas Rimmel finished off the game with three innings of work to pick up his first professional win. He allowed one run on one hit while striking out two. Heredia added two more runs in the top of the fifth with a two-run double to account for the final score. He led the way with two hits in four trips to the plate and three RBIs. Valdez and Jeferson Morales also contributed two hits apiece. Game 2: GCL Pirates 0, GCL Twins 1 Box Score It was even more of a pitcher’s duel in game two, as the teams metaphorically swapped dugouts with the Twins as the home team for this one. They got a fantastic start from Miguel Rodriguez, who went the first six scoreless innings, holding the Pirates to four singles while striking out nine. Rodriguez has made a strong initial impression in the States, having now pitched 21 total innings with a 26:6 strikeout to base-on-balls ratio, 1.00 WHIP, and .192 batting average against. He was done with the score still tied at zero in this one though. Bradley Hanner got the seventh inning and with a scoreless frame also picked up his first professional win. He walked one and struck out one. The Twins literally walked this one off thanks to a bases-loaded free pass drawn by Heredia in the bottom of the seventh. Keoni Cavaco and Luis Milla each had two hits to account for all hits on the game for the good guys. They did draw six walks as a team, with Morales drawing two. TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY Pitcher of the Day – Miguel Rodriguez, GCL Twins (6.0 IP, 0 R, 4 H, 9 K) Hitter of the Day – Alejandro De Aza, Rochester Red Wings (1-for-3, R, GS HR, 5 RBI, BB) PROSPECT SUMMARY Here’s a look at how the Twins Daily Midseason Top 20 Twins Prospects performed: #1 - Royce Lewis (Pensacola) - No game #2 - Alex Kirilloff (Pensacola) - No game #3 - Brusdar Graterol (Pensacola) - Rehab assignment with GCL #4 - Trevor Larnach (Pensacola) - No game #5 - Wander Javier (Cedar Rapids) - 1-for-4, 2 R, HR, 2 RBI, 2 K #6 - Jordan Balazovic (Fort Myers) - Game postponed #7 - Keoni Cavaco (GCL) - 2-for-4, K #8 - Brent Rooker (Rochester) - Injured List (groin) #9 - Jhoan Duran (Pensacola) - Game postponed #10 - Blayne Enlow (Fort Myers) - Game postponed #11 - Lewis Thorpe (Rochester) - Did not pitch #12 - Nick Gordon (Rochester) - Did not play #13 - Ryan Jeffers (Pensacola) - No game #14 - Luis Arraez (Minnesota) - Game in progress #15 - Matt Wallner (Elizabethton) - Did not play #16 - Ben Rortvedt (Pensacola) - No game #17 - Akil Baddoo (Fort Myers) - Injured List (Tommy John surgery) #18 - Jorge Alcala (Pensacola) - No game #19 - Misael Urbina (DSL) - Did not play #20 - Travis Blankenhorn (Pensacola) - No game WEDNESDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Gwinnett @ Rochester (6:05PM CST) - LHP Lewis Thorpe (5-4, 5.02 ERA) Pensacola @ Mobile (6:35PM CST) - TBD Fort Myers @ St. Lucie, Game 1 (3:00PM CST) - RHP Dakota Chalmers (0-0, 36.00 ERA) Fort Myers @ St. Lucie, Game 2 (makeup of 8/6 postponement) - TBD (Jordan Balazovic) Cedar Rapids @ Kane County (6:30PM CST) - LHP Kody Funderbunk (0-2, 5.33 ERA) Elizabethton @ Kingsport (5:30PM CST) - TBD GCL Twins @ GCL Orioles, Game 1 (9:00AM CST) - TBD GCL Twins @ GCL Orioles, Game 2 (makeup of 7/25 postponement) - TBD Please feel free to ask questions and discuss Tuesday’s games! 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Welcome to August! Many prospects throughout baseball can breathe a sigh of relief because they weren’t traded away by Wednesday’s trade deadline. Now it is time to buckle down and make a run for the postseason. Pensacola’s line-up includes Minnesota’s first-round picks from 2016-2018. This is the first time a trio of first rounders have been playing for Pensacola at the same time. Would any of these players impact Thursday’s games? Let’s find out.TRANSACTIONS OF Ramon Flores signed by Minnesota and assigned to Rochester. 3B Jake Hirabayashi assigned to Rochester from GCL Twins. RHP Anthony Vizcaya placed on the 7-day IL with Pensacola. RHP Marcos Diplan acquired in trade with/ MIL and assigned to Pensacola. RHP Kai-Wei Ten to SF as part of the Sam Dyson deal. RHP Carlos Suniaga on 7-day IL with Pensacola. RHP Josh Winder on 7-day IL with Pensacola. RED WINGS REPORT Rochester 5, Scranton/WB 3 Box Score Kohl Stewart got the nod for the Red Wings on Thursday afternoon. He pitched into the sixth inning (5 2/3 innings) and held the RailRiders to one run on six hits with two strikeouts and two walks. Jake Reed struggled in taking over for Stewart. He allowed two earned runs without allowing a hit. He struck out three and walked one in 1 1/3 innings. In the second inning, Alejandro De Aza got the scoring started with a solo-home run, his fourth long-ball of the year. Rochester added another in the fourth. De Aza and Zander Wiel both singled before Ramon Flores doubled in a run. De Aza was in the middle of the action in the fifth inning as well. Tomas Telis singled with two outs and De Aza cracked his second home run of the day. Jake Cave added his seventh home run in the seventh. Fernando Romero and Sam Clay finished off the game with two scoreless innings. Romero pitched 1 2/3 innings and limited Scranton/WB to one hit while striking out two and walking one. Clay was asked to get only one out and he recorded his first save. BLUE WAHOO BITES Pensacola 11, Birmingham 8 Box Score Pensacola needed every one of Alex Kirilloff’s five RBIs in this one as they battled through a slugfest. Kirilloff finished 2-for-5 with his 14th double and his fifth home run, a three-run shot. Ivan De Jesus Jr also had a big night at the plate by going 3-for-4 with four RBIs including a three-run home run. Ben Rortvedt drove in a pair of runs with two outs in the inning. Overall, the club went 7-for-13 with runners in scoring position. Griffin Jax started and got roughed up. He allowed five runs on 11 hits with two strikeouts and a walk. Jorge Alcala pitched out the of the bullpen and surrendered one run on two hits with a strikeout in 1 2/3 innings. Andrew Vasquez blew the save but was credited with the win. He allowed two runs in two innings and struck out three. Jonathan Cheshire earned his first save since joining the Twins organization with a perfect ninth inning. MIRACLE MATTERS Ft. Myers 3, Dunedin 0 (Game 1- 7 Innings) Box Score Cole Sands was outstanding even with a weather delay that impacted the start time of Game 1. He pitched six shutout innings and limited Dunedin to two hits. He struck out seven and walked one. Joe Record earned his third save with a perfect seventh inning. CJ Cron, on rehab assignment, got things started in the third inning with a solo home run. Jose Miranda also scored in that inning on a wild pitch. Miranda was also involved in the final run of the game. Jacob Pearson drove him in for an important insurance run in the bottom of the fifth. Andrew Bechtold reached base three times and was the lone Fort Myers batter with multiple hits. Ft. Myers 2, Dunedin 6 (Game 2- 7 Innings) Box Score Fort Myers got smoked for six runs in the third inning and it was tough to mount a comeback. Chris Vallimont was charged with all six earned runs as he couldn’t make it out of the third inning. Melvi Acosta pitched 2 1/3 scoreless innings by striking out two. Gabriel Maciel got the Miracle on the scoreboard with a run-scoring triple in the fourth inning. Ernie De La Trinidad and Yelstin Encarnacion both doubled in the fifth to score another run but that was it for the Miracle. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 4, Beloit 2 Box Score Cedar Rapids and Luis Rijo allowed two runs in the first inning but that’s where the scoring stopped for the Snappers. Rijo settled in after the first and threw five straight scoreless frames. He compiled three strikeouts and one walk. He has pitched six innings or more in every start since July 4. Alex Schick and Rickey Ramirez combined for three shutout innings to end the game. Schick picked up his fourth win as he recorded four strikeouts out of the six outs he was asked to collect. Ramirez pitched a perfect ninth inning and added a strikeout. Tyler Webb led off the third inning with a single before Daniel Ozoria knocked his first home run of the season. The game remained tied until the ninth inning. Webb struck out to start the inning but reached first on a wild pitch. Ricky De La Torre walked to move a runner into scoring position. Ozoria bunted both runners over and then two batters later Gabe Snyder doubled, his 20th, to plate two runs. GCL TWINS TAKES GCL Twins 3, GCL Braves 2 Box Score Brusdar Graterol continued his comeback by making his second appearance in the GCL. He faced the minimum in the first inning as he allowed a single and then erased that runner on a double play. He was able to hit over 100 mph again. In his second inning, the first batter flew out to center. Then he struck out each of the next two batters on three pitches and they were all swinging strikes. Would the Twins consider adding him to the bullpen for the stretch run? With two outs in the third inning, Taylor Grzelakowski walked before moving to second on a Jesus Feliz single. Victor Heredia doubled, his third of the year, to drive in both runners. The GCL Twins added to their lead in the fourth when Sergio Toribio singled and moved to second on a wild pitch. After a ground out moved him to third, Yunior Severino drove in what turned out to be the game winning run. Regi Grace took over from Graterol and was credited with his first win. He pitched four innings and allowed one run, a solo home run, with four strikeouts and three walks. Petru Balan came in for the top of the seventh, but he walked the first two batters and was removed. Bradley Hanner stepped in to finish the game with three shutout innings. He struck out two and walked one. TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY TD Pitcher of the Day- Cole Sands, Fort Myers (6.0 IP, 0 ER, 2 H, 7 K, BB) TD Hitter of the Day- Alejandro De Aza, Rochester (3-for-4, 2 HR, 3 RBI, 3 R, K) PROSPECT SUMMARY Here’s a look at how the Twins Daily Midseason Top 20 Twins Prospects performed: #1 - Royce Lewis (Pensacola) – 1-4, R, K #2 - Alex Kirilloff (Pensacola) – 2-4, 5 RBI, HR, 2B, 2 R, K #3 - Brusdar Graterol (GCL Twins- Rehab) – 2.0 IP, H, 0 ER, 2 K #4 - Trevor Larnach (Pensacola) – 0-4, 3 K #5 - Wander Javier (Cedar Rapids) – Did not play #6 - Jordan Balazovic (Fort Myers) – Did not pitch #7 - Keoni Cavaco (GCL) – 1-4, 3 K #8 - Brent Rooker (Rochester) – Injured list #9 - Jhoan Duran (Fort Myers) – Did not pitch #10 - Blayne Enlow (Fort Myers) - Did not pitch #11 - Lewis Thorpe (Minnesota) – Did not pitch #12 - Nick Gordon (Rochester) – 0-5 #13 - Ryan Jeffers (Pensacola) – Did not play #14 - Luis Arraez (Minnesota) – 1-6, R #15 - Matt Wallner (Elizabethton) – 1-4, R, RBI, BB, K #16 - Ben Rortvedt (Pensacola) – 1-3, 2 RBI, R #17 - Akil Baddoo (Fort Myers) - Injured List (Tommy John surgery) #18 - Jorge Alcala (Pensacola) – 1.2 IP, ER, 2 H, K #19 - Misael Urbina (DSL) – Did not play #20 - Travis Blankenhorn (Pensacola) – Injured list FRIDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Rochester @ Pawtucket (6:05 CST) – TBD Pensacola vs. Birmingham (6:35 CST) – RHP Jhoan Duran (3-9, 3.04 ERA) Fort Myers @ Lakeland (5:30 CST) – LHP Tyler Watson (1-4, 3.88 ERA) Cedar Rapids @ Beloit (6:30 CST) – TBD Elizabethton vs. Bristol (5:30 CST) – TBD GCL Twins vs. GCL Red Sox (11:00 AM CST) – TBD Please feel free to ask any questions and discuss Thursday’s games. 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