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On Sunday morning, seven players from Minnesota Twins spring training were told that they would not be on the Twins Opening Day roster. The most intriguing name of the bunch was infielder Chris Colabello. This leaves the Twins with 42 players on their spring roster.[PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] Here are the players sent to minor league camp: Chris Colabello was last year's feel-good minor league story. He has had a great past 12 months. At this time last year, he has just signed with the Twins after being named Baseball America's Independent Leagues player of the year in 2011. He made the New Britain roster and was a mainstay in the middle of their lineup all season. He received the invite to spring training and made a name for himself on a national (international?) level with some big games and big hits for Team Italy in the WBC. He returned to the Twins late last week. He will likely spend most of the season in Rochester this year, but don't be at all surprised if the Twins call his name if they have a need for a bat. Brian Dinkelman hit .301 for the Twins in 2011 in a part-time role. He spent all of 2012 with Rochester and didn't play a lot due to injury. He provides the Twins with depth in the corner outfield spots as well as the right side of the infield. Clete Thomas got some time with the Twins in 2012 after spending his entire career in the Tigers organization. He returned to the Twins on a minor league deal after hitting for power with the Red Wings. He'll return to Rochester this spring and play all around the outfield. Mark Sobolewski was selected by the Twins in the minor league portion of December's Rule 5 draft from the Blue Jays organization. He showed well for himself in Twins camp, displaying good defense. He likely would have competed with Deibinson Romero for playing time but Romero has still not arrived from the Dominican Republic due to visa issues. Deolis Guerra came off of the 40 man roster last November, but he returned on a minor league contract. He pitched very well in the Venezuelan Winter League and was excited to represent his country in the WBC. Unfortunately, shoulder pain was diagnosed as a blood clot. He will be having surgery in the near future. Shairon Martis was invited to big league camp after coming to the Twins in a minor trade last summer. He didn't pitch much for the Twins before joining Team Netherlands in Taiwan, and then Japan, and now in San Francisco for the WBC. He should factor into the Red Wings pitching staff this season. Eric Fryer got time with the Pirates the past two season. He played well in spring, but he could find himself in either New Britain or Rochester. The Twins now have 42 players in big league camp including 22 pitchers (5 non-roster), 4 catchers (1 non-roster), 9 infielders (3 non-roster) and 7 outfielders (2 non-roster). View full article

It was quite the power display for the Rochester Red Wings, something the Twins AAA-affiliate needed badly. Clete Thomas and Chris Colabello continue to make their case for big league jobs. Miguel Sano and Byron Buxton continue to make their cases for being the #1 prospect in baseball going into the 2014 season.[PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] The Twins fell again in Cleveland, but there was plenty to watch in the Twins minor leagues. There was good pitching. The top prospects each had multi-hit games. And, the Red Wings got some big time power from the middle of their lineup. Check out what happened on Saturday in the minor league parks: Rochester Red Wings 8, Columbus Clippers 2 Box Score The middle of the Red Wings lineup came through in a big way on Saturday night in Ohio. Clete Thomas, Chris Colabello and Jeff Clement (the 3-4-5 hitters) combined to go 8-15 with a double, five home runs and seven RBI. Thomas is now hitting .386 after going 2-5 with his fifth and sixth home runs. Chris Colabello went 4-5 with his seventh double and seventh home run. Jeff Clement was 2-5 with the first two home runs of his season. Joe Benson had a single to extend his hitting streak to nine games. (Photo - Naples News) Liam Hendriks made the start. He gave up two runs on seven hits in six innings. He walked none and struck out five. Caleb Thielbar came on and threw two scoreless innings, walking one and striking one out. Luis Perdomo gave up one hit in a scoreless ninth. He struck out two. New Britain Rock Cats 1, Portland Sea Dogs 2 Box Score The score was tied at one going into the bottom of the 9th inning. Lefty Edgar Ibarra, who threw a scoreless eighth inning, was back on the mound. He walked the leadoff batter and proceeded to throw two wild pitches to get the runner to third base. He then intentionally walked the next two batters in an attempt to set up a force at home plate. Jose Gonzalez was brought in, and he proceeded to walk in the winning run. Trevor May was very good while Terry Ryan watched from the stands. The hard-throwing right-hander went seven strong innings. He gave up one run on three hits. He walked two and struck out three. The Rock Cats jumped out to a 1-0 lead in the first. Veteran Charlie Haeger, the knuckleballer who spent parts of five season in the big leagues, was on the mound for Portland. He missed all of the 2012 season after having Tommy John surgery. He walked Antoan Richardson to lead off the game. Richardson stole his twelfth base of the year and then advanced to third on a groundout by Danny Santana. With Mark Sobolewski batting, Haeger threw a pitch that knuckled past the catcher to score Richardson. That was the lone run of the game for New Britain. The Rock Cats had just four hits on the game. AJ Pettersen left Ft. Myers very early on Saturday morning and landed in Portland, Maine, two hours before the early afternoon game. He arrived at the ballpark to find that he was in the lineup, batting ninth and playing second base. In his first plate appearance, Haeger walked him. In his next plate appearance, he was hit by a knuckleball. He then flew out to right field twice. Alex Meyer will face Brandon Workman when the two teams play on Sunday at noon (central time). Ft. Myers Miracle 5, St. Lucie Mets 10 Box Score The Miracle’s nine game winning streak came to an end on Saturday night. Tom Stuifbergen made the start and gave up six runs on seven hits in five innings. He walked two and struck out three. Nelvin Fuentes struck out five over the next two innings. He gave up one hit and an unearned run. Corey Williams pitched the eighth inning. He gave up a solo home run and he struck out two. Chad Rodgers yielded two runs in the ninth. He gave up two hits, walked one and struck out two. Miguel Sano did his part. The slugger gave the Miracle a 3-0 lead after one inning with a three-run blast, his tenth home run of the season. He had three hits in the game and drove in four runs. Matt Koch went 3-4 as well. Cedar Rapids Kernels 5, South Bend Silver Hawks 6 (11 innings) Box Score Tyler Duffey continued to pitch well, but it wasn’t enough on this night. The right-hander went the first seven innings. He gave up two runs on seven hits. He walked one and struck out five. Tyler Jones came on and struck out the one batter he faced. Josh Burris came on and gave up three runs on one hit and three walks in one inning. Tim Atherton came on and got out of the ninth inning. He got the game to the 11th frame, but a leadoff walk led to a game-losing run. He gave up the run on two hits and three walks (one intentional) in two innings. Byron Buxton continued his streak of getting on base in all 27 games so far this season. He was 2-5 with a walk and his sixth and seventh doubles. He also stole his 12th base. Jorge Polanco went 2-5 with a walk and his third triple. He is now hitting .352. Tyler Grimes was 2-4 and was hit by two pitches. Niko Goodrum had a single, two walks and his third stolen base. A LOOK AHEAD to Sunday Sam Deduno will be making his first start of the season for the Red Wings on Sunday at noon (central time) in Columbus. Alex Meyer will be starting for New Britain in Portland, Maine on Sunday at noon. Ft. Myers plays at 3:05 on Sunday afternoon and will have Cole De Vries making a rehab start. J.O. Berrios will start for the Kernels in South Bend when they start at 1:05. Please feel free to comment or ask questions below. View full article

One month of minor league action is in the books, and for the most part, it has played out better than could have been anticipated. The Minnesota Twins' top prospects are performing very well. As important, several of the second-tier prospects have been able to establish themselves early. The Ft. Myers Miracle has the most wins of any team in the minor leagues. The Cedar Rapids Kernels have a roster filled with players who were on the Beloit playoff team a year ago and from the Appalachian League champion Elizabethton Twins. [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] Over the next couple of days, I will be posting articles on the Twins Minor League Hitter of the Month, Starting Pitcher of the Month and Relief Pitcher of the Month. There were a lot of very good choices. However, we still need to talk about what happened in the Twins system on Tuesday night. Rochester Red Wings 2, Buffalo Bisons 5 Box Score Clete Thomas got the Red Wings on the scoreboard in the first inning with his fourth home run of the season. He went 3-5 with the home run and his third double. Chris Colabello went 2-5. Joe Benson had a hit to extend his hitting streak to seven games; in that time he is 9-26 (.346). Andrew Albers put together a solid start. The left-hander went six innings and gave up two runs on eight hits. He walked none and struck out seven. Shairon Martis came on and gave up one hit over two scoreless innings. The score was just 2-1 entering the ninth frame when the rehabbing Tim Wood came on. He recorded just one out and gave up three runs on three hits. Michael O’Connor came on and got the final two outs. The Red Wings finish April with a 10-16 record. New Britain Rock Cats 2, Harrisburg Senators 6 Box Score Alex Meyer was back on the mound for the Rock Cats. He threw five scoreless innings in this game. Unfortunately, he pitched six innings and the third of the six didn’t go so well. He gave up four runs in that frame. Overall, he gave up four runs on five hits and three walks. He struck out eight. On the bright side, Meyer did not allow a base runner following the third inning. Jose Gonzalez came on for the Rock Cats and gave up two runs on four hits in 1.2 innings. Michael Tonkin came on and got the final four outs. The Rock Cats bats didn’t show up in this game. They managed just four hits. Curt Smith went 1-2 and walked once. New Britain ends April with a 13-12 mark. Ft. Myers Miracle 5, Clearwater Threshers 2 Box Score The Miracle had an incredible month of April, ending the month with another win to give them a minor league best 21 victories. DJ Baxendale was back on the mound and was a winner for the fourth time in the month. The right-hander went six innings and gave up two runs on five hits. He walked one and struck out five. Chad Rodgers came on and threw two scoreless innings. Corey Williams came on and recorded his sixth save with a perfect ninth inning. Angel Morales had the key hits in this game. He was 2-4 with his ninth double and his second home run. He drove in two runs. Eddie Rosario was 2-4 with a walk and his seventh double. Andy Leer was also 2-4. Miguel Sano was 1-2 with two walks. Stephen Wickens and Levi Michael each doubled. Cedar Rapids Kernels 5, Lansing Lugnuts 4 Box Score The Kernels managed just five hits in this game, but two of them were pretty important. Byron Buxton led off the bottom of the first with an infield single and came around to score on Dalton Hicks’ fourth home run of the season. In the third inning, it was Buxton’s turn to hit his fourth homer of the year, another two-run blast. Matt Tomshaw made his first start of the season for Cedar Rapids. The lefty threw five shutout innings and gave up just four hits. He walked one and struck out two. Manuel Soliman came on in the sixth inning. He gave up two runs on three hits and a walk in 1.2 innings. He was replaced by David Hurlbut who gave up two unearned runs on three hits and a walk. Tyler Jones came on to get the final out and his fourth save of the month. The Kernels’ 18-5 record is overshadowed by the Miracle, but they are off to a tremendous start. A LOOK AHEAD to Wednesday The Rochester Red Wings will be enjoying an off day on Wednesday. New Britain will send lefty Logan Darnell to the mound against Harrisburg. Darnell is 2-1 with a 2.73 ERA so far. The Miracle will play an afternoon game in Clearwater. Jason Wheeler will look to improve to 3-0 despite going into the game with a 5.84 ERA. Cedar Rapids makes their first, long trek into the Eastern Division, when they play West Michigan. Lefty Brett Lee is scheduled to start and is 2-0 with a 2.13 ERA. Twins 1, Tigers 6 Justin Verlander was Justin Verlander. Alex Avila, Miguel Cabrera and Prince Fielder all homered. Vance Worley gave up six runs. In general, it was not a good game for the Twins. The lone run came on a Wilkin Ramirez double. Please feel free to comment or ask questions below. View full article

Although the Twins-Mets game was ‘weathered out’ on Sunday, it was another busy day in the Twins farm system. Two games went to extra innings and ended with a walk-off hit. Cedar Rapids finished two more games in Clinton before 5:00 meaning they completed four games in just under 24 hours. Each of those four games was decided by one run. Then there is the question that we’ve been asking each of the past several days, Did the Miracle win again? Let’s just say a fairly prominent prospect helped the team that won in an impressive way. Who won? Who did well? Well, you’ll just have to keep reading to find out![PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] Rochester Red Wings 2, Pawtucket Red Sox 5 (11 innings) Box Score After playing two, seven-inning games on Saturday, the Red Wings had to play 11 more innings on Sunday. After combining for just six hits in those 14 innings Saturday, the Red Wings managed just five hits on Sunday. Clete Thomas got things going the right way. He hit a home run to lead off the game. He was 2-4 with a walk. Chris Colabello continued his torrid start that will hopefully bring him to Minnesota in the near future. He went 2-2 with two walks and two doubles. Andrew Albers made the start and threw five shutout innings. He gave up four hits, walked none and struckout five to reduce his ERA to 0.93. Daniel Turpen came on for the 6th inning and gave up two runs on three hits and two walks. Luis Perdomo relieved Turpen in the seventh with a runner on but did not allow him to score. He worked three perfect innings. Tyler Robertson threw a 1-2-3 tenth. Anthony Slama came in to start the bottom of the 11th. He walked two batters, and with two outs, he gave up a walk-off, three-run homer to former Royals outfielder Mitch Maier. New Britain Rock Cats 6, Portland Sea Dogs 5 (10 innings) Box Score The Rock Cats jumped out to a fast lead, but in the mid-innings, Portland tied the game at five. There was little offense until the 10th inning when the Rock Cats pulled out a dramatic win. Curt Smith singled and went to third on a double by James Beresford. Next up was Danny Ortiz. The .400 hitting outfielder singled in the game-winning run. Blake Martin started for the Rock Cats. The lefty was solid through four. However, he ended up giving up five runs on seven hits and a walk in 4.2 innings. He struckout three. The bullpen came through. AJ Achter went 3.1 scoreless innings. He walked one, but gave up no hits and struckout two. Marty Popham went two scoreless innings with two strikeouts. Antoan Richardson went 2-3 with a walk. James Beresford went 2-4 with a walk and a double. Ortiz went 2-2 (he came in late in the game as a pinch-hitter). Josmil Pinto was 1-3 with two walks. Ft. Myers Miracle 5, Charlotte Stone Crabs 2 Box Score The Miracle have won in just about every way over their 9-0 start. On Sunday, they were down 2-1 heading into the 7th inning. Twins Daily’s AJ Pettersen tied the game with a sacrifice fly to center to score Jhon Goncalves with the tying run. Angel Morales worked a walk and Eddie Rosario was hit by a pitch. That brought up Miguel Sano. He launched a long, towering three-run homer to left field to give the Miracle a 5-2 lead, a lead they would hang on to. The Miracle improve to 10-0, the best start in their history. Sano went 3-4, and the home run was his third of the season. Morales remained hot. He was 2-2 with two walks. DJ Baxendale made the start for the Miracle. The righty went the first five innings and gave up two runs (1 earned) on four hits and two walks. He struckout three. Chad Rodgers came on and threw two shutout frames. After getting the lead, Ryan O’Rourke continued his great start with a scoreless eighth inning. Zack Jones came on for the ninth and recorded his fourth save. He hit 99 mph again (one of which hit an opposing player) and struckout two. Game 1 - Cedar Rapids Kernels 2, Clinton LumberKings 3 Box Score The Kernels began the game with five straight hits, yet due to some base running issues, they managed just two runs. That would be all they would score in the game as they fell in Game 1 by a single run. Adam Walker went 2-3 with his second double. In that first inning, Jorge Polanco and Dalton Hicks had back-to-back run-scoring doubles. Byron Buxton was 1-2 with a walk. Tyler Duffey took the mound for Cedar Rapids. In his first start a week earlier, he threw seven perfect innings. He was perfect in the first inning. In the second frame, he gave up a walk, but it was quickly erased with a double play. In the fourth inning, he gave up his first hit of the season before giving up a two-run homer to Guillermo Pimentel that tied the game at two. Duffey lasted until there were two outs in the bottom of the sixth. He left with two runners on base. Lefty Matt Tomshaw came in and got the final out on a strikeout, but not before the go-ahead run scored on a bloop single to right field. Duffey gave up the three runs on six hits and two walks. He struckout four. Game 2 - Cedar Rapids Kernels 7, Clinton LumberKings 6 Box Score The Kernels were able to hold on for the one-run win. In doing so, the Kernels were able to take three out of four in Clinton in less than 24 hours. Dalton Hicks gave the Kernels a lead with a long, three-run homer, his second of the season. He also added his seventh double. Jorge Polanco was 2-4 with two RBI. Travis Harrison went 1-2 and drove in a run with a sacrifice fly. Byron Buxton went 2-4 with his third stolen base. Taylor Rogers threw two scoreless innings, allowing one hit and one walk. Manuel Soliman threw the next two innings and gave up no runs despite two walks. Tim Atherton worked the fifth inning and wasn’t helped by his infield. Harrison had two errors and Niko Goodrum and Jorge Polanco each had one. Atherton was charged with four unearned runs in the inning. It could have been worse, but JD Williams threw out a runner at the plate to end the inning. Tyler Jones then gave up two runs (1 earned) in the 6th inning, cutting the lead to 7-6. He pitched a scoreless seventh to record his first save. All four games of this series were decided by one run. View full article