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On Tuesday, the Minnesota Twins were back in action. Maybe more noteworthy, the GCL Twins were back on the field and completed a game (actually two) for the first time in five days. Certainly more noteworthy, a top prospect showed again that he might be ready to help a Twins team that is now six games under .500 over its last 50 games.All that and more can be found as you work your way through today’s minor league report. RED WINGS REPORT Rochester 13, Toledo 2 Box Score Coming into the day, the Red Wings had lost 13 straight games in Ohio (Columbus and Toledo). This game remained scoreless through five innings. However, the Red Wings scored four in the sixth, four in the seventh, two in the eighth and three more in the ninth to get the big win. JO Berrios was on the mound in this game. The right-hander went the first six innings. He gave up one run on five hits. He walked three and struck out eight. He improved to 2-0 with a 3.52 ERA. In his past three starts, he has given up just three runs in 20 innings. Michael Tonkin struck out one over two shutout innings. AJ Achter, an Ohio native, came in and gave up one run in the ninth. The offense definitely came up big in this game and many players contributed. Danny Ortiz led the way. The diminutive outfielder went 3-5 with three doubles and three RBI. He now has 25 doubles on the season. James Beresford went 3-5 with a walk and his 17th double. Carlos Paulino went 3-5 with a triple. Argenis Diaz was 3-4. Doug Bernier went 2-4 with a walk and his second home run. Reynaldo Rodriguez hit a three-run triple. Nate Hanson had an RBI double in his lone at-bat. CHATTANOOGA CHATTER Chattanooga 8, Pensacola 3 Box Score Brett Lee made the start and gave up three runs in the second inning. That was it. The southpaw worked five innings. He gave up three runs (two earned) on three hits. He walked three and struck out one. He recorded his first AA win. Jake Reed came on. He threw two scoreless innings, allowing one hit, walking one and striking out one. DJ Johnson gave up two hits but no runs in the 8th inning. JT Chargois struck out one in a scoreless ninth. Shannon Wilkerson was the lead-off man and center fielder. He went 3-4 with a walk and two doubles. Stuart Turner had his second straight three hit game. He was 3-4 with a walk and his ninth double. Levi Michael went 2-4 with his fourth triple. Kennys Vargas went 2-5 and drove in two runs. MIRACLE MATTERS Ft. Myers 4, Lakeland 3 Box Score The Miracle were in danger of needing to go to extra innings for the 321st time this season. With one out in the bottom of the ninth, Michael Quesada doubled. Tanner Vavra pinch ran for him. With two outs and Vavra still at second, Zach Granite ended the game with a single. However, it was a little more dramatic than that. Granite’s grounder up the middle was fielded by the second baseman who threw late to first. Vavra never slowed down around third and scored from second on an infield hit. Granite went 2-4 in the game. Mitch Garver led the way. He went 2-4 with his second homer of the season, a two-run blast. Jason Kanzler went 2-4 with his fourth triple of the year. Ryan Eades made the start for the Miracle. He gave up two runs on four hits and four walks over six innings. He struck out three. Dallas Gallant pitched the seventh inning. He gave up one run on two walks. He struck out two. Nick Burdi pitched the final two innings. He gave up two hits, walked none and struck out two. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 4, Clinton 3 (10 innings) Box Score Through nine innings, the top three hitters in the Kernels lineup (Tanner English, Nick Gordon and Edgar Corcino) walked five times. Unfortunately, the Kernels fourth and fifth hitters (Zach Larson and Tyler Kuresa) went 0-8. However, in the tenth, after Tanner English was hit by a pitch and Edgar Corcino walked, Zach Larson came up big with a double. It scored English from second, but Corcino was thrown out at the plate. The team had a 4-3 lead. English led the way and he didn’t even have a hit. He was 0-2, but he walked twice and was hit by a pitch. He also stole his 30th base of the year. Brian Navarreto went 1-3 with a walk and his seventh double. Rafael Valera went 2-5. Keaton Steele started and gave up no runs in 4.2 innings. He gave up three hits, walked three and struck out one. Mike Theofanopoulos went the next 2.1 innings. He gave up one run on four hits. He walked one and struck out two. Randy LeBlanc worked two innings. He gave up just one hit, but he was charged with two unearned runs which tied the game. With the lead in the 10th, Cam Booser came on. He walked the first batter he faced, just to get people nervous. He then struck out the next two before getting the final out and his 10th save. E-TOWN E-NOTES Elizabethton 4, Johnson City 8 Box Score It’s hard to fathom, but the E-Twins were able to score only four runs despite nine hits and ten walks in this game. They left 13 men on base. Chris Paul went 1-5. He was the only Twins player who reached base less than twice. Travis Blankenhorn went 2-4 with a walk. Kamran Young went 2-4 with a walk and his third double. Manuel Guzman and LaMonte Wade each had two hits. Meanwhile, Dan Kihle, Alex Perez, Amaurys Minier and AJ Murray each walked twice. Miles Nordgren started for the Twins. He gave up three runs (two earned) on five hits. He walked one and struck out five. Logan Lombana came on gave up four runs on six hits (including two home runs) over two innings. He walked two and struck out four. Josh Guyer gave up a run in the ninth. GCL TWINS TAKES Game 1 – GCL Twins 4, GCL Rays 1 Box Score In this game, the 3-4-5 hitters for the Twins led the way. Those three had all five hits for the team. Brian Olson went 2-2 with a walk. Lewin Diaz hit his fifth double and drove in a run. Jermaine Palacios went 2-3 with his eighth double, first home run and three RBI and is now hitting .422. Jose Martinez started and went the first two innings. He gave up one run on two hits and a walk. He struck out three. Lachlan Wells came on and went the final five innings. He gave up just two hits and didn’t walk a batter. He struck out six. Game 2 – GCL Twins 2, GCL Rays 0 Box Score The Twins were able to complete the sweep and improve to 16-12 on their season. Eduardo del Rosario started and was very good through the first four innings. He hit one, allowed one hit and walked one, but did not allow a run. He struck out nine. John Curtiss struck out three over two perfect innings as he continues his rehab. Johan Quezada picked up his fifth save, striking out one in his perfect inning. 19-year-old South African Rowan Ebersohn went 2-3 with his first double. Luis Arraez was 2-3. Bryant Hayman went 1-2 with a walk. Trey Cabbage added his second double. TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day – JO Berrios, Rochester Red Wings Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day – Danny Ortiz, Rochester Red Wings WEDNESDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Rochester @ Toledo (11:00 am CST) – RHP Michael Bowden Pensacola @ Chattanooga (6:15 CST) – RHP DJ Baxendale Lakeland @ Ft. Myers (6:05 CST) – LHP Mat Batts Cedar Rapids @ Clinton (6:30 CST) – RHP Felix Jorge Johnson City @ Elizabethton (6:00 CST) – RHP Andro Cutura GCL Twins @ GCL Rays (11:00 CST) – TBD Feel free to leave any questions or comments below Click here to view the article

One final day off for the Minnesota Twins before they are back in action to begin the second half of the season. With no major league baseball, the minor leagues take center stage.RED WINGS REPORT Lehigh Valley IronPigs vs. Rochester Red Wings Box Score Thanks to nine shutout innings from the Red Wings pitching staff, Rochester dealt Lehigh Valley's Aaron Nola his first AAA loss of the season. The Red Wings rode another strong Tyler Duffey (4-4) start to victory. Duffey went six innings, giving up just two hits. He walked five but struck out six. His ERA now sits at a sparkly 2.24. Duffey was replaced by Alex Meyer who pitched a perfect seventh, including a pair a strikeouts. Michael Tonkin and Aaron Thompson pitched an inning apiece to finish the night. The Red Wings scored six runs despite striking out ten times and picking up only eight hits. Oswaldo Arcia hit his ninth AAA homer, a two-run shot in the first inning, and Danny Ortiz hit his ninth as well, a solo shot in the fourth. Ortiz's homer was part of a 3-4 night that also include a double and a pair of RBIs. Arcia's home run was part of his 1-4 night that also included three strike outs. Final: IronPigs 0, Red Wings 6 LOOKOUTS LOOK-IN Chattanooga Lookouts vs. Biloki Shuckers Box Score The Lookouts managed just four hits and three walks to go along with ten strikeouts of their own in a 3-0 shutout in Biloxi, Mississippi. Shannon Wilkerson, Niko Goodrum, and Max Kepler, batting first, second, and third, respectively, each had a hit. Jairo Rodriguez had the other hit on the evening for the Lookouts. Brett Lee was tagged with the loss for Chattanooga, dropping to 0-4 on the year. Lee gave up just two hits, but issued five free passes and was victimized by a pair of unearned runs. Lee was lifted after the fourth inning. Tim Shibuya threw three scoreless innings of relief and Matt Summers pitched the eighth. Final: Lookouts 0, Shuckers 3 MIRACLE MATTERS Fort Myers Miracle vs. Brevard County Manatees Box Score When the leadoff hitter is 2-3 with a walk, you hope the top of your order can produce a couple of runs, but the Miracle could only push Zach Granite across one time for their lone run of the evening. No other Miracle hitter had multiple hits, though Brett Doe was 1-2 with a pair of walks. Ryan Eades, who had put up a number of nice starts in the last two months, was tagged for four runs in 6.1 innings. He did, however, strike out seven and he didn't walk anyone. He was lifted for Brian Gilbert who pitched the final 1.1 inning, giving up one hit, one walk and he struck out a pair. Final: Miracle 1, Manatees 4 KERNELS KORNER Burlington Bees vs. Cedar Rapids Kernels Box Score Down 5-2 headed to the bottom of the seventh, the Kernels scored a run in bottom of the inning and then another in the ninth but came up just short, losing 5-4 in front of the home crowd in Cedar Rapids. The Kernels offense put together just seven hits, and like the Red Wings and the Lookouts, they also stuck out ten times. Brian Navarreto led the charge for the Kernels, their only hitter with multiple hits, was 2-4 with an RBI single. Ethan Mildren was lifted after just four innings, giving up seven hits, three earned runs, two walks and a single strikeout. Jared Wilson pitched three innings but gave up two more runs. Chris Mazza and Cameron Booser each pitched a scoreless inning of relief, but the game was too far out of hand for the Kernels to come back. Final: Bees 5, Kernels 4 E-TWINS E-NOTES Elizabethton Twins vs. Danville Braves Box Score The E-Twins only struck out eight times, so I suppose that's pretty good news, but they still couldn't muster any offense, scoring just a single run. LaMonte Wade was 2-5 with an RBI and A.J. Murray was 2-4 with a double. The Twins used four pitchers to get through eight innings even after they got six innings from their starter Miles Nordgren. Nordgren was tagged for one unearned run on five hits, no walks and five strike outs. He was replaced in the seventh by Alex Robinson who gave up an earned run of his own, which saddled him with the loss. Josh Guyer pitched two-thirds of an inning and gave up the Twins only earned run of the evening, and Onesimo Hernandez finished the eighth, putting down the only batter he faced. Final: Twins 1, Braves 3 GCL Twins Takes For the second straight day, the GCL Twins were rained out. TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY Hitter of the Day - Danny Ortiz, Rochester Red Wings Pitcher of the Day - Tyler Duffey, Rochester Red Wings FRIDAY'S PROBABLES Lehigh Valley @ Rochester - Jesse Biddle vs. Pat Dean (6-7, 3.39) Chattanooga @ Biloxi - D.J. Baxendale (3-2, 3.99) vs. Johnny Hellweg Fort Myers @ Brevard County - Mat Batts (3-2, 1.71) vs. Tristan Archer Burlington @ Cedar Rapids - Michael Bolaski vs. Randy Rosario (1-0, 0.00) Elizabethton @ Danville - Andro Cutura (1-1, 1.20) vs. Ryan Lawlor Click here to view the article

One final day off for the Minnesota Twins before they are back in action to begin the second half of the season. With no Major League Baseball, the Minor Leagues take center stage. RED WINGS REPORT Lehigh Valley IronPigs vs. Rochester Red Wings Box Score Thanks to nine shutout innings from the Red Wings pitching staff, Rochester dealt Lehigh Valley's Aaron Nola his first AAA loss of the season. The Red Wings rode another strong Tyler Duffey (4-4) start to victory. Duffey went six innings giving up just two hits. He walked five but struck out six. His ERA now sits at a sparkly 2.24. Duffey was replaced by Alex Meyer who pitched a perfect seventh, including a pair a strike outs. Michael Tonkin and Aaron Thompson pitched an inning a piece to finish things out. The Red Wings scored six runs despite striking out ten times and only picking up eight hits. Oswaldo Arcia hit his ninth AAA homer, a two run shot in the first inning, and Danny Ortiz hit his ninth as well, a solo shot in the fourth. Ortiz's homer was part of a 3-4 night that also include a double and a pair of RBIs. Arcia's home run was part of his 1-4 night that also included three strike outs. Final: IronPigs 0, Red Wings 6 LOOKOUTS LOOK-IN Chattanooga Lookouts vs. Biloki Shuckers Box Score The Lookouts managed just four hits and three walks to go along with ten strikeouts of their own in a 3-0 shutout in Biloxi, Mississippi. Shannon Wilkerson, Niko Goodrum, and Max Kepler, batting first, second, and third, respectively, each had a hit. Jairo Rodriguez had the other hit on the evening for the Lookouts. Brett Lee was tagged with the loss for Chattanooga, dropping to 0-4 on the year. Lee gave up just two hits, but issued five free passes and was victimized by a pair of unearned runs. Lee was lifted after the fourth inning. Time Shibuya thre three scoreless innings or relief, and Matt Summers pitched the eighth. Final: Lookouts 0, Shuckers 3 MIRACLE MATTERS Fort Myers Miracle vs. Brevard County Manatees Box Score When the leadoff hitter is 2-3 with a walk, you hope the top of your order can produce a couple of runs, but the Miracle could only push Zach Granite across one time for their lone run of the evening. No other Miracle hitter had multiple hits, though Brett Doe was 1-2 with a pair of walks. Ryan Eades, who had put up a number of nice starts in the last two months, was tagged for four runs in six and a third innings. He did, however, strike out seven, and he didn't walk anyone. He was lifted for Brian Gilbert who pitched the final inning and a third, giving up one hit, one walk, and he struck out a pair. Final: Miracle 1, Manatees 4 KERNELS KORNER Burlington Bees vs. Cedar Rapids Kernels Box Score Down 5-2 headed to the bottom of the seventh, the Kernels scored a run in bottom of the inning and then another in the ninth but came up just short, losing 5-4 in front of the home crowd in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. The Kernels offense put together just seven hits, and like the Red Wings and the Lookouts, they also stuck out ten times. Brian Navarreto led the charge for the Kernels, their only hitter was multiple hits, 2-4 with an RBI single. Ethan Mildren was lifted after just four innings, giving up seven hits, three earned runs, two walks and a single strike out. Jared Wilson pitched three innings but gave up two more runs. Chris Mazza and Cameron Booser each pitched a scoreless inning of relief, but the game was too far out of hand for the Kernels to come back. Final: Bees 5, Kernels 4 E-TWINS E-NOTES Elizabethton Twins vs. Danville Braves Box Score The E-Twins only struck out eight times, so I suppose that's pretty good news, but they still couldn't muster any offense, scoring just a single run. LaMonte Wade was 2-5 with an RBI and A.J. Murray was 2-4 with a double. The Twins used four pitchers to get through eight innings even after they got six innings from their starter Miles Nordgren. Nordgren was tagged for one unearned run on five hits, no walks, and five strike outs. He was replaced in the seventh my Alex Robinson who gave up an earned run of his own, which saddled him with the loss. Josh Guyer pitched two-thirds of an inning and gave up the Twins' only earned run of the evening, and Onesimo Hernandez finished the eighth, putting down the only batter he faced. Final: Twins 1, Braves 3 TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY Hitter of the Day - Danny Ortiz, Rochester Red Wings Pitcher of the Day - Tyler Duffey, Rochester Red Wings FRIDAY'S PROBABLES Lehigh Valley @ Rochester - Jesse Biddle vs. Pat Dean (6-7, 3.39) Chattanooga @ Biloxi - D.J. Baxendale (3-2, 3.99) vs. Johnny Hellweg Fort Myers @ Brevard County - Mat Batts (3-2, 1.71) vs. Tristan Archer Burlington @ Cedar Rapids - Michael Bolaski vs. Randy Rosario (1-0, 0.00) Elizabethton @ Danville - Andro Cutura (1-1, 1.20) vs. Ryan Lawlor

The Twins completed the sweep on the Orioles today and now have a two-and-a-half-game cushion in the wild card standings. They still trail the Royals by four-and-a-half games in the American League Central. You can learn all about the recently-drafted future-Twins in the Twins Draftbook, available for $2.99. It includes profiles on all 40 drafted players, including Zander Wiel, who will be official soon, pending a physical, and Puerto Rican LHP Jovani Moran, who signed today and received a bonus above slot.RED WINGS REPORT Rochester 6, Buffalo 5 Box Score The Red Wings jumped out to a quick 2-0 lead in the second inning when both Wilkin Ramirez and Carlos Paulino had RBI singles. Jose Berrios had a really impressive first five shutout innings, including eight strikeouts. The wheels fell off in the sixth, though. Berrios threw 19 pitches to five different batters. All five batters reached. All five batters scored. In the first five innings, Berrios allowed only four runners to reach base. So even though the line isn’t pretty, it wasn’t nearly as bad as his line looks. Regardless of how it looked though, a 2-0 lead soon became a 5-2 deficit. The Red Wings answered back in the sixth when Danny Ortiz doubled in Reynaldo Rodriguez to make the score 5-3. Rodriguez turned around in the seventh and drove in Jorge Polanco to make it 5-4. It would remain that way until the bottom of the ninth. Polanco doubled to start off the inning. A James Beresford walk and Oswaldo Arcia bloop single loaded the bases. Jose Martinez drew a walk to tie the game before Ortiz hit a well-placed two-hopper to the first baseman who couldn’t record an out. The Red Wings win in walk-off fashion. The bullpen trio of Mark Hamburger, Caleb Thielbar and Michael Tonkin combined to pitch four scoreless innings. Tonkin struck out two and earned the win. Both Ortiz and Polanco had three hits and they each doubled. Rodriguez had a double among his two hits. Polanco also committed his fifth error for the Red Wings. It’s only his fifth AAA game. The Red Wings are 46-40. CHATTANOOGA CHATTER Chattanooga 6, Jacksonville 1 (7 innings - rain shortened) Box Score The Lookouts took a rain-shortened victory from Jacksonville on Wednesday. After opening the game with a single, Levi Michael scored the game’s first run on an Aderling Mejia single. The Lookouts added three more runs in the second inning. Kennys Vargas led off the inning with a double and he advanced on a wild pitch. After a Mike Gonzales walk, Niko Goodrum drove Vargas in with a double. A two-base error off the bat of Levi Michael allowed both Gonzales and Goodrum to score. Two more runs crossed the plate in the fourth. Gonzales and Goodrum singled to start off the inning. Gonzales scored on an RBI groundout by Michael and Goodrum scored on Max Kepler’s 22nd double. David Hurlbut cruised through 6.2 innings before the game was delayed and then called for rain. Hurlbut allowed a first-inning run, striking out four, walking one and giving up seven hits. Max Kepler left the game after tweaking his shoulder, according to Darren Wolfson. Doogie says that Kepler is day-to-day. Interestingly enough, Kepler was replaced in right field by relief pitcher Tim Shibuya, who threw out a runner at second in the sixth inning. After a very slow start to the second half, the Lookouts have won two of three. MIRACLE MATTERS Ft. Myers 3, Jupiter 2 Box Score Chih-Wei Hu allowed one run on five hits in seven innings to earn the win. He struck out four. Nick Burdi picked up his second Miracle save with two innings of two-hit ball. He struck out two and allowed an unearned run to score. The Miracle scored one run in three separate innings: a first-inning Mitch Garver sac fly scored Zach Granite. An Engelb Vielma single in the third scored Zach Granite. And in the eighth inning, Vielma scored on a wild pitch. Ryan Walker had three singles and Marcus Knecht added a triple. Fort Myers improves to 48-36 on the season and 10-4 in the second half. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 8, Beloit 1 Box Score Felix Jorge was the man on Wednesday. He pitched eight innings of six-hit, one-walk, shutout baseball, striking out seven. He picked up his fourth win and his ERA dropped to 2.00. Brandon Bixler pitched the ninth inning and allowed a run. The offense had two crooked-number innings: A three-run second and a five-run fifth. In the third inning, T.J. White drew a two-out walk to advance Jorge Fernandez to second. Fernandez reached on a fielder’s choice after Brett Doe had reached on an error. After Fernandez stole third base, Brian Navarreto singled him in. Rafael Valera then doubled to score White and Navarreto. In the fifth inning, Valera, Zack Larson and Nick Gordon had back-to-back-to-back singles. Edgar Corcino scored them with a grand slam. Max Murphy was hit by a pitch and later scored on a White single. Corcino led the offense with three hits. Larson, Gordon and Valera all had two. Gordon also committed his 12th error on the season. Cedar Rapids improves to 50-34 overall and 9-5 in the second half. E-TOWN E-NOTES Elizabethton 2, Kingsport 8 Box Score Miles Nordgren got the start and left in good shape, allowing only an unearned run over five innings. He struck out three, allowing four hits and a walk. Anthony Mciver blew the “save” and took the loss after allowing three runs (two earned) in two innings. Josh Guyer also allowed four runs, but he only recorded three outs. E-town scored both of their runs in the sixth inning. Manuel Guzman hit a home run. Sean Miller followed that by drawing a walk and he was doubled home by LaMonte Wade. Wade also had a single, as did Brad Hartong, and that accounted for all four hits the team had. Wade committed his second error and Guzman his fourth. Elizabethton drops to 7-8. GCL TWINS TAKES GCL Twins 3, GCL Orioles 6 Box Score The GCL Twins jumped out to an early lead on Wednesday, but fell late to the GCL Orioles. The Twins affiliate scored two early in the second inning. Bryant (aka John) Hayman led off the inning with a double and Jermaine Palacios followed with a one-out walk. Both scored on a single by Robert Molina, helped by a fielding error on the play. One more run was added in the eighth inning when Jorge Andrade drove in Roberto Gonzalez. Palacios paced the offense with two of its six hits. Hayman’s double was the only extra-base hit. After a strong performances on Tuesday, Trey Cabbage and Travis Blankenhorn combined to go 0-8 with five strikeouts. Lachlan Wells started and allowed two runs on six hits and a walk. He struck out four in five innings. Stephen Pryor made his first multi-inning rehab appearance took the loss. He gave up three hits and two runs in two innings. Chris Mazza, also rehabbing, allowed two runs on four hits in one inning of work. The loss drops the GCL Twins to 9-6. TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day – Felix Jorge, Cedar Rapids Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day – Danny Ortiz, Rochester THURSDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Rochester vs Buffalo (6:05 CST) – RHP Tyler Duffey Chattanooga vs Mississippi (6:15 CST) – RHP Alex Wimmers Ft. Myers at Jupiter (11:05 CST) – RHP Ryan Eades Cedar Rapids at Beloit (7:00 CST) – RHP Ethan Mildren Elizabethton at Kingsport (6:00 CST) - RHP Andro Cutura GCL Twins vs GCL Orioles (11:00 CST) - TBS Feel free to leave any questions or comments below! Click here to view the article

The Twins fell to the Blue Jays thanks to one of our favorite Old Friends. Chris Colabello’s two-run homer off Glen Perkins was the difference in the Jays 6-4 win. Colabello is a good reminder of why these minor league reports are so important. He was a minor league free agent signed after eight seasons in independent ball. He has made it to the big leagues and contributed. In these daily reports, we don’t solely focus on the prospects. We focus on all players who deserve to be recognized because you never know which ones will get to The Show. Colabello was mentioned frequently in these reports in his two-plus seasons in the organization.With that, here’s what happened on Friday in the Minnesota Twins minor league system: TRANSACTIONS Casey Fien’s rehab stint in Rochester ended as he was activated by the Twins. To make room for him, Michael Tonkin was optioned yet again to Rochester.Ethan Mildren was played on the disabled list by the Ft. Myers Miracle. Matt Summers was removed from the Chattanooga disabled list and sent to the Miracle.RED WINGS REPORT The Red Wings had a few games rained out in the season’s first week. Tonight, Rochester played a doubleheader in Buffalo because of a rain out in early April. Game 1 – Rochester 2, Buffalo 1 Box Score In the top of the second inning, Danny Ortiz walked. Two batters later, Ryan Wheeler hit his first Red Wings home run to give the team a 2-0 lead. That was all of the run scoring for the Red Wings. It was also one of just five hits for the team in Game 1. Doug Bernier’s fifth double was the lone extra base hit. Fortunately, lefty Pat Dean was up to the challenge. The left-hander gave up a run in the bottom of the second inning, and that was it. He got one out in the bottom of the seventh before AJ Achter came in to get the final two outs and record his seventh save. Dean went 6.1 innings and gave up just the one run on six hits. He walked two and struck out two. Game 2 – Rochester 2, Buffalo 4 Box Score The Red Wings jumped out to an early 2-0 lead in Game 2. Danny Ortiz doubled in two runs in the third inning. However, the Bisons followed that with a big four-run inning in the bottom half of the third frame. Tyler Duffey made his second AAA start of the season. In the first two innings, he gave up just one hit. He gave up the four runs in the third inning, but then got another five outs. Duffey was charged with four runs (three earned) on seven hits and two walks in 4.2 innings. He struck out three. Logan Darnell came on and got the final out of the fifth inning as well as the first two outs in the sixth inning. He had one walk and one strikeout. Alex Meyer came on to get the final out of the inning. He got it, on a strikeout. Ortiz led the offense. He was 2-3 with his 12th double. Josmil Pinto entered the game as a pinch hitter in the seventh and doubled. Following the split, the Red Wings are now 27-22. CHATTANOOGA CHATTER Chattanooga 2, Biloxi 3 Box Score Greg Peavey has really turned around his season after a very slow start in April. He gave up two runs in the second inning, but then he settled in and went six innings. The Lookouts tied the game at two in the fifth. With Carlos Paulino on second base and Byron Buxton on first base, Jorge Polanco hit a long single. Paulino scored, but the throw from the outfield got away from the catcher and Buxton scored all the way from first base. That’s where the game remained until the top of the eighth. Tim Shibuya came out for his second inning after a scoreless seventh frame. He gave up a run on three hits. The Lookouts tried to come back in the bottom of the ninth. With two outs, Buxton walked and then stole second on the first pitch. However, Polanco grounded out to end the game. The Lookouts had just five hits in the game. Stephen Wickens went 2-4. Buxton had a walk and a single. The stolen base was his 14th of the year. He also was credited with two outfield assists. Peavey gave another quality start. He was charged with only those two runs. He gave up three hits, walked three and struck out two. Shibuya took the loss. He gave up the one run on three hits. He struck one out and didn’t walk anyone. D.J. Johnson pitched the ninth inning. He gave up one hit and struck out two. Miguel Sano was out of the lineup for the second straight games. Before the Twins game on Friday night, GM Terry Ryan told the writers that Sano had a jammed finger. Chattanooga, the top team in the Southern League’s North Division is now 29-18. Biloxi, the leader in the Southern League’s South Division, is 29-19. MIRACLE MATTERS Ft. Myers 6, Clearwater 7 Box Score Kohl Stewart was back on the mound following the best start of his season. On this night, he wasn’t his best. He gave up four runs in the first inning. Overall, he gave up six runs (five earned) on ten hits. He walked none and struck out one. Brian Gilbert came on and struck out one over two perfect innings. Matt Summers made his first appearance in a game this season. He struck out one in a perfect inning. Alex Muren pitched a scoreless eighth inning. However, he gave up the winning run with two outs in the bottom of the ninth to take the loss. The Miracle offense showed up. They had 15 hits in the game. Zach Granite went 3-5 with his fifth Miracle double. Alex Swim, Ryan Walker and Niko Goodrum were each 2-5 in the game. Bryan Haar went 2-4. Tanner Vavra came in later. He had a pinch-hit RBI single and added a second RBI single later in the game. With the loss, the Miracle are now 24-24. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 6, Clinton 2 Box Score Keaton Steele made just his second start for the Kernels, and it was a good one. The right-hander went seven innings and gave up just one run on five hits. He walked three and struck out six. Randy LeBlanc recorded his first save of the year with two scoreless innings. Pat Kelly had a terrific game. He went 3-4 with his third triple of the year. Brett Doe was also 3-4 with his fifth double and two RBI. Zack Larson went 1-3 with a walk and his fifth double. The Kernels improved to 31-18. TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day – Keaton Steele, Cedar Rapids Kernels Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day – Pat Kelly, Cedar Rapids Kernels SATURDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Rochester @ Buffalo (4:05 CST) – LHP Tommy Milone Biloxi @ Chattanooga (6:15 CST) – RHP DJ Baxendale Ft. Myers @ St. Lucie (5:30 CST) – RHP Chih-Wei Hu Clinton @ Cedar Rapids (6:35 CST) – RHP Zach Tillery Please feel free to ask any questions and discuss the Friday games. Click here to view the article

Twins minor league affiliates played a season-high six games thanks to two postponements from Friday becoming doubleheaders on Saturday. Overall, it wasn’t a very good day for the Twins farm teams, achieving just one win on the day. With Trevor May having left his start in Seattle, could it mean that Ricky Nolasco’s rehab start in Cedar Rapids on Sunday becomes more meaningful? Continue reading and be sure to ask any questions you may have in the Comments.RED WINGS REPORT Game 1 – Rochester 4, Syracuse 5 Box Score The Red Wings got off to an early lead in the first game of their doubleheader. With one out in the second inning, the team got back-to-back-to-back singles from Reynaldo Rodriguez, Danny Ortiz and Jose Martinez to give them a 1-0 lead. Syracuse answered in the top of the third. In the bottom of the fourth, Brock Peterson singled to lead off the inning and two batters later Danny Ortiz hit a long home run to right field to give them a 3-1 lead. Later that inning, Aaron Hicks hit a sacrifice fly to make it 4-1. Mark Hamburger made the start for the Red Wings. Through five innings, he allowed just one run despite walking four batters. However, the sixth inning proved to be the downfall for the team in Game 1. In the sixth, Hamburger gave up two singles and got an out on a sacrifice bunt. He was replaced by A.J. Achter who walked the one batter he faced to load the bases. He was replaced by lefty Ryan O’Rourke who struck out the one batter that he faced. Michael Tonkin was brought in with two outs and the bases still loaded. He proceeded to give up three straight singles before getting the final out. The Red Wings loaded the bases with two outs in the bottom of the sixth, but they were unable to score. Both teams went scoreless in the seventh inning and the Red Wings fell 5-4. Danny Ortiz went 2-3 with a walk and his second home run. Reynaldo Rodriguez went 2-3 with a walk and a double. Jose Martinez also had two hits. Going back to the pitching, Hamburger went 5.1 innings and was charged with three runs on five hits. He walked five and struck out four. Achter issued the one walk and that batter came around to score. O’Rourke struck out the one batter he faced. Tonkin went 1.1 innings. He gave up one run (in addition to all three inherited runners) on three hits. He struck out two. Game 2 – Rochester 5, Syracuse 2 Box Score The story in this game was certainly Lester Oliveros. With the rainouts, Game 2 was to be a “bullpen game” and Oliveros was tabbed to start. It was just his third start as a professional baseball player. The other two? They came in his first professional season, in 2006, in the Venezuelan Summer League! How did he do? I would say he responded quite well. He was able to complete four innings and did not allow a run. He gave up just one hit, walked none and struck out nine. Logan Darnell came on to replace Oliveros in the fifth inning and threw two more scoreless frames, though he gave up two hits and walked a batter. Ryan Pressly got the seventh inning and gave up two runs on one hit and two walks. Doug Bernier led the way with a 3-4 game at the plate. Danny Ortiz had the only extra-base hit, his first double of the year. The Red Wings scored took a 5-0 lead thanks to a three-run fifth inning. The split means that the Red Wings are now 8-7 on the season. CHATTANOOGA CHATTER Chattanooga 10, Tennessee 16 Box Score It is not often that a team scores in double figures and loses. Of course, it’s also not often that a team’s starter gives up nine runs and the team wins. The Lookouts grabbed a 6-3 lead in the fourth. However, they gave up six runs in the fifth inning to fall behind 9-6. Then in the top of the sixth inning, the Lookouts regained a 10-9 lead, but in the bottom half of the inning, they gave up three more. And then they gave up four more in the bottom of the eighth. In his previous appearance, Alex Wimmers was terrific in his return to starting this season, throwing five shutout innings. On this night, things didn’t go so well. In his 4.1 innings, he gave up nine earned runs on 10 hits (two home runs) and three walks. He struck out two. Jake Reed came on and worked 1.2 innings. He was charged with three unearned runs on two hits. He struck out two. DJ Johnson gave up four runs on three hits and three walks in 1.2 innings. Dallas Gallant was able to get the final out. There were positives on the offensive side of the ball. Byron Buxton returned after a two-game break and went 2-5 including a three-run homer, his second of the season. Levi Michael led the offense. He went 3-4 with his second double and second home run. He also stole his second base. Jorge Polanco was 2-5 with his third double and third home run. Dalton Hicks added his first home run of the season. Miguel Sano added a late double, his second. The Lookouts are now 7-8 on the season. MIRACLE MATTERS Ft. Myers 3, St. Lucie 4 (11 innings) Box Score A night after playing 17 innings, the last thing Jeff Smith and his team wanted to do was play extra innings on Saturday night. And, they played extra innings on Saturday night. Ryan Eades was back on the mound and was very good again. He threw five shutout innings before giving up two runs in the sixth inning. In total, he gave up five hits, walked one and struck out three. The Twins were not planning on adding anyone to the roster to replace the DL'd Kohl Stewart, but after using so many pitchers on Friday night, they decided to have left-hander Jose Velez make an appearance. Velez was signed by the Twins after pitching in the independent Frontier League in 2014. He struck out 82 batters in 57 innings for Evansville a year ago. On this night, he gave up one run on one hit in two innings. Todd Van Steensel pitched scoreless ninth and tenth innings. He returned to the mound for the eleventh inning and gave up one run to take the loss. The Miracle had just six hits and Alex Swim had three of them. Chad Christensen hit his first home run of the season. The Miracle fell to 6-11 on the season. KERNELS NUGGETS Game 1 – Cedar Rapids 1, Kane County 6 Box Score Through three innings this was a 1-1 game, but Kane County scored three in the fourth and tacked on another two in the sixth to take a commanding lead and get the win in the first of two games. The Kernels committed four errors which certainly didn’t help the cause. Each of the four infielders had one. Michael Cederoth made the start and went the first four innings. He gave up four runs (three earned) on eight hits. He didn’t walk any and struck out three. Sam Clay got the next two innings. The lefty walked two and struck out two while not allowing a run. C.K. Irby got the seventh inning and gave up two runs on two hits and two walks. The Kernels had just six hits in this game. Tyler Kuresa went 2-3. Nick Gordon hit his first double of the season. Game 2 – Cedar Rapids, Kane County Box Score Felix Jorge started and he was really good again. He gave up two runs on four hits. In six innings, he walked one and struck out five. Unfortunately, the two runs were enough for him to take the loss. Miles Nordgren came on and threw a scoreless seventh. The Kernels again did little on offense. They had just four hits. Nick Gordon and Trey Vavra each hit a double. Even with the loss, the Kernels are 11-6 this year. TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day – Lester Oliveros, Rochester Red Wings Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day – Levi Michael, Chattanooga Lookouts SUNDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Syracuse @ Rochester (12:35 CST) – LHP Pat Dean Chattanooga @ Tennessee (1:05 CST) – RHP Tyler Duffey Ft. Myers @ St. Lucie (3:05 CST) – LHP Brett Lee Kane County @ Cedar Rapids (2:05 CST) – RHP Ricky Nolasco Please feel free to ask any questions and discuss the Saturday games. Click here to view the article

Twins Daily would like to thank Steve Lien for giving us weekly updates of the Arizona Fall League. Today, I wanted to provide Twins Daily readers an update on what is happening in the other winter leagues.Venezuela Winter League Aaron Hicks decided to spend a couple of weeks in Venezuela, even pushing back his wedding. He played in 16 games and went 11-50. He hit .220/.381/.280 (.661) with a home run. He walked 13 times and struck out just 11 times. He stole three bases. He was released from his contract and returned home. Oswaldo Arcia started the season late and has now played in 12 games. He has 15 hits in 45 at-bats and is hitting .333/.392/.689 (1.081). He has hit four doubles and four home runs while driving in nine runs. He has walked five times and struck out nine times. Eduardo Escobar also started late, but he has played in 13 games so far. He is 14-56 with three doubles, two home runs and eight RBI. He’s hitting .250/.283/.411 (.694). He has walked just twice and struck out 14 times. He has stolen five bases. Josmil Pinto has played in just one game and gone 0-3. GCL player Dubal Baez has gone 2-5 in limited playing time. Lefty Ryan O’Rourke has been used as a LOOGY in Venezuela. He has been credited with 6.2 innings of work over 12 games. He has given up five hits, walked three and struck out seven. Opponents are hitting just .208 off of him. Youngster Alexis Tapia has worked 4.1 innings over three games. He allowed six hits, walked two and struck out three. Puerto Rico Winter League Kennys Vargas was told he didn’t have to play this winter, but he wanted to. He has played in 14 games and has gone 13-45. He is hitting .289/.414/.533 (.947) with two doubles, three homers and ten RBI. As impressive, he’s walked ten times and struck out eight. Outfielder Danny Ortiz has also played in 14 games. In 61 at bats, he his .246/.246/.426 (.672) with five doubles, two home runs and 11 RBI. He has never been a fan of walking. He has no walks to go with 17 strikeouts. Dereck Rodriguez has pitched in two innings over two appearances. He has given up three runs on four hits. He’s walked none and struck out one. Dominican Winter League Chris Parmelee will be playing in the DWL until December 4. In the 16 games he has played, he is 17-63 with three doubles, a homer and six RBI. He is hitting .270/.343/.365 (.708). He has seven walks to go with 19 strikeouts. Jeremias Pineda has 21 plate appearances over 15 games played. He is 5-18, hitting .278/.381/.333 (.714) with a double. He has walked three times and struck out eight. Jorge Polanco just started playing this weekend. I think it’s safe to say he got off to a good start. He went 4-5 in his first game and followed it up by going 4-5 in the second game as well. Lefty Pat Dean has made two starts and gone a combined seven innings. He’s given up nine hits, walked five and struck out six. Australian Baseball League Logan Wade had played in 12 games and gone 11-42. He has hit .262/.295/.548 (.843) with three doubles, three homers and eight RBI. He has also walked ten times and struck out eight times. Josh Guyer has pitched just once and it didn’t go well. He gave up three runs on three hits and two walks and recorded just one out. Todd Van Steensel gave up one run on three hits in his one inning. He walked none and struck out three. We will post an update on the goings-on in the Winter Leagues every couple of weeks. Please feel free to ask questions. Click here to view the article

As the Twins front office, scouting department and others are in Ft. Myers for their organizational meetings, they have a lot of decisions to make. They have to decide on a manager and fill the coaching staff. They will discuss all free agents from around the game. They’ll discuss arbitration-eligible players. They’ll also consider which players to add to their 40-man roster. The Twins have had a measure of success in recent years by signing minor league free agents. Today, I’d like to write about the players who were in Twins organization in 2014 who could become minor league free agents after the World Series. This list is a mix of guys who came to the Twins organization within the last year or two from elsewhere as minor league free agents and players who have spent their minor league careers in the Twins organization.We will start with the players who were drafted and/or signed by the Twins and can be free agents. Deibinson Romero – The 28 year old Dominican debuted in the Twins organization in 2006 with the GCL Twins. He was added to the 40 man roster after his 2008, injury-filled season in Beloit. That lasted one year, but he has remained in the organization. This will be the third offseason that he could have become a free agent. He has re-signed with the Twins each of the last two years. In 2014 in Rochester, he hit .265/.364/.406 (.770) with 31 doubles and eight home runs. He had a strong showing with the bat in big league spring training as well. Jairo Rodriguez – Rodriguez could also have become a free agent last year but re-signed with the Twins organization. He is a strong defensive catcher and a good leader for the pitchers but also all of his teammates. He is the catcher who went wherever there was a need in 2014. He split his time between Ft. Myers and New Britain, playing on occasion, but primarily just being the #2 or # 3 catcher. In fact, the Venezuelan played just 38 combined games and hit .220/.272/.276 with seven doubles. James Beresford – The still-just-25 year old middle infielder continued his progression in 2014 with a full season at Rochester. He too has been a free agent each of the past two seasons, choosing to remain with the Twins organization. His role with the Twins would be that of utility infielder, but he was the everyday second baseman for the Red Wings. In 131 games, he hit .276/.323/.351 (.674) with 28 doubles, two triples and two home runs. The Australian is tremendous on the defensive side and a great leader in the infield. Dan Rohlfing – The St. Louis native was the Twins 14th round pick in 2007 out of high school. He slowly and gradually made his way up the Twins system. He also has been a free agent the last two years but came back as a catcher who can also play the corner outfield positions. He has been a spring training invite each of the past four years. The last couple of years, he was among the last players sent to the minors. He spent all of 2014 in Rochester and hit .205/.307/.311 (.618) with 17 doubles and two home runs. Edgar Ibarra – The 25-year-old from Venezuela signed with the Twins and debuted in the Venezuelan Summer League in 2006. Last year, he was to become a free agent, but instead the Twins put the hard-throwing lefty on their 40 man roster. Unfortunately, he came down with Hepatitus in spring training and could not pitch. He returned to Rochester where he went 5-0 with a 3.44 ERA in 49.2 innings before being sent to New Britain for the final nine appearances. Adrian Salcedo – He was once a Top 10 Twins prospect. In Beloit in 2011, he went 6-6 with a 2.93 ERA in 139 innings. However, in 2012, he missed a lot of time rehabbing both elbow and shoulder injuries. He returned in 2013 in the bullpen and in 2014, he was in the New Britain bullpen. Still just 23 years old, Salcedo went 3-9 with a 4.19 ERA in 39 games and 73 innings for the Rock Cats. In 73 innings, he struck out 76 batters. He throws hard, and I’m certain the Twins will want to bring him back. BJ Hermsen – Hermsen was the Twins 6th round pick in 2008 out of high school in Iowa. He turned down a scholarship to Oregon State to sign with the Twins. In 2012, between Ft. Myers (4 games) and New Britain (22 games), he combined to go 12-6 with a 2.88 ERA in 162.2 innings. Following the season, he was named the minor league pitcher of the year and added to the Twins 40 man roster. He pulled his oblique in spring training and struggled all of 2013 with the Rock Cats. Those struggles continued in 2014 and the 24 year old split time between New Britain and Ft. Myers, posting a 7.34 ERA and a 2.00 WHIP in 38 innings. Danny Ortiz – The 24-year-old was the Twins fourth round pick in 2008 out of high school in Puerto Rico. He missed the entire 2009 season due to knee surgery. In 2014, he began in New Britain and hit .324/.340/.500 (.840) before finishing with 73 games in Rochester in which he hit .256/.283/.434 (.717). Combined, he hit 29 doubles, five triples and 12 home runs. The outfielder can play all three outfield positions. Mike Gonzales – Gonzales was the Twins 9th round pick in 2008 out of Diablo Valley College. When healthy, the 6-6, 260 pound first baseman has been able to provide some power to the middle of his lineups. He began 2014 in Ft. Myers and hit .274/.351/.448 (.787) before ending with 31 games in New Britain where he hit .264/.339/.415 (.754). Combined he hit 29 doubles and 12 homers. Nate Hanson – The former Gopher (who graduated from Eden Prairie High School) was the Twins 28th round pick in 2008. The last two years, he has split his time between New Britain and Rochester. In 119 games this year, he combined to hit .256/.327/.369 (.696) with 33 doubles and six home runs. The 27-year-old is described by teammates and coaches as the consummate professional. He has played all around the diamond, with the exceptions of catcher, shortstop and centerfield while hitting in the middle of the lineup. Deolis Guerra – Though he was signed by the Mets as a 16-year-old from Venezuela, he developed in the Twins system after the 2008 trade. This is actually the third year that he’ll be a free agent. He missed all of 2013 after having a blood clot removed from his right shoulder/neck. After a strong showing in spring training, the 25-year-old went 2-2 with a 4.33 ERA and a 1.33 WHIP in 52 innings for the Red Wings. The rest of the guys have come to the Twins organization as minor league free agents within the last couple of seasons. Virgil Vasquez – He pitched for the Detroit Tigers in 2005 and the Pittsburgh Pirates in 2007. Since then he has pitched all over the map. He has split his time the last two years between Rochester and New Britain. This year, he threw a 7-inning no-hitter for the Rock Cats. Combined, the 32-year-old went 7-7 with a 4.13 ERA in 139.1 innings. Tony Thomas – The 28 year old was a former 3rd round pick of the Cubs out of Florida State. He had spent the previous three seasons of his career with the Red Sox organization. He spent the season in New Britain where he was an All Star and hit .241/.302/.411 (.712) with 29 doubles, six triples, 12 home runs and 14 stolen bases. He was also the Rock Cats recipient of the Harmon Killebrew Award for Community Service. Eric Farris – The 28-year-old was the Brewers fourth round pick in 2007 out of Loyola Marymount. He made his Major League debut with one plate appearance in July of 2011. He got nine more plate appearances with them in 2012, including one hit and one walk. He came to the Twins before the 2013 season and has played in 250 games for Rochester. He was an infielder, but he was the team’s primary centerfielder in 2014. He hit .280/.316/.356 (.672) in 2014 with 23 doubles, a triple, four home runs and 16 stolen bases. Reynaldo Rodriguez – The 28-year-old signed originally with the Yankees, spent some time playing in independent leagues and then signed with the Red Sox. The last two years, he has been one of the better hitters in the Twins farm system. In 2014, he hit a combined .278/.337/.495 (.832) between New Britain (126 games) and Rochester (10 games). He hit 36 doubles, two triples and 21 homers. He also moved from first base to the outfield. Wilkin Ramirez – Ramirez made the Twins opening day roster in 2013 after previously being in the Tigers and Braves organizations. In 2009, he played in 15 games with Detroit, and in 2011, he played in 20 games for the Braves. The former top prospect played in 35 games with the Twins in 2013. He spent all of 2014 in Rochester where he hit .262/.305/.368 (.672) with 23 doubles, three triples and four home runs. Dan Turpen – The 28 year old came to the Twins organization before the 2012 season from the Rockies in exchange for Kevin Slowey. He re-signed with the Twins as a free agent late last spring and spent the full year in New Britain. He went 5-2 with a 4.48 ERA and a 1.33 WHIP in 62.1 innings. He struck out 62, but he walked 30. Brandon Waring – The 28 year old came to the Twins as a free agent last year after several years with the Orioles organization. He had a good showing offensively and defensively in spring training. He was sent to New Britain where, in 106 games, he hit .212/.311/.406 (.716) with 28 doubles and 13 homers. Corey Wimberly – The 30 year old came to the Twins before the 2014 season after spending time in six other organizations since being a 6th round pick in 2007 out of college. He played 2B and center field for New Britain. However, he was limited to 72 games with the Rock Cats due to a hamstring injury. He hit .252/.307/.346 (.653) with 13 doubles and five triples. He was also 17/21 in stolen base attempts. Chris Rahl – The 30-year-old was the Diamondbacks 5th round pick in 2005. In 2011, he went to the Nationals. In 2014, he came to the Twins and was invited to spring training. He spent the year in Rochester where he hit .259/.272/.380 (.652) with 17 doubles and seven home runs. Jim Fuller – After being in the Mets organization since he was drafted in 2008, the left-hander was a minor league Rule 5 draft pick of the Twins in 2013. He spent 2014 in New Britain where he went 3-1 with a 2.41 ERA and a 1.39 WHIP in 56 innings. He walked 30, but he struck out 68. Dutch Deol – He was the 17th round draft pick of the St. Louis Cardinals in 2011 out of high school. In three years of rookie league ball (Which was also injury-laden), he hit .089, .176 and .188. The Twins took a flyer on him and in 32 games with Elizabethton, he hit .171/.263/.210 (.472) with three doubles. Mark Hamburger – You know the story of Mark Hamburger. The Minnesota native signed with the Twins out of a tryout camp in 2007. In August of 2008, he was closing for the Elizabethton Twins when he was traded to Texas for Eddie Guardado. By September of 2011, he was promoted to the Rangers where he played in five games and got to be on the bench during the team’s World Series run. He spent 2012 in the Rangers minor leagues fighting injuries. In 2012, he was DFAd by the Rangers and claimed by the Padres. Then he was DFAd by the Padres and claimed by the Astros. They released him after the season. In early 2013, Hamburger voluntarily checked himself in to rehab after he received a 50-game suspension for failing a test for a Drug of Abuse. He signed with the St. Paul Saints where he impressed as a starter. Enough so that the Twins signed him in 2014. After serving his suspension, Hamburger wetn back and forth from New Britain to Rochester, as well as from the bullpen to the rotation. Combined, he went 4-5 with a 3.69 ERA. In 70.2 innings, he walked 27 and struck out 54. He still throws hard and I would expect that he and the Twins will come to a minor league contract for 2014 soon. How many of these guys should the Twins bring back? Obviously that depends on many factors including where the prospects will play in 2014. Click here to view the article

Generally if your team has a catcher or an outfielder pitching, it means that something went terribly wrong. After a long day of baseball in Louisville, Dan Rohlfing had to pitch for the Rochester Red Wings. You'll just have to read below how it went. Check out everything that happened throughout the Minnesota Twins farm system on Sunday, August 3.The Minnesota Twins offense exploded for twenty-three hits to pound the rival White Sox on Sunday afternoon in Chicago, 16-3. Danny Santana was 5-6 and a home run shy of the cycle, while Chris Parmelee (2-2), Oswaldo Arcia (3-6), and Eric Fryer (3-6) hit back-to-back-to-back home runs in the ninth inning with the game well in hand. Arcia’s mammoth blast cleared the seating in right field, and was estimated at 452 feet, which would be the longest HR of the year at U.S. Cellular field per ESPN’s Home Run Tracker. Josh Willingham and Chris Colabello were the only Twins to not collect multiple hits, and in an odd box score entry, Willingham left ten men on base. It obviously didn’t matter. The Twins went 10-22 with runners in scoring position on the game, and in the eighth inning sent fourteen hitters to the plate to send the White Sox faithful heading for the exits. The first eight batters of that inning reached base safely and nine came around to score. Kyle Gibson made the start and except for one pitch to Dayan Viciedo, was in control for most of the game. He went seven innings in the quality start, allowing six hits and zero walks while striking out six. After the game, the Twins optioned Logan Darnell back to Rochester to clear room for outfielder Jordan Schafer, who was claimed on waivers from the Atlanta Braves earlier in the day. In the minors, Alex Meyer took the hill for the Red Wings, and several affiliates were forced to make comeback efforts late in their games. Read on to see what happened! RED WINGS REPORT Rochester 6, Louisville 5 (15 innings) Box score Rochester got on the board in the first inning courtesy of two Louisville errors, one to allow leadoff man Eric Farris to reach first and another to allow him to score. They added two in the fourth inning after consecutive doubles from Danny Ortiz and Reynaldo Rodriguez and sac fly from Chris Rahl. Another Ortiz double in the sixth led to their fourth run and a 4-0 lead. Through five innings, Meyer had held the Bats scoreless on just two walks and one hit, with six strikeouts. In the sixth, Meyer surpassed his pitch limit after a single, walk and two more strikeouts to finish with 5.2 innings pitched, and was replaced by A.J. Achter. With Meyer responsible for the two runners, Achter then walked the bases loaded, allowed one of the runners to score on a wild pitch and the second on a double that also scored a run that was charged to him. Edgar Ibarra pitched a scoreless seventh inning but was lifted for Michael Tonkin after consecutive singles in the eighth. Tonkin then allowed both those runners to score and Louisville took the lead 5-4 before ending the inning. In the top of the ninth, Rochester was able to send the game into extra innings after three consecutive singles from James Beresford, Josmil Pinto and Wilkin Ramirez pushed Beresford across the plate. With Pinto on second representing the go-ahead run with just one out, Louisville played matchup against Ortiz and Rodriguez, who were both struck out to end the inning. It was a marathon after that, with threats in extra innings from both sides. Stephen Pryor, Deolis Guerra, Aaron Thompson and Lester Oliveros combined to pitch the next six innings, keeping it scoreless despite issuing eight walks and allowing three hits. Oliveros struck out four. In the top of the fifteenth, Doug Bernier led off with a single, Rahl bunted him to second and Pedro Florimon tripled to bring in the go-ahead run. In the bottom half of the inning, it was Red Wings backup catcher Dan Rohlfing who walked out to the mound as their ninth pitcher of the game. He of course recorded the save, and the Red Wings took home the victory. Ortiz led the offense by going 4-7 on the night with the two doubles and two runs scored, while Chris Rahl (2-5) collected two RBI. Beresford and Bernier each finished with three hits. ROCK CATS REVIEW Erie 7, New Britain 1 Box Score It was all Seawolves in this one as the Rock Cats managed just four hits and three walks in the game. Brandon Waring had the only extra base hit with a double and he also drew one of the walks, while Tony Thomas scored the only run while drawing two walks. Thomas drew one of his walks to start the bottom of the ninth, which was followed by singles from Jorge Polanco and Eddie Rosario to score their run. Four pitchers made appearances for New Britain and none of them escaped without allowing at least one run. Daniel Turpen made the start and exited after three innings. He gave up just one hit, but also four walks on the way to allowing one run. He struck out three. Jim Fuller then came in and pitched three innings, allowing three hits, three walks and two earned runs while striking out four. Cole Johnson allowed five hits and one run in two innings. Alex Wimmers finished the game, allowing three runs on a walk and two home runs in the ninth inning. MIRACLE MATTERS Fort Myers 4, Lakeland 7 Box Score Like their AA brethren, the Miracle weren’t able to put any runs on the board until the ninth inning, when it was far too late. They did make a valiant effort at a comeback however, as they scored four before Byron Buxton stepped to the plate representing the tying run with two outs. Unfortunately, he flew out to right field to end the game. Buxton batted third and was 0-5. The Miracle did outhit the Flying Tigers 12-9, but left eight men on base and had only one extra base hit, a double from Tyler Grimes that scored two of the runs in the ninth. Grimes went 3-4 on the day with a run scored and the two RBI. Levi Michael (2-5), Adam Brett Walker II (2-3, R, BB) and Max Kepler (2-4, R) each had multiple hits. Lefty Steven Gruver was making his second start for Fort Myers. He allowed just two hits, one walk and one earned run in five innings with one K for a very solid, but not quality-qualifying effort. B.J. Hermsen allowed a two-run home run in his one inning, but struck out two. Madison Boer then came on for the seventh inning, and walked the leadoff man before retiring the next two hitters. A single and a triple then scored two before Tyler Jones replaced him. He allowed the inherited runner to score on a single, and then a run charged to him on a double before recording the final out. D.J. Johnson pitched a scoreless eighth to finish the game for the Miracle. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 4, Beloit 6 Box score There was yet another comeback mounted by a hometown affiliate at Pohlman Field in Beloit, WI, but again it just wasn’t enough. The Kernels scored three in the eighth inning to pull within one, after a Chad Christensen walk and Alex Swim double put runners on second and third. Max Murphy brought them both home with a single to left field, and he scored on a Michael Quesada double. Engelb Vielma then drew a walk, but a pitching change and consecutive strikeouts from Jon Murphy and Ryan Walker ended the threat. Walker and Christensen also added doubles to the offensive effort, while Logan Wade slugged his fifth home run of the year, a solo shot in the third inning to put Cedar Rapids on the board. Stephen Gonsalves made his second start in the Midwest League, but it was an error by Swim in the fourth inning with two outs that allowed three unearned runs to score. In five innings, Gonsalves gave up five hits, two walks and one earned run, while striking out five. Hudson Boyd was charged with an unearned run in the sixth after a Vielma fielding error. Brandon Bixler finished the final two innings, allowing three hits, two walks and one earned run while striking out four. In major league roster-related news for the Kernels, Joe Mauer and Ricky Nolasco are set to begin Rehab assignments in Cedar Rapids tomorrow. E-TWINS E-NOTES Johnson City 2, Elizabethton 0 (7 innings) Box Score Elizabethton’s game was a pitching duel throughout, as the teams combined for just 8 hits on the night. Obviously with a zero in the box score, there wasn’t much offense to talk about. The lineup managed just four singles and one walk collectively and they were 0-6 with runners in scoring position. Felix Jorge was the starter for the Twins, and did all he could to keep them within striking distance. He scattered four hits to the tune of just two runs and struck out five. Unfortunately for him, he was saddled with a 7-inning complete game loss. TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY Pitcher – Alex Meyer (5.2 IP, 2 H's, 2 ER's, 3 BB's, 8 K's), Rochester Red Wings Hitter – Danny Ortiz (4-7, 2 R's, 2 2B's), Rochester Red Wings MONDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Rochester @ Louisville – Trevor May (8-5, 2.72 ERA), 6:05PM CST Fort Myers @ Lakeland – TBD, 5:30PM CST Wisconsin @ Cedar Rapids – Lewis Thorpe (2-2, 4.74 ERA), 6:35PM CST Johnson City @ Elizabethton – Derrick Penilla (3-2, 4.15 ERA), 6:00PM CST GCL Orioles @ GCL Twins – TBD, 11:00AM CST DSL Reds @ DSL Twins – TBD, 9:30AM CST Click here to view the article

Friday marked the start of our daily Minor League Reports covering six teams. The GCL Twins began their season with a matinee against the Red Sox in Ft. Myers. It wasn’t a great night for the affiliates, but there were still plenty of good performances worthy of note. Kennys Vargas has been terrific all year, and hasn’t slowed down since Miguel Sano moved to New Britain. Sano added to his home run total. Chris Colabello continues to rake. What else happened? Keep reading to find out what happened in the Twins' farm system on Friday:[PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] Rochester Red Wings 0, Louisville Bats 3 Box Score The Red Wings were beaten by former #3 overall draft pick Greg Reynolds. The team managed just two hits. That said, Chris Colabello went 1-2 with two walks. Cole De Vries gave up three runs on eight hits in five innings. He walked one and struck out seven, lowering his ERA to 8.82. Luis Perdomo came on and struck out three and walked one in three scoreless, hitless innings. New Britain Rock Cats 4, Akron Aeros 13 Box Score It was a rough night for a couple Rock Cats pitchers. Tom Stuifbergen started and gave up eight runs on eight hits and two walks in just 3.1 innings. BJ Hermsen entered and gave up four runs on five hits and two walks in 1.2 innings. AJ Achter struck out two in his time on the mound. Dakota Watts made his second appearance of the season and gave up an unearned run on two hits in his inning. Bobby Lanigan gave up one hit in getting his three outs. Danny Ortiz went 3-4 with his 19th double. Nate Hanson was 3-5. Reynaldo Rodriguez went 2-4 with his third triple and his 10th home run. Miguel Sano was 1-3 with his second Rock Cats home run. Danny Santana went 2-4. Ft. Myers Miracle 3, Jupiter Hammerheads 8 Box Score The Miracle got neither good pitching nor good defense. Tyler Duffey went the first 5.1 innings. He gave up six runs (5 earned) on nine hits and two walks. He struck out five. Chad Rodgers entered and gave up two unearned runs in 3.2 innings, yielding four hits, one walk and two strikeouts. The teams's three errors were by Steve Wickens, Kennys Vargas and Candido Pimentel. Kennys Vargas' hot streak continued as he went 2-3 with a walk. Matt Koch was 2-4 with his 12th double. Jon Murphy hit his sixth double. Mike Kvasnicka hit his first triple. Cedar Rapids Kernels 5, Wisconsin Timber Rattlers 3 Box Score The Kernels replaced lefty Hein Robb in their six-man rotation with lefty Josue (pronounces Ho-sway) Montanez. He started Friday night and gave up three runs on five hits and a walk in three innings. Tim Atherton came on and threw four shutout innings. He gave up two hits and struck out three. Kaleb Merck got the save. He gave up three hits in two scoreless innings. Byron Buxton was 1-3 with two walks and two stolen bases, giving him 31 on the year. Dalton Hicks went 2-5 with his 22nd double. Max Kepler went 1-4 with a walk. His hit was his first double. Tyler Grimes hit his fifth home run. Travis Harrison walked twice and was hit by a pitch. Elizabethton Twins 2, Bristol White Sox 4 Box Score In Game 2 of their season, the E-Twins managed just three hits. Jake Proctor had a triple. Kelvin Ortiz went 1-2 and was hit by a pitch twice. He also stole a base. Josh Burris started. After going 7-0 last year out of the Elizabethton bullpen, he took a loss in his first start of the 2013 season. He gave up three runs, one was earned. The only team miscue was his own throwing error. Kuo Hua Lo gave up four hits, but no runs, in three innings. Miguel Gonzalez gave up a hit and walked one in a scoreless inning. He struck out two. Carson Goldsmith came on and gave up one run on two hits and two walks in his inning. Andre Martinez pitched a perfect inning, striking out one. GCL Twins 6, GCL Red Sox 4 Box Score A five-run inning helped the GCL Twins to a win in their season opener. The big hit came off the bat of 17-year-old Amaurys Minier. The bonus baby came through with a big three-run homer in his third at-bat. He had already hit a double in his second at-bat. He was 2-4 on the day- not a bad debut. Jorge Fernandez hit a triple. Engelb Vielma and Jonatan Hinojosa each walked twice and stole two bases. Australian Lewis Thorpe started and gave up two runs on five hits in four innings. He walked none and struck out four. Chih-Wei Hu came on and walked one and struck out two in two scoreless innings. Miguel Gonzalez gave up a hit and walked one in a scoreless inning; he struck out three. Markus Solbach gave up two runs (1 earned) on two hits in one inning. He struck out two. Two players got into the game on rehab assignments. Madison Boer picked up the save. He gave up two hits, but he struck out two, in the ninth inning. Also, Lance Ray went 0-3 with a walk. Please feel free to comment or ask questions below. View full article

Thursday, the Twins organization made the catcher shuffle. Josmil Pinto was promoted to Rochester with Kyle Knudson moving up to New Britain and Jairo Rodriguez moving back up to Ft. Myers. We also learned that Wilkin Ramirez will continue his rehab in New Britain while Darin Mastroianni will stay in Ft. Myers and play some games with the Miracle. The big news Thursday is that Aaron Hicks and Scott Diamond have been sent to Rochester with Oswaldo Arcia heading back to the Twins. The Twins will also need a starting pitcher by Tuesday, with speculation leading toward Andrew Albers. [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] Here is more about that and other minor league topics on last night’s Twins Minor League Weekly. Travis was joined by Jim Crikket and they discussed in great detail many of the players who have spent time in Cedar Rapids this season. Check out what else happened in the Twins Minor League system on Thursday: Rochester 2, Lehigh Valley 3 Box Score Logan Darnell started for the Red Wings. The lefty went the first 5.2 innings and gave up three runs on 11 hits. He walked two and struck out three. Edgar Ibarra came on and went 1.2 scoreless innings. Cody Eppley gave up one hit and got one strikeout. Ibarra Update - Edgar Ibarra has now pitched 24.1 innings in 19 appearances without allowing a run. The Red Wings managed just six hits. Jermaine Mitchell went 2-3 with a walk and his 15th double. Chris Parmelee went 1-2 with a walk. Josmil Pinto made his AAA debut and went 0-4, grounding into two double plays. New Britain 9, Akron 5 Box Score The Rock Cats bats showed up, and DJ Baxendale was the beneficiary. The right hander gave up five runs on eight hits and a walk in 6.1 innings. He struck out three. Jose Gonzalez got the next five outs, two of them on strikeouts. Dakota Watts gave up one hit in a scoreless inning. Danny Ortiz remained hot. He went 3-4 with his 11th home run and drove in three runs. Evan Bigley went 2-3 with a walk, his fourth double and his first home run. Reynaldo Rodriguez hit his 13th and 14th home runs and drove in five runs. Ft. Myers, Daytona This game was cancelled due to inclement weather. Cedar Rapids 3, Burlington 2 Box Score David Hurlbut returned to the Kernels' starting rotation. The left-hander went the first 3.2 innings, giving up one run on four hits. He walked none and struck out five. Brandon Bixler came on and gave up one run on three hits. He walked two and struck out one in 1.2 innings. Madison Boer then walked one and struck out four in 1.2 innings. Brian Gilbert finished the game with two strikeouts in two innings. The Kernels had just six hits. Travis Harrison went 2-3 with a walk and his 26th double. He also stole his first base of the season. Niko Goodrum hit his second home run, of the inside-the-park variety. Elizabethton 2, Bluefield 4 Box Score The E-Twins fell back under .500 with this loss. It’s unusual to see the Twins struggling so much, especially with the bats. On this night, Zach Granite had a single and a walk. Ryan Walker walked twice. Hein Robb started and gave up three runs (2 earned) on seven hits in five innings. He walked none and struck out five; he did hit one batter. Austin Malinowski came on and gave up one run on four hits and a walk in two innings. He struck out four. Andrew Ferreira walked two and struck out five in two shutout innings. GCL Twins 3, GCL Rays 2 Box Score Jason Kanzler went 2-4 with his first double, and later, his first walk-off hit as the GCL Twins won a one-run game. Zach Larson went 2-4. Brian Navarreto hit his fifth double. Darin Mastroianni went 0-2 with a walk and stole a base. Jared Wilson started and gave up two runs (1 earned) on six hits and a walk in three innings; he struck out three. Chih-Wei Hu struck out five over three, one-hit, scoreless innings. Tyler Stirewalt gave up two hits, also over three innings. He struck out three. Thanks for checking out today’s Twins minor league report. Please feel free to discuss, comment or ask questions. View full article