Search the Community

With the playoff chase in full swing and the last full month of the regular season underway, the Saints are looking to get back to their winning ways and to close the gap between themselves and a playoff berth. First up was a showdown with the second-place team in the North, the Fargo-Moorhead Redhawks. Following that there was a series versus the wild card-contending Gary SouthShore Railcats.Fargo-Moorhead Redhawks (Aug 3rd-6th) The Saints' first two games back at CHS Field unfortunately continued the woes the team has been having for a little more than a month. A 6-2 loss in the opener and a 6-5 follow-up had everyone wondering when the team would snap out of their funk. Well, they snapped out of it in games three and four and showed us what we knew they had all along, a fight and a hunger for staying in the race. Saying the Saints bats came alive in the third game would be an understatement. The 12-2 romp of Fargo included a season team high 19 hits, with eight of the nine starters getting at least one, eight of nine scoring at least one run and seven of nine recording at least one RBI. Tim Colwell led the charge with a two-RBI triple in the team’s biggest inning, a seven-run fourth. Nate Hansen extended his hitting streak to 16 games, going 2-4 in the contest. In the fourth game, Saints pitcher Mark Hamburger took the mound and took over once again. Hamburger tossed his league-leading sixth complete game, holding the Redhawks to just two runs on eight hits in the 6-2 victory. Tim Colwell once again came up big for the offense, going 3-4 and driving in three runs. In a hard-fought series, the Saints split the four games with the Redhawks, putting them 3.5 games out of first and 1.5 behind Fargo for second in the division. Gary SouthShore Railcats (Aug 7th-9th) Next up was a trip to Gary, IN for a visit to U.S. Steel Park and three games versus the Railcats. Like the last series and most of the remaining schedule, these games also had playoff implications: Gary sat a half-game ahead of the Saints in the wild card hunt. The opener was a tightly contested, well-pitched game that could have gone either way. With the score tied at one in the bottom of the ninth, the Railcats hit what looked to be the game-winning sacrifice fly. But after an appeal at third by the Saints, the apparent game-winning runner was ruled out for leaving the bag too early and the play turned into a double play. Then, in the twelfth inning, the Saints offense came through, putting their second run on the board. Kes Carter scored from third on an infield single by Breland Almadova giving the Saints a 2-1 lead that they held for the win. Both teams' pitching staffs dominated most of the game, striking out 18 combined batters while allowing only 15 total hits. Saints reliever Jason Hoppe got his second start of season and went 6.1 strong innings, giving up just one run on four scattered hits. The Saints followed that win up with a 6-4 win on Tuesday, but things don’t look as rosy on Wednesday. They trail 8-3 as this is being published. Below are the North Division and Wildcard playoff races as of August 9th, and don’t forget to check saintsbaseball.com for up-to-date complete league wide standings. Playoff Picture North Division 44-31 Winnipeg Goldeyes 41-32 Fargo Moorhead Redhawks – 2.5 games back 41-33 St. Paul Saints – 3 games back Wildcard 42-31 Kansas City T-Bones 41-32 Fargo-Moorhead Redhawks 1 game back 41-33 St. Paul Saints 1.5 games back 40-35 Gary SouthShore Railcats 3 games back Looking Ahead The Saints return home to CHS Field today, Thursday, August 10th, for a four-game series against the Sioux Falls Canaries. The visitors have fallen to 10.5 games out of first in the division, but they always play the Saints tough and will be another hard test in the chase for the playoffs. Promotions for the home stand include, St. Patty’s Day in August (Aug 10th), Earbud giveaway and Friday Night Fireworks (Aug 11th), Foam Baseball Mitt giveaway (Aug 13th). Click here to view the article

A Player of the Month, three All-Star nods, the longest home stand of the season and a little bit of magic sum up the past two weeks for St. Paul’s boys of summer. With that much good to tell you about, let’s get right into all the action. The awards and accolades continue to roll in for the 2017 Saints team. It was announced July 1 that first baseman Brady Shoemaker was awarded June’s American Association Rawlings Player of the Month. Shoemaker reached base safely in 26 out of the 27 games, including two eight-game hitting streaks. He also hit for a .341 average, scored 25 runs, had six round trippers, drove in 15 and coaxed 21 walks. Congrats Brady, what a month!The mid-season honor of being voted on to the All-Star team is being enjoyed by three Saints this summer. Ace Mark Hamburger, infielder Tony Thomas and outfielder Anthony Gallas all will be representing the American Association as they take on the Can-Am League All-Stars, July 25th in Ottawa. Now, on to the games; starting with longest home stand of the season for the Saints, ten games in eleven days. Winnipeg Goldeyes (June 22-25) Kicking off the home stand was a four-game set versus the Winnipeg Goldeyes. The Saints quickly dispatched the visitors, sweeping the second-place team in the North and extending their lead in the division. The sweep included a couple of lopsided victories to begin the series and concluded with a walk-off solo homer by Brady Shoemaker to close out the Goldeyes. This was also the first time in franchise history the Saints had swept Winnipeg in a four-game series. By far the best moment of the series happened during Saturday night’s game. Returning for the 25th anniversary of the Saints first league title in 1993, former world champion Kevin Millar stepped in for the final at bat of his professional career - and holy cow did he not disappoint. On a 1-0 count Millar got a fastball he did not miss, crushing a no-doubter over the left field wall to ride off into the sunset with a two-run blast. What a moment for Millar and Saints fans together, and what a way to end a career. Pure magic. Way to go Kevin!!! Sioux City Explorers (June 26-29) Next up at CHS Field was a three-gamer against the Sioux City Explorers. The first two games didn’t end in favor of the Saints with the away team putting eight on the board in each to take a 2-0 series lead. Avoiding being swept at home has been a strength of Saints teams since they moved into CHS Field. In fact, they have never been swept in their Lowertown home. Luckily this year’s team remembered that fact and took care of business in game three against the Explorers, defeating the visitors 6-3 to salvage the series finale. Gary SouthShore Railcats (June 30-July 2) Closing out the longest home stand of the season for the Saints was a visit from the Gary SouthShore Railcats. This time the Saints jumped out to a 1-0 lead in the series with a dominating 10-0 complete game shutout by pitcher Benji Waite, his first career complete game shutout. Danny Oh had a career night, finishing with five hits and six RBI, both personal bests for the Saints outfielder. Unfortunately, after the great start the Saints came up short in the next two games, dropping both by one run, and losing the series two games to one. After ending their latest home stand with an overall 6-4 record; the Saints immediately hit the road for six straight, with quick three-game stops in both South and North Dakota. At Sioux City Explorers (July 3-5) and Fargo-Moorehead Redhawks (July 6-8) First up on the road trip was South Dakota and the Sioux City Explorers. Losing the first game of the series 4-2, the Saints endured something they haven’t all season long, a three-game losing streak. Thankfully this was a taste they didn’t like, rebounding in a big way with a 12-1 thrashing of the home team in game two. Sadly, that would be all the Saints could muster versus the Explorers dropping the last game 4-1, and the series 2-1. The final stop on the mini road trip was up to Fargo to face North Division rival, the Redhawks. After losing the first game 6-1, the Saints took control winning the final two games 11-7 and 4-2 and clinching the series victory. In the finale, pitcher Mark Hamburger struck out a career high 11 Redhawks en route to his league-leading ninth victory of the season. Next up – Sioux Falls Canaries (July 10-13) & Fargo-Moorehead Redhawks (July 14-16) With another successful home stand and road trip in their rear-view mirror, your first-place Saints return to CHS Field starting Monday, July 10th. The local nine, sporting a 30-18 record for second best in the league, will face off against two division foes in their next seven games in St. Paul. Upcoming promotions for the home stand include, Monday Night Variety Night with musical guest Chris Hawkey (July 10th), The 30th Birthday of the Simpsons (July 12th), and German Night along with the 2017 team card set giveaway (July 16th). And, don’t forget about Twins Daily Night at the ballpark Friday, July 14th. It includes a picnic and game ticket all for a minor league (and family-friendly) price. The promotion for that evening is also Biggie or Tupac, East Coast vs West Coast, followed by Friday Night Fireworks. I’ll see you there! Click here to view the article

With their epic two-week road trip in the rear-view mirror, the Saints settled back into CHS field on June, 12 to face the Sioux City Explorers for three games. Back-to- back awards, a series victory and some fancy singing made the quick stop at home not feel as short.Prior to the first game of the home stand the league announced that Saints outfielder, Anthony Gallas was awarded the Pointstreak American Association Player of the Week for June 5 – June 11. And yes, you are remembering correctly from my last article, that makes it two consecutive Player of the Week honors for Saints players. Gallas’ crazy stat line from his winning week included a .571 BA, .670 OBP, two RBI and 3three runs scored. Way to go, Anthony! To begin the series, it appeared the Explorers don’t believe in the phrase “home sweet home.” They defeated the Saints 7-5 while getting 17 hits, a season high given up by the Saints. The second game went much better for the home team, ending in a 10-5 victory. The Saints big run total was aided by scoring in each of the first four innings, including two two-run bombs by Gallas and Max Garrett in the four-run fourth inning. Game three was another lopsided affair tilted towards the good guys. Ryan Zimmerman shut down his former team for seven solid innings, allowing only one run. The red-hot Gallas continued his run at the plate with a three-RBI double in the first that began the scoring on the way to an 8-1 win. The series finale was another big win because it was Saints Manager, George Tsamis’ 50th birthday. Per the Saints stats guru’s, the team is now 6-5 overall in games played on the skipper’s big day. Happy Birthday George! One of the many fun moments during the home stand came during the Monday Night Variety Show when Host Fancy Ray joined Seigo Masubuchi for Sing Along with Seigo during one of the inning breaks. Together they sang a rousing rendition of Feeling Hot Hot Hot. The fun never ends at a Saints game. After what I’m sure felt like a ten-minute nap in their own beds, the Saints hit the road again for six games, going from Winnipeg to Sioux Falls. First up was a trip across the border to battle the Goldeyes at Shaw Park in Winnipeg. The Saints won two of three from the second-place team in the North Division extending their lead to two games. Next up was a three-game stop in Sioux Falls. The Saints took two of three from the Explorers again, but the big story of the series came on the mound for the Saints. In the first game, former Twins prospect Mark Hamburger threw his record breaking, fifteenth career complete game in the victory. I’ve said it before, the most amazing stat of the record is how few games it took him to break the mark. It took former record holder; Ben Moore 121 starts to get to fourteen. It took Hamburger just 48 starts to get to fifteen. Just amazing. Congrats Mark! With the series win, the Saints are now 21-11 and have a three-game lead over the Winnipeg Goldeyes in the North Division. And now the Saints return home for ten games in eleven days. First up is the North Division second place Goldeyes for a four-game showdown. After an off-day Monday, the Sioux City Explorers visit St. Paul for a mid-week three-game series. And finishing off the home stand is a four-game set versus the Gary SouthShore Railcats. Ten games in eleven days at home, I can already feel the Fun is Good oozing out of CHS Field. So, let’s get to some of the fun for the upcoming home stand. Highlighting the stand is the second bobblehead giveaway of the year, June 24th. This time it is Kevin Millar and Bill Murray together as the collectable recreates a classic picture of the two from Midway Stadium. There will also be fireworks, fireworks, and more fireworks. Three nights of fireworks! This home stand there are two Friday night shows and the big Independence Day Super Show with food trucks on the field as well. Other promotional nights include: I saw my old girlfriend at the …X-Games Night, June 25, Larry Doby Night, June 27, and Spam’s 80th Birthday Celebration, June 28. Don't miss your chance to join TwinsDaily.com at a family-friendly Saints event on July 14. Just $20 for adults and $10 for kids gets you a pregame buffet in the outfield, a Saints ticket, fireworks and an after party at Tin Whiskers. Get more information and tickets (while they last) here. For more on the Saints, including tickets to this weekend's games, stop by SaintsBaseball.com. Click here to view the article

The Saints opened the season in front of a sellout crowd of 8294 at CHS Field on Thursday, May 18th. Even through the rain and cold, good baseball and fun prevailed, with St. Paul defeating the Gary Southshore Railcats en route to taking the series three games to one.The first game of the series used a formulas that the Saints hope will work all year: solid pitching + longball = win. Starter Mark Hamburger pitched 8.1 strong innings allowing only two unearned runs and striking out eight. Tony Thomas and Nate Hanson both sent a pitch over the fence to provide all the offense the team would need in the 5-2 win. The second game saw the pitching staff stand strong again and hold off the Railcats for a 2-1 victory. Four different St. Paul pitchers combined to keep the Gary Southshore offense at bay, while the Saints offense did just enough to secure the win. Tanner Vavra scored the winning tally in the bottom of the seventh on a RBI fielder’s choice by Breland Almadova. Saturday’s game three was postponed due to rain and rescheduled as part of a doubleheader Sunday afternoon. In the American Association, a doubleheader is a little different than in the major leagues. The teams play two seven-inning games back to back with only a twenty minute break in between. Game one followed the same script as the first two games of the series. John Straka pitched 5 scoreless innings followed by the Saints bullpen shutting down the Railcats for the remainder of the tilt. Tim Colwell hit a solo shot and Tony Thomas blasted his second homer of the home stand to secure the 4-0 win for our local team. The final game saw something that the Saints had not run into before in an opening series at CHS Field: a loss. Gary scored early and often while holding off a couple of Saints rallies for a 10-3 victory. My MVP for the home stand is Tony Thomas. Thomas reminded us quickly that he is one of the Saints big boppers this season. He hit .286 with a double, 5 runs scored, 2 HRs and 4 RBI in the first four games. Now, on to the fun. Opening night began with local musician, HarMar Superstar, singing a rocking version of the Mary Tyler Moore theme song by home plate. Live musicians are an aspect the Saints and musical director Andy Crowley have been infusing more and more into the pregame and in-between inning festivities. I think it really adds to the fun atmosphere in the ballpark. It wouldn’t be a Saints game without all the zaniness that goes on in the stands and on the field during the inning breaks. Entertainment Director, Brian Kelly and his team of Ushertainers, along with Director of Marketing and Promotions, Sierra Bailey and her team continue to put on a great show for the fans. From between-inning races to Chef Sharte taking a pie to the face, the fun never stops. Keep up the great work everybody! One promotional change from the weekend due to the rainout is that Star Wars Night has been rescheduled to Sunday, August 6th. After the second game of the doubleheader, the team boarded their bus and headed out on the road for a quick three-game series against North Division foe, the Sioux Falls Canaries. To say there was some runs scored in this series may be an understatement. The Saints cruised to a 12-5 victory in game one behind two Tony Caldwell home runs and a 5 for 6 night for Breland Almadova. Almadova also had 3 RBI and was a home run shy of hitting for the cycle. The second game saw Mark Hamburger toss a complete game and the offense put up a crooked number again, taking down the Canaries, 8-3. This was Hamburger’s 13th career complete game putting him one behind the American Association record held by Ben Moore. If, and more than likely when, Hamburger ties and breaks the record the most eye-popping stat will be how many fewer games it took him to get there. Ben Moore tossed 14 complete games in 121 starts. It has only taken Hamburger 43 starts to get to 13. Game three, we lost 16-3. Enough said. After a day off the Saints return home Friday, May 26th to face the Kansas City T-Bones for three games. KC comes into the series with a 1-5 record. While the Saints sit at 5-2 on the young season. Promotions for the holiday weekend include the first bobble head of the year, double fireworks and food trucks. Starting off the fun is Friday Night Fireworks shooting off to the music of the Beatles.The first 1,500 fans Saturday will receive an Ila Borders 25th Anniversary Season bobble head during You Play Like a Girl! Night. And Sunday is Military Appreciation Night followed by a Food Truck rally on the field and a Fireworks Super Show. After the upcoming home stand the Saints head back out on the road for 13 straight games. This is the team’s longest road trip of the year, due to the high school baseball tournament being played at CHS Field. The boys first make a stop in Cleburne, TX for four games against the Railroaders and three against the Salina Stockade. Then they travel to Grand Prairie, TX for three against the AirHogs. Lastly they stop in Kansas City for three against the T-Bones, finally returning home again, June 12th. That’s a pretty long time to be away from the ballpark; you might want to swing by during this weekend’s gorgeous weather…. For more on the Saints, including tickets to this weekend's games, stop by SaintsBaseball.com Click here to view the article

Here is the Twins Almanac for the week of February 5-11. Former Twins closer Al Worthington, Mounds View grad Mark Hamburger, and current Twins outfielder Max Kepler are all celebrating birthdays this week. '27 Yankees third baseman Julie Wera was born in Winona this week in 1902. Also this week in Twins history was a big payday for Bloomington's Kent Hrbek (1985), the Chuck Knoblauch trade ('08), and Terry Ryan's cancer diagnosis ('14). http://i1074.photobucket.com/albums/w413/mjohnso9/Worthington.68T_zpshtvoxhjr.jpg February 5 Happy 88th Birthday to Al Worthington It’s the birthday of former Twins stopper Al Worthington, born in Birmingham, Alabama in 1929. The Twins purchased the 35-year-old pitcher from the Reds on June 26, 1964, the same day on which Twins pitcher Gerry Arrigo took a no-hitter against the White Sox into the ninth at Met Stadium. Arrigo would complete a 1-hit shutout of the Sox. Worthington, meanwhile, would appear in 41 of the Twins’ 81 remaining games, posting a 1.37 ERA. Worthington was the first Twin to save 20+ games, going 10-5 with 21 saves and a 2.13 ERA during the Twins’ 1965 American League Championship season. Worthington was the first Twin to lead the league in saves with 18 in 1968 at age 39. Ron Perranoski (‘69 and ‘70), Mike Marshall (‘79), and Eddie Guardado (‘02) are the only other Twins to do so. Worthington lives in Sterrett, AL these days, and, incidentally, would be happy to answer your letter. http://i1074.photobucket.com/albums/w413/mjohnso9/hamburger%201_zps8lukeqze.jpg February 5 Mark Hamburger Turns the Big 3-0 Happy 30th birthday to Mounds View High School and Mesabi Range Community and Technical College alumnus Mark Hamburger, born in St. Paul in 1987. Hamburger was signed by the Twins in 2007, and traded to Texas for Eddie Guardado in August, 2008. He pitched eight innings over five games for the Rangers late in the 2011 season, posting a 1-0 record during his only big league call-up. Hamburger subsequently spent time in the Padres’ and Astros’ organizations before being signed again by the Twins in September 2013. He never made it back to the majors, though. Hamburger pitched for the St. Paul Saints in 2016, going 12-6 in 21 appearances (20 starts), with a 3.29 ERA. http://i1074.photobucket.com/albums/w413/mjohnso9/knoblauch.Milton.Guzman_zpsrjiautqk.jpg February 6, 1998 Twins Trade Chuck Knoblauch The Twins trade All-Star second baseman Chuck Knoblauch to the New York Yankees for minor leaguers Eric Milton, Cristian Guzman, Brian Buchanan, Danny Mota and three millions dollars of George Steinbrenner’s cold hard cash. There had been speculation for several years that the struggling Twins would deal hot commodity Knoblauch, and eventually he himself demanded to be traded to a contender. Knoblauch was coming off a stretch of four sensational seasons in which he made three all-star teams, hitting .318 and stealing 188 bases. His 127 OPS+ over that stretch was three points better than that of Roberto Alomar. The trade would ultimately go down as a win-win. Knoblauch was uneven as a Yankee. We all know about his struggles throwing the ball to first base. He continued to swing a solid stick, though, and the Yankees won the World Series in each of his first three seasons in New York. Cristian Guzman, meanwhile, was the Twins’ starting shortstop for six seasons, leading the league in triples three times. He never realized his full potential, but Twins fans sure saw some sparks from the exciting speedster. Milton jumped straight into the starting rotation, giving the Twins five solid seasons, highlighted by a no-hitter on September 11, 1999. Another highlight came on April 15, 2001 when Milton struck out eight of the first 10 White Sox he faced. http://i1074.photobucket.com/albums/w413/mjohnso9/wera_zpsgffok02p.jpg February 9, 1902 It’s the Birthday of Julie Wera Julie Wera, who played 38 games at third base for the vaunted ‘27 Yankees, was born in Winona, MN on this date in 1902. The 25-year-old Wera made his major league debut at Yankee Stadium on April 14, 1927, pinch-hitting for Hall of Famer Waite Hoyt against Hall of Famer Lefty Grove. He grounded out. Wera hit his one and only big league homer during a doubleheader at Yankee Stadium on July 4, 1927 in front of a then-record crowd of 74,000. Wera did not play in the 1927 World Series in which the Yankees swept the Pirates. He did, however, receive the same $5,782 portion of the winners’ purse as the rest of his teammates, which included Lou Gehrig and Babe Ruth. Nice bonus, considering that Wera’s ‘27 salary was reported to be $2,400. Julie Wera died of a heart attack at his home in Rochester, MN on December 12, 1975. He was 73 years old. Read J.G. Preston’s SABR BioProject biography of Julie Wera: http://sabr.org/bioproj/person/2dc33add http://i1074.photobucket.com/albums/w413/mjohnso9/Kepler.Mauer.8-1-16_zpskprrgr69.jpg February 10 Happy 24th Birthday to Max Kepler It's the birthday of Twins outfielder Max Kepler, born in Berlin, Germany in 1993. Playing Cleveland at Target Field on August 1, 2016, Kepler became the fifth player in Twins history to hit three home runs in a game. The previous four were Bob Allison ('63), Harmon Killebrew ('63), Tony Oliva ('73), and Justin Morneau ('07). Brian Dozier joined the club on September 5, 2016. Kepler's 3-HR game was the beginning of a historic offensive outburst for the team as a whole. Mired in one of the worst seasons in franchise history, the Twins hit a team record 19 extra-base hits over a two-game span. They set a milestone in the third game of the series, too, putting up 10 runs in three straight games against the same team for the first time. They had scored 10 runs in three straight games before, but not against the same team. They would lose the fourth game of the series 2-9. February 10, 2014 Terry Ryan Reveals Cancer Diagnosis The Twins release a statement on behalf of 60-year-old General Manager Terry Ryan revealing that he has been diagnosed with skin cancer in his neck. http://i1074.photobucket.com/albums/w413/mjohnso9/hrbek.85t_zpspasivh1t.jpg February 11, 1985 Kent Hrbek Cashes In 1978 Bloomington Kennedy High School grad Kent Hrbek signs a 5-year, 6 million dollar contract, meaning he would be the first player in Twins history to earn a million dollars for a single season’s work. Hrbek celebrated by going ice fishing outside his Lake Minnetonka home. Keep in touch with @TwinsAlmanac on Twitter and on Facebook.

Here we are, the final day of August, and the Minnesota Twins are still in contention for a playoff spot. They will enter September four games over .500. Just like we all anticipated in March, right? Starting today, the Twins may start making some moves to alter and then add to their current roster. On September 1, anyone on the 40-man roster could be called up. Obviously it’s more likely that they call up six or seven players within the next week or so than call up 14 to 15 players. However, there are at least a dozen players who deserve consideration to spend the final month with the big league club. In this article, we’ll discuss several players who are not currently on the 40-man roster who deserve to be considered for a September call-up.The Twins 40-man roster is currently at 40, plus Ricky Nolasco and Ryan Pressly on the 60-day disabled list. In other words, if any of the below players were to be added, someone would have to be removed from the current 40-man roster. The other option is putting a player on the 60-day DL. Phil Hughes and Aaron Hicks won’t be placed on the 60-day DL, but could they put JR Graham on it? Remember that only maybe three to five players will be called up on the 1st and more will come after Labor Day when the minor league regular seasons come to an end. Below you’ll find a bunch of players who are not currently on the 40-man roster but could be considered for a September call-up. The “Odds” at the end of each player’s information is simply my guess as to the odds of them being promoted. I have no knowledge. They are just my guesses based on following the team and such things for a dozen years. Enjoy, and at the end, leave your thoughts. ** Note: About 2:00 central time, my thoughts on the 40 man roster options will be revealed. ** ERIC FRYER – Catcher The Twins will want to add a third catcher. It makes a ton of sense as it will allow Paul Molitor to feel more comfortable pinch hitting for Kurt Suzuki or Chris Herrmann. The only other catcher playing on the Rochester roster right now is Carlos Paulina, though Allan de San Miguel remains on the disabled list. Odds: 99.9% MARK HAMBURGER – Right-Handed Relief Pitcher We wrote about it in spring training, and it very well could happen in September. If the Twins call up Hamburger to pitch in their bullpen, his coach in the bullpen will be Eddie Guardado who he was traded for in August of 2008. Hamburger debuted with the Rangers in 2011 and then things got rough. He pitched for the St. Paul Saints in 2013. The Twins signed him and after serving a suspension in 2014, he pitched well in AA and AAA. He was in big league camp until late and when he got to Rochester, he made four starts. He wasn’t great in the first half, but in 25 games since mid-June, he has been terrific. He has worked short relief, but he has pitched over two innings four times in that span too. In 29.1 innings, he has a 0.92 ERA and 0.75 WHIP. He has walked two and struck out 25. In other words, his case is strong. Odds: 45% PAT DEAN – Left-Handed Starting Pitcher Last week, we ran a story on the southpaw. The 26-year-old has been in the organization since the 2010 draft. He is having a breakout season in 2015. He is 11-11 with the Red Wings with a 2.91 ERA in 170 innings. He has thrown three complete game shutouts and has completed six innings in 20 of his 25 starts. On Sunday afternoon, he tossed eight shutout innings. He wouldn’t start, but he could eat some innings if needed. Odds: 20% MICHAEL BOWDEN – Right-Handed Pitcher The Twins signed Bowden to a minor league contract after he opted out of his deal with the Orioles organization in July. He had an August 22nd opt-out with the Twins but did not use it. With the Red Wings, he made six starts and went 3-2 with a 4.33 ERA. In his most recent start (Thursday), he threw seven shutout innings. He has pitched for the Red Sox and Cubs in the big leagues and spent 2014 playing in Japan. He has started this season in the minors, but has pitched primarily out of the bullpen in the big leagues. Odds: 10% JAMES BERESFORD – Second Baseman The Twins signed Beresford as a 16-year-old from Australia late in 2005. He debuted in the States in 2007. He has gradually and successfully climbed up the Twins system. He has spent the last two-and-a-half years with the Red Wings. In 2015, the 26-year-old has hit .316/.351/.372 (.722) with 21 doubles, one triple and one home run. Earlier in his minor league career, he played more shortstop, but over the last three or four years, he has played almost exclusively second base. He can play all three infield positions. Odds: 25% DOUG BERNIER – Utility Player Bernier has spent at least some time with the Twins in each of the last three seasons. He’s been a utility infielder through most of his minor league career, which spans back to 2002. In 89 games this year with the Red Wings, he hit .242/.334/.292 (.627). The 35-year-old would provide depth. Odds: 15% REYNALDO RODRIGUEZ – First Base/Outfielder The 29-year-old originally signed with the Yankees way back in 2006. He spent some time in independent leagues before spending several years with the Red Sox organization. He has been with the Twins since 2013 and has been a solid extra base producer each year. In his first full season with AAA Rochester, he has hit .261/.313/.458 (.771) with 33 doubles, seven triples and 15 home runs. He also has 11 stolen bases. The odds of him being promoted are low due to his position and other options for the Twins, but his performance on the field certainly warrants discussion. Odds: 2% DANNY ORTIZ – Outfielder Ortiz is 25 years old and was the Twins fourth-round pick in 2008. At 5-11 and about 190 pounds, he doesn’t look like a power hitter, but he is usually good for ten to 12 homers a year. Ortiz was at spring training with the Twins and played OK. He profiles as a fourth or fifth outfielder. He started the year with the Red Wings hitting alright, but really has struggled the last two months. He is down to .241/.290/.414 (.704) with 30 doubles, three triples and 14 home runs. Odds: 1% STUART TURNER – Catcher Turner’s defensive prowess has had him pushed arguably a level higher than he should be the last two years. When looking at his offensive numbers, that shows. However, the defense is legit. In his last 30 games, he has hit .277/.390/.366 with seven extra base hits. He has 19 walks against 20 strikeouts. The Twins have said they want another catcher. We assume that means Eric Fryer as Turner doesn’t need to be added to the 40-man roster until after the 2016 season. Odds: 0.1% ADAM BRETT WALKER – Outfielder Since being the Twins third-round pick in 2012 out of Jacksonville University, he has been one of the most productive hitters in the minor leagues. USA Today has him listed as one of the top five candidate for minor leaguer of the year. Sure, we may say Max Kepler should be on that list, but Walker has had another solid year. In AA, he has hit .241/.314/.500 (.814) with 29 doubles, 29 homers and 100 RBI. He also has 12 stolen bases. Sure, he’s struck out in about 35% of his plate appearances and walked about 9.5% of his time. He needs to be added to the 40-man roster after the season. However, finding playing time for him would be tough. Odds: 5% JT CHARGOIS – Right-Handed Relief Pitcher While other relievers were talked about more coming into the season, Chargois returned to the mound after missing two years with injuries. He flashed a near-triple-digit fastball and a slider and did well. He began in Ft. Myers but spent the second half in Chattanooga. In his last 14 outings (15 innings), he has given up just one earned run. He has to be added to the 40-man roster after the season anyway, so he's certainly an option after the Lookouts playoff run. Odds: 10% JO BERRIOS – Right-Handed Starting Pitcher You knew I had to save the big talker to last, right? Berrios is making another start for Rochester on Monday night. Terry Ryan will see him again and make some sort of decision after the game. It will likely be the most-watched-by-Twins-fans Rochester start in a long time. He’s already at 155.1 innings. He shouldn’t work more than 175 to 180 innings this year, so what will his role be? I don’t know what Terry Ryan needs or wants to see. Berrios can contribute now. Even if you don’t want him to start because of innings concerns, he could be a guy who is ready for long relief duty. A guy who could eat two or three innings to save the rest of the bullpen. Odds: 60% Again, these are all just guesses based on following things for a long time (meaning, I’m old). Let us know what you think. Later today, we’ll discuss the players on the 40-man roster and which of them we think might be added for September. SUMMARY Better Than 50% - Eric Fryer, JO Berrios Close to 50/50 – Mark Hamburger Deserve Stronger Consideration – James Beresford, Pat Dean, JT Chargois Click here to view the article

I've been calling the 5th starter outings "tryouts," which sort of implies they count for something. It's not totally clear they do. Tommy Milone had his - probably last - tryout Thursday afternoon. I'll give you the numbers, because some of you might be interested - 5 IP, 3 ER, 6H, 3K, 2 BB. But a more complete summarization was that he pitched like the fairly good version of Tommy Milone. That is not the guy that Twins fans saw last summer, but he's also not going to be anything much better than a back-of-the-rotation starting pitcher.He has four pitches, but his best fastball tops out in the highish 80s. He got a few strikeouts on changeups. He is best getting ahead in the count and you worry about him when he falls behind or is going through the lineup multiple times. He needs to manage a baseball game the way less-talented quarterbacks manage a football game. He needs to not make mistakes. He needs to mix things up. He needs a little luck. And unless something drastic changes, that is who he is going to be. What we learned this spring is that nothing has changed drastically, but he might be good enough to hold a spot in a rotation. And that, incidentally, is still a pretty nice player to have in the organization when the only thing the team gave up is a backup outfielder, and only needs to pay him first year arbitration money. Seeing a performance like this, it is easy to mock the idea that ANY of the stuff seen at spring training should be used in the roster decision-making process. After all, spring training is, by definition, a small sample size. It is a fraction of the available information we have on these guys. Beyond obvious questions like "Is this guy healthy" or "Has something changed drastically" it shouldn't be used to answer many questions. And for the most part, that is the way it works. More than 20 of the available roster spots on the 25-man roster were going to certain guys provided they weren't injured. The remaining spots are either pretty low leverage (like the last spots in the bullpen) or choosing among less than ideal options. OR finding out whether someone is "ready." For instance, the center field competition would have been over had Aaron Hicks (again) demonstrated he is ready for the majors. As late as this weekend Manager Paul Molitor didn't know who the starting center fielder is, which demonstrates that hasn't happened. Entering camp, I wondered if the same wasn't true of Trevor May and the fifth starter spot. But then May got sick and Milone was the one pitching in the major league fields and people started talking about Pelfrey and.... On Tuesday, I thought the three starts by Milone, May and Mike Pelfrey would all be important. Today, I'm wondering if the only one that really matters is that of May. The others are known commodities and their last couple of starts have confirmed that they are known commodities. I also wonder, given that we won't know when Pelfrey will next pitch until tomorrow, that he might already be out of the competition. If all that is true, then tomorrow's start is going to be much more fun to watch, as it truly counts for something. And it is wholly appropriate that it does. Twins Takes Twins lost 5-4 in 10 innings on the road versus the Red Sox. Spring training games often end tied after nine innings but Molitor wanted to see relief prospect Jake Reed pitch. Reed retired the first batter he faced, but threw a first pitch slider to Rusney Castillo which ended up barely clearing the Faux Green Monster at jetBlue field.Milone was relieved by Tim Stauffer, who has drawn a lot of commentary in our forums after my bullpen story. Given that Twins fans are not real familiar with him, it's easy to view him as a soft-throwing failed fifth starter candidate, but that's not the case. He pitched out of the bullpen for the Padres last year and racked up 57K in 56.1 IP as a reliever, and posted a 2.56 ERA. Those are awfully good setup man numbers.His poor camp is mostly a result of his failed fifth starter attempts, but today didn't do a ton to help his numbers. He got two K in 1.2 IP, but gave up four hits, though he was also the victim of a little bad luck. The worst part was that he walked in a run. He's not in any danger of not making the roster and Molitor noted in the postgame talk that Stauffer was throwing harder. But Stauffer might have a slow start this season or be used in lower leverage roles until the Twins see the guy he is supposed to be. Stauffer was pulled after walking in the run and replaced by Mark Hamburger. Hamburger was outstanding again, striking out two and giving up one hit in 2.1 IP. I had him as the odd man out in my bullpen calculus story yesterday, but its worth noting that he has put up far better strikeout numbers than Blaine Boyer or even the hard-throwing J.R. Graham. Hamburger now has 10 K in 9.2IP, versus 5K in 9.2 IP for Boyer and 6 K in 9.0 IP for Graham. I still think the odds are against him, but Hamburger would come north if it was up to me. I want to see more of this kid. I expect we will, one way or the other, later this year.Finally, regarding center field, Shane Robinson started in center field and got a hit in his first at-bat but also struck out twice. Later in the game Eddie Rosario replaced him but didn't have any challenges defensively. He went 0-2 with a strikeout. And finally, Jordan Schafer played left field for the whole game, going 0-4. The Red Sox starter was Wade Miley, a southpaw, against which Schafer has usually struggled. Click here to view the article

After yesterday’s crazy day at Fort Myers, today was considerably more serene. It also served as a deep breath before the last big push for several roster spots. Twins Manager Paul Molitor says he would like to get the roster set by this weekend, so the pressure to perform (or at least not mess up) is high. “It always is in spring training,” said Twins General Manager Terry Ryan. “Especially when you get to the last ten games or so.”I’ve written a lot about the other spring training battles but have stayed away from the bullpen, partly because Nick Nelson covered it this weekend and partly because there were just so many options. But with recent demotions, the bullpen battles are becoming a little more clear – but not a lot more clear. There are just so many factors, and the biggest ones might not be the individual relievers' performance. It might be the performance of the guys trying out for the fifth starter job or whether or not the Twins can make a trade for a Rule 5 pick. Here’s the breakdown: There are seven spots. Four of them are essentially spoken for: 1. Glen Perkins has overcome his oblique strain, so he’s in. 2. Casey Fien is in and seems to have overcome whatever ailed him last September. 3. Brian Duensing was hit by a comebacker yesterday just over the knee on his thigh, but while he won’t pitch for a couple of days, he should have no problem being back for opening day. 4. Tim Stauffer has a major league contract, and while Terry Ryan stopped short of calling him an “absolute lock” in his pregame press conference, he did say he’ll be getting the “benefit of the doubt.” So he’s in. That leaves three spots and they are largely dependent on what happens in the fifth spot in the rotation. At least one, and possibly, two, are spoken for. Mike Pelfrey, Tommy Milone and Trevor May are all competing for that last spot. Ryan confirmed that “is a fair assumption” that Pelfrey and Milone would end up in the bullpen if they don’t win the job, and oddly enough would not say that Trevor May would be sent to Rochester if he didn’t with the job, leaving the option open that he could be in the bullpen, too. However, that chance seems very remote. Your guess is as good as mine regarding the fifth starter job. Everyone seems to be playing their cards very close to their vest. Prior to the postgame conference, I would have handicapped it like this: Pelfrey 1:1 Milone 2:1 May 5:1 But I talked to at least one veteran sportswriter who thought Milone was still in the lead, and it also seemed like there was some confusion whether Pelfrey would get another start with the big league club. Whether that means he’s out of the running or they just don’t need to see any more is unknown. So again, take those odds with much more than a grain of salt. Like, maybe a shaker of salt. Back to the bullpen. Whoever wins could have a major effect on the makeup of the bullpen. Let’s look at the scenarios. What If Pelfrey Wins The Fifth Starter Spot? 5. Tommy Milone becomes the second (or third if you count Perkins) lefty in the bullpen. That leaves two spots in the bullpen. My best guess is they are taken by the right-handers: 6. Blaine Boyer and 7. J.R. Graham Missing out: RHP Mark Hamburger LHP Caleb Thielbar, Aaron Thompson Boyer and Graham are mostly a guess, though they have had great camps. But so have all the guys that are still in camp, so either one could be replaced by Hamburger. It’s also possible that the Twins could decide to still take another left-hander, and Terry Ryan praised both Thielbar and Thompson’s spring earlier today. Ryan also said a few days ago he doesn’t feel strongly about how many left-handers or right-handers are in the bullpen. What If Milone Wins The Fifth Starter Spot? 5. Mike Pelfrey becomes the third right-hander in the bullpen. That leaves two spots in the bullpen. My best guess is they would want a right-hander and a left-hander, so let’s go with: 6. Caleb Thielbar and 7. J.R. Graham Missing out: RHP Mark Hamburger LHP Blaine Boyer, Aaron Thompson I’m in the minority in thinking that the Twins would choose Graham over Boyer. But since Graham is a Rule 5 pick and since Boyer isn’t on the 40-man roster, that’s the way I’m going. I should emphasize – Boyer has really impressed people. If the Twins decide to keep Boyer and send Graham down in this scenario, they would either need to return him to the Braves or make a deal. In the past, the Twins have had some luck making deals with the Braves; that’s how they secured Scott Diamond. That happened very late in spring training that year, on the 28th of March. I’m optimistic that this could happen again. As for the lefties, I don’t know if Thielbar is really in front of Thompson. I think Thielbar will get the benefit of the doubt given his time on the team the last few years. Then today, Thompson pitched before Thielbar did today and Thielbar did struggle a bit, giving up two hits and the winning run (though I think it should have been unearned). However, Molitor emphasized that he didn’t mean to give them a “head-to-head” matchup; he just wasn’t able to use Thompson in the game yesterday, so he made sure he got him in the game today. What If May Wins The Fifth Starter Spot? 5. Mike Pelfrey becomes the third right-hander in the bullpen. 6. Tommy Milone becomes the second lefty in the bullpen. That leaves just one spot in the bullpen. My best guess is they would want a right-hander, so let’s go with: 7. Blaine Boyer Missing out: RHP Mark Hamburger, J.R. Graham LHP Caleb Thielbar, Aaron Thompson Looking at this, it seems that Trevor May is going to need to overcome even more than having an option to send him down and a limited spring training resume due to the flu. Putting him in the fifth spot also squeezes the bullpen that much more. (Oh, and the forecast for his start on Friday has a 90% chance of rain. What’s next? Locusts?) If you want to distill things a little further, it feels like there will likely be two spots in the bullpen and three pitchers essentially competing for it: Boyer, Graham and Thielbar. The key factor might be if they can work a trade for Graham. If so, and May doesn’t win the fifth job, the logjam could be cleared. Click here to view the article

Aaron and John talk about Eddie Rosario's chance of stealing the center field job from Aaron Hicks, Mark Hamburger's case for a bullpen spot, another chance to win Twins season tickets from the Minnesota Corn Growers at MNFarmTeam.com, Spider-Man the internet repair guy, Joe Nathan being a mess, Kevin Correia finding a new home, eating salads at Mac's Industrial, getting into soccer, big spoons and little spoons, and AL Central cliches. You can listen by downloading us from iTunes, Stitcher or find it at GleemanAndTheGeek.com. Or just click the Play button below. 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

It all comes down to this, the final two games of the regular season for the Rochester Red Wings. They need to win their next two games against Pawtucket, the league leader. They also need Buffalo to lose one of their final two games against Syracuse. To help that cause, the Twins have promoted top pitching prospect JO Berrios to make the Sunday start for the Red Wings. Elizabethton starts their playoffs on Sunday. But before we get to Sunday, let’s check out what happened in the farm system on Saturday.TRANSACTIONS Sam Deduno was claimed on waivers by the Houston Astros.On Sunday morning, lefty Aaron Thompson was promoted from Rochester to fill Deduno's roster spot.Alex Meyer was placed on the disabled list for Rochester, which is hopefully just procedural so that they can call up JO Berrios from New Britain.RED WINGS REPORTRochester 0, Buffalo 3 Box Score The Season of Scares continued on Saturday when Alex Meyer left the game after the first two batters of the 2nd innings reached base. It was a precaution, and later it was said that he just couldn’t get loose. Hopefully it was only a precaution and not something more serious. Meyer gave up three runs, two earned, on two hits and a walk in one inning. Mark Hamburger came on and threw seven shutout innings. He gave up just two hits, walked one and struck out six. Deolis Guerra pitched a scoreless ninth. The Red Wings were unable to muster much offense. They had just five hits. Eric Farris had two singles, and Chris Colabello added his 13th double. On Sunday night, the Red Wings will play a must-win game against Pawtucket. JO Berrios will make his AAA debut opposite lefty Henry Owens of the PawSox. ROCK CATS REVIEW New Britain 3, New Hampshire 1 Box Score It’s almost hard to remember how much Taylor Rogers struggled through his first four starts of the season with the Rock Cats. However, he has ended the season strong and earned the opportunity to pitch in the Arizona Fall League. On this night, the lefty gave up just one run on three hits over eight innings. He didn’t walk a batter and struck out nine. Dan Turpen got the final three outs, two on strikeouts, for his third save. Rogers improved to 11-6 with a 3.29 ERA. The Rock Cats didn’t get much offense. They had just seven hits. However, five of them came from the two and three hitters. Eddie Rosario went 2-4 with his 20th double and his seventh home run. Nate Hanson hit three doubles and has 26 on the season. MIRACLE MATTERS Game 1 - Ft. Myers 5, Jupiter 0 Box Score Ethan Mildren evened his Miracle record at 3-3 with his strongest start in the Florida State League. The right-hander threw all seven innings and gave up just three hits. He walked none and struck out two. The Miracle managed five runs despite just four hits. They also accumulated five walks. Max Kepler had the key hit with a two-run double, his 18th of the year. Niko Goodrum added his 19th double. Game 2 - Ft. Myers 7, Jupiter 3 Box Score This game went to the seventh inning tied at three, but the Miracle scored four runs in the top of the 7th to take the lead. Bryan Haar went 3-4 with his third double. Dalton Hicks went 2-3. Jairo Rodriguez and Jason Kanzler were both 2-4. Kanzler stole his 11th base in his short time with the Miracle. Travis Harrison doubled for the 33rd time. Many pitchers had the opportunity to throw in this game. Brett Lee started and threw a perfect inning. Then Brandon Peterson came on and struck out four over two scoreless innings. BJ Hermsen gave up two runs on four hits in the fourth . DJ Johnson gave up a run in his inning. Nick Burdi struck out two in his scoreless inning. Zach Jones finished with a scoreless ninth. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 5, Clinton 7 Box Score Stephen Gonsalves had his first rough start in his time with the Kernels. He gave up six runs on six hits, five walks and a hit batter in just 3.2 innings. Josue Montanez gave up one run on one hit over the next 2.1 innings. He struck out four. Brian Gilbert then struck out two in a perfect inning. For the first time since he returned to the Kernels, Jonatan Hinojosa did not get a hit on Friday night. So, on Saturday, he went out and went 3-4. Mitch Garver is ending his spectacular season strong. He also went 3-4 in this game. E-TWINS E-NOTES The E-Twins regular season came to an end on Friday. On Sunday afternoon, the Elizabethton Twins will play Johnson City in the first round of the Appalachian League playoffs. GCL TWINS TAKES The GCL Twins season is complete. TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day – Taylor Rogers, New Britain Rock Cats Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day – Nate Hanson, New Britain Rock Cats SUNDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Rochester @ Pawtucket (5:05 CST) – JO Berrios New Hampshire @ New Britain (12:35 CST) – TBD Ft. Myers @ Jupiter (9:35 a.m. CST) – Steven Gruver Cedar Rapids @ Clinton (2:00 CST) – Lewis Thorpe Elizabethton @ Johnson City (3:00 CST) – John Curtiss Please feel free to ask any questions and discuss the Saturday games. Click here to view the article

In the majors, Minnesota Twins starter Yohan Pino ran into trouble in the seventh inning, and it led to four runs and a 6-4 Chicago White Sox lead. The Twins were able to make an immediate comeback with a three-run eighth inning, punctuated by a two-RBI double off the bat of Oswaldo Arcia. They added an insurance run in the ninth, courtesy of Danny Santana’s fifth home run, and Glen Perkins shut the door on the White Sox to pick up his 27th save on the year. In the minors, one affiliate mounted a similar comeback, two games were finalized early due to rain, and another went 2-0 in a double-header with assistance from a monstrous bullpen. Check it out!RED WINGS REPORT Rochester 6, Louisville 3 Box score Starting pitcher Mark Hamburger was making his third turn in the Rochester rotation on Saturday and left the game in line for the loss after five innings, with Louisville out front 3-2. He’d take a no-decision for the game however, as the Red Wings added a run in the top of the sixth, two in the seventh and a final insurance run in the eighth to take the victory from the Louisville Bats. For the game, Hamburger surrendered five hits, three walks and three runs (two earned), with three K’s. Aaron Thompson struck out the side in the sixth, Lester Oliveros went two scoreless innings with two hits allowed and three strikeouts, and Michael Tonkin picked up his seventh save with two strikeouts in the ninth. The Rochester offense got multiple hit nights from the top four hitters in their lineup which were Eric Farris (2-5, R, RBI), James Beresford (4-5, 2 R’s, 2B, SB), Josmil Pinto (2-5, 2B, RBI), and Wilkin Ramirez (2-5, R, RBI), as well as Danny Ortiz (2-3, R, 2B, RBI, BB). It was the two runs in the seventh inning that gave the Red Wings the lead for good after run-scoring singles from Pinto and Ramirez. ROCK CATS REVIEW Erie 3, New Britain 5 Box Score Like the Twins, the Rock Cats came back in this one to take the victory by pulling within one in the seventh, and taking the lead 5-3 with three runs in the bottom of the eighth. It was a Brad Boyer double in the seventh that scored Stephen Wickens, followed by an RBI double from Eddie Rosario to bring in Boyer.In the eighth inning, Aaron Hicks led off with a single, which was followed by a Tony Thomas single and a Mike Gonzalez walk to load the bases with one out. Wickens then doubled to clear the pond, and the Rock Cats wouldn’t look back. Rosario was 1-5 with two strikeouts in his first game in four days and Hicks was 1-2 with two walks. Wickens and Boyer each had two hits. Starter Pat Dean went seven quality innings, scattering seven hits and two walks (one solo-HR), allowing three runs (two earned) with six K’s. Alex Wimmers picked up the win by pitching a perfect eighth inning, while Mason Melotakis and Ryan O’Rourke combined to finish the ninth. O’Rourke notched his fourth save. MIRACLE MATTERS Fort Myers 0, Lakeland 4 (Final after five innings) Box Score This game was shortened by rain, and ruled complete after just four and a half innings innings with Lakeland as the home team. There wasn’t much offense for the good guys, as Fort Myers had just one hit, a single from Travis Harrison and one walk from Stuart Turner in the game. Lakeland starter Tanner Bailey struck out four in his five innings. Miracle “Ace” Brett Lee was on the mound and had arguably his worst start of the season, yet his ERA rose to just 2.10. In four innings he allowed eight hits (three doubles), one walk and four earned runs with just one K. KERNELS NUGGETS After their rain postponement at Pohlman Field in Beloit Friday night, the Kernels had a double-header on Saturday. Stephen Gonsalves pitched the only inning for the Kernels on Friday and will take the hill again on Sunday. Game 1: Cedar Rapids 4, Beloit 2 Box score After play resumed with a 0-0 in the second inning, it was Josue Montanez on the mound for the Kernels, and he pitched three innings, allowing three hits and three walks, but just one run with two K’s. Chris Mazza then pitched two innings, allowing a run of his own on three more hits and one walk, with three K’s. Collegiate closers Jake Reed and Nick Burdi finished the final three innings, with Reed tossing two scoreless with two strikeouts, and Burdi picking up his third save with a 1-2-3 ninth, including two strikeouts. Max Murphy led the offense with a 2-4 game including an RBI, while Bryan Haar and J.D. Williams added doubles to the effort. Logan Wade and Chad Christensen each reached base via a walk, and each stole second base. Wade’s was just his second stolen base of the year in 49 games with Cedar Rapids, but also his second straight game with one. Christensen’s steal was his team leading twenty-fourth of the year. Game 2: Cedar Rapids 5, Beloit 2 Box Score A three-run home run from Bryan Haar in top of the eighth inning broke the tie and made the score 5-2 Kernels before Beloit failed to tie the game in the bottom half to make it the second game on the day that was finalized early. Haar was 3-5 in this one with two runs scored and a walk to go along with the go-ahead home run, while Jon Murphy added a multi-hit effort by going 2-3. Max Murphy and Michael Quesada tallied the two other RBI’s for Cedar Rapids. Mat Batts took the mound for the Kernels and struck out seven in five innings. He gave up just three hits, one walk and one run. Jared Wilson pitched two innings of relief, allowing a solo home run, and striking out four. Dallas Gallant picked up his fourth Midwest League save of the year by striking out the side in the ninth. BONUS CRAZY STAT: If you combine the last 10 appearances from the three-headed-bullpen monster of Nick Burdi, Jake Reed, and Dallas Gallant for the Kernels, you get the following numbers: 37 innings pitched, just 19 hits and 8 walks allowed, 5 runs (3 earned) scored, and SIXTY-THREE STRIKEOUTS. That’s a 0.73 ERA, 15.32 K/9IP, and a sub .170 batting average against. Wowzers… E-TWINS E-NOTES Elizabethton 4, Kingsport 0 Box Score Elizabethton received seven shutout innings courtesy of starter Sam Gibbons, who allowed just two hits and one walk, while racking up seven K’s. Randy Leblanc pitched the final two innings and kept the shutout intact despite allowing three hits. He struck out one. Gibbons' seven scoreless innings matched his season high from June 26th, when he allowed just one hit and one walk against Burlington. The Elizabethton offense scored two runs in the first and two runs in the fourth on their way to the victory. Tyler Kuresa led the way with three RBI’s on a groundout and a single. He was 1-4 on the game. Leadoff man Jeremias Pineda (2-4, 2 R’s) and two-hole hitter Nick Gordon (2-4, R) added multiple-hit nights. Tanner English was 1-2 with two walks and stole his first base of the season. GCL TWINS TAKES GCL Twins 4, GCL Red Sox 3 Box Score The GCL Twins scored all four of their runs in the sixth inning to take the lead, when they sent eight men to the plate. An Amaurys Minier double scored one and a Rafael Valera fielder’s choice scored another before Joel Ramirez brought home the final two with a single. They held on for the win despite a threat with runners on second and third from the Red Sox in the eighth and two hits in the ninth. Six pitchers took the mound for the Twins, including starter David Hurlburt who left in the second inning after allowing a single and recording one out. Callan Pearce finished the second with a hit, walk, and strikeout. Zack Jones allowed two runs in one-third of an inning, before Josh Guyer was able to provide a break for the bullpen, throwing five innings with just one run allowed (unearned) on four hits and two walks, with two strikeouts. Seth Wagner and Trevor Hildenberger combined to finish the final 1.2 innings, each allowing one hit and totaling three K’s. TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY Pitcher – Three-Headed-Bullpen Monster (4IP, 0 R’s, 1 H, 1 BB, 7 K’s), Cedar Rapids Kernels Hitter – Bryan Haar (2 games, 4-6, 3 R’s, 2B, HR, 4 RBI, 2 BB’s), Cedar Rapids Kernels SUNDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Rochester @ Louisville – Alex Meyer (6-4, 3.05 ERA), 5:05PM CST Erie @ New Britain – TBD, 12:35 CST Fort Myers @ Lakeland – TBD, 12:00PM CST Cedar Rapids @ Beloit – Stephen Gonsalves (1-0, 0.00 ERA), 2:00PM CST Johnson City @ Elizabethton – Felix Jorge, 5:00PM CST Click here to view the article