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The first, last and most important job any minor league baseball player has is to work hard at improving his skills to move on up the organizational ladder to the next level. That said, when Cedar Rapids Kernels infielder Pat Kelly gets his next promotion, it may be bittersweet news for Pat and, more specifically, his family members that have been making frequent trips from Red Wing, Minnesota, to Cedar Rapids to watch Pat and the Kernels.That could become a much more difficult trip to make as Kelly's career carries him from Cedar Rapids to other stops on the Minnesota Twins affiliate list in Florida, Tennessee and New York. According to Kelly's father, Jim, who works in the Goodhue County (MN) Sheriff's Office, the Kelly clan has made the trip to Cedar Rapids, "about every other weekend." "My schedule, I’m off every other weekend, Friday, Saturday, Sunday and this particular year, the Kernels have been home when I’ve been off pretty much," the elder Kelly added. "When I first looked at it, I miscalculated and I thought, ‘I’ve got to work every weekend they’re home.’ But it turned out to be the opposite, so it worked out real good" "There’s like 25 of them here," Pat Kelly said Saturday. "My dad’s one of ten (siblings) so I have a lot of uncles. They’re all in Red Wing pretty much. I have an aunt up in Cottage Grove, Minnesota (about 35 miles from Red Wing), and that’s about the farthest they go. http://knuckleballsblog.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/Kellys2015.jpgPat Kelly (in Minnesota Hero t-shirt) and some of his cheering section (Photo: SD Buhr)"They love coming down and coming to some games. They did that every Easter at Nebraska (where Pat played college baseball for the Cornhuskers). We’d get about 50-60 family members, they’d all make the trip down to Lincoln for Easter. It’s quite the crew." The "crew" during the most recent Kernels weekend homestand included not only family, but Cornhusker Head Athletic Trainer, Jerry Weber, whose career at Nebraska has spanned the Kelly generations. He was there when Jim was on campus as a Husker football player, as well as during Pat's baseball career there. Despite his dad's connection to "Big Red," it was no sure thing that Pat would follow in his father's footsteps to Lincoln. And there was no chance he'd follow those footsteps to the football field at Nebraska, or anywhere else. "I grew up loving baseball, basketball and football, all three, (but) baseball was always my favorite growing up. I played football, it was probably my third favorite. He said he wasn't just playing football growing up out of some kind of obligation to his dad, either. "No, I liked it, I really did." By his junior year of high school, however, football was left behind. "In tenth grade I was playing like eight quarters of football every Friday night. I was playing tenth grade games and then the varsity needed players so I would go play cornerback, running back, quarterback, like every Friday night. Then come my junior year, it was just like, it’s going to be too much. "I was doing a lot of baseball in the fall. So I gave up football. I didn’t even start my junior year. I just started doing a lot more baseball in the fall. I played basketball, I love basketball. But baseball’s always been my favorite." That focus on baseball began early, according to his father. "All baseball," Jim confirmed. "He never really gave me a break. We work 12 hour shifts (at the Sheriff's Office). I go to work at six in the morning and get home at six at night and he would be sitting on the steps with a bucket of balls, his bat and his glove and I would get in the driveway, ‘Let’s go dad.’ So we’d just go down the street to a park and he’d hit for as long as I could throw balls to him." Jim recalled it wasn't until Pat was in fifth or sixth grade that his son discovered, while looking through an old scrapbook, that his dad had played football for Nebraska. "He saw that and he said, ‘We should go to Nebraska sometime.’ I said, ‘sure.'" "Sometime" turned out to be when Pat was a freshman in high school. "He had a Nebraska schedule up and he said, ‘I want to go to watch Nebraska and Texas A&M," the father recalled. "In whatever year that was, they were ranked 4th and 5th in the country, respectively and I said, ‘alright, we’ll go.’" http://knuckleballsblog.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/KellyMauer2015b.jpgPat Kelly gets pregame work in at third base under the watchful eye of Kernels manager Jake Mauer (Photo: SD Buhr)That baseball game made an impression on Pat. "There was like nine or ten thousand people there. The game went like 16 innings long and not a fan left. Pretty cool. So from then on, I just felt like, ‘I really want to go to Nebraska.’ It ended up working out." It was the only baseball game the Huskers and Aggies got in that weekend as rain washed out the scheduled Saturday and Sunday contests. "We ended up leaving early on Sunday and I think we got as far as Omaha and he said, ‘I know where I want to go to college, dad. I’m going to go to Nebraska.’ I said, ‘Oh, okay.’ You know it was so early yet, but you know, let the kid dream. Why not?" Why not, indeed. Kelly ended up living his dream as a Cornhusker, earning second team All-Big Ten honors his freshman year and was first team All-Big Ten in both his sophomore and junior seasons. Not bad, considering he nearly never had the opportunity to attend his chosen school. "It’s kind of funny though. Nebraska was one of my last recruiting letters," Pat recollected. "I was just waiting for it, waiting for it. I’d always come home from school – I didn’t play football then, so my falls were open – so I’d come home early. I remember coming home and there were two letters, North Carolina and Nebraska, and I didn’t give a crap about the other one. I was pretty excited about that." "He called me at work and said, ‘Dad, I got it!’ ‘You got what?’ ‘I got the letter.’ ‘OK, let me guess,’" Jim added. "I had an amazing time at Nebraska," Pat said. "Coach (Darin) Erstad is an unbelievable guy and a great coach and did a lot for me. Yeah, I love Nebraska. I can’t wait to go back there in the offseason and go to football games and hang out there." According to Pat, It wasn't easy to leave a year early and begin his professional career. He knew it was time to move on, but it was a difficult decision to make. "Yeah for me it was," he recalled. "just because I loved Nebraska so much. It’s hard to leave those guys and the coaching staff. "At the end of the day, every kid’s goal is to be a big leaguer. You just had to look at that and obviously I had no doubt if I go back to Nebraska, it would have been a great year and we probably would have had a great team, I mean they had a good team this year. But at the end of the day, you want to be a big leaguer and you want to get that going." For Pat, getting that going meant being signed by the Minnesota Twins as their 12th round selection in the 2014 draft and heading to Elizabethton, Tennessee, last summer to begin his professional career. Nobody will confuse the environments for playing ball in Elizabethton with those in Lincoln, but Kelly didn't mind the change. "It was definitely a little bit of an eye-opener going down to E'town," Pat said of his first impressions of the community where the Twins' short-season Appalachian League affiliate is located. "I didn’t really have any expectations, to be honest. I just kind of went in with an open mind. It was fun, we made the playoffs and had a good season. Getting paid to play baseball, that’s a pretty good deal." http://knuckleballsblog.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/Kelly2015d.jpgPat Kelly (Photo: SD Buhr)This season, Kelly has been on the Kernels roster since Opening Day, making this his first year of enduring a full 140-game minor league schedule. Some players feel like they hit a wall, physically and/or mentally, at about this point in their first full season. "Yeah it’s kind of funny. Around the All-Star break, you get halfway and you’re like, ‘alright, we’re doing that again. Same thing over,’" Kelly said. "But no, I haven’t really seemed to hit that wall yet. I’m still enjoying every day with the guys and just can’t really complain. Getting paid to play baseball. "I think just the base adjustment from college to now is, here it’s every day, you play every day. In college, you didn’t play every day. You had class, you had other stuff. But now, every single day, this is your job. I think that’s just the biggest adjustment. "Even if you’re not in the lineup, you have a full day. You’re at the park from 1:30 to 10 or 11 at night. You’re still doing your work. You’re in the cage, you’re doing stuff. You’re still drained at the end of the day and then the next day, you do it again. I think that’s just the biggest adjustment for me, just getting mentally ready every day to go to work and get better." With that mentality, it's no wonder Kelly uses Florida Georgia Line's "Every Night" as his walk-up song. After Kelly hit .242 in 39 games, all at second base, for Elizabethton a season ago, he's been running closer to .220 over the season for the Kernels. He played second base through most of the season, but has been spending more time at third base since T.J. White's promotion to Fort Myers. Kelly's also been faring better at the plate more recently, hitting .258 in his last ten games and carrying a four-game hitting streak into Thursday night's contest with Clinton. That stretch includes Kelly getting three hits, including a pair of doubles, in eight at-bats with his personal cheering section in the Cedar Rapids crowd last weekend. This offseason, Kelly will return to Lincoln where he'll live and work out with Cedar Rapids native (and 2014 Kernel) Chad Christensen, who is also a former Husker ballplayer. "We lived together last offseason and we’re going to live together this offseason," Kelly explained. "We do everything together and work out there." Lincoln is also much closer than Red Wing to his girlfriend's home in Kansas City, but that's probably just a coincidence. No matter how far away from his home and family in Red Wing Kelly's professional baseball career may take him, however, he'll always carry something of his home with him. Yes, the love of his family, certainly, but also the oil he uses to break in his gloves. "I oil them with oil from Red Wing Shoes in Red Wing. I always use their boot oil for my gloves and it seems to work really well." (This article was originally posted at Knuckleballsblog.com) 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

Happy Memorial Day! There's nothing like baseball on Memorial Day. For the second week in a row, left-handed pitcher Tommy Milone was honored with the International League Pitcher of the Week. He saw his scoreless streak stretch to 37.2 innings that dates back to his lone start with the Wings in August last season. This is the longest stretch in the International League since at least 2005. Milone started two games this week and was masterful in both. On Monday, he pitched a complete game shutout while striking out 13 versus Durham. He capped his week on Sunday by throwing 8.1 innings scoreless innings before giving up a solo home run to end the streak. Max Kepler was also honored on Monday for his stellar week at the plate. The outfielder and first baseman went 11-for-27 (.407 BA) with two home runs and five doubles. He drove in nine runs and scored seven runs to go along with a 1.263 OPS. Kepler had a hit in every game this week and he's in the midst of a nine game hitting streak. It would be a 16 game hitting streak if not for him being held hitless by the Birmingham Barons on 5-15. He currently leads the team in batting average and slugging percentage.RED WINGS REPORT Rochester 4, Durham 5 Box Score Rochester jumped out to an early 2-0 lead in this contest but they weren't able to overcome giving up five runs in the sixth inning. In the top of the first inning, the Red Wings used doubles from James Beresford and Danny Ortiz to plate a couple of runs. Besides another Ortiz double, Rochester's offense went cold until the eighth inning. Then, Doug Bernier's double was followed by a couple of ground outs to cut the lead to two. Kennys Vargas hit a solo home run in the ninth, his third since being demoted. He's batting .409 with six RBI across 22 at-bats with the club. Jason Wheeler was cruising through five innings before giving up five earned in the sixth without recording an out. Mark Hamburger pitched two scoreless innings with four strikeouts. Alex Meyer made his first relief appearance since college and pitched a perfect frame with two strikeouts. CHATTANOOGA CHATTER Chattanooga --, Mobile -- Chattanooga and Mobile started playing their game before rain and lightning filled the sky. The game was postponed and no make-up date was announced at this time. The Lookouts have won five of their last six game and have scored 10 runs or more in four of those contests. After a scheduled off day on Tuesday, the Lookouts begin a four-game series at home against Biloxi. Chattanooga is leading the Southern League North Division with a 28-16 record while Biloxi is leading the South Division with a 27-18 record. Needless to say, it will be an important series for both clubs. MIRACLE MATTERS Fort Myers (Scheduled Off Day) The Miracle enjoyed an off day on Monday like many other employees across the country. Fort Myers is tied for second place in the Florida State League South Division with a 22-22 record. However, they are a distant eight games behind the Charlotte Stone Crabs. The club has gone 15-11 at home and struggled to a 7-11 record on the road. Fort Myers starts a four-game road series with Clearwater on Tuesday night. The Threshers sit in second place in the Florida State League North with an identical record as the Miracle. Mat Batts starts the series opener for Fort Myers. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 12, Peoria 3 Box Score The Kernels pounded out a season high 12 runs with 19 hits. With the win, Cedar Rapids reached a season-best 11 games above .500 (28-17 record) after finishing their road trip with a 5-3 record. The Kernels have scored at least 11 runs three times this season with all three games coming against the Snappers. Every hitter in the Kernels line-up collected a hit and seven of the nine hitters collected an extra-base hit. Pat Kelly was a perfect 3-for-3 at the plate with a double, a home run and five RBI. Jorge Fernandez drove in four runs, including a three-run home run, in his first game since May 15. Max Murphy and Tyler Kuresa each had three hits including a triple and a double from Murphy. John Curtiss started the game but didn't figure into the decision as he was pulled from the game with an undisclosed injury. He allowed three runs over 4.1 innings, his second shortest outing of the year, while striking out three. Michael Theofanopoulos earned his first win by pitching 2.2 scoreless innings and striking out four. Over the last two innings, Randy LeBlanc struck out three and didn't allow a run. TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day – Michael Theofanopoulos, Cedar Rapids Kernels. Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day – Pat Kelly, Cedar Rapids Kernels TUESDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Rochester @ Durham (6:05 pm) – RHP Lester Oliveros Chattanooga- Scheduled Off Day Ft. Myers @ Clearwater (6:00 CST) – LHP Mat Batts Cedar Rapids vs. Wisconsin (6:35 CST) - LHP Stephen Gonsalves Please feel free to ask any questions and discuss the Monday games. Click here to view the article

The Twins survived a short start from Ricky Nolasco (four runs in five innings) and won a back and forth game against the Oakland Athletics on Thursday. The Twins scored six runs on just five hits, helped along by six walks and a pair of errors from Oakland. The victory wraps up an 8-3 homestand, including a four game sweep of the Chicago White Sox. The Twins are now 16-13 and three games over .500 for the first time since 2010.RED WINGS REPORT Rochester @ Indianapolis Indians Box Score Red Wings starter Taylor Rogers struggled and picked up his first loss of the season (2-1), and Rochester lost their second series of the year. Rogers gave up five runs, four earned, on seven hits and three walks over four innings. He struck out five and his ERA still sits at just 2.84. Rogers did not have his best stuff on Thursday, throwing three wild pitches (he had thrown just one in his first five starts). Rogers gave way to Logan Darnell who worked two scoreless innings of relief, giving up just a single hit and struck out one. Lester Oliveros continued his strong work with a scoreless two-thirds of an inning. Caleb Thielbar finished the eighth for Oliveros, but surrendered what turned out to be the winning run. Aaron Hicks continues to hit. He was 2-4 with a walk and a double on Thursday, raising his stat line to .323/.400/.542. The 25-year old seems to have figured things out over the past year and a half, bouncing between Minnesota and Rochester, and should be back in Minnesota soon if he continues to produce. James Beresford, Reynaldo Rodriguez, and Josmil Pinto each picked up two hits of their own. Argenis Diaz, the Red Wings' shortstop, was the only starter without a hit. Old friend Pedro Florimon started at second base for the Indians and was 0-4 with two strike outs. Final Score: Red Wings 5, Indians 6 LOOKOUTS LOOK-IN Jackson Generals @ Chattanooga Box Score With Terry Ryan in town to take a look at some of the premier talent in the Twins system, Lookouts starter Tyler Duffey was tagged with four unearned runs in the first inning (throwing error from Miguel Sano and a misplayed ball at first base by Max Kepler), but Duffey held on to pitch six innings. He struck out seven, walked one and gave up eight hits. After the first inning issues, the Lookouts shut out the Generals for the remainder of the game, with Jake Reed throwing two innings and picking up a pair of strikeouts, and Nick Burdi pitching a 1-2-3 ninth. Nick Burdi's ERA is now down to just 9.00, after peaking at 54.00 after a disastrous four walk, four earned run, two-thirds of an inning performance to start the year. The outing on Thursday was the first time in his last four appearances that Burdi did not give up a run, but he has now gone back-to-back outings without issuing a walk. After falling behind by four runs in the first inning the Lookouts went to work with the stick, scoring ten unanswered runs. The Lookouts tied to game in the bottom of the second inning thanks to a two-run single from Heiker Meneses and a two-run RBI triple from speedster Byron Buxton. Buxton finished the night 1-5 with a strikeout. Miguel Sano hit three singles as part of his 3-5 night, but is still hitting just .188/.314/.400 in 2015. Every Lookouts batter had a hit last night. Sano led the way with three, but Travis Harrison, Max Kepler, Stuart Turner and Meneses all had a pair of base hits. Adam Brett Walker hit his league-leading seventh home run of the year to extend the lead late, two-run shot in the seventh inning. Final Score: Generals 4, Lookouts 10 MIRACLE MATTERS Jupiter Hammerheads @ Fort Myers Box Score The Miracle fell behind 3-0 and did not score their first run until the sixth inning, but they rallied late to take the series opener against the Hammerheads. Miracle starter Ethan Mildren pitched six innings, gave up three runs (one earned), walked three and struck out three. He also picked a guy off first base. Mildren gave way to Alex Muren, who vultured a win when the Miracle bats came to life, despite recording just four outs. Muren gave up four hits, walked two, and struck out one, and Brandon Peterson relieved him in the eighth, picking up a double play to save Fort Myers from more damage. J.T. Chargois gave up two runs in the ninth despite not walking anyone and not giving up any hits thanks to a couple of Miracle errors from Chad Christensen and Bryan Haar. Leadoff hitter Zach Granite was 3-5 with a solo home run and two runs scored and was one of three Miracle hitters with three hits. His home run was the first of his professional career. Alex Swim and Bryan Haar were also 3-5. DH Mitch Garver reached safely four times on Thursday, going 2-4 with a double, an RBI and two walks. Engelb Vielma was the only Miracle starter without a base hit, going 0-5 with a strike out. Just three of Fort Myers' sixteen hits went for extra bases and the Miracle stranded ten base runners. Final score: Hammerheads 6, Miracle 9 KERNELS KORNER Cedar Rapids @ Beloit Snappers Box Score The Kernels scored at least one run in the each of the first seven innings to give Kernels starter Stephen Gonsalves plenty of run support, not that he needed it. Gonsalves has been the Kernels' ace in 2015, turning in another strong start. Gonsalves was limited to just five innings; he gave up three hits, walked four and struck out five. The four walks were very uncharacteristic for Gonsalves, who had just three walks in his first four starts of the year. Samuel Clay pitched three scoreless innings in relief, walked three and struck out four giving up just one hit. Michael Theofanopoulos pitched a scoreless ninth, striking out two of the three batters he faced. The Kernels scored eleven runs on just ten hits, going 3-20 with runners in scoring position, assisted by nine walks and two Snappers errors. The Kernels stranded 14 runners on the night. Cedar Rapids' nine-hitter, Pat Kelly, led the team with three hits, a pair of doubles and a home run. He picked up three RBIs and scored twice. Pat Kelly, if you're not familiar, was a 12th round selection a year ago out of the University Nebraska-Lincoln, but he was born and raised in Red Wing, MN. Zack Larson picked up three RBIs as well on a 2-4 night with two walks. Nick Gordon, last year's fifth overall draft selection (and still just 19 years old) was 1-4 with a walk and three runs scored. For a full update on Nick Gordon, check out the Down on the Pond segment of the newest Talk to Contact podcast. Final Score: Kernels 11, Snappers 1 TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY Hitter of the Day - Pat Kelly - Cedar Rapids Kernels Pitcher of the Day - Stephen Gonsalves - Cedar Rapids Kernels FRIDAY'S PROBABLES Rochester @ Louisville Bats - Tommy Milone (0-0, -.---) vs. Raisel Iglesias Jackson @ Chattanooga - Stephen Landazuri vs. Jose Berrios (3-1, 3.54) Jupiter @ Fort Myers - TBD vs. Ryan Eades (1-0, 2.35) Cedar Rapids @ Beloit - Michael Cederoth (0-2, 4.00) vs. Kevin Johnson Click here to view the article

The Twins survived a short start from Ricky Nolasco (four runs in five innings) and won a back and forth game against the Oakland Athletics on Thursday. The Twins scored six runs on just five hits, helped along by six walks and a pair of errors from Oakland. The victory wraps up an 8-3 homestand, including a four game sweep of the Chicago White Sox. The Twins are now 16-13 and three games over .500 for the first time since 2010. RED WINGS REPORT Rochester @ Indianapolis Indians Box Score Red Wings starter Taylor Rogers struggled and picked up his first loss of the season (2-1), and Rochester lost their second series of the year. Rogers gave up give runs, four earned, on seven hits and three walks over four innings. He struck out five and his ERA still sits at just 2.84. Rogers did not have his best stuff on Thursday, throwing three wild pitches (he had thrown just one in his first five starts). Rogers gave way to Logan Darnell who worked two scoreless innings of relief, giving up just a single hit and struck out one. Lester Oliveros continued his strong work with a scorless two-thirds of an inning. Caleb Thielbar finished the eighth for Oliveros, but surrendered what turned out to be the winning run. Aaron Hicks continues to hit, he was 2-4 with a walk and a double on Thursday, raising his statline to .323/.400/.542. The 25-year old seems to have figured things out over the past year and a half, bouncing between Minnesota and Rochester, and should be back in Minnesota soon if he continues to produce. James Beresford, Reynaldo Rodriguez, and Josmil Pinto each picked up two hits of their own. Argenis Diaz, the Red Wings' shortstop, was the only starter without a hit. Old friend Pedro Florimon started at second base for the Indians and was 0-4 with two strike outs. Final Score: Red Wings 5, Indians 6 LOOKOUTS LOOK-IN Jackson Generals @ Chattanooga Box Score With Terry Ryan in town to take a look at some of the premier talent in the Twins system, Lookouts starter Tyler Duffey was tagged with four unearned runs in the first inning (throwing error from Miguel Sano and a misplayed ball at first bace from Max Kepler), but Duffey help on to pitch six innings. He struck out seven, walked one, and gave up eight hits. After the first inning issues, the Lookouts shut out the Generals for the remainder of the game, with Jake Red throwing two innings and picking up a pair of strike outs, and Nick Burdy pitching a 1-2-3 ninth. Nick Burdi's ERA is now down to just 9.00, after peaking at 54.00 after a disastrous four walk, four earned run, two-thirds of an inning performance to start the year. The outing on Thursday was the first time in his last four appearances that Burdi did not give up a run, but he has now gone back to back outings without issuing a walk. After falling behind by four runs in the first inning the Lookouts went to work with the sticks, scoring ten unanswered runs. The Lookouts tied to game in the bottom of the second inning thanks to a two-run single from Heiker Meneses and a two-run RBI triple from speedster Byron Buxton. Buxton finished the night 1-5 with a strike out. Miguel Sano hit three singles as part of his 3-5 night, but is still hitting just .188/.314/.400 in 2015. Every single Lookouts batter had a hit last night. Sano led the way with three, but Travis Harrison, Max Kepler, Stuart Turner and Meneses all had a pair of base hits. Adam Brett Walker hit his league-leading seventh home run of the year, to extend the lead late, two-run shot in the seventh inning. Final Score: Generals 4, Lookouts 10 MIRACLE MATTERS Jupiter Hammerheads @ Fort Myers Box Score The Miracle fell behind 3-0 and did not score their first run until the sixth inning, but they rallied late to take the series opener against the Hammerheads. Miracle starter Ethan Mildren pitched six innings, gave up three runs (one earned), walked three and struck out three. He also picked a guy off a first base. Mildren gave way to Alex Muren, who vultured a win when the Miracle bats came to life, despite recording just four outs. Muren gave up four hits, walked two, and struck out one, and Brandon Peterson relieved him in the eighth, picking up a double play to save Fort Myers from more damage. J.T. Chargois gave up two runs in the ninth despite not walking anyone and not giving up any hits thanks to a couple of Miracle errors from Chad Christensen and Bryan Haar. Leadoff hitter Zach Granite was 3-5 with a solo home run and two runs scored, and was one of three Miracle hitters with three hits. Alex Swim and Bryan Haar were also 3-5. DH Mitch Garver reached safely four times on Thursday, 2-4 with a double, and RBI and two walks. Engelb Vielma was the only Miracle starter without a base hit, going 0-5 with a strike out. Just three of Fort Myers' sixteen hits went for extra bases, and the Miracle stranded ten base runners. Final score: Hammerheads 6, Miracle 9 KERNELS KORNER Cedar Rapids @ Beloit Snappers Box Score The Kernels scored at least a run in the first seven innings to give Kernels starter Stephen Gonsalves plenty of run support, not that he needs it. Gonsalves has been the Kernels' ace in 2015, turning in another strong start. Gonsalves was limited to just five innings, he gave up three hits, walked four and struck out five. The four walks were very uncharacteristic for Gonsalves, who had just three walks in his first four starts of the year. Samuel Clay pitched three scoreless innings in relief, walked three and struck out four giving up just one hit. Michael Theofanopoulos pitched a scoreless ninth, striking out two of the three batters he faced. The Kernels scored eleven runs on just ten hits and going 3-20 with runners in scoring position, assisted by nine walks and two Snappers errors. The Kernels stranded 14 runners on the night. Cedar Rapids' nine-hitter Pat Kelly led the team with three hits, a pair of doubles and a home run. He picked up three RBI and scored twice. Pat Kelly, if you're unfamiliar, was a 12th round selection a year ago out of the University Nebraska-Lincoln, but he was born and raised in Red Wing, MN. Zack Larson picked up three RBI as well on a 2-4 night with two walks. Nick Gordon, last year's fifth overall draft selection (and still just 19 years old) was 1-4 with a walk and three runs scored. For a full update on Nick Gordon, check out the Down on the Pond segment of the newest Talk to Contact podcast. Final Score: Kernels 11, Snappers 1 TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY Hitter of the Day - Pat Kelly - Cedar Rapids Kernels Pitcher of the Day - Stephen Gonsalves - Cedar Rapids Kernels FRIDAY'S PROBABLES Rochester @ Louisville Bats - Tommy Milone (0-0, -.---) vs. Raisel Iglesias Jackson @ Chattanooga - Stephen Landazuri vs. Jose Berrios (3-1, 3.54) Jupiter @ Fort Myers - TBD vs. Ryan Eades (1-0, 2.35) Cedar Rapids @ Beloit - Michael Cederoth (0-2, 4.00) vs. Kevin Johnson

On Monday night in Cedar Rapids, the Kernels topped the Beloit Snappers by a score of 9-0. With the win, they improve to 5-0 on the young season. As has been the case throughout the first five games, the Kernels had a perfect combination of strong pitching and big hitting.Here are some notes from Monday night’s game in Cedar Rapids and some additional notes. FELIX JORGE SHINES Following Felix Jorge’s seven shutout innings on Monday night, Kernels manager Jake Mauer called it a “Great start. Just to watch his poise and the look in his eyes, it was a lot different than when he took the mound out here last year.” 2014 was a strange season for Jorge. He came into the 2014 season as one of the more intriguing pitching prospects in the system. A year earlier, at Elizabethton, he went 2-2 with a 2.95 ERA. He had 72 strikeouts and just 18 walks in 61 innings. He moved up to Cedar Rapids to start last season, but he struggled mightily. In 12 games (8 starts), he went 2-5 with a 9.00 ERA In 39 innings, he gave up 57 hits, walked 20 and struck out 23. He was finally sent down to Elizabethton when the short-season started and was named the Appy League Pitcher of the Year. He went 4-2 with a 2.59 ERA in 12 starts. In 66 innings, he walked just 14 and struck out 61. Those numbers, coupled with his struggles a year ago, make the 6-2, 170 pound right-hander one of the more intriguing prospects again in 2015. On Monday night, he gave the Kernels and the Twins reason for optimism. Jorge completed seven shutout innings and gave up just two hits. He walked two and struck out ten. Through six innings, he had given up just one hit and one walk. His seventh inning started with a single and a walk, but after a visit from pitching coach Henry Bonilla, Jorge responded. He struck out the next two batters. He got a fly out to left field. It was a very good note to end his first start of the season. Mauer discussed that seventh inning. “You get in that situation. It’s his runs and a shutout, you don’t want to turn it over to the bullpen. You want to give him a chance. I think he earned the right to give him a chance to keep the shutout. We got Theo up. I think he saw that, and he said, ‘You’re not taking me out.’ So that was pretty good.” Left-hander Mike Theofanopolous came in and threw zeroes on the board in the eighth and ninth innings to maintain that shutout. But the talk on this night revolved around Felix Jorge. Mauer reiterated, “It’s a testament to him. He went down to E-Town and worked his tail off. Henry (Bonilla) was down there and had him. He regained his confidence. His fastball command was good. He kind of used their aggressiveness against him. Using that fastball, getting outs early. He threw seven innings and he was up at only about 90 pitches. That’s pretty good. So what is the scouting report on Jorge, and more important, what are the keys to his success going forward this season. According to Mauer, it starts with his fastball. Everything else feeds off of it. “Fastball command, I think, is number one for him. He throws so many strikes, and a lot of them are up in the zone. For him, fastball command and learning how to get the ball down. Also, his secondary pitches have really improved and he’s able to throw those for a strike. Getting that ground ball to get out of innings. Anytime you’ve got a guy that throws a lot of strikes, they’re going to make contact obviously. It’s just a matter of understanding the type of contact you’d like them to make. Sinking it here, cutting it there, elevating when you have to with two strikes and then being able to bury one. He moved the ball up and down and in and out really well tonight.” One observer – OK, me – noted that Jorge’s curveball looked really good on this night. Mauer said, “Yeah, he’s got a good breaking ball. It’s going to be a strikeout pitch for him.” According to the stadium radar gun (and adding for the two miles per hour that it is purported to be), Jorge’s fastball sat between 89 and 92, touching 93 a few times. His curveball was usually in the upper-70s and dropped. He stayed on top of it throughout the game. As impressive, he showed a calm, a poise, even in those rare times that he did allow base runners. It was a terrific start to Jorge’s 2015 season. After his struggles in the Midwest League in 2015, it was likely a nice obstacle for him to overcome. Hopefully it can springboard him into a strong season. If so, he certainly is someone who could rocket back up prospect rankings. It is easy to forget – and important to remember - that he is still just 21-years-old. KERNELS NUGGETS The Kernels had batting practice on the field. First baseman Tyler Kuresa put on a very strong power display in BP, hitting several balls well over the fence in right field. After the team’s batting practice was complete and the team was in its locker room, Kuresa went to the batting cage under the stadium. He hit another 100 baseballs off the tee. He was by himself. He was focused. The extra work paid off during the game, and early. He came to the plate with a runner on in the second inning. He got a fastball and he got all of it, hitting a rocket over the fence in right-center field. Mauer said, “It was fun to see Kuresa get the head out. He’s been working really hard on it all spring with Tommy, and he turned on it and that ball got out in a hurry.” He added a single later, but he hit the ball on a line a couple of times. Second baseman Pat Kelly was the Twins 12th round pick in 2014 out of the University of Nebraska. He is a native of Red Wing, Minnesota. He played just one of the first four Kernels game, but he took advantage of the playing time on Monday night with a good game. In his first at-bat, he rocketed a double. In his second at-bat, he did more. With two runners on, Kelly launched a three-run homer over the left field wall. “It was a fastball, fastball in. I just reacted.” Jake Mauer said it was a huge homer for Kelly and for the team. “Pat Kelly kept his hands in and got one over the fence there. That was a big three-run home run that really opened the game up.” Robbinsdale, MN, native Max Murphy was out of the lineup on Sunday night for the first time this year. He was back in the lineup, hitting cleanup and playing right field. He hit the ball real hard. He had a triple to deep right center field. Trey Vavra was back in the lineup after not playing Sunday as well. He played left field in this game after playing first base in the earlier games. It’s not a position he’s unfamiliar with. Last year at Elizabethton, he played 27 games at first base, but another 13 games he spent in left field. He was aggressive at the plate. He hit singles in his first two at-bats. The first was a hard-hit ground ball, the second provided a big RBI. Nick Gordon was impressive again. He notched three more base hits and walked another time. He is now 9-21 (.429) on the season with two triples. He has a very smooth, left-handed swing and a good idea of the strike zone. Though he isn’t going to be a home run hitter yet, he does have some serious thump in his bat. From my not-a-scout-but-have-seen-a-lot perspective, I believe that he will develop some home run power over time. His first two hits in this game were both pulled. Late in the game, facing a left-handed reliever, Gordon stayed down on the ball really well and lined a single to left-field. Mauer noted, “I don’t think he’s missed the barrel many times this year. Not yet, that’s for sure.” That’s encouraging because of his young age relative to most of the league. He’s still able to get the barrel of the bat to the ball. Last year, Jason Kanzler played a lot of center field and made a lot of web gems for the Kernels. Tanner English has been the primary center fielder so far for the Kernels (and likely will remain so other than the occasional day off). On Monday night, there was a low, line drive hit to center field. English came charging in and dove forward to make the lunging catch. That’s one of the more difficult plays a center fielder can make. He has very good speed, but he looks natural out in center field. He appears to get really good jumps and take good routes to fly balls. Listed at just 5-10 (generous) and 160 pounds, the Twins 11th round pick a year ago out of South Carolina is very talented. According to Jake Mauer, “He’s really good defensively. He’s a guy that’s got a lot of tools, a lot of tools. I think he’s going to surprise some people.” In one of the lighter moments in the postgame discussion with Mauer, he was asked about English’s approach at the plate. Mauer said, “He’s gotten way better. That’s what we’ve been working on is his being aggressive to his pitch. He took two sinkers that, earlier in the year, he was swinging at.” Mauer caught himself and smiled. “Earlier in the year, like, three days ago.” Right-hander Jared Wilson gets the start for the Kernels on Tuesday night against Beloit. Other than three starts in the GCL in 2013, Wilson has been a reliever. Even going back to college at UC-Santa Barbara. Last year, he moved up to the Kernels in May and posted a 2.95 ERA in 58 innings (56 strikeouts).He is getting a chance to start in 2014. I asked him before Monday’s game if there would be a pitch or inning count on him this year because he had been a bullpen guy. Sure, he had just 58 innings with the Kernels year, but he said between spring training, some extended spring training, the Kernels season and Instructional League, he actually through close to 120 innings. He’s been stretched out this spring to start, so he thinks he should be able to throw 85 to 100 pitches, which isn’t limited at all. The Kernels are off to a 5-0 start and really playing well. Some of the discussion in the press box has been, ‘Is this team really this good or are they playing weaker Midwest League teams to start the season?’ Obviously that’s to be determined as the season goes on, but I have been able to observe that there are a lot of very good baseball players on this roster. Click here to view the article

Minnesota Twins Minor League Report for July 26, 2014. The Twins had yet another rough one with the White Sox. Three Twins pitching prospects had impressive, shutout performances. There was a walk-off win for one of the affiliates, and another needed 11 innings to win.Logan Darnell made his first Major League start on Saturday night at Target Field against Chris Sale and the White Sox. It was a David and Goliath matchup, and in this case, Goliath dominated. Darnell’s first inning was terrific. Three ground ball outs and eight pitches. Then things went downhill. In all, he gave up seven runs on 11 hits in five innings. That start may not have been great, but there were three very strong starts in the Twins minor leagues on Saturday night. It was a struggle to figure out who the pitcher of the day should be. Be sure to comment on which one you would pick. And, a Minnesota native provided a walk-off win for one of the Twins affiliates. Here is the Minor League Report for Saturday: RED WINGS REPORT Rochester 1, Indianapolis 0 Box Score It was quite a pitcher’s duel in Rochester on this night and it ended in a walk-off win. Lefty Sean Gilmartin was up for the challenge. He went 7.1 scoreless innings. He gave up just five hits, walked two and struck out four. He was helped by his defense as well. With a runner on third base and one out in the 3rd inning, Gilmartin got a fly ball to right field. Chris Rahl made the catch and threw home to get the runner for the third out. Righty Stephen Pryor came on for his first Red Wings appearance since coming to the organization earlier this week from the Mariners. He walked one but got the final two outs of the eighth inning. Michael Tonkin came on for the ninth. He made it interesting, giving up a hit and hitting a batter, but he completed the shutout. There wasn’t much offense, but just enough. In the bottom of the ninth inning, Eden Prairie’s Nate Hanson singled up the middle to drive in Eric Farris for the walk-off win. It was one of just four hits for the Red Wings. Deibinson Romero pinch hit in the ninth and walked. It was the 23rd straight game he’s played in and reached base. Hanson had a slow start in his first ten games after being promoted from New Britain to Rochester. He now has a seven-game hitting streak during which time he is 10-27 (.371). ROCK CATS REVIEW New Britain 7, Portland 0 Box Score Download attachment: Tyler Duffey 2.JPG Tyler Duffey seems to have found his way in the Eastern League of late. On this night, he went seven innings without allowing a run. He gave up five hits, walked none and struck out seven. He improved to 7-2 with a 3.75 ERA. In his last three starts, he has thrown 21.1 innings and given up just three earned runs. He has given up 12 hits, walked just one and struck out 24 in that time. Jim Fuller gave up only a walk in the final two innings. Jorge Polanco made it to New Britain in time to play. He led off and went 1-4 with a double. The middle of the lineup hit well in this one. Cleanup man Kennys Vargas went 2-4 with his 16th double. Aaron Hicks, batting fifth, went 2-4 with his seventh and eighth doubles and three RBI. Brandon Waring hit his 19th and 20th doubles in four at bats. Mike Kvasnicka went 2-4 with his 20th double. Eddie Rosario added his 11th double. MIRACLE MATTERS Ft. Myers 8, Tampa 6 (11 innings) Box Score Aderlin Mejia had a big game that concluded with a game-winning RBI single in the 11th inning. He went 2-2 with three walks and his 13th and 14th stolen bases. Michael Gonzales went 2-3 with his 21st doubles and seventh home run. Byron Buxton doubled twice in six at bats. Travis Harrison went 2-6 with his 26th double. Niko Goodrum went 2-5. Matt Tomshaw made the start. The lefty gave up four runs on seven hits and two walks over five innings. Todd Van Steensel threw two shutout frames. Brandon Peterson struck out two in a perfect eighth inning. Tyler Jones gave up two unearned runs on one hit and two walks in the ninth. He did strike out two. Brian Gilbert struck out three over the last two innings. He didn’t allow a base runner. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 4, Dayton 0 Box Score Chih-Wei Hu has been tremendous since his promotion to the Kernels. Saturday’s start was his best yet. The right-hander went six shutout innings. He gave up just two hits, walked one and struck out ten. He is now 3-0 with a 1.50 ERA with the Kernels. Jake Reed, the Twins 5th round pick this summer, struck out three in two perfect innings. Nick Burdi came on and struck out one in his perfect innings. These two have been strikeout guys. Burdi now has 16 strikeouts in eight innings for Cedar Rapids. Reed has 21 strikeouts in 15 innings between Elizabethton and Cedar Rapids. The Kernels struck for three runs in the first inning, and that was enough. Engelb Vielma went 2-4. JD Williams hit his 12th double. E-TWINS E-NOTES Elizabethton 2, Johnson City 5 Box Score Michael Cederoth was back on the mound for the E-Twins. He went five innings and gave up three runs (1 earned) on three hits. He walked one, hit three and struck out two. Cameron Booser gave up two unearned runs on one hit and three walks in two innings. He struck out two. Dereck Rodriguez continued his impressive streak at the start of his pitching career. He has only given up an unearned run in his 16 innings over ten games this season. Pat Kelly went 3-3 in this game with his fourth and fifth doubles. Nick Gordon went 2-4 with his third double. Tyler Kuresa doubled for the ninth time. Max Murphy went 1-3 with a walk. GCL TWINS TAKES GCL Twins 3, GCL Red Sox 5 Box Score The GCL Twins won again. Amaurys Minier went 2-3 with his seventh double and two RBI. He was also hit by a pitch. Jarrard Poteete went 2-4 with two RBI. Brandon Easton worked the first four innings. He gave up two runs (1 earned) on four hits and three walks. Eduardo Del Rosario threw three innings and gave up just one hit. Trevor Hildenberger worked two perfect innings in relief. TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day – Chih-Wei Hu, Cedar Rapids Kernels Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day – Aderlin Mejia, Ft. Myers Miracle SUNDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Indianapolis @ Rochester (12:05 CST) – Kris Johnson Portland @ New Britain (12:35 CST) – Virgil Vasquez Ft. Myers @ Tampa (12:00 CST) – Ethan Mildren Cedar Rapids @ Dayton (1:00 CST) – Stephen Gonsalves Elizabethton @ Johnson City (3:00 CST) – Sam Gibbons GCL Twins – No Game Scheduled. Please feel free to ask any questions and discuss the Saturday games. Click here to view the article