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There was not much offense through the Minnesota Twins' farm system, with the usual exception of the Cedar Rapids Kernels. There was some very good pitching. There was the return of Nick Blackburn to an active roster as he made the start for the New Britain Rock Cats. Alex Wimmers returned to a mound for the first time since his Tommy John surgery last August. One constant through the 2013 season has been the pitching of Andrew Albers, and he was on the mound again for the Rochester Red Wings.[PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] On Sunday, be sure to watch Byron Buxton and Miguel Sano represent the Twins at the Futures Game. Here is a look at what happened in the Twins farm system on Saturday: Rochester 5, Pawtucket 1 Box Score Andrew Albers was back on the mound for the Red Wings and was terrific yet again. The Canadian southpaw went six innings to improve to 9-4. He gave up only an unearned run on five hits and a walk. He also struck out ten. Shairon Martis recorded his sixth save, of the three-inning variety. He gave up no runs on two hits and two walks. He struck out three. Eight Red Wings had one hit in this game. Five of them went for extra bases. Ray Olmedo hit his second home run, as did Chris Herrmann. Chris Colabello hit his 23rd double. Doug Bernier hit his 15th double. Jeff Clement hit his 13th double. New Britain 1, Trenton 5 Box Score After a few rehab starts with the GCL Twins, Nick Blackburn was sent to New Britain where he made the start on Saturday evening. He gave up five runs on seven hits and two walks in 4.2 innings. He struck out two. Bruce Pugh was terrific, not allowing a base runner in 2.1 innings. Edgar Ibarra and BJ Hermsen each threw a scoreless inning in relief. Angel Morales hit his second home run with the Rock Cats. He was 2-3 in the game. Eddie Rosario hit his seventh double. Ft. Myers 1, Lakeland 4 Box Score Matt Summers gets the loss in this game, though he did pitch quite well. He went 7.2 innings and gave up two runs (1 earned). He gave up seven hits, walked none and struck out three. Corey Williams got the final four outs, one on a strikeout. He gave up two runs on one hit and four walks. Mike Kvasnicka went 2-4. Evan Bigley hit a double. Cedar Rapids 6, Bowling Green 3 Box Score Adam Walker remains hot with the bat. He went 2-4 with his 19th double and his 16th home run. Tyler Grimes went 2-4, including an inside-the-park home run. It was his sixth homer of the season. Jeremias Pineda went 3-4 with his second double. Jorge Polanco went 2-4. Tim Atherton improved to 5-2 with a 2.45 ERA. The Australian right-hander gave up one run on two hits over six innings. He walked two and struck out four. Steven Gruver then gave up two runs on four hits in his two innings. Tyler Jones recorded his eighth save, striking out two in one inning. Elizabethton 1, Greeneville 2 Box Score It was a very good pitcher’s duel in the Appy League on Saturday night. South African lefty Hein Robb was charged with two runs on five hits in six innings. He walked one and struck out two. Dallas Gallant and Brian Gilbert each pitched a scoreless inning. The E-Twins had just five hits. Dereck Rodriguez is now hitting .322 after going 2-4. Bryan Haar went 2-4 as well. GCL Twins 3, GCL Red Sox 1 Box Score A couple rehab stints took place in this rain-shortened 5.2 inning game on Saturday. Michael Gonzales returned to the field for the first time since breaking the hamate bone his hand. In his first at bat, he homered. Chad Christensen went 1-2 with his first professional home run. Jonatan Hinojosa went 1-3 with a triple. The big story will be that Alex Wimmers returned to a mound in a game for the first time since he underwent Tommy John surgery last August. The 2010 first-round pick went three shutout innings. He gave up just one hit, walked none and struck out two. Chih-Wei Hu went the final 2.2 innings. He gave up one run on two hits and a walk while striking out two. Thanks for checking out today’s Twins minor league report. Please feel free to discuss, comment or ask questions. View full article

On Saturday, Nick Blackburn was placed on the Rochester disabled list with an inflamed knee. Virgil Vasquez will make the start for him on Sunday. On the field, there were some good starts and a couple not-so-good starts. A couple affiliates came from behind to get wins. A couple homers by Kennys Vargas powered the Miracle to a win. Elizabethton doubled their pleasure against Johnson City. Check out what else happened in the Twins Minor League system on Saturday night:[PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] Rochester 4, Norfolk 2 Box Score Logan Darnell was solid again in his Saturday start for the Red Wings. The lefty gave up two runs on four hits in seven innings. He walked one and struck out eight. Cody Eppley came on and gave up a hit to the batter he faced. Edgar Ibarra came on and got two outs, extending his consecutive scoreless inning streak to 22.2 innings (between New Britain and Rochester). Michael Tonkin recorded the final four outs, two on strikeouts, for his sixth save. The Red Wings bats made short work of Orioles pitching prospect Kevin Gausman. The hard-throwing righty topped out at 98 mph in his 4.1 innings of work. The Wings scored four runs on six hits and two walks off him. Eduardo Escobar went 2-4 with a double and a stolen base. Deibinson Romero was 2-4 with his ninth home run. James Beresford was 2-3 with a triple. What a month July has been for the Red Wings. With this win and a Pawtucket loss, the two teams are in a virtual tie at the top of the International League North Division. The Red Wings were 11 games behind the Red Sox on July 2nd! New Britain 3, Reading 12 Box Score Miguel Sano sat out for the fourth straight game, and the Rock Cats looked like they needed more than just the ultra-talented prospect on this night. Former Gopher Seth Rosin held the Rock Cats to just one run over the first five innings. Danny Santana was 2-5 with his 20th stolen base. Eddie Rosario was 2-5 with his 11th double and third stolen base. Danny Ortiz went 2-5. DJ Baxendale had another rough start. He was charged with eight runs (7 earned) on ten hits and two walks in four innings. Blake Martin came on and gave up a run on a hit and a walk in an inning. He struck out two. BJ Hermsen and Ryan O’Rourke each threw a scoreless inning of relief. Cole Johnson then gave up three runs on two hits in his inning. He did strike out three. Ft. Myers 12, Clearwater 11 Box Score This was a back and forth game for the Miracle, but in the end, they walked off with a win; they had to overcome a five-run deficit at one point. Tyler Duffey started and gave up seven runs (5 earned) on seven hits and three walks in just 3.1 innings. Chad Rodgers came on and got the final two outs of the fourth, but not before giving up a home run. Steven Gruver worked the next three innings. He gave up one run on two hits and a walk while striking out two. Corey Williams gave up a hit in a scoreless inning. In the ninth, Zach Jones came on to hold a two-run lead, but he gave up two runs on a hit and a walk. He blew the save, but thanks to the Miracle winning in the bottom of the ninth, he also gets the win. JD Williams went 3-5 with a walk, his fifth stolen base and he scored the game-winning run. Kennys Vargas put on a show. He went 2-3 with three walks. He hit his 16th and 17th home runs, both three-run blasts. The six RBI was the most by a Miracle hitter in a game this season. Mike Kvasnicka went 2-5 with a walk and his seventh and eighth doubles. Stephen Wickens was 2-2 with a walk. Cedar Rapids 5, Clinton 2 Box Score Tim Atherton gave up a run in the third and a run in the fourth. In six innings, the Australian right-hander gave up the two runs on six hits and three walks. He struck out eight. Hudson Boyd worked the next two innings, and allowed only a walk. Brian Gilbert came on to protect the three-run lead in the ninth and recorded the save. Max Kepler led the offense on this night. He was 2-3 with his fifth homer, a solo shot, a walk and two RBI. Adam Walker hit his 23rd double, a shot off the wall. Elizabethton 8, Johnson City 0 Box Score The E-Twins doubled their pleasure on Saturday night. The team hit nine doubles and a home run and got great pitching for the win. Randy Rosario started and gave up six hits and no walks in seven shutout innings. He struck out nine. C. K. Irby gave up two hits but no runs in his inning. Kuo-Hua Lo pitched a scoreless inning. Bryan Haar led the offense. He was 3-5 with his fifth, sixth and seventh doubles. Rory Rhodes was 3-5 with his eighth double. Javier Pimentel went 3-5 with his eighth double. Mitch Garver went 2-5 with his fifth and sixth doubles. Jake Proctor returned to the E-Twins lineup and hit a double. Logan Wade was 2-4 and hit his second home run. GCL Twins, GCL Red Sox Postponed by Rain. Thanks for checking out today’s Twins minor league report. Please feel free to discuss, comment or ask questions. View full article

The trade deadline has come and gone which means just one thing: it’s time to start announcing our Minnesota Twins Minor League Awards. Today, we’ll start with the starting pitchers for July. This month the numbers of the five players ranked are better than they were in June. Consider: Miracle righty Tyler Duffey went 3-0 with a 3.26 ERA and opponents batted just .202 off of him and he isn’t in the top 5. [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK]Matt Tomshaw made two starts and three long-relief appearances totaling 25 innings. He went 1-0 with a 2.88 ERA and 22 strikeouts. He’s also not quite on this list. Here’s a look at the Top 5 starting pitching performers from July. --- Number 5 – Cedar Rapids – LHP Mason Melotakis – 5 G, 4 GS, 3-1, 2.51 ERA, 1.04 WHIP, 28.2 IP, 26 H, 3 BB, 17 K Melotakis was the Twins 2nd round draft pick in 2012 out of Northwestern State University in Louisiana where he was primarily a relief pitcher. He is one of the pitchers who has been given an opportunity to start this year. Overall, he has done well. He is 9-3 with a 3.38 ERA. As important, he has thrown just about 100 innings. After striking out nearly 13 per nine innings between Elizabethton and Beloit’s bullpens a year ago, he has struck out just 6.2 per nine this year as a starter. He throws a fastball between 89 and 91, although earlier in the year, he was frequently touching 94. He had a very good month in June. The one game that he came out of the bullpen was the start that was given to a rehabbing Mike Pelfrey. Melotakis went the final three innings and was credited with the save. He ended the month with a very good 8.1 inning performance. Where will he wind up at the end of the day? We ho in the big leagues, but will it be as a starter or as a reliever? Number 4 – Cedar Rapids – RHP Tim Atherton - 4 GS, 1-1, 1.88 ERA, 1.00 WHIP, 24.0 IP, 18 H, 6 BB, 26 K Atherton was inserted into the Kernels starting rotation at the end of June. He made four starts in July and went at least five in all of them. Atherton has a busy delivery which can be deceptive for hitters. He also throws in the low 90s and gets good movement on his pitches. Overall with the Kernels this year, he is 5-3 with a 2.37 ERA in 25 games (20 out of the bullpen). He has 70 strikeouts in 60.2 innings. Long-term, he may be a bullpen guy, but the Australian has the arm strength to eat some innings. Number 3 – Cedar Rapids – LHP Brett Lee - 4 GS, 2-0, 1.57 ERA, 0.92 WHIP, 28.2 IP, 22 H, 4 BB, 22 K Lee was the Twins 10th round pick in 2011, out of St. Petersburg College. He pitched for Elizabethton last year and has been with the Kernels all season. Overall, he is 7-4 with a 3.23 ERA in 18 games (16 starts). In 100.1 innings, he has walked just 23 and struck out 78. On July 12th and 19th, he threw back-to-back complete games, giving up one run in each start. Lee has a good three-pitch mix that could keep him as a starter as he moves up the system. He throws a fastball in the low-90s and has the changeup and slider/curveball to go with it. Number 2 – Rochester – LHP Andrew Albers - 6 GS, 4-2, 2.23 ERA, 0.99 WHIP, 40.1 IP, 32 H, 8 BB, 36 K Albers was the June winner in this category and he was about as good in July. There is no question that the 27-year-old has been the most consistent starting pitcher in the upper levels of the Twins organization (including the big leagues). Like Lee, Albers has now finished July with back-to-back complete games. He also ends July as the International League leader in strikeouts. Overall, Albers is 11-5 with a 2.86 ERA in 22 starts. Although he doesn’t throw terribly hard, he has 116 strikeouts in 132 innings. One hopes that at some point this year Albers will get an opportunity to make his big league debut with the Twins. And the Twins Minor League Starting Pitcher of the Month is: Photo by Linwood Ferguson/Ft. Myers Miracle Ft. Myers – RHP Matt Summers - 5 GS, 2-1, 0.25 ERA, 0.79 WHIP, 35.2 IP, 20 H, 8 BB, 26 K Summers was the Twins 4th round pick in 2011 out of UC-Irvine. In 2012, he started at Beloit but quickly moved up to Ft. Myers. This year, he began with the Miracle, but made three appearances with New Britain late in June before returning to the Miracle. Since that time, he has been amazing. Just to highlight, he gave up just ONE earned run in 35.2 innings this month. He gave up a total of three runs. He began the month with a complete game. His most recent start lasted four shutout innings, though he needed 97 pitches to go that far due to some walks. He is actually a very good control pitcher. Summers throws 92 and has good secondary pitches. Overall with the Miracle this season, he is 4-5 with a 2.49 ERA in 19 starts. In 108.1 innings, he has walked just 30 and struck out 78. He could (or should) move back up to New Britain when there is a need. What do you think? Please feel free to discuss and ask questions. View full article

After going through the top performing Hitters and Starting Pitchers from April, it's now time to check out which relief pitchers performed best in April. The Twins announced their choices of Byron Buxton and DJ Baxendale as their Hitter and Pitcher of the Month, respectively.[PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] As we saw with the starting pitcher list, using a beginning and ending point (such as a month) can alter how the numbers look. Alex Meyer may have be been #1 or #2 on the list if not for one inning in which he gave up four runs. Instead, he was #4. With relief pitchers, the low number of innings in a given month means that having one bad outing can really affect the numbers. However, we have a healthy list of relievers who started the 2013 season with a strong first month. Let's get to the Top 5 Relief Pitchers in April: Number 5 – Cedar Rapids – Tim Atherton - 0.82 ERA, 1.09 WHIP, 11.0 IP, 9 H, 3 BB, 13 K The 23-year-old from Australia originally signed with the Twins in 2007 as a position player. He was released a year later for some off-field stuff, but re-signed with the Twins, this time as a pitcher, in 2011. He has been quite good since then, and that was the case in April. He pitched the ninth inning of the Kernels’ early-season no-hitter. He struggled some with control last year with the Snappers, but has shown good control to this point in the season. He has a good fastball and a solid slider. He can be deceptive due to a very animated motion. He should move up to Ft. Myers during the season. Number 4 – Ft. Myers – Cole Johnson – 1.69 ERA, 0.84 WHIP, 10.2 IP, 5 H, 4 BB, 7 K This time last year, Johnson was still toiling in Ft. Myers with the Extended Spring Training group. He was promoted to Beloit when the short-season leagues started. He pitched well for the Snappers in the 2nd half last year and in this spring's minor league camp to earn a spot in the Miracle bullpen. The success has continued through the season’s first month as he gave up just two runs and opponents hit .143 off of him. The 23-year-old from Notre Dame was the Twins 44th round pick in 2011. Number 3 – Cedar Rapids – Steven Gruver – 1.08 ERA, 0.84 WHIP, 16.2 IP, 11 H, 3 BB, 22 K A year ago at this time, the 23-year-old Gruver was in the starting rotation for the Beloit Snappers. Last year he made 18 starts and 12 relief appearances and posted a 3.61 ERA. The lefty began this season in the Kernels bullpen and has been pitching in long relief. He has pitched at least two innings in each of his appearances and has pitched as many as four innings in relief. He did go 4.2 innings in one spot start. The 2011 7th round pick from Tennessee throws strikes, hits 91 and has a good slider. He is another guy who just needs a spot to open in Ft. Myers to move up. Number 2 – Ft. Myers – Corey Williams – 2.31 ERA, 0.69 WHIP, 12.2 IP, 8 H, 0 BB, 5 K In 2012, Williams led the Twins minor leagues with 17 saves while pitching in 47 games for Beloit. The lefty struck out 68 batters in 62.1 innings, but he also walked 33. In his first month in the Florida State League, Williams led the organization with six saves despite sharing save opportunities. However, as you can see, he didn’t strike out many. Encouraging though, he did throw strikes. He was the Twins third round pick in 2011 out of Vanderbilt. He throws hard and has very good stuff. Despite not being promoted last year, Williams is a guy who could move quickly. And the Twins Minor League Relief Pitcher of the Month is: (Photo by Greg Wagner) Ft. Myers – Zack Jones – 1.64 ERA, 0.73 WHIP, 11 IP, 5 H, 3 BB, 13 K Zack Jones is one of the talented bullpen arms that the Twins selected in the 2012 draft. Unlike some, he will not be getting an opportunity to start. He will be a back-of-the-bullpen arm. When fans hear Zack Jones, the first thing you should think is fastball. Reports last year in Beloit said that radar guns consistently hit 98 mph, with several instances reaching triple-digits. In 2013 with the Miracle, the radar guns are consistently between 96 and 99. He has been splitting time pitching with late-inning leads with Corey Williams. Jones has five saves. Opponents hit just .139 off of him in April. Jones is highly touted and has a chance to move up quickly, but his role and level of success could be determined by his ability to continue to develop a second pitch. Jones said, “Right now, just a slider I’ve been working on. Spent some time messing with different grips and what not, but right now, I believe I have a better grasp of the pitch than I have had previously". “His slider is improving,” said Twins Director of Minor League Operations Brad Steil who added, “He’s being aggressive, throwing strikes and not walking many.” To what does Jones credit his first-month success? “In my opinion, a lot of my success this first month really came from attacking the hitter. I’m starting to develop more confidence with my slider and using that periodically in fastball situations so teams can’t just sit on the fastball,” he continued, “For me, I just try to keep it simple. Come into the game ready and throw strikes down in the zone. Do my best to compete with a relaxed intensity and not let the game speed up on me.” The Miracle are 22-4 on the season. They’ve had strong offense, solid starting pitching and, as you can see from this list, their bullpen has been very good. What’s it like to pitch late in games with Corey Williams, and what can he learn from him? Jones says he learns a lot and they push each other. “I’m lucky to be competing with a pitcher like Corey. I believe a lot of our success comes from us competing with each other and backing each other up. He is a well-rounded pitcher and has a very good mound presence. So, from watching from the bullpen, I try and study how he and other pitchers deal with adversity because that is what makes or breaks a pitcher. We both want the ball just as bad as the other at the end of the game, and we will continue to push each other to be the best we can be.” So, when he gets called in for a save situation, what’s his walk-in music? Jones chuckled and said, “Good question. Guys have different ideas on the walkout music. Some like calm, steady songs, but I’m the opposite. I like feeding my adrenaline when I pitch so I go with something heavy like Metallica.” It may be something he’ll have to have played in Target Field in the future! It was a terrific month for the Ft. Myers Miracle. They were the only team in baseball to end April with 20 wins. Miguel Sano was my choice for Twins Minor League Hitter of the Month. (The Twins officially chose Byron Buxton, which is completely understandable.) DJ Baxendale was my choice for Twins Minor League Starting Pitcher of the Month. The Twins made him their pitcher of the month. And today, three of my top five relievers, including the top two, are from the Miracle. Hopefully May can be as exciting for the Twins minor league affiliates and their prospects. As always, please feel free to ask any questions you may have. View full article