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Welcome to the final Sunday of the minor league season. Granted multiple affiliates of the Twins could be playing postseason. However, there is still work to get done in the regular season and rosters took on a very different feel after September call-ups were made on Sunday. Can the higher levels of the minor league’s survive without some of their key players? You will have to read on to find out.AWARDS The Twins announced their weekly Hitter and Pitcher of the Week Hitter of the Week: Zander Wiel, RochesterIn seven games for the Red Wings, Wiel hit .370 (10-for-27) with four doubles, three home runs, seven RBI, three walks and a 1.271 OPS. Wiel was selected in the 12th round of the 2015 MLB Draft out of Vanderbilt University.Pitcher of the Week: Cody Laweryson, ElizabethtonLaweryson made the start on Monday vs. Greeneville, pitching 6.0 shutout innings with three hits allowed, no walks and 15 strikeouts. He was selected out fo the 14th round of the 2019 MLB Draft out of the University of Main at Orono. TRANSACTIONS OF Ian Miller had contracted selected by Minnesota. RHP Brusdar Graterol had contracted selected by Minnesota. RHP Zack Littell recalled by Minnesota. RHP Kohl Stewart recalled by Minnesota LHP Devin Smeltzer recalled by Minnesota LHP Lewis Thorpe recalled by Minnesota. C Willians Astudillo ended MLB rehab assignment and returned to Minnesota. RHP Sean Poppen returned from rehab assignment, recalled by Minnesota, and placed on the MLB 60-day Injured List. INF Yeltsin Encarnacion transferred from Ft. Myers to Rochester. RHP Alex Schick transferred from Cedar Rapids to Rochester. LHP Denny Bentley transferred from Elizabethton to Rochester. LHP Jeremy Bleich reinstated from the IL with Rochester. INF Anthony Prato promoted from Elizabethton to Cedar Rapids OF Byron Buxton has ended his rehab assignment with the Kernels RED WINGS REPORT Rochester 3, Syracuse 7 (Final- 9 Innings, Rain) Box Score Rochester scored three runs in the seventh inning to tie the game before allowing four runs in the eighth inning to relinquish their advantage. In the seventh inning, Rochester plated three runs thanks to a double from Alejandro De Aza. Wilin Rosario would score in the next at-bat thanks to a wild pitch. Rochester tied the game at 3-3, but the bullpen saw that lead evaporate. With all of the roster shuffling, Preston Guilmet started and was asked to record only nine outs. He allowed three runs on four hits with three strikeouts. Denny Pentley took over and didn’t allow a hit in two innings of work. He struck out two and walked one. Ryan O’Rourke coughed up two of the late-inning runs and Jeremy Bleich also added another two runs allowed as Syracuse stretched their lead to 7-3. BLUE WAHOO BITES Pensacola 7, Montgomery 11 Box Score Pensacola’s potent offense tried to mount a late-inning comeback, but it wasn’t enough with the hole the pitching staff had dug. Charlie Barnes struggled through five innings for his fourth loss of the year at Double-A. He surrendered seven runs on nine hits with two strikeouts and two walks. The bullpen didn’t exactly help the situation for Barnes. Jonathan Cheshire did fine in his one inning of work. He didn’t allow any runs and he walked one and struck out one. Stephen Gonsalves struggled with three earned runs on two hits with the biggest hit being a home run. Alex Phillips didn’t stop the bleeding as he surrendered one run on two hits to end the eighth inning. Pensacola has already clinched a playoff spot, but the bullpen is going to need to have better outings if the club wants to find success in the postseason. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 5, Beloit 1 Box Score Cedar Rapids plated four runs in the third inning and that turned out to be enough against the Beloit lineup that went 1-for-9 with runners in scoring position. Kody Funderburk scattered five hits and allowed one earned run for his first Midwest League win. He struck out eight and walked two to lower his ERA to 4.68. Rickey Ramirez pitched the final three frames and limited the Snappers to two hits. He walked two and struck out one without allowing a run. Matt Wallner had the only extra-base hit of the night for the Kernels. He collected his third double since being promoted and drove in a run. In the third inning, Trevor Casanova was hit by a pitch before a Daniel Ozoria single moved him into scoring position. Gabe Snyder drove in the first run of the game before Wallner’s important double. A passed ball and a Seth Gray single plated enough runs to put the Kernels in the driver’s seat. The Midwest League playoffs begin on Wednesday night as Cedar Rapids hosts the Quad Cities River Bandits. First pitch on September 4 begins at 6:35 p.m. TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY TD Pitcher of the Day- Kody Funderburk, Cedar Rapids (6.0 IP, 5 H, 1 ER, 8 K, 2 BB) TD Hitter of the Day- Ryan Costello, Pensacola (2-3, 3B, 3 RBI, R, BB) PROSPECT SUMMARY Here’s a look at how the Twins Daily Top 20 Twins Prospects performed: #1 - Royce Lewis (Pensacola) – 0-5, 2 K #2 - Alex Kirilloff (Pensacola) – Did not play #3 - Brusdar Graterol (Minnesota) – 1.0 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, K, 0 BB #4 - Trevor Larnach (Pensacola) – 2-4, 2 R, K #5 - Wander Javier (Cedar Rapids) – 2-5, R, K #13 - Ryan Jeffers (Pensacola) – 1-4 #14 - Luis Arraez (Minnesota) – 2-5, 2B, 2 R #15 - Matt Wallner (Cedar Rapids) – 1-4, HR, 2 RBI, 3 K #20 - Travis Blankenhorn (Pensacola) – 2-5, R, K MONDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Rochester vs. Syracuse (12:05 CST) – TBD Pensacola @ Montgomery (12:05 CST) – RHP Bailey Ober (8-0, 0.71 ERA) Cedar Rapids @ Beloit (2:00 CST) – RHP Luis Rijo (5-8, 2.86 ERA) Please feel free to ask any questions and discuss Sunday’s games. 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Jordan Balazovic returned to the Ft. Myers Miracle after participating with Team Canada in the Pan Am Games. Brusdar Graterol returned to the Pensacola Blue Wahoos after his 2 1/2 month stint in the injured list. The Twins top two pitching prospects returned in fine form. In addition, Griffin Jax made his Triple-A debut for the Red Wings. Wilin Rosario and Alejandro de Aza continued raking. The Miracle pitchers tossed a shutout. And, Elizabethton won on a walkoff, well, kind of...Find out everything that happened happened in the Twins system on Monday, starting with the transactions of the day. TRANSACTIONS The Twins officially added RHP Randy Dobnak to the 40-man roster and called him to before Thursday’s game. Kohl Stewart had been optioned following Wednesday’s game.Pensacola saw RHP Anthony Vizcaya activated from the injured list with RHP Hector Lujan being placed on the IL.Catcher Alex Isola was placed on the IL for the Cedar Rapids Kernels. Fellow 2019 draft pick, catcher Kyle Schmidt was promoted from Elizabethton.Also, Rochester LHP Ian Krol has been placed on the restricted list.RED WINGS REPORTRochester 7, Gwinnett 4 Box Score Griffin Jax made his first Triple-A appearance on Thursday night in Rochester. He struggled a little early, but he ended the night giving up four runs on eight hits over six innings. He walked three and struck out three. Sam Clay came on and struck out four batters over 1 2/3 scoreless innings. He walked two and hit one. Ryan Eades picked up his third save. He struck out two in the final 1 1/3 innings. Wilin Rosario remained hot. He went 2-for-3 with a walk and his 17th home run. Alejandro De Aza hit his fourth and fifth doubles. Mike Miller also went 2-for-4. BLUE WAHOOS BITES Pensacola 0, Mobile 6 Box Score The Blue Wahoos got a short start, and then they got shutout by Mobile starter Greg Mahle. Pensacola had just five hits in the game and had no walks. Bryan Sammons started. He gave up four runs on seven hits and three walks over the first 2 2/3 innings. He struck out five. Anthony Vizcaya returned and gave up only an unearned run over his 2 1/3 innings. Brusdar Graterol made his first Blue Wahoos appearance since mid-May. He struck out three and gave up only an infield single in 1 2/3 innings. He exited having thrown 29 pitches. Marcos Diplan came on and got the final out of the seventh inning. He then gave up a single run in the eighth frame. MIRACLE MATTERS Ft. Myers 3, Jupiter 0 Box Score Jordan Balazovic returned from the Pan Am Games where he made one start for Team Canada where his team a silver medal. He made his first start since his return. He threw five shutout innings. He gave up two hits, walked one and struck out nine. Tyler Watson came on and struck out six batters over four shutout innings to earn his first save. The Miracle had just three hits and three walks in the game. Michael Davis walked twice and hit an RBI double. Trey Cabbage hit his 15th Miracle double and hit a sacrifice fly to give the Miracle their first lead in the first inning. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 0, Kane County 8 Box Score The Kernels bats were unable to get much going in this game. In fact, they had just four hits. Jared Akins’ eighth double was their lone extra-base hit. Gilberto Celestino went 1-for-2 with two walks. Luis Rijo was the Kernels starter. He gave up four runs (3 earned) on eight hits in five innings. He walked one and struck out five. Alex Schick came on and gave up four runs on three hits and a walk in 1 2/3 innings. Two of the hits left the yard. Ricky Ramirez gave up a hit, walked one and struck out two batters in 1 1/3 innings. E-TWINS E-NOTES E-Twins 7, Johnson City 6 (10 innings) Box Score The Twins got the win on an extra-innings wild pitch in the 10th inning. Anthony Prato provided much of the offense. He went 4-for-5 with his second home run. Kidany Salva was 3-for-5. Charles Mack went 2-for-3 with a walk. Max Smith and Willie Joe Garry each had two hits in the game. Sawyer Gipson-Long started and gave up four runs (three earned) on five hits and two walks in just 1 2/3 innings. He struck out four. Osiris German gave up two hits over 3 1/3 scoreless innings. He struck out two. Steven Cruz walked three and gave up a run in an inning. Benjamin Dum came on and struck out three over two innings. It was his third game as a professional. He is now 2-1. GCL TWINS TAKES GCL Twins Box Score No Game Scheduled. TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day - Jordan Balazovic, Ft. Myers Miracle Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day – Anthony Prato, Elizabethton Twins PROSPECT SUMMARY Here’s a look at how the Twins Daily Midseason Top 20 Twins Prospects performed: #1 - Royce Lewis (Pensacola) - 1-4 #2 - Alex Kirilloff (Pensacola) - 0-4 #3 - Brusdar Graterol (Pensacola) - 1.2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K (29 pitches, 21 strikes) #4 - Trevor Larnach (Pensacola) - 1-3, K #5 - Wander Javier (Cedar Rapids) - 0-4, K #6 - Jordan Balazovic (Ft. Myers) - 5 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 9 K (89 pitches, 60 strikes) #7 - Keoni Cavaco (GCL Twins) - No Game Scheduled. #10 - Blayne Enlow (Ft. Myers) - Did Not Pitch. #11 - Lewis Thorpe (Rochester) - Did Not Pitch. #12 - Nick Gordon (Rochester) - Injured List (lower leg contusion) #13 - Ryan Jeffers (Pensacola) - 0-4 #14 - Luis Arraez (Minnesota) - 2-3, 2B(9), RBI #15 - Matt Wallner (Elizabethton) - 0-5, R #16 - Ben Rortvedt (Pensacola) - Did Not Play #17 - Akil Baddoo (Ft. Myers) - Injured (Tommy John) #18 - Jorge Alcala (Pensacola) - Did Not Pitch. #19 - Misael Urbina (DSL Twins) - 0-4, R, SB(18) #20 - Travis Blankenhorn (Pensacola) - 1-4 FRIDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Louisville @ Rochester (6:05 CST) - RHP Adam Bray (1-1, 4.50 ERA) Pensacola @ Mobile (7:05 CST) - RHP Edwar Colina (3-0, 1.25 ERA) Jupiter @ Ft. Myers (6:00 CST) - RHP Chris Vallimont (2-4, 4.66 ERA) Cedar Rapids @ Kane County (6:30 CST) - RHP Matt Canterino (0-0, 0.00 ERA) Johnson City @ Elizabethton (5:30 CST) - TBD GCL Twins @ GCL Red Sox (DH @ 11:00 CST) - TBD, TBD Please feel free to ask any questions and discuss the Thursday games or any other minor league topics you would like. Click here to view the article

That trade deadline has passed. August marks the final month of the minor league season. In July, there were a lot of great offensive performances. For the first time, we include players from the Twins short-season, rookie league affiliates. Before we get to our Top 5 Twins prospects, there is a list of a dozen Honorable Mentions. This month’s group of Twins minor leaguers is quite diverse. There are players represented from all six affiliates in the States. There are 18-year-old players and there are 30-year-old players.There are even a couple of people who aren’t in the Twins organization in this month’s awards. Previous 2019 Hitters of the Month: April - Trey Cabbage May - Lewin Diaz June - Brent Rooker July - Keep Reading (or just look at the graphic of this article…)Let’s take a look at the Top 5 hitters for the month of July, but first here are some players deserving of honorable mention. HONORABLE MENTION Jimmy Kerrigan - Rochester Red Wings/Pensacola Blue Wahoos - 25-103, .243/.259/.534 (.793) with 6 doubles, 8 home runs and 16 RBI.Drew Maggi - Rochester Red Wings - 28-91, .308/.427/.484 (.911) with 3 doubles, 2 triples, 3 home runs and 15 RBI.Ronald Torreyes - Rochester Red Wings - 33-105, .314/.345/.524 (.869) with 5 doubles, 1 triple, 5 home runs and 16 RBI.Lewin Diaz - Ft. Myers Miracle/Pensacola Blue Wahoos - 23-79, .291/.352/.557 (.909) with 9 doubles, 4 homers and 17 RBI.Royce Lewis - Ft. Myers Miracle/Pensacola Blue Wahoos - 25-94, .266/.330/.457 (.788) with 6 doubles, 4 homers and 12 RBI.Gabe Snyder - Cedar Rapids Kernels - 30-104, .288/.361/.538 (.900) with 5 doubles, 7 homers and 16 RBI.Spencer Steer - Elizabethton Twins/Cedar Rapids Kernels - 32-101, .317/.423/.485 (.908) with 7 doubles, 2 triples, 2 homers, 11 RBI.Albee Weiss - Elizabethton Twins/Cedar Rapids Kernels - 21-86, .244/.272/581 (.853) with 3 doubles, 1 triple, 8 home runs and 21 RBI.Alex Isola - Eliabethton Twins/Cedar Rapids Kernels - 14-54, .259/.317/.481 (.798) with 3 doubles, 3 homers and 11 RBI.Willie Joe Garry, Jr. - Elizabethton Twins - 26-93, .280/.356/.473 (.829) with 5 doubles, 2 triples, 3 homers and 13 RBI.Max Smith - Elizabethton Twins - 26-85, .306/.344/.576 (.921) with 6 doubles, 1 triple, 5 homers and 13 RBI.Wander Valdez - GCL Twins - 21-59, .356/.415/.593 (1.009) with 2 doubles, 4 homers and 11 RBI.THE TOP FIVE HITTERS Number 5 - Elizabethton Twins – OF Matt Wallner - 30-104, .288/.393/.500 (.893) with 14 doubles, 1 triple, 2 home runs, 17 RBI. Wallner was born in Forest Lake, MN, which is where he graduated from high school and was named Mr. Baseball. He was set to go to the University of North Dakota but the school dropped its baseball program. Instead, he went to Southern Mississippi where he became an All-American. The Twins used the 39th overall pick in this June’s draft to select him. While he was a dominant reliever in college, the Twins will use him as a power-hitting outfielder. As you can see from his first full month in professional baseball, he has a chance to hit, and rack up a lot of extra-base hits. Number 4 - Rochester Red Wings - SS Nick Gordon - 39-112, .348/.402/.536 (.937), 13 doubles, 1 triple, 2 home runs, 18 RBI. Gordon’s introduction to Triple-A and the International League didn’t go so smoothly in 2018. His 2019 began on the injured list. However, Nick Gordon has been a doubles machine this season for the Red Wings. He’s hit for average, been able to get on base, and he’s displaying extra-base power. If the Twins have a need in the infield, he could get that call. Or, he could be a September call-up to provide depth. Number 3 – Cedar Rapids Kernels - OF Gilberto Celestino - 38-103, .369/.430/.563 (.993) with 7 doubles, 2 triples, 3 home runs, 14 RBI. Young Gilberto Celestino made his first appearance for a full-season affiliate and was also introduced to the early-season weather in the Midwest League. Celestino struggled. However, he made some adjustments and had a huge month in July. Celestino was a big international signing of the Astros and came to the Twins last July in the Ryan Pressly trade. He is very athletic and a good outfielder. He’s got speed and is very strong. Number 2 - Rochester Red Wings – C/1B/DH Wilin Rosario - 33-78, .423/.472/.744 (1.215) with 7 doubles, 6 home runs, ss RBI. The 30-year-old Rosario spent parts of the 2011-2015 seasons with the Colorado Rockies. He hit 83 doubles and 71 home runs in 447 games. Since then, he has played in Japan and Korea. The Twins signed him to a minor league deal over the winter. While he has mostly DHd for the Red Wings this year, he’s caught and played first base 16 times this year as well. He has been providing power throughout the season and had a huge month in July. He, and Tomas Telis, are providing strong catcher depth for the Twins in Rochester. And the Twins Minor League Hitter of the Month is: Rochester Red Wings – OF Jaylin Davis - 39-106, .368/.442/.755 (1.196) with 8 doubles, 11 homers, 27 RBI. Since his mid-June promotion to the Rochester Red Wings, Jaylin Davis has not stopped hitting. The hashtag #HasJaylinDavisHomeredYet became a thing. Well, I mean, I started it and did it a few times because the answer was usually Yes. Sure, the Triple-A baseballs probably don’t hurt, but Davis also made some adjustments this season, He hit 10 home runs in 58 games in Pensacola. After the promotion, he hit 15 homers in 41 games for the Red Wings. But he wasn’t “just” hitting for power. He has had a much better approach at the plate. He has cut down on the strikeouts. He hit for average. Some have told me that he is using the whole field better. Most of his Red Wings homers have been hit to center and right center. Jaylin Davis was well on his way toward the Twins Daily Minor League HItter of the Year award. And for his efforts, he was traded to the Giants as part of the July 31st deadline as part of a package that brought Sam Dyson to the Twins. And that may have been the best thing for Davis. The Giants have been looking for outfielders most of this season. In his first game for Sacramento, the Giants’ AAA affiliate, on Friday night. He went 3-for-3 with a walk and two doubles. We would like to congratulate Jaylin Davis, Twins Daily’s choice for Minor League Hitter of the Month for July 2019. Feel free to share your thoughts and ask questions. Click here to view the article

With games in the Southern and Gulf Coast Leagues being affected by rains, there were only four games played in the minors on Tuesday despite one team having a doubleheader. You will have a hard time finding a hitter that has had a better day this entire season, than one slugger in particular had in triple-A by clubbing three homers. There was also a couple of solid starting performances, including one in Rochester from a pitcher who started the season in Fort Myers.To find out everything that happened with your favorite prospects on Tuesday, keep reading! TRANSACTIONS Southern League All-Star Catcher Caleb Hamilton was promoted to Rochester from Pensacola as the Red Wings placed 3B Brian Schales on the temporarily inactive list.As a replacement for Hamilton, the Blue Wahoos received 1B Ryan Costello from Fort Myers.The Miracle were assigned IF Yeltsin Encarnacion from Cedar Rapids.RED WINGS REPORTNorfolk 3, Rochester 16 Box Score The Rochester lineup bludgeoned Norfolk on Tuesday, where if this were an amateur game the mercy rule would have come into play after the fifth inning. Drew Maggi started the bottom of the first with a home run to set the tone for everyone else, and Wilin Rosario added a trifecta of two-run blasts, and seven RBI in total, to break it wide open. The just promoted (again) Randy Dobnak took the mound for the Red Wings and did his thing, which is outfoxing and dominating opposing lineups. In six innings he gave up no runs on four hits and two walks to stem the Tides, while also striking out six to lower his triple-A ERA on the season to below 2.00 in 23 2/3 total innings. His ERA on the year is at 2.11 across 18 starts (20 games) with Fort Myers, Pensacola, and Rochester. In this one 54 of his 87 pitches went for strikes (62%), including 13 swinging as he picked up his ninth win of the year. Also this: The big inning for the Red Wings lineup was the second, where they scored six runs as they sent nine men to the plate and was punctuated by Rosario’s first blast. The top four hitters in the lineup combined to go 14-for-20 with 10 runs scored, four doubles, four home runs, and 10 RBI. Jaylin Davis had three of those doubles and scored four runs in a 5-for-5 night. Ronald Torreyes added two doubles and scored two runs, while Tomas Telis added a triple. The team combined for 22 hits and were 7-12 with runners in scoring position. Cody Allen came on for the seventh and had a one-two-three inning, striking out one. Sam Clay allowed a run on one hit in the eighth, while Preston Guilmet struck out two but also gave up a two-run homer in the ninth to account for the final score. BLUE WAHOOS BITES Mobile @ Pensacola - Postponed The Blue Wahoos matchup with the BayBears Tuesday night was affected by the weather and postponed. They’ll play a doubleheader on Thursday to make it up. MIRACLE MATTERS Game 1: Fort Myers 5, Dunedin 4 Box Score The Miracle struck first in game one of their doubleheader as Royce Lewis led off the inning with his ninth home run on the season for a 1-0 lead. Starting pitcher Cole Sands had breezed through the first three innings of his outing, but a two-out rally of the bloop and a blast variety got to him in the bottom of the fourth to put the Blue Jays up 2-1. His offense picked him back up right away though with a run in the fifth after three singles, and three more in the sixth when Ernie De La Trinidad connected for his first home run of the year to put them up for good at 5-2. Sands later would strike out the first two hitters he faced in the sixth before giving up a solo home run to end his day. He went 5 2/3 innings to pick up his fourth win, allowing three runs on six hits and a walk while striking out five. Zach Neff finished the final 1 1/3, allowing one run on a hit and a walk to pick up his third save. He struck out three. Game 2: Fort Myers 0, Dunedin 2 Box Score It was an even better pitcher’s duel in game two with the Miracle’s Jhoan Duran facing off against Maximo Castillo of the Blue Jays. A couple of walks from Duran in the second inning loaded the bases for a single to bring in two for Dunedin, and that would be it for the game. Duran went the first four innings, allowing those two runs on four hits and three walks, while striking out five. Joe Record would finish the game, striking out two in two innings. Both teams managed only five hits in the contest, but the Blue Jays went 2-for-7 with runners in scoring position while the Miracle went hitless in seven of their own opportunities, leaving eight men on base for the game. Lewis and Jose Miranda each contributed a double to the effort. KERNELS NUGGETS Scheduled Day Off The Kernels had Tuesday off after a six-game road trip where they went 3-3 against the Lake County Captains and Fort Wayne TinCaps. They will begin a six-game homestand against the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers on Wednesday with right-hander Josh Winder on the mound looking to get back on the dominating track after a rough outing last time out. E-TWINS E-NOTES Princeton 8, Elizabethton 3 Box Score Elizabethton was unable to solve Princeton’s pitching for most of this one, as they managed just two hits and a walk as a team through the first eight innings. Both hits to that point were doubles off the bats of Parker Phillips and Trevor Jensen. They finally got on the board in the ninth when Seth Gray drew a two-out walk, and Phillips followed with his first home run in the Appalachian League. Max Smith then followed with one of his own to make the game at least appear closer when looking at only the box score. Taking the hill for the E-Twins was righthander Tyler Benninghoff, who was able to limit the damage against him through 5 2/3 by striking out eleven Rays hitters. He allowed three runs (two earned) on five hits and a walk but was saddled with the loss. Ryan Shreve got them through the eighth inning, but at the expense of four runs (three earned) on six hits and a walk. He struck out two in 2 1/3. Erik Cha came on for the ninth and allowed a run on two hits and a walk, striking out one. GCL TWINS TAKES GCL Pirates @ GCL Twins - Postponed Four games in the Gulf Coast League were affected by rain on Tuesday, including the Pirates facing the Twins at the Lee County Sports Complex. They will host the Orioles Wednesday morning looking to improve their record to .500 on the season. TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY Pitcher of the Day – Randy Dobnak, Rochester Red Wings (W, 6.0 IP, 0 R, 4 H, 2 BB, 6 K) Hitter of the Day – Wilin Rosario, Rochester Red Wings (4-for-5, 3 R, 2B, 3 HR (13), 7 RBI) PROSPECT SUMMARY Here’s a look at how the Twins Daily Midseason Top 20 Twins Prospects performed: #1 - Royce Lewis (Fort Myers) - 2-for-8, R, 2B (17), HR (9), 3 K (2 games) #2 - Alex Kirilloff (Pensacola) - Game postponed #3 - Brusdar Graterol (Pensacola) - Injured List (shoulder) #4 - Trevor Larnach (Pensacola) - Game postponed #5 - Wander Javier (Cedar Rapids) - No game #6 - Jordan Balazovic (Fort Myers) - Did not pitch #7 - Keoni Cavaco (GCL) - Game postponed #8 - Brent Rooker (Rochester) - Injured List (groin) #9 - Jhoan Duran (Fort Myers) - L (2-9), 4.0 IP, 4 H, 2 ER, 3 BB, 5 K #10 - Blayne Enlow (Fort Myers) - Did not pitch #11 - Lewis Thorpe (Minnesota) - Game in progress #12 - Nick Gordon (Rochester) - 1-for-5, K #13 - Ryan Jeffers (Fort Myers) - 1-for-3, K #14 - Luis Arraez (Minnesota) - Game in progress #15 - Matt Wallner (Elizabethton) - Did not play #16 - Ben Rortvedt (Pensacola) - Game postponed #17 - Akil Baddoo (Fort Myers) - Injured List (Tommy John surgery) #18 - Jorge Alcala (Pensacola) - Game postponed #19 - Misael Urbina (DSL) - No game #20 - Travis Blankenhorn (Pensacola) - Game postponed WEDNESDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Norfolk @ Rochester (6:05PM CST) - RHP Drew Hutchison (6-6, 5.88 ERA) Mobile @ Pensacola (6:35PM CST) - RHP Edwar Colina (0-0, 4.50 ERA) Fort Myers @ Dunedin (12:00PM CST) - LHP Tyler Watson (1-4, 4.10 ERA) Wisconsin @ Cedar Rapids (6:35PM CST) - RHP Josh Winder (6-2, 2.86 ERA) Princeton @ Elizabethton (5:30PM CST) - RHP Ben Gross (3-1, 2.08 ERA) GCL Orioles @ GCL Twins (11:00AM CST) - TBD Please feel free to ask questions and discuss Tuesday’s games! 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You may not have heard as much about him as other Twins prospects, but Sean Poppen is making himself a pitching prospect to watch in the season’s second half. The 25-year-old from Harvard hits 96 and has a good three-pitch mix. Meanwhile, a Tommy John pitcher was activated by the Miracle. A Kernels starter was terrific in his return from the IL. So much going on in the Twins minor league system. Misael Urbina Update - On Thursday, he went 2-for-5 and is now hitting .313.Find out everything that happened happened in the Twins system on Thursday, starting with the transactions of the day. TRANSACTIONS The Twins have signed several of their 2019 draft picks. Keep up with those who signed here.Ryan Eades was optioned to Rochester with Fernando Romero called up to the Twins.Ft. Myers announced the RHP Cole Sands was placed on the Injured List (blister). Taking his spot on the Miracle roster was RHP Dakota Chalmers. He came to the Twins organization last August in exchange for RHP Fernando Rodney. Chalmers had Tommy John surgery last May.Cedar Rapids announced that RHP Luis Rijo was activated from the Injured List. LHP JT Perez was sent to extended spring training.Several players were released from EST as 2019 draft picks sign and the short-season leagues begin. Released on Thursday include RHP Jose Bermudez, Cristian Castro, 2B Hunter Lee, infielder Agustin Marte, and infielder Victor Tademo.RED WINGS REPORTRochester 6, Columbus 2 Box Score The Red Wings scored three runs in the first inning and added on all while getting another strong pitching performance from Sean Poppen. The right-hander from Harvard has been really good with the Red Wings. On this afternoon, he gave up two runs (one earned) over six innings. He gave up five hits, walked one and struck out nine. He improved to 4-0 with a 1.55 ERA. Preston Guilmet got the final three outs. Before him, Jake Reed struck out three over two scoreless innings. You will notice a change in Reed that might surprise you. Tom put Jake Reed under the Prospect Spotlight. Wilin Rosario led the offense. He went 4-for-4 with two doubles and four RBIs. Luis Arraez went 3-for-5 with his third double. Jake Cave went 2-for-4. Nick Gordon was 2-for-5. And your Willians Astudillo update… he went 2-or-4 with two RBIs. BLUE WAHOO BITES Pensacola 3, Tennessee 4 (10 innings) Box Score Randy Dobnak made his return to the Blue Wahoos rotation. He gave up two runs on nine hits over 6 2/3 innings. He walked one and struck out five batters. Jeff Ames came on and tossed 2 1/3 scoreless, hitless innings. He struck out four. The game went to extra innings tied at two. Tyler Palm came on, making his first appearance since being promoted from EST. He gave up two runs (one earned, due to 10th inning starting with a runner on second base). In the bottom of the 10th inning, Jordan Gore singled in a run, but the comeback fell short. Gore went 3-for-3 in the game with two RBIs. Ben Rortvedt went 2-for-4 with his second double. Jimmy Kerrigan and Joe Cronin both went 1-for-3 with a walk. Kerrigan hit his fifth double. MIRACLE MATTERS Ft. Myers, Tampa Box Score The game was cancelled due to rain. Ft. Myers begins its All-Star weekend. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 0, Wisconsin 2 Box Score Luis Rijo returned to the mound and pitched very well. The right-hander went five scoreless innings and gave up just one hit. He struck out three and didn’t walk a batter. On-site reports tell us that he hit 96 on the radar gun. Alex Schick came on and gave up two runs on two hits and a walk in the sixth inning. Zach Neff followed with two scoreless innings, and Carlos Suniaga pitched a scoreless ninth frame. Not much offense for the Kernels. They had just four hits. Gabe Snyder hit his 11th double. Yeltsin Encarnacion hit his third triple. TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day - Luis Rijo, Cedar Rapids Kernels Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day – Wilin Rosario, Rochester Red Wings PROSPECT SUMMARY Here’s a look at how the Twins Daily Top 20 Twins Prospects performed: #1 - Royce Lewis (Ft. Myers) - Rained Out. #2 - Alex Kirilloff (Pensacola) - Injured List #3 - Brusdar Graterol (Pensacola) - Injured List (shoulder) #4 - Trevor Larnach (Ft. Myers) - Rained Out. #5 - Wander Javier (Cedar Rapids) - 0-4, 3 K #6 - Brent Rooker (Rochester) - 1-3, R, BB, 2K #7 - Jhoan Duran (Ft. Myers) -.Rained Out. #8 - Lewis Thorpe (Rochester) - Did Not Pitch #9 - Blayne Enlow (Ft. Myers) - Did Not Pitch. #10 - Akil Baddoo (Ft. Myers) - Injured List (Tommy John surgery) #11 - Nick Gordon (Rochester) - 2-5, R, 2K #12 - Stephen Gonsalves (Rochester) - Injured List (elbow) #13 - Ryan Jeffers (Ft. Myers) - Rained Out. #14 - Ben Rortvedt (Pensacola) - 2-4, 2B(2), K #15 - Yunior Severino (Cedar Rapids) - Injured List (thumb) #16 - Gilberto Celestino (Cedar Rapids) - 0-4, K #17 - Zack Littell (Rochester) - Did Not Pitch. #18 - LaMonte Wade (Rochester) - Did Not Play. #19 - Jorge Alcala (Pensacola) - Did Not Pitch. #20 - Jose Miranda (Ft. Myers) - Rained Out. FRIDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Rochester @ Charlotte (6:05 CST) - RHP Kohl Stewart (5-3, 4.11 ERA) Tennessee @ Pensacola (6:35 CST) - LHP Charlie Barnes (0-1, 3.86 ERA) Ft. Myers - No Game Scheduled (All Star Break) Clinton @ Cedar Rapids (6:35 CST) - RHP Josh Winder (4-1, 2.64 ERA) Please feel free to ask any questions and discuss the Thursday games or any other minor league topics you would like. Click here to view the article

Happy Memorial Day, Twins fans! Unfortunately it was a quiet day on the minor league diamonds in the Twins organization on Monday. The Rochester Red Wings played. The Cedar Rapids Kernels got rained out. Ft. Myers and Pensacola had scheduled off-days as they prepare to begin new series. But there were quite a few transactions and the announcement of a couple new minor league coaches.Find out everything that happened happened in the Twins system on Monday, starting with the transactions of the day. TRANSACTIONS The Twins announced that catcher Mitch Garver will begin a rehab with AA Pensacola and could be activated by the weekend if things go well. CEDAR RAPIDS Cedar Rapids officially announced what we heard last night, that Blayne Enlow has been promoted to the Ft. Myers Miracle.Also, RHP Alex Schick has been activated by the Kernels after completion of his 50-game suspension.RHP Luis Rijo has been placed on the Kernels injured list (hamstring).LHP Kody Funderburk has been promoted from extended spring training.PENSACOLAPensacola sent Melvi Acosta back to the Miracle after making a spot start for them on Sunday.LHPs Charlie Barnes and Bryan Sammons were promoted from Ft. Myers to Pensacola.LHP Jovani Moran was placed on the injured list.OF Jimmy Kerrigan was activated by the Blue Wahoos.This week’s Inside Twins episodeincludes an interview with Twins minor league director Jeremy Zoll. The Twins are adding a couple more coaches at the minor league level, one to take the spot vacated earlier this year by Frank Jagoda. Both of these new coaches are finishing up their seasons at their respective colleges and should join their new teams around June 1st. Nat Ballenberg - Will be the fourth coach at Ft. Myers. He has been the pitching coach at Haverford (alma mater of Thad Levine and Jeremy Zoll).Jared Gaynor - will be added to the Cedar Rapids staff. Comes from Virginia Commonwealth University.RED WINGS REPORTRochester 7, Pawtucket 3 Box Score The Red Wings ended up as the only Minnesota Twins affiliate to play on Memorial Day. Kohl Stewart pitched well and the offense put together a huge inning to give the Red Wings the win. Stewart worked six innings. He gave up three runs (just one earned) on three hits. He walked one and struck out three. He improves to 4-2 with a 3.19 ERA. DJ Baxendale threw two scoreless innings, and Preston Guilmet worked a scoreless ninth frame. Down 2-1 heading into the bottom of the sixth, the Red Wings tacked on six runs that inning. Following a John Andreoli sacrifice fly, Nick Gordon drove in another run with a triple. Zander Wiel singled in Gordon. Jake Cave drove in a run with a double. Finally, Randy Cesar drove in two more runs with a single. Cave went 3-for-4 and the double was his second. Wilin Rosario was 3-for-4 with his fifth double. The Red Wings are now 18-29 on the season. BLUE WAHOO BITES Pensacola Box Score No Game Scheduled. MIRACLE MATTERS Ft. Myers Box Score No Game Scheduled. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids, Peoria Box Score Rain caused this game to be postponed. Since Peoria is not scheduled to play in Cedar Rapids again in the first half, they will make up this game in Peoria on June 9th. TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day - Kohl Stewart, Rochester Red Wings Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day – Jake Cave, Rochester Red Wings PROSPECT SUMMARY Here’s a look at how the Twins Daily Top 20 Twins Prospects performed: #1 - Royce Lewis (Ft. Myers) - No Game Scheduled #2 - Alex Kirilloff (Pensacola) - No Game Scheduled #3 - Brusdar Graterol (Pensacola) - Injured List (shoulder) #4 - Trevor Larnach (Ft. Myers) - No Game Scheduled. #5 - Wander Javier (CR) - Rained Out. #6 - Brent Rooker (Rochester) - Injured (wrist) #7 - Jhoan Duran (Ft. Myers) - Did Not Pitch #8 - Lewis Thorpe (Rochester) - Did Not Pitch #9 - Blayne Enlow (Ft. Myers) - promoted to Ft. Myers. #10 - Akil Baddoo (Ft. Myers) - Injured List (Tommy John surgery) #11 - Nick Gordon (Rochester) - 1-5, 3B(1), R, RBI #12 - Stephen Gonsalves (Rochester) - Injured List (elbow) #13 - Ryan Jeffers (Ft. Myers) - No Game Scheduled #14 - Ben Rortvedt (Pensacola) - No Game Scheduled #15 - Yunior Severino (Cedar Rapids) - Injured List (thumb) #16 - Gilberto Celestino (Cedar Rapids) - Rained Out #17 - Zack Littell (Minnesota) - Night Game #18 - LaMonte Wade (Rochester) - 0-2, 2 BB, R #19 - Jorge Alcala (Pensacola) - No Game Scheduled. #20 - Jose Miranda (Ft. Myers) - No Game Scheduled. TUESDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Rochester @ Scranton/Wilkes Barre (5:35 CST) - RHP Randy Dobnak (0-0, 4.50 ERA) Mississippi @ Pensacola (6:35 CST) - LHP Bryan Sammons (1st AA start of season) Ft. Myers @ Florida (5:00 CST) - RHP Edwar Colina (2-1, 3.78 ERA) Cedar Rapids @ Burlington (6:30 CST) - RHP Austin Schulfer (4-2, 2.41 ERA) Please feel free to ask any questions and discuss the Memorial Day game or any other minor league topics you would like. Click here to view the article

It was Minor League Opening Day on Thursday, one of my favorite days of the year. Instead of just following the MInnesota Twins, we now will have updated from the Rochester Red Wings, the Pensacola Blue Wahoos, the Ft. Myers Miracle and the Cedar Rapids Kernels most days for the next five months. And, every day until the end fo the season, we will post the Twins Minor League Report. Our goal with these reports is to provide Twins Daily readers with a one-spot stop to find everything from the Twins system that day, transactions, notes and game updates. We will highlight how the pitchers perform. We’ll note multi-hit games and extra base hits and provide some other highlights from the game. Please feel free to ask questions if you have any in the comments. If you were at the game, be sure to leave your observations as well.Find out everything that happened in the Twins system on Thursday, starting with the Transactions of the day. TRANSACTIONS There were no transactions in the Twins system on Thursday. Maybe some of you saw that in the past week a couple of Twins minor league pitchers, Colton Davis and Anthony Marzi, chose to retire. Here are the Opening Day Roster Previews for each of the Twins full-season affiliates, in case you missed them on Monday. Rochester Red WingsPensacola Blue WahoosFt. Myers MiracleCedar Rapids KernelsRED WINGS REPORTRochester 4, Lehigh Valley 2 Box Score Ronald Torreyes knows how to start a season. He was the Red Wings second batter in the first inning, and he launched a long home run. It was the first hit in the organization in 2019, the first home run, the first run and the first RBI. Kohl Stewart got the Opening Night call for the Red Wings. Things didn’t go well early for the right-hander. He went walk, strikeout, walk, strikeout with the first four batters of the first inning. He then gave up a bloop single to score run. Then a wild pitch scored a second run. He needed 34 pitches to complete the first frame. The Twins have a rule that if a pitcher throws 35 or more pitches in an inning, he will be done for the night. Stewart was one pitch from being done. He went on to throw four zeroes on the scoreboard and earned the Win in this contest. In his five innings, he gave up the two runs (1 earned) on just three hits. He walked two, hit one and struck out eight batters. Ryan Eades came on and struck out four over two perfect innings. He needed just 18 pitches. Then Tyler Duffey came on and earned the save with two scoreless innings. He struck out four as well, though he did hit one batter. The loaded Miracle lineup got production from more than just Lewin Diaz. Ben Rortvedt went 2-for-4 with a walk and two RBI singles. Akil Baddoo added a triple late in the game to go with his homer. Travis Blankenhorn had a walk and a double, and he scored three runs. Vizcaya was clutch to end the fifth inning, but he gave up two runs on two hits and a walk the next inning. Alex Phillips came on and struck out four batters over two scoreless, one-hit innings. He was hitting 95 and 96 mph consistently. Johan Quezada pitched a scoreless ninth frame, and he was hitting 97 a couple of times in the inning. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 2, Peoria 10 Box Score Blayne Enlow returned to the Kernels after a solid showing in his first full pro season in 2018. He earned the Opening Night call for the team this year. Things went all right the first couple of innings. He gave up leadoff walks in the first two innings, but neither came back to hurt him. He did give up a solo homer in the second inning. But then came the third inning. Enlow faced seven batters. He walked one and the other six got hits, the final was a double. Austin Schulfer came on and walked the first batter he faced to load the bases. However, he then struck out the next three batters to end the inning. Schulfer was good. He struck out five batters over three scoreless, two-hit innings. Jose Martinez came on next and was charged with four runs on six hits and two walks in 1 2/3 innings. Carlos Suniaga got the final seven outs for the Kernels.He gave up two hits and struck out three. There wasn’t much offense for the Kernels. The team scored two runs in the sixth inning, on RBI singles from Andrew Bechtold and David Banuelos. Yunior Severino led the team with a 2-for-4 game. TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day –Ryan Eades, Rochester Red Wings Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day – Lewin Diaz, Ft. Myers Miracle (hat tip to LaMonte Wade - Red Wings - as well) PROSPECT SUMMARY Here’s a look at how the Twins Daily Top 20 Twins Prospects performed: #1 - Royce Lewis (Ft. Myers) - 1-3, 2 BB, R, 2 RBI #2 - Alex Kirilloff (Pensacola) - Injured List #3 - Brusdar Graterol (Pensacola) - No Game #4 - Trevor Larnach (Ft. Myers) - 1-4, SF, RBI, K #5 - Wander Javier (EST) - No Game #6 - Brent Rooker (Rochester) - 0-4, BB, 3 K #7 - Jhoan Duran (Ft. Myers) - Pitches Friday #8 - Lewis Thorpe (Rochester) - Did not pitch #9 - Blayne Enlow (Cedar Rapids) - 2.0 IP, 7 H, 6 ER, 3 BB, 1 K, 1 HBP #10 - Akil Baddoo (Ft. Myers) - 2-5, 3B, HR, 2 K #11 - Nick Gordon (Rochester) - Injured List #12 - Stephen Gonsalves (Rochester) - Injured List #13 - Ryan Jeffers (Ft. Myers) - 1-3, BB, 2B, K, R, 2 RBI, #14 - Ben Rortvedt (Ft. Myers) - 2-4, BB, R, 2 RBI, 2 K #15 - Yunior Severino (Cedar Rapids) - 2-4, R #16 - Gilberto Celestino (Cedar Rapids) - 1-5, K #17 - Zack Littell (Rochester) - Did not pitch #18 - LaMonte Wade (Rochester) - 3-4, BB, #19 - Jorge Alcala (Pensacola) - Rained out. #20 - Jose Miranda (Ft. Myers) - 0-2, 2 BB, HBP, R, K FRIDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Rochester @ Lehigh Valley (6:05 CST) - RHP Chase De Jong Pensacola @ Mobile (DH starting at 4:05 CST) - RHP, Jorge Alcala, RHP Brusdar Graterol Charlotte @ Ft. Myers (5:30 CST) - RHP Jhoan Duran Peoria @ Cedar Rapids (6:35 CST) - RHP Jordan Balazovic Please feel free to ask any questions and discuss Thursday’s games. Click here to view the article