Torii Hunter and Minor League Recaps

The groundbreaking for the new Twins ballpark was held on Thursday. Everyone was invited, but since it was rescheduled, some had prior commitments (including Justin Morneau, Johan Santana, Joe Nathan, and others). Well, how about this? Torii Hunter refused to go to the groundbreaking ceremony:

"It's tough going to the groundbreaking and not even knowing if you are going to be here," Hunter said. "You'd like to, but it's my day off."

"I'll just get a massage and hang out."

I think that is highly disrespectful of Torii Hunter. The Twin Cities has given Torii Hunter everything in his career, and this is what he wants to do? Get a massage instead of being there for one of the biggest days in the team's history? I know he's upset about not having earlier talks about a contract extension, but this is ridiculous and very disrespectful. Rod Carew and Harmon Killebrew won't play at the ballpark, and they were there. Carl Pohlad might not even be alive when the stadium opens and he was there (this is not intended to be offensive).

But with that said, my opinion won't change that I do hope he's the one in centerfield when that stadium does open. I just think he should've acknowledge this event being that he's one of the greatest Twins players to put on a uniform, and that we've given him a lot in his time here that he could at least do this event. At least in my opinion. And I feel that down the road, if/when he signs, he'll regret not going.


Rochester Red Wings lost to the Ottawa Lynx, 1-0. (Game 1)
Rochester Red Wings beat the Ottawa Lynx, 3-2. (Game 2)
Game 1: Nick Blackburn pitched very well for the Red Wings in a complete game loss. He gave up an unearned run and struck out 5 only to lose his 3rd game of the season. Doug Deeds and Chris Basak were the only 'Wings to get hits.
Game 2: Dave Gassner gave up just 2 runs in 6 innings in the no decision. Bobby Korecky picked up the win while pitching 2 perfect innings in relief. Gil Valazquez went 1-2 with a double and 2 RBI's. Trent Oeltjen went 1-2 with his 5th triple of the season. He also scored twice. Denard Span added an RBI single.

New Brightain Rock Cats beat the Binghamton Mets, 7-6.
Yohan Pino gave up 3 runs in his 5 1/3 innings to win his 2nd game for the Rock Cats. Eddie Morlan was promoted to AA to take the spot of Tim Lahey who was promoted to AAA. Morlan gave up 1 run in his 1.2 innings of work, but struck out 3 batters in the process. Armando Gabino picked up save #3 while pitching 2 shutout innings.

Ft. Myers Miracle beat the Sarasota Reds, 5-4. (Game 1)
Ft. Myers Miracle beat the Sarasota Reds, 3-2. (Game 2)
Game 1: Jay Rainville won his 9th game of the season while giving up 4 runs over 6 innings. Rob Delaney picked up save # 7 in the 7th. Steven Tolleson went 3-4 with 3 doubles. Johnny Woodward went 2-4 with a 3-run home run, his 7th of the year. Dustin Martin drove in another run. Erik Lis went 2-4 with his 34th double of the season.
Game 2: Kyle Aselton gave up 2 runs in the first 4 innings while striking out 5. J.P. Martinez went the final 5 innings to win his 1st win of the season for the Miracle. Juan Portes went 1-3 with his 24th double of the season. He also scored twice. Dustin Martin went 1-3 with his 66th RBI of the season.

Beloit Snappers lost to the Kane County Cougars, 6-3. (Game 1)
Beloit Snappers lost to the Kane County Cougars, 4-1. (Game 2)
Game 1: In his first start for the Snappers, Henry Reyes struggled and could only go 3.1 innings. He gave up 6 runs (5 earned). Aaron Craig pitched 2.2 shutout innings in relief. Matt Betsill went 2-3 with an RBI double. Ramon Santana had an RBI triple. Garrett Olsen hit a sac-fly for his 48th RBI of the season. Danny Santiesteban went 2-4.
Game 2: Brian Kirwan gave up 4 runs in his complete game loss. His 8th loss of the season. Chris Parmelee went 3-3. Garrett Olsen went 1-3 with an RBI double.

Elizabethton Twins beat the Danville Braves, 2-0.
The E-Town Twins won the first game (in the best of 3 series) of the Appy League Championship in the 10th inning. Mike Allen went the first 5 innings and struck out 5 batters while keeping the Braves scoreless. Mike Tarsi came on and went the final 5 innings and kept the Braves scoreless while striking out 9. So who was the hero? Rene Tosoni went deep in the 10th to drive in both runs. He finished with 3 hits. Rene Leveret went 2-4. D.J. Romero, Ozzie Lewis and Greg Yersich all went 1-4.

Here is a photo of the "Magnificant Seven" of the Elizabethton Twins.

(Left to Right) Estarlin De Los Santos, Rene Tosoni, D.J. Romero, Rene Leveret, Greg Yersich, David Bromberg, Ozzie Lewis

GCL Twins Review

Since I don't feel like posting about ANOTHER Twins lost/sweep, I will direct my attention to the GCL Twins.

Twins Rookie-Level Affiliate

Team Record: 37-19

GCL South Division Champs!

The GCL Twins wrapped up their season on Tuesday with a loss to the GCL Yankees. The Twins won the GCL South with a 37-19 record. The Twins had some great players that helped them reach that fantastic record.

Most noticeably first round pick, Ben Revere hit .328/.388/.426 with 16 extra base hits (10 of which were triples) 29 RBI’s and 21 stolen bases. He played in 50 games, after signing on June 12th, just 5 days after the draft. He figures to be promoted to Beloit next season, and remain with the Snappers in the Midwest League for all of 2008. Despite not having great power, he has a bright future as a leadoff man with fantastic speed. With his 10 triples and 21 stolen bases, he obviously displays that he utilizes his speed to a maximum.

Ben Revere

Juan Richardson was also a big part of the Twins success this season. The 20-year-old Dominican third baseman was tied for first on the team with 33 RBI’s (Yangervis Solarte also had 33 runs batted in). He had a .317 average, but was particularly better against righties than lefties. He his .319/.361/.403 with only home run and 21 of his 33 RBI’s also came against righties. He also hit .310/.369/.397 which is also very good against lefties. He is behind D.J. Romero as far as 3rd baseman depth is concerned. So him seing a lot of playing time in Beloit in '08 is unlikely. But anything can happen.

But the offense was not the best part of the team. The most success came from the mound in which the team compiled an ERA of 2.92. Daniel Berlind lead the team with 6 wins and 52 strikeouts. Berlind went 6-2 with a 1.93 ERA in 11 games (9 starts).

20-year-old Venezuelan Danny Rondon became lights-out as a closer for the Twins. He converted 12 saves in 23.2 innings. He gave up just 4 runs (3 earned) while striking out 16 batters. He was dominate against right-handers, allowing just a .185 average compared to a .273 average against lefties. Unfortunately for Danny, he lost the playoff game for the Twins while allowing 3 runs in his only inning of work (the runs were charged to Charles Nolte). But Rondon figures to be in Beloit next season where he will likely become the closer for the Snappers.

Liam Hendricks was also a great success for the Twins. He finished the season with a 4-2 record and a 2.05 ERA. He had a 0.43 ERA and 3 of his 4 wins in August, before he was hit up for 5 runs in his last start. The 18-year-old from Australia also looks like he has a bright future within the Twins organization.

The team went 7-2 in June, 17-7 in July, but a 13-13 August lead to them having the 3rd best record in the GCL and the poor play carried into the playoff game against the Yankees. The team hopes to have another strong cast of rookies next summer in hopes to win the Souther Division and hopefully the entire Gulf Coast League.

Team Batting Leaders

• Average: .325, Ben Revere
• SLG %: .461, Ben Revere
• OBP: .421, Andrew Schmiesing
• Hits: 64, Juan Richardson
• Doubles: 10, Juan Richardson
• Triples: 10, Ben Revere
• Home Runs: 3, Jonathan Waltenbury
• Runs Batted In: 33, Juan Richardson/Yangervis Solarte
• Stolen Bases: 21, Ben Revere

Team Pitching Leaders

• Wins: 6, Daniel Berlind
• Loses: 4, Santos Arias
• ERA: 1.93, Daniel Berlind (He's the lowest who qualified)
• Innings Pitched: 56.0, Daniel Berlind
• Strikeouts: 52, Daniel Berlind/Liam Hendricks
• WHIP: 1.02, Daniel Berlind
• Holds: 3, Jarrad Eacott/Jose Acosta
• Saves: 12, Danny Rondon

Rochester Red Wings vs. Ottawa Lynx.
Game Postponed due to rain.

New Britain Rock Cats lost to the Bingham Mets, 3-0. (Game 1)
New Britain Rock Cats beat the Bingham Mets, 3-2. (Game 2)
Game 1: Ryan Mullins was the victim of the loss for the Rock Cats. He pitched the full 6 innings and gave up just 3 runs to lose his 3rd game of the season with the Rock Cats. The 'Cats got just 3 hits. Brock Peterson and Kyle Geiger both went 1-3. Matt Moses went 1-1 with 2 walks.
Game 2: All the runs for both teams came in the 3rd inning. Joshua Hill gave up 2 runs (1 earned) in his 5 innings of work to win his 3rd game of the season. Armando Gabino picked up his 2nd save of the season while pitching 2 scoreless innings. He still hasn't allowed a run in his 8 games (13 innings) since being promoted. Drew Butera went 3-3 with a run scored. Rashad Eldridge, Matt Moses, and David Winfree all had 2 hits each. Eldridge had 2 doubles while Moses and Winfree drove in an RBI each. Brock Peterson drove in the other run.

Ft. Myers Miracle lost to the Sarasota Reds, 14-2.
Zach Ward was ineffective for the Miracle for the2nd time in his last 3 games. This time giving up 7 runs (6 earned) in just 3.1 innings. His 7 runs were then followed by 5 more which were given up by Adam Hawes. Danny Powers walked 4 batters and gave up 2 more runs (1 earned) in his 3.1 innings of relief. Dwayne White and Jeff Christy combined for 3 hits and 2 RBI's to help the struggling offense. Danny Valencia, Steven Tolleson and Ed Ovalle all had 1 hit apiece.

Beloit Snappers lost to the Cedar Rapids Kernals, 8-4.
Matt Fox had a decent start, giving up 3 runs in his 5 innings of work. He also struck out 6 batters. Jose Lugo gave up 2 runs over his 2 innings of relief to pick up his 6th loss of the season. Danny Leatherman gave up 3 more runs over the next 1 2/3 innings. Matt Betsill went 2-4 with a 2-run double. Chris Parmelee went 1-3 with an RBI double. Joe Benson struck out 3 times in his 5 at bats with just 1 hit.

E-Town Twins beat the Bluefield Orioles, 5-1.
In the last game of the regular season, the Twins continued to do what they've done all season, Win. Jose Castillo pitched 6 innings and gave up just 1 run while striking out 7 to get his 5th win of the season. Danny Latham, Curtis Leavitt and Caleb Moore all pitched a combine 3 shutout innings and struck out 5 batters. Leavitt struck out the side in the 8th. Rene Leveret went 3-4 with 1 home run and 2 RBI's. D.J. Romero went 1-3 with 2 runs scored. Wesley Connor went 2-4 with his 11th double and 18th RBI. Danny Lehman went 1-4 with an RBI. Rene Tosoni had 2 hits including his 13th double of the season. Ozzie Lewis also scored once.
GCL Twins.
Season finished.

Twins rally falls short

The Twins were trailing 6-3 in the 9th inning and closed the gap to a 1-run defecit but a called strike three to Justin Morneau ended their late inning rally.

Boof Bonser got hit early with a 2-run home run in the first inning to Travis Hafner. Then in the 3rd, he gave up a blast to Grady Sizemore to put the Indians up 3-0. Bonser was finished after going 7 innings and gave up just 3 earned runs and another unearned run. Unfortunately, he didn't get the run support he needed and lost his 11th game of the season.

Pat Neshek came in the game with the bases loaded in the 8th with just 1 out. He gave up 2 runs (both charged to Carmen Cali).

Offensively, Jason Tyner had a fantastic game. The light-hitting outfielder went 4-4 with 2 runs scored and a stolen base. Jason Barlett also had a multi-hit game with 2 hits and an RBI. Brian Buscher went 3-4 with his first home run of the season which sparked the 9th inning rally.

Torii Hunter and Nick Punto had great days defensively. Both made web-gems in center field to help the Twins stay in the game. Hunter finished with 2 RBI. Punto on the otherhand continued his offensive ineptitude by going hitless in 3 at bats with 2 strikeouts. Mike Redmond also went hitless.

Michael Cuddyer and Jason Kubel both went 1-4. Cuddyer's hit was his 24th double of the season. Justin Morneau went 1-5 with his 95th RBI of the season. But his lame at bat in the 9th was enough to make you want to pull your hair out. TAKE THE BAT OFF YOUR SHOULDERS! AND DON'T ARGUE BECAUSE IT WAS A PERFECT PITCH!

Game Ball

Profile: Brian Buscher, #32, Third Baseman

Game: 3-4, 1 HR, 1 RBI

Next
Two lefty-hurlering Cy Young candidates will take the mound in the series finale this evening. Johan Santana has won 3 of his last 4 games while having a combined ERA of 2.89. He gave up 3 home runs in his last appearance against the Baltimore Orioles, but was still victorious. C.C. Sabathia has given up 2 runs in each of his last 5 starts. Hopefully the Twins can multiply that by 5 or so to get the win and pick a game back up against the division-leading Indians.

Rochester Red Wings.
No Game Scheduled.

New Britain Rock Cats lost to the Bingham Mets, 8-0.
Glen Perkins didn't have the kind of game he wanted in his rehab assignment on Tuesday. He gave up 6 runs in just 2 innings to lose his 2nd game of the season for the Rock Cats. Tristan Crawford pitched 4 brilliant innings of relief. He gave up 3 hits and a walk while striking out 7. Angel Garcia gave up 2 more in the 8th to put the icing on the cake. Garrett Guzman had 2 hits. Brandon Roberts, Trevor Plouffe, Matt Moses and David Winfree all had 1 hit each.

Ft. Myers Miracle.
No Game Scheduled.

Beloit Snappers vs. the Cedar Rapids Kernels.
Cole DeVries gave up 4 runs in his 6 innings in his 12th no-decision of the season. Tyler Robertson pitched in relief for just the 2nd time this season, and gave up an unearned run in the 8th. I fell asleep before the end of the game, but if I see the score when I get up, I'll update it.

Elizabethton Twins beat the Bluefield Orioles, 6-1.
Steve Hirschfield gave up just 1 hit in the first 4 innings in the no-decision. Mike Bromberg came on to pitch the next 2 innings and while giving up just 1 run, he managed to pick up his 9th win of the series. Ludovicus Van Mil and Bradley Tippett pitched the final 2 innings. Tippett picked up his 3rd save of the season. Eric Santiago drove in 2 runs, one of which came off of his 7th double of the season. Rene Tosoni went 2-4 with an RBI double. Wesley Connor went 1-2 with 2 runs scored and an RBI double. D.J. Romero and Estarlin De Los Santos also drove in runs for the Twins.

GCL Twins lost to the GCL Yankees, 6-4. (First Round)
The Twins sent Santos Arias to the mound for the first game of the GCL Playoffs. He lasted the first 6 innings and gave up 3 runs on 8 hits. Charles Nolte got the hold with a perfect 7th inning. But in the 8th, Danny Rondon gave up 3 runs on 3 hits and a walk to lose the game for the Twins. Yangervis Solarte went 2-3 with a double. Nick Papasan drove in a run and also hit a double. Ben Revere went 1-5 with a stolen base. (I believe) the Twins season is now finished. But if I'm wrong, please correct me.

Blogging Update

I just started school again yesterday. So from here to the end of the season, there will likely be a few off days for me from blogging (like today). I'm sorry about that, but hopefully I'll be able to get a better schedule going so I can fit it in between work and class/studying.

I will hopefully have something tomorrow, but we'll see. Getting up at 6:00 a.m. compared to the 12-2 p.m. that I was accustomed to this summer, will definitely take its toll on me at times.

Have a great day!

Twins complete 4 game sweep!

The Twins wrapped up a 4-game sweep on Sunday, with a great offensive surge to give the Twins an 11-3 win. With the win, the Twins still remaind 5.5 games behind the Indians for the division lead and 3 behind the Tigers for 2nd place.

The new daddy, Scott Baker gave up 3 runs (2 earned) over 6 innings to pick up his 7th win of the season. His pitch count reached 92 and with already giving up 7 hits, Gardy decided to pull him in place of Lefty, Carmen Cali. Cali, Juan Rincon, and Julio DePaula combined for 3 shutout innings of relief to finish the game and the series for the Twins.

The offense had 11 runs off of 14 hits. 6 of the runs came off one of the best pitchers in baseball, Erik Bedard. Bedard (who leads the AL in strikeouts), tied a season low with only 3 K's. He also walked 5 batters while he threw 116 pitches.

The Twins sure are happy to have Jason Bartlett back in the lineup. In the series, he was 9-19 with 3 triples and 5 RBI's while making a few web-gems with his leather (he was 2-5 with 2 3B, and 2 RBI on Sunday). Torii Hunter also had a great series going 7-19 with 3 doubles, 2 HR's and 7 RBI's (he was 2-5 with a double, an RBI and a stolen base on Sunday).

Michael Cuddyer hit his 22nd double of the season while finishing 2-3 with 2 BB yesterday afternoon. Rondell White also had a great game in which he hit a two-run home run in the 9th, his 2nd home run of the season. Jason Tyner lead the team with 3 hits and he also drove in his 17th RBI of the season. Nick Punto was 1-3 with an RBI and Mike Redmond was behind the plate and went 1-3 with 2 RBI.

The only batter to not reach base on a hit was Alexi Casilla who had a walk and still scored twice.

Game Ball

Profile: Jason Bartlett, #18, Short Stop

Game: 2-5, 2 3B, 2 RBI

Next
The Twins will now travel to Cleveland in which they will begin a 3-game series against the Division leaders. The Tribe will send Paul Byrd (12-5, 4.61) to the mound while the Twins will send Carlos Silva (10-12, 4.10). Byrd pitched a 9 game shutout against the Twins on August 6th to win his 10th game of the season. Silva faced Byrd in that game and gave up 2 runs over the first 7 innings for his 12th loss of the season. Should be a very good game with two fantastic control pitchers.

The Twins were originally scheduled to have an off-day on Monday before playing Cleveland on Tuesday-Thursday. But due to the 35W bridge collapse and due to the games which were snowed out earlier this season (between the Mariners and Indians), the Twins have moved their off-day to Thursday in which they will hold the ground breaking ceremonies for the new stadium before having a double header on Friday against the Royals. The Indians in turn will face the Mariners on Thursday before facing the White Sox next weekend.

The Twins really need to do well in this series to help their chances of winning the division and making the playoffs.

Twins Tidbits

• Brian Buscher was activated from the DL last Thursday, while the Twins place Third Baseman Tommy Watkins with an abdominal strain.
• Dennys Reyes was placed on the DL on Saturday with a sore left elbow, the Twins recalled Chris Heintz to take over as the primary back-up catcher while Joe Mauer rests a strained left hamstring/sore ankle. Mauer suffered the strain late into Saturday's game, and was replaced by Mike Redmond. It's not known how long he will be out for, but the Twins can only hope that it's only for a couple games and not something that will put him on the DL.
• The Beloit Snappers were the victims of a no-hitter on Saturday night as the Peoria Chiefs (Cubs Lo-A Affiliate) had 4 pitchers combine for the masterpiece.
• Kevin Slowey will be called up up prior to Friday's double header against the Royals to pitch one of the two games. This likely means that he has pitched his final game with the Red Wings in '07.
• Would you like to ask Jeff Manship a question? Make sure to go over to Seth Speaks and send him an email with a question or two for the Twins top prospect.

Rochester Red Wings beat the Pawtucket Red Sox, 4-3.
Kevin Slowey threw 106 pitches through 5 innings while giving up just 1 run to pick up his 10th win of the season. He also struck out 6 and walked 2. Later, Bobby Korecky came in and struck out 2 in 1.2 innings to pick up his 34th save of the season. Trent Oeltjen went 1-4 with an RBI triple. Matt LeCroy went yard for his 3rd HR and 23rd RBI of the season. Glenn Williams also had an RBI.

New Britain Rock Cats lost to the Connecticut Defenders, 6-4.
Anthony Swarzak pitched another great game, this time he went 6 innings and gave up 2 unearned runs while striking out 5 batters. Frank Mata gave up a 3-run home run in his only inning of relief to pick up his 4th loss of the season. Brandon Roberts continues to hit well with 3 more hits on Sunday to improve his average to .291. Garrett Guzman went 2-5 with an RBI double. Luke Hughes was 2-4 with 2 run home run. David Winfree was 2-4 with his 25th double.

Ft. Myers Miracle beat the Clearwater Threshers, 3-1. (Game 1)
Ft. Myers Miracle vs. the Clearwater Threshers. (Game 2)
Game 1: The Miracle got a great game from Errol Simonitsch who pitched a complete game while giving up just 1 unearned run while striking out 7 batters. Johnny Woodward went 2-3 with his 6th HR and 19th RBI of the season. Steven Tolleson went 1-3 with an RBI triple. Danny Valencia went 1-2 with his 30th RBI of the season.
Game 2: Game postponed due to rain.

Beloit Snappers beat the Peoria Chiefs, 2-1.
Alex Burnett added to a briliant season with a just 1 run over 5 2/3 innings. Aaron Craig pitched 1.1 innings of scoreless relief before Anthony Slama got his 9th save of the season with a perfect 8th and 9th innings. He struck out 5 of the 6 batters he faced. Joe Benson had 2 hits and a run scored. Garrett Olson and Danny Santiesteban drove in both of the runs.

GCL Twins beat the GCL Red Sox, 5-0.
Mark Hamburger picked up his 2nd win of the season while relieving starter, Tom Wright for 2 innings. Juan Richardson was 4-4 with an RBI double. Angel Morales went 2-4 with a two-run home run. Nick Biagini drove in his 7th RBI of the season. Nicholas Papasan added 3 hits including his 1st double of the season.

Elizabethton Twins beat the Princeton Devil Rays, 4-2.
Mike McCardell won his 5th game with the E-Town Twins with a 6 inning no-hit gem in which he struck out 8 batters. The team carried the no-hit bid into the 8th but Spencer Steedley gave up a single. Blair Erickson gave up 2 unearned runs in the 9th. David Hernandez went 2-3 with his first HR and his first 3 RBI of the season. Eric Santiago went 1-3 with an RBI. D.J. Romero reached base 3 times (1 hit, 2 walks). Ozzie Lewis hit his 18th double of the season and Wesley Connor added 2 more hits.

Twins win again.

Sorry, no post tonight.

Make sure to check out Nick & Nick's for a recap of the game.

And Seth will be having a "comments" section to discuss the minor league scores.

Make sure to check out both!

Twins finally score

The Minnesota Twins scored 7 of their 8 runs in the first inning on Wednesday against the Mariners. Mariner's Starter, Miguel Batista was lit up for 8 runs before exiting after the 2nd inning. The Twins wouldn't score again, but it wasn't needed after that. The Twins finished the game scoring 8 runs opposed to the Mariners' 4 runs.

In Carlos Silva's last 4 starts. He went 1-1 with a 1.55 ERA in 29 innings pitched. He continued his great success on Wednesday by giving up just 2 runs over 7 innings to pick up his 10th win of the season. Both of the runs came in the 7th inning, but before that, he was cruising.

In the home stand, the Twins scored 9 total runs in the first 5 games before they scored 8 yesterday afternoon. But even with the low scoring the Twins still finished 3-3 in the homestand, thanks to 2 fantastic pitching performances from Carlos Silva and another from Johan Santana. The team had a collective ERA of 4.33 in the 6 games. While Santana and Silva had a 1.23 ERA in the 3 wins.

The offense started with Michael Cuddyer hitting a grand slam in the first inning, after 2 singles and a walk. It was his 13th home run of the season and his 4 RBI's brought him to 8 in the series. Cuddyer's grand slam was later followed by Garrett Jones' first Major League RBI, which was a single which drove in Jason Kubel. Nick Punto's sac fly was also followed by Alexi Casilla's 1st triple of his ML career which drove in another run. Count it, 7 runs in the first inning alone.

Kubel had a great day with 3 hits and his RBI single in the 2nd inning was his 45th of the season. Mike Redmond got the start behind the plate with Joe Mauer resting his ankle which he injured in Tuesday's loss, "Reddog" went 2-3 with a walk and a run scored. Tommy Watkins and Torii Hunter both went 2-4 before leaving with injuries of their own. Watkins injured his lower abdominal muscle while running the bases late in the 8th inning. He is listed as day-to-day and was replaced by Jason Bartlett who made his first appearance since he strained his hamstring last Wednesday. Hunter has a "sore shoulder" and will likely be in the lineup tonight against Baltimore. He was pulled in place of Jason Tyner who almost had to leave with an injury as well as he turned his ankle on a ball that was stuck under the right field baggy. He went jumping for a fly ball, and came down on the other ball that was stuck. He's alright and finished by hitting his 11th double of the season.

Nick Punto was "surprisingly" the only batter to not have a hit, but he did walk and drive in his 21st RBI of the season with his sacrifice fly in the first inning and he did help pull off 2 double plays on defense.

Game Ball

Profile: Michael Cuddyer, #5, Right Field

Game: 1-4, 1 HR, 4 RBI

Next
The Twins are traveling to Baltimore to start a 4-game series against the (hopefully) hitter-friendly Orioles. Why do I say that they are "hitter-friendly? Well on Wednesday, they gave up 30 runs in just one game to the Texas Rangers. The game was the first of two, and was the most runs score in a game in 110 years.

The Twins will hope to build off that and will send the struggling Boof Bonser to the hill to hopefully pick up his 1st win in his last 13 starts. Bonser is 0-8 with a 5.69 ERA in the 12 starts and will need to finish strong to secure his spot in the rotation for next season, he will also need to lose some weight. The Orioles will counter by sending the 6-7 Steve Traschel to the mound. Traschel has a 3.10 ERA in his last 4 starts with just 1 win.

Rochester Red Wings lost to the Syracuse Chiefs, 3-1.
Brian Duensing gave up 3 innings over 6.2 innings and struck out 8 batters but lost his 5th game of the season. Jason Miller and Jerome Williams finished the game by allowing just 1 more hit. The one run came off of Matt Tolbert's 6th home run of the season. It was his only hit of the game. Jose Morales pitched in with 2 hits of his own.

New Britain Rock Cats lost to the New Hampshire Fisher Cats, 12-0.
Ouch. Oswaldo Sosa gave up the first 4 runs in his 5 innings of work as he lost his 4th game of the season. Angel Garcia later gave up 6 runs (3 earned) in his 1 2/3 innings of relief. The Rock Cats could only muster two hits which came from David Winfree and a double by Felix Molina.

Ft. Myers Miracle lost to the Dunedin Blue Jays, 11-6.
Zach Ward gave up 7 runs (6 earned) through 3.2 innings of work in his 16th loss of the season. After J.P. Martinez's 2 1/3 shutout innings of relief, Adam Hawes comes in and gave up 4 runs throughout the final 3 innings. Danny Valencia went 3-4 with 4 RBI's including a two-run homer, his 6th of the season. Erik Lis went 2-4 including his 31st double with his 91st run driven in. Dustin Martin drove in the other run.

Beloit Snappers vs Kane County Cougars.
Game Postponed due to rain.

GCL Twins lost to the GCL Orioles, 8-3.
Santos Arias gave up 3 runs over 6 innings while he lost his 4th game of the season. Charles Nolte, Jarrad Eacott, and Rodney Gessmann would then give up 5 more over the final 3 innings. Jeanfred Brito went 4-5 with 2 runs scored and his 21st RBI. Ben Revere went 2-4 with a double and an RBI and Alexander Soto drove in his 7th run. Angel Morales went 2-4 and

Elizabethton Twins beat the Burlington Royals, 3-0.
Henry Reyes has emerged as one of E-Towns best pitchers as he pitched 5 shutout innings and struck out 5 in his 7th win of the season. Another great pitcher, Bradley Tippett pitched the next 3 innings and struck out 4 batters before Blair Erickson pitched a perfect 9th for his 10th save. Estarlin De Los Santos went 3-5 with a single, double, triple and his 39th RBI of the season. Rene Leveret went 2-4 with his 62nd RBI. D.J. Romero and Mark Dolenc also had 2 hits. Ozzie Lewis' sac fly drove in his 49th RBI of the season.

Twins lose again...It's getting old...

The Twins lost to the Mariners again on Tuesday. I'm sorry, but I don't feel like blogging about the game this time. It's the same thing, solid pitching (he struggled, but he got through it) and little offense.

Better luck tomorrow.

Jason Bartlett Improves
Jason Bartlett looked good in yesterday's pre-game workout, and all indications are that he'll be in the lineup tonight. Thank god! The Twins need his bat back in the lineup. Hopefully he can pick up where he left off.

Rochester Red Wings beat the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees, 3-1. (Game 1)
Rochester Red Wings beat the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees, 1-0. (Game 2)
Game 1: Dave Gassner pitched a great game for the Red Wings for his 5th win of the season. He allowed 1 run off of two hits over 6.1 innings. Bobby Korecky picked up save number 33 with a perfect finish to the 7th inning. Chris Heintz had a good game with his 7th double, and he also drove in 2 runs. Chris Basak had 2 hits and also drove in a run. Denard Span went 2-4 with his 25th save of the season.

Game 2: Kevin Slowey dueled with Kei Igawa for 6 innings. Both pitchers were fantastic. But Slowey lost the game with no run support. Slowey allowed just 1 run over the 6 innings and struck out 4. Darnell McDonald went 2-3 with his 27th double. Gil Velazquez also went 2-3.

New Britain Rock Cats beat the Connecticut Defenders, 2-0.
Anthony Swarzak pitched a gem going 8 1/3 shutout innings and striking out 8. Jose Mijares picked up save #8 with a perfect finish to the 9th. Kyle Geiger drove in both runs. He, David Winfree, Garrett Guzman, and Trevor Plouffe all hit doubles.

Ft. Myers Miracle lost to the Dunedin Blue Jays, 9-3.
Kyle Waldrop gave up 7 runs (5 earned) over 4 2/3 innings. It was his 4th loss of the season for the Miracle. Dustin Martin, Toby Gardenhire, and Ed Ovalle drove in the runs for the Miracle. Steven Tolleson hit his 20th double and Johnny Woodward hit his 6th double.

Beloit Snappers beat the Kane County Cougars, 7-5.
Alex Burnett struggled but gave up 4 runs on 8 hits over 5 innings to pick up his 8th win of the season. Anthony Slama later picked up his 8th save of the season with a perfect 9th. Wilson Ramos went 2-5 with 2 RBI's. Steven Singleton went 3-5 with an RBI. Chris Parmelee went 2-3 with 2 doubles and an RBI. Joe Benson, Eli Tintor and Daniel Berg drove in the other runs for the Snappers.

GCL Twins lost to the GCL Red Sox, 8-7.
Winston Marquez pitched 5 solid innings and gave up just 2 runs before Dominque Rodgers came in and gave up 6 runs (3 earned) in 2 innings. It was Rodgers 2nd loss of the season. Ben Revere went 2-3 with his 10th triple and 3 RBI's. Jonathan Waltenbury and James Beresford had 2 hits and an RBI each. Danny Rams went 2-4 with his 6th double of the season.

Elizabethton Twins.
No Games Scheduled.

Twins fall 9-4 to Mariners

The offense came on late for the Twins, but the damage was already done for the Twins. Matt Garza struggled in his 2nd go around with the Mariners in a week. He gave up 7 runs which all came off of 4 home runs. He allowed 2 home runs to Raul Ibanez and one apiece to Richie Sexson and Kenji Johjima.

Garza exited in the 3rd inning and Carmen Cali came on in relief. The southpaw pitched 3.2 great innings of relief for the Twins. He gave up 2 hits and a walk butstruck out 2 batters as well. Matt Guerrier gave up 2 runs in the 7th, but the runs didn't make a difference in the game.

The Twins got some great hitting from the "M&M Boys" as they combined to go 5-8 with 2 runs scored, 2 doubles, and an RBI. Mauer's opposite-field double in the 6th inning was his first hit since last Wednesday (against the Mariners), breaking an 0-13 skid. Michael Cuddyer also pitched in with 2 RBI's as well.

A few batters went hittless including the usuall Rondell White and Nick Punto with Alexi Casilla joining them as well.

Torii Hunter went 1-4 with a single. As did Tommy Watkins. Mike Redmond hit an RBI double to give the Twins their first run of the game in the second inning.

Game Ball

Profile: Justin Morneau

Game: 3-4, 2 2B, 1 RBI

Next

Scott Baker will try to continue his success against the Mariners as he faces left-hander Jarrod Washburn for his second consecutive start in a row. Hopefully Baker's rematch won't result in the same way as Matt Garza's on Monday. In Baker's last start, he gave up just one run (a home run) in 6 2/3 innings against the Mariners. Washburn gave up 2 runs over 7 innings but still lost his 10th game of the year.

Check this out!

Seth Stohs at SethSpeaks has a few things to check out. He has another "Get to Know 'Em" pieces, this time on Brock Peterson. His previous "Get to Know 'Em" was on Elizabethton Outfielder Ozzie Lewis. Also, on Wednesday make sure to check ESPN's "Face of the Franchise" series in which Seth will have his decision showcased on Wednesday.

Congrats Seth!

Injury Updates

• Jason Bartlett - Ron Gardenhire said that he expects Jason Bartlett to be back in the lineup on Thursday. He did some agility drills before the game yesterday and reportedly "felt good".


• Brian Buscher - He looks ready to be activated from the DL when he is eligable on Wednesday. He has played in 3 games on his rehab assignment and has gone 4-9 with 1 home run and 2 RBI's.


• Glen Perkins - He was moved to New Britain over the weekend and after making a rehab start there, he could rejoin the Twins bullpen (if everything goes fine) after another rehab start or two.

Rochester Red Wings vs. Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.

Game postponed to Tuesday due to rain.

New Britain Rock Cats lost to the New Britain Fisher Cats, 4-2.

Yohan Pino lost his 4th game since being promoted by allowing 4 runs over 5 2/3 innings. Frank Mata and Jesse Flloyd pitched 2.1 shutout innings of relief. Brandon Roberts and Garrett Guzman both had 3 hits for the Rock Cats, Guzman also drove in his 72nd run of the season. Matt Moses and David Winfree both had 2 hits. Luke Hughes drove in the other run for the Rock Cats.

Ft. Myers Miracle lost to the Dunedin Blue Jays, 8-2.

Jeff Manship gave up 3 runs in his 3.2 innings of work. It was his 3rd loss since being a member of the Miracle. Kyle Aselton also gave up 3 runs in his 2.1 innings. Danny Powers later pitched 2 shutout innings of relief. Erik Lis drove in a run, as did Ed Ovalle. Juan Portes went 2-3 with his 5th triple.

Beloit Snappers lost to the Kane County Cougars, 6-0.

Brian Kirwan gave up all 6 runs (only 5 were earned) in 4 1/3 innings. Jesus Carnevelas and Matt Fox combined for 4.2 shutout innings of relief with 6 strikeouts. Only two players got hits for the Snappers. They were Steven Singelton and Daniel Berg.

GCL Twins beat the GCL Reds, 7-6.

Daniel Berlind picked up his 6th win while pitching 6 solid innings while only allowing 1 run. Nelvin Fuentes later gave up 3 unearned runs while Danny Rondon gave up 2 runs (1 earned) while picking up his 12th save. Nick Biagini and Juan Richardson drove in 2 runs each. Alex Soto and Jeanfred Brito both drove in 1 run each. Ben Revere added 2 hits to raise his average to .318.

Elizabethton Twins.

No game scheduled.

Santana the Great

Johan Santana beat the Texas Rangers on Sunday 1-0. Santana's 17 strikeouts not only were a new career high for him, but it was also a new franchise record as well. Santana struck out the side in the 2nd, 7th and 8th innings and had 4 innings in which he struck out 2.

The two-time Cy Young award winner gave up just 2 hits to the Rangers and both came off the bat of Sammy Sosa while he cruised to his 13th win with 8 shutout innings. He would've went out for the 9th to try and tie the Major League record of 20 strikeouts in a single game, but his pitch count of 112 made him have to "settle" for "only" 17.

Joe Nathan came out and pitched the 9th and struck out 2 more to bring the game total to 19 total strikeouts.

The Twins only run came off of a Michael Cuddyer home run to straight away center field in this second inning. It was his 12th home run and his 63rd RBI of the season. Torii Hunter, Tommy Watkins and Nick Punto all had 1 hit each, but the one run was (thankfully) all the Twins needed for the win.

The win brought the Twins within 6 games of the Division Leading Cleveland Indians. The Twins trail the Tigers by 4.5 games for second place.

Game Ball

Profile: Johan Santana, #57, Starting Pitcher

Game: 8 IP, 0 ER, 2 H, 0 BB, 17 K

Next

The Twins will host the Wild Card leading Seattle Mariners for a 3 game series at the Metrodome. On Monday there will be a little bit of "Deja-Vu" while the Twins will send Matt Garza to the mound to face off against Horacio Ramirez of the Mariners. The two battled it out last Wednesday and Garza picked up his 2nd win of the season while giving up 3 runs over 7 innings. Ramirez on the other hand gave up 6 runs over 5 innings en route to his 4th loss of the season. Ramirez has been horrible on the road this season by having 3 losses and an ERA of 13.50. Garza has had just a string of bad luck at home, in his 3 starts, he's 0-2 with a 2.76 ERA. Hopefully the Twins can come out victorious again against the struggling Ramirez.

Rochester Red Wings lost to the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees, 5-4.

Brian Bass had a good start allowing just 1 run over the first 6 innings, but Bobby Korecky gave up 3 runs (2 earned) in attempt of his 33rd save of the season. Denard Span went 2-4 with his 17th double of the season. Newly acquired, Matt Macri has had one hit in each of his first 3 games and on Sunday, he went deep for his first time since he was acquired, it was a two-run home run. Jose Morales and Brian Buscher also drove a run for the Twins.

New Britain Rock Cats beat the Portland Sea Dogs, 4-3.

Ryan Mullins went the first 7 innings and gave up 1 run on 3 hits. He also walked 4 and struck out 4. Despite giving up 2 runs, Tim Lahey picked up his 12th save of the season. Rashad Eldridge, Trevor Plouffe, Kyle Geiger, and David Winfree all had 2 hits each. Plouff had 2 RBI's including his 9th home run of the season. Winfree also had 2 RBI's. Matt Moses and Brandon Roberts both had 3 hits each.

Ft. Myers Miracle beat the Lakeland Flying Tigers, 11-4.
Juan Portes went deep twice, and drove in 5 runs in route to a 3 hit afternoon. Erik Lis had 2 hits including his 32nd double of the season and he also drove in his 89th RBI of the year as well. Dwayne White went 2-5 with an RBI. Ed Ovalle and Brian Dinkelman both drove in 1 run while Steven Tolleson drove in 2. Errol Simonitsch struck out 6 in 6 innings while giving up 4 runs (2 earned) to earn his 3rd win for the Miracle. J.P. Martinez and Eddie Morlan combined for 3 shutout innings and 3 strikeouts in relief.

Beloit Snappers vs. the Kane County Cougars.
Game postponed due to rain.

GCL Twins beat the GCL Pirates, 5-1.
Liam Hendricks struck out 11 batters and went 6 innings of 1-hit ball to win his 5th game of the season. Ben Revere went 1-3 with a run scored. Yangervis Solarte drove in 1 run on 2 hits for the Twins. Juan Richardson drove in his 29th RBI of the season.

Elizabethton Twins beat the Bristol White Sox, 5-4.
Michael McCardell struck out 9 for the Twins, but also gave up 4 runs (3 earned) on 5 hits in his 6 innings of work. Curtis Leavitt later struck out the side in the 10th to pick up his 2nd win of the season. D.J. Romero was just a home run away from the cycle with his 15th double, 1st triple and he also drove in 3 runs for the Twins. Estarlin De Los Santos had 3 hits from the leadoff spot. Ozzie Lewis and Danny Lehmann drove in the other runs for the Twins.

For more Minor League scores, check out MiLB.com

Twins-Rangers Preview

The Minnesota Twins will be hosting the Texas Rangers this weekend for a special event-filled weekend which includes ceremonies for the 20-year anniversary for the Twins first World Series Championship.

Click here for more information on the events which will be taken place this weekend.


On Friday night, RHP Carlos Silva (9-12, 4.30) will face LHP Kason Gabbard (5-1, 3.83).
On Saturday night, RHP Boof Bonser (5-9, 4.77) will face RHP Kameron Loe (5-9, 5.80).
On Sunday afternoon, LHP Johan Santana (12-9, 3.02) will face RHP Kevin Millwood (8-9, 5.63)

The Twins took 2 of 3 against the Rangers in May. The same 3 pitchers pitched for the Twins. Silva gave up 7 runs in just 4 1/3 innings pitched. Johan Santana dominated the Rangers and picked up 13 strikeouts in 7 innings. Bonser also pitched well allowing just 2 runs in his 5 innings. In that series, Justin Morneau and Torii Hunter carried the Twins. Morneau went 5-13 with 3 home runs and 7 runs batted in. Hunter went 3-11 with 4 RBI's. Although I'm not a big fan of RBI's for a personal statistic (it's more of a team stat in my opinion more than an individual stat), you can't argue with your #5 and 6 hitters (at the time) combining for 11 of the teams total 16 runs batted in.

Twins News

• The Twins announced that they will call up Garrett Jones prior to Friday's game against the Rangers. Jones will fill Ramon Ortiz's spot on the roster who was traded on Wednesday.
• The Twins also claimed infielder Chris Basak off of waivers from the New York Yankees. Basak was hitting .254/.306/.390. He has a little bit of power with 7 home runs (not a lot, but a little bit). But I don't expect him to be much more than a AAA filler right now.
• The Twins (for the time being) look to be holding off on a decision to place either Jason Kubel or Jason Bartlett on the DL.
• Unfortunately, the Twins were not able to strike a deal with 5th round pick, Nathan Striz. Striz will now go on to pitch for the North Carolina Tarheels.

No Minor League Recaps Today. If you'd like to find out how the Twins Minor League Affiliates did, make sure to check out Seth Speaks to find out how they did.

Have a Great Weekend!

Twins Win 2nd In A Row

The Twins continued to hit the ball well for the second straight game. The Twins followed up an 11 run performance on Tuesday with a respectable (well, for the Twins a great) 6 run performance on Wednesday.

Torii Hunter accounted for 5 of the runs in the game. The most important run happened to be a go-ahead RBI single in the 8th inning which put the Twins up 2-1. On top of the great performance, he also made a great play while picking up a single on the first hope and throwing it to Alexi Casilla at second to throw out the stranded Jamie Burke. He also added some insurance in the 9th inning with a 4-run quadruple to put the nail on the coffin and to seal the Twins a 6-1 victory over the Mariners. The win also gave the Twins a series win for the second time this month, and interestingly enough, both came against teams we're either chasing for the division lead or for the wild-card lead.

The Twins couldn't have done it without another strong start from Scott Baker who gave up just 1 run over 6 2/3 innings while striking out 7 batters. Although he pitched very well, he still couldn't pick up the win. That player happened to be Pat Neshek who pitched 1 1/3 of perfect baseball. He only threw 14 pitches to the 4 batters he faced. It was Neshek's 7th win of the season. Joe Nathan also made an appearance with a 2 strikeout performance in the 9th.

Rondell White also went yard for the Twins, it was his first home run of the season and his 7th RBI of the year as well. Another player who made a first was Tommy Watkins had his first Major League hit with a single in the 5th inning. He followed it up with another single in the 9th inning in which he later came around to score off of Hunter's grand slam.

Jason Bartlett had another great game at the plate going 2-3 with his 17th double of the season. Unfortunately for Bartlett and for the Twins, he came up lame after beating out an infield single in the 6th inning.

More on that later.

Game Ball

Profile: Torii Hunter, #48, Center Fielder

Game: 2-5, 1 HR (Grand Slam), 5 RBI

Next
The Twins will face the Texas Rangers on Friday. I'll have a series preview on Friday.

Ramon Ortiz traded to the Rockies
Ron Gardenhire announced after the game that the Minnesota Twins have traded Ramon Ortiz to the Colorado Rockies. The Twins in return received infielder Matt Macri. Ortiz's season started out strong going 3-1 in April with a 2.57 ERA. But since then, he hasn't had his ERA under 5. He was currently 4-4 with a 5.15 ERA. He was demoted to the bullpen after May 26th and hasn't made a start since.

Macri started the season in AA and hit .298/.349/.502 with 23 doubles, 11 home runs, and 33 RBI's. He made his first start at AAA on Sunday and since has hit .667 (6-9) with 2 2B, 1 HR, and 4 RBI's.

There's no answer (yet) that says where he'll be assigned, but some speculation is that he may be heading straight to Minnesota now that Bartlett looks bound for the DL.

Jason Bartlett injured
As I mentioned, Jason Bartlett was injured during yesterday's game. He beat out an infield single and as he hit first base, he grimised in pain. The injury looks to be a strained left hamstring. Ron Gardenhire said after the game that the injury will "probably" make Bartlett a DL candidate.

The Twins now have 2 spots on the roster in which they need to fill before Friday's game. It sounds like Jason Kubel's future won't be known until after he takes live batting practice on Friday. That of course is if all goes fine between now and then.

To fill the spots on the roster, the Twins will likely be calling up 2 position players, thus meaning we plan to move on with just 11 pitchers. Lew Ford has played acceptionally well since his demotion, so he'll likely be one of the two players. The other may come down between Matt Macri and Matt Tolbert. Tolbert has improved with a .345 average this month after he hit .213 in July. His season average is back up to .305. When Brian Buscher was placed on the DL, Matt Tolbert was reportedly "not mentally ready" for the next level, thus the Twins decided to bring up Tommy Watkins.

Rochester Red Wings beat the Buffalo Bison, 10-4.
Jason Miller got the start and pitched pretty well, givin up just 1 run in his 4 frames. Julio DePaula came on in the 5th and that meant nobody else gets to pitch. DePaula finished the game going the last 5 innings and allowing 3 runs on a 3-run home run in the 9th. He struck out 5 while throwing 61 pitches. Denard Span went 3-5 with his 16th double and 4 RBI's. Darnell McDonald went 3-5 with 3 RBI's. Glenn Williams had 2 hits and an RBI and Lew Ford also drove in a run.

New Britain Rock Cats lost to the New Hampshire Fisher Cats, 3-2.
Yohan Pino pitched a solid game for the Cats, giving up just 3 runs on 9 hits in 8 innings. He also struck out 6. It was Pino's 3rd loss in a Rock Cats uniform. Jose Mijares pitched the final inning and set them down 1-2-3 with 2 K's. David Winfree provided 3 hits in 4 at bats. Brock Peterson drove in the teams first run with his 13th home run in the 2nd inning. Kyle Geiger later drove in Winfree for his 27th RBI of the season.

Ft. Myers Miracle beat the Tampa Yankees, 5-2.
Jeff Manship another quality start. He gave up 2 runs on 7 hits while striking out 5 in his 6 innings of work. Kyle Aselton and J.P. Martinez combined for 3 K's in 2 innings before Eduardo Morlan struck out the side in the 9th for his 17th save of the season. Ed Ovalle, Dustin Martin, Juan Portes and Erik Lis all had 2 hits for the Miracle. Erik Lis drove in 2 runs off of his 15th home run of the season and his 6th in the last 9 games. He also has 17 RBI's in that span as well. Ovalle and Dwayne White also drove in runs for the Miracle.

Beloit Snappers
No Game Scheduled.

GCL Twins lost to the GCL Reds, 6-1.
Dan Berlind struggled in this start, giving up 4 runs (3 earned) in 4 innings. It was his 2nd loss of the season. Andres Diaz went 2-3 in his first game this season. Angel Morales also went 2-3 including his 5th double. Jeanfred Brito hit his 3rd triple of the season. Yangervis Solarte reached base 3 times and drove in the only run for the Twins.

Elizabethton Twins beat the Kingsport Mets, 6-1.
David Bromberg picked up his 8th consecutive win by allowing just 1 run in the 5 1/3 innings he pitched. He also struck out 5 and walked 3. Spencer Steedley struck out 4 over the next 2 2/3 innings and Caleb Moore struck out 2 of 3 batters in his only inning of relief. Ozzie Lewis went 2-4 with 2 runs scored. Estarlin De Los Santos had 2 RBI's. Rene Leveret, Danny Lehmann, and Mark Dolenc also all drove in runs.

Twins Offense Finally Ignites

The Minnesota Twins unloaded on the Seattle Mariners last night for 11 runs off of 18 hits. The only batter not to get a hit was noneother than the enigma that is Nick Punto. Although he didn't have a great day offensively, he was solid defensively making a few nice plays to help solidify the Twins 11-3 win.

Starter Matt Garza has been very impressive this season despite having a 1-3 record. He was really dealing last night. He gave up just 1 run over 7 innings but allowed 2 runs (1 was allowed by Pat Neshek, but charged to Garza). He gave up 9 hits and struck out just 2 batters, but he induced 3 double plays and 2 of the 3 came after the leadoff batter reached base. He relied more on his off speed pitches instead of his great fastball and it proved to be very effective.

Although Garza had a great performance, the real story of the game was the offense which scored 11 runs on 18 hits. Coming into the game, the Twins had scored 3 runs or fewer in 11 of the last 12 games and the team is 3-9 in those games.

Mike Redmond ignited the offense with a solid performance from the designated hitter spot. He went 2-5 with 2 RBI's. Both of his singles were hit to center or left center when the outfielders were shading him to right field. Jason Bartlett also had a good game in which he had 3 hits including his 4th home run of the season and his 31st RBI of the season. Rondell White even got in on the action with a 2 run double which then put the Twins up 6-1.

Alexi Casilla leadoff for the Twins and responded well with 3 base hits and 2 runs driven in. The 4-5-6 batters (Torii Hunter, Justin Morneau, Michael Cuddyer) combined to go 7-12 with 2 doubles, 7 runs scored and 3 runs batted in. Torii Hunter got the start at cleanup hitter for the 2nd straight game and responded well. Hopefully he can continue this and become the hitter we thought he should be (somewhere in the #3/4 spot with a good balance of average/power).

Game Ball

Profile: Torii Hunter, #48, Center Fielder

Game: 3-4, 2B, 3 R, SB

Next
The Twins will send Scott Baker (6-5, 4.76 ) to the mound as the Mariners will counter by sending Jarrod Washburn (8-9, 4.30). Both have been brilliant at times, and both have been struggled at times. Baker had a prety bad outing his last time out allowing 6 runs in 5 1/3 innings against the Angels. Washburn on the other hand hasn't picked up a win since the 4th of July. His last outing was also pretty bad giving up 5 runs in 6 2/3 innings.

Injury Updates

• Brian Buscher - He left for Buffalo, New York from the Twin Cities on Tuesday to meet with the Rochester Red Wings. He is scheduled to begin a rehab assignment now that his leg is clear of infection. Barring any setbacks, he'll likely be activated from the disabled list when he's eligable to come back on August 22nd.
• Jason Kubel - According to reports, he "continued to show improvements" while he did some drills including taking a few "light swings" off the tee prior to Tuesday's game. He's likely going to do regular batting practice on Friday. He may be ready to return sometime this weekend if his right oblique strain doesn't give him any fuss.
• Glen Perkins - He pitched just one inning last night for the GCL Twins. He gave up 1 run and struck out 2 before the game was suspended due to rain. I don't think the Twins have any time table for Perkins' return.

Reggie Williams Signs
The Minnesota Twins signed 4th round pick, infielder/outfielder Reggie Williams on Monday. He will report to the Gulf Coast League Twins.

Definitely good news. Now if we can only sign Nathan Striz before the deadline to sign all draft picks which is midnight tonight.

There were reports that Mike Radcliff was going to have meetings with both Williams and Striz before Wednesday's signing deadline. Hopefully he met with Williams yesterday and will meet with Striz today. Striz is a nasty pitcher and has all the arm to become a top of the rotation ace.

Rochester Red Wings lost to the Buffalo Bison, 7-3.
Jerome Williams got his first start as a Red Wing, and it didn't go as well as he or the team hoped. The former first-round draft choice went just the 3 1/3 and gave up 5 runs on 9 hits. Brian Bass went the next 1.2 innings and only allowed a single. Brad Baker gave up 2 runs in his 1.2 innings of relief. And Jay Sawatski threw a scoreless 1 1/3 innings. Lew Ford went 1-4 with an RBI double. Matt Tolbert and Doug Deeds also drove in runs for the Red Wings.

New Britain Rock Cats beat the New Hampshire Fisher Cats, 12-5.
Ryan Mullins gave up 5 runs on 9 hits in 4 1/3 innings. But Armando Gabino, Joshua Hill, Tristan Crawford and Jesse Flloyd went the final 4 2/3 and gave up just 3 combined hits. It was Gabino's 1st win in his first appearance for New Britain. Brock Peterson went 3-3 with 3 runs scored and 3 RBI's including his 12th home run of the season. Garrett Guzman went 3-5 with 2 RBI's and his 18th double. Felix Molina went deep for the 7th time this season. The 1-4 batters in the order combined for 9 of the 12 runs scored for the Rock Cats.

Ft. Myers Miracle beat the Tampa Yankees, 8-6.
Errol Simonitsch continued to struggle as he gave up 4 runs in 4.2 innins. David Shinskie gave up 2 runs in his relief appearance, but he picked up his 7th win in the process. Danny Powers pitched a scoreless 8th before Rob Delaney picked up save number 5 with a scoreless 9th. Erik Lis continued his offensive surge with 2 hits which both were home runs, he now has 14 on the year, and 5 RBI's to bring his season total to 81 runs driven in. Danny Valencia, Steven Tolleson, and Dustin Martin both had 2 hits each including Valencia's 7th double. Tolleson, Ed Ovalle, and Jeff Christy drove in the other runs for the Miracle.

Beloit Snappers beat the Lansing Lugnuts, 8-7.
Danny Leatherman pitched the first 4 innings but gave up 5 runs on 4 hits including a 3 run home run. Danny Vais pitched a solid 3 innings of relief and gave up just 1 run which was a solo home run. Jose Lugo blew the potential save in the 8th by giving up a solo home run, but the Snappers scored in the 9th to give him his 4th win of the season. Eli Tintor had two hits, as did Joe Benson who hit his 7th triple. Chris Pamelee had 2 hits (both doubles) and 2 RBI's. Daniel Berg also had 2 hits and 2 RBI's, including the walk-off RBI single to win the game.

GCL Twins vs. GCL Pirates
Game suspended due to rain. The Pirates are winning 1-0 from an RBI single off of the rehabbing, Glen Perkins. The only Twin to have a hit is Yangervis Solarte.

Elizabethton Twins beat the Kingsport Mets, 1-0. (Game 1)
Elizabethton Twins beat the Kingsport Mets, 3-2. (Game 2)
Game 1: Southpaw Henry Reyes one-hit the Mets for 6.1 innings in the first game of the day. He lost the no-hitter bid in the top of the 6th but he still struck out 7 batters and walked just 1. Bradley Tippett pitched a perfect remainder to the 7th inning for his 2nd save of the season. Rene Leveret drove in the only run for the Twins. Danny Lehmann and Rene Tosoni had the only other hits for the Twins.

Game 2: Michael McDonald pitched a gem in game two giving up just 1 run on 3 hits while he struck out 10 batters in his 6 innings of work. Blair Erickson gave up a 7th inning run but still managed to get his 8th save of the season. The Twins scored all 3 runs in the 1st inning. Rene Leveret went 1-3 with 2 RBI's. Rene Tosoni drove in the other run while on an RBI double and finished the game 2-3. Estarlin De Los Santos went 1-3 with the his 55th run scored in 54 games.

Have a great day!

Twins lose 5th in a row

The Twins continue to struggle and not take advantage of the poor play by both the Tigers and Indians. The team is still 7 games back, after the Tigers lost to the Angels last night.

This game, was not as bad as the previous games where they have wasted very good pitching. Johan Santana gave up 2 runs in the first inning on a double by Richie Sexson, but he settled down and gave up just 1 more in 7 innings of work. He struck out 4 and walked none. Matt Guerrier came in to pitch the 9th, even though Joe Nathan was seen warming up in the top of the inning, and gave up a walk-off home run to Richie Sexson. It was Guerrier's 4th loss of the season.

The offense came back to tie the score at 3 each in the 7th inning, so just that, shows that the offense wasn't as bad as they've been for the last week. Joe Mauer drove in 2 runs while he went 3-4 with his 22nd double of the season. Jason Tyner went 2-3 with a walk and a run scored. Even Nick Punto got on base 3 times with 2 walks an a hit. Of course there were weak links with Alexi Casilla, Jason Bartlett, Rondell White, and Michael Cuddyer all going scoreless.

Next The Twins will send Matt Garza to the mound to hopefully give the Twins what they've had for the most part since the All-Star break, and that is a good game pitched. He will face up against Horacio Ramirez who is 7-3 with a 7.12 ERA. That means that if Carlos Silva was a Mariner this season, he'd probably be up there with Josh Beckett with 15 wins. That's unbelievable.

Game Ball

Profile: Joe Mauer, #7, Catcher

Game: 3-4, 1 2B, 2 RBI, 1 SB

Rochester Red Wings beat the Ottawa Lynx, 4-1.
Nick Blackburn was very good for the Red Wings, the right hander threw 7 shutout innings and struck out 3 while he lowered his ERA to 2.14. Julio DePaula threw a scoreless 8th, and Bobby Korecky gave up a run on 2 hits in his only inning of work. Gil Velazquez drove in 2 runs for the Red Wings. Darnell McDonal drove in the other. Matt Tolbert went 2-3 with his 6th triple of the season and his 4th stolen base.

New Britain Rock Cats
No Game Scheduled.

Ft. Myers Miracle
No Game Scheduled.

Beloit Snappers lost to the Lansing Lugnuts, 9-4.
Matt Fox gave up 6 runs in his 4.1 innings pitched. Jesus Carnevales gave up 3 more in his 3 1/3 innings pitched. Anthony Slama stopped the bleeding with 1 1/3 of scoreless baseball, but it was too late. Chris Parmelee, Chris Cates, and Garrett Olsen drove in all the runs for the Snappers. Wilson Ramos contributed with 2 hits.

GCL Twins
No Game Scheduled

Elizabethton Twins crushed the Greeneville Astros, 22-3.
Jose Castillo went the first 6 innings and allowed just 2 hits and struck out 4. Mike Rogers came in and blew the shutout, but picked up his 1st save of the season by pitching the final 3 innings. The score was 20-0 when Mike Rogers came in to pitch, so I'm not sure how he got the save, but none-the-less, it's in the books.

Offensively there was so much that happened, that I don't want to miss anyone, so here is what happened:

1. SS Estarlin De Los Santos: 2-4, 4 runs, 1 RBI, 1 BB
2. RF Rene Tosoni: 1-5, 2 runs, 1 RBI, 1 BB
3. 3B DJ Romero: 4-5, 4 runs, 1 2, 1 HR, 6 RBI, 2 BB
4. 1B Rene Leveret: 4-6, 2 runs, 1 2B, 3 RBI, 1 BB
5. LF Ozzie Lewis: 2-6, 2 runs, 1 2B, 2 RBI, 1 BB
6. DH Greg Yersich: 3-5, 3 runs, 1 2B, 1 RBI
7. C Danny Lehman: 3-4, 2 runs, 1 2B, 1 HR, 5 RBI
8. CF Mark Dolenc: 0-4, 2 runs, 1 RBI, 2 BB
9. 2B Eric Santiago: 1-6, 1 run, 1 RBI

Wow, the Twins just unloaded against the Astros. Ozzie Lewis is now 2nd in the Apply League with a .341 average. Unfortunately, the leader has a .361 average. But if he can keep having impressive games like he did last night, I don't think it will matter. Rene Leveret (53), Ozzie Lewis (43) and DJ Romero (39) rank 1-2-3 in RBI's for the Appalachian League. The Twins offense has been very impressive this season, and hopefully this group can continue to progress throughout the system in the future.

Twins swept by Halos

Another game, another loss. The Twins were just 4.5 games back from the leaders of the AL Central just 9 days ago. Now, they are 7 games out and have been hitting like an Rookie-Ball team at the Major League level.

The Twins got swept by the Angels while being outscored 20-6 in their 3 game series against the AL West division leaders.


On Friday
Scott Baker had a pretty bad start allowing 6 runs in the 5 1/3 innings of work. Juan Rincon and Carmen Cali didn't help by giving up 4 combined runs in 1 inning. Ramon Ortiz pitched the final 1.2 innings.

Offensively, the Twins had 5 combined hits while Morneau, Cuddyer, and Mauer went hitless. Mauer did have 2 walks though. Rondell White had the only RBI of the game. It was his first RBI since he had two against Baltimore in the 3rd game of the season.

Game Ball

Profile: Rondell White, #24, Left Fielder

Game: 1-4, 1 RBI

On Saturday
The Twins had a 2-0 lead when Carlos Silva left the game after the 7th inning due to cramping in his hamstring. It's too bad too, Pat Neshek had a poor performance and gave up 4 runs (2 earned) in just 1/3 of an inning pitched. He gave up a 2-run HR to Maicer Izturis in which Neshek later said that he left the ball over the plate in anticipation of Izturis bunting. The Twins scored in the 9th, but fell short 4-3.

Jason Bartlett, Joe Mauer, and Mike Redmond all had good games. Bartlett went 2-4 with his 2nd triple of the year. Mauer went 3-4 with his 50th RBI. And Mike Redmond had to take over the DH duties after Jason Kubel hurt his oblique while he struck out in his only at bat. Redmond went 2-3 with an RBI. Morneau, Hunter and Cuddyer all had 1 hit each but combined for 8 runners left on base. The team left a combined 17 runners on base in that game.

Game Ball

Profile: Joe Mauer, #7, Catcher

Game: 3-4, RBI

Sunday
Yesterday, the Twins didn't get a great start from Boof Bonser who gave up 5 runs in his 5 2/3 innings pitched. 2 of the runs came from a HR from Chone Figgins in the 6th inning. Juan Rincon struck out the only batter he faced. Dennys Reyes pitched a scoreless 7th. Ramon Ortiz gave up a solo HR to Jeff Mathis to make the score 6-2.

Joe Mauer and Alexi Casilla both had 2 hits. Mauer hit his 21st double and Casilla had two singles with 2 walks and 2 stolen bases, he also scored both of the Twins runs. Jason Bartlett drove in Casilla both times. Once with a sac-fly and the other with his 3rd triple of the season and his 2nd in as many games. Justin Morneau, Torii Hunter, Michael Cuddyer, Mike Redmond and Tommy Watkins combined to go 0-18 with 4 K's and 3 LOB (all Morneau's).

Game Ball

Profile: Jason Bartlett, #18, Short Stop

Game: 1-3, 3B, 2 RBI

Jason Kubel hurting
Like I said before, Jason Kubel hurt his oblique during Saturday's game. The prognoses is a right strained oblique but the Twins don't know how long he'll be out for. According to Joe Christensen, Kubel said his oblique felt better on Sunday but I'm thinking that the Twins aren't going to make a move until they see how he feels today.

Who would replace him? The likeliest of options would be Lew Ford who has played alright since his demotion. But the other option could be Garrett Jones who would provide the team with an outfielder, first baseman, and a designated hitter (where he'll likely see most of his time).

The Twins will likely make a move this morning so the player can join the team in time for the first game of the Seattle series.


Rochester Red Wings lost to the Ottawa Lynx, 6-5.
Brian Duensing was hit for 6 unearned runs in the 4th inning, and the Red Wings fell just short in their comeback. Duensing ended up pitching 5 innings while he threw 100 pitches. Jay Sawatski, Brad Baker and Jason Miller all pitched a combined 4 shutout innings. Garrett Jones went 3-4 with his 32nd double of the year and he also went deep twice to bring his season total to 13 HR's. He drove in 3 of the runs for the Wings. Lew Ford had 2 doubles and an RBI. Glenn Williams drove in the other run.

New Britain Rock Cats beat the Erie Aeros, 8-3.
Oswaldo Sosa threw another solid game and has been really impressive after a slow start in AA. He went 5 2/3 and gave up just 1 run on 3 hits. Tim Lahey gave up 2 unearned runs in relief. Luke Hughes went 2-4 with his 16th double, 2nd triple and he drove in 3 RBI's. Matt Moses and David Winfree both drove in 2 runs each. Matt Allegra drove in the other runner. Trevor Plouffe, Garrett Guzman, and Drew Butera all had 2 hits each.

Ft. Myers Miracle beat the Brevard County Manatees, 4-2.
Jay Rainville pitched another solid game while he went the first 6 innings and gave up 2 runs (1 earned) and struck out 4. J.P. Martinez pitched a perfect 7th and 8th innings before Rob Delaney picked up save #4 with a scoreless 9th. Ed Ovalle, Alexander Soto and Toby Gardenhire, the 7-9 hitters went a combined 3-8 with 3 runs driven in. Juan Portes had the only other hit for the Miracle.

Beloit Snappers lost to the Lasting Lugnuts, 8-0.
Brian Kirwan gave up 6 runs in less than 2 innings pitched. Aaron Craig gave up the other 2 runs in his 2 innings of relief. Matt Williams and Danny Leatherman pitched a combined 5.1 innings of scoreless relief. Steven Singleton, Chris Cates and Eli Tintor were the only batters to get hits, and Tintor had two of them. The rest of the lineup went 0-21.

GCL Twins beat the GCL Orioles, 6-3.
Liam Hendricks continued his success with 5 scoreless innings while he struck out 7 batters. Nelvin Fuentes gave up 1 run in his 2 innings of relief. Tom Stuifbergen pitched a scoreless inning of relief. Jarrad Eacott gave up 3 hits and 2 runs while he only got one batter out before Danny Rondon pitched the rest of the 9th for his 10th save of the season. Ramon Santana had 2 hits and 2 RBI's for the Twins and also hit his 1st triple of the season. Jon Waltenbury and Juan Richardson drove in the other RBI's of the game. Ben Revere went 1-3 and scored a run.

Elizabethton Twins lost to the Greeneville Astros, 5-0.
Mike Tarsi pitched 5 solid innings and gave up just 2 runs on 8 hits while he struck out 7 batters in the process. Caleb Moore and Omar Alcala gave up 3 combined runs in 3 innings pitched. Rene Tosoni and Ozzie Lewis had the only hits for the Twins. Tosoni also stole his 12th base of the season.


To see Friday and Saturday's minor league notes, check out Seth Stohs blog. Also check out his "Get to Know 'Em" post where he gives everyone a look at Elizabethton's slugger, Ozzie Lewis. It's a great piece.

Offensive woes back again...

The Twins gave their fans some much needed optimism after their 11-4 shalacking against the Royals on Wednesday. But Thursday, they made fans return to the "what if" phase. What if we made a deal at the deadline for a "big bat?" What if we traded away some of our future free agents and coinsidently raise the white flag on this season? What if...

Well, what if we scored just 1 run in this game? Could we have pulled out a win in extras?

The Twins lost 1-0 and lost the series 2 of 3 against the Kansas City Royals on Thursday.

The offense was dead. Well almost. Alexi Casilla, Torii Hunter and Jason Kubel were the only Twins to get hits. That's it. The others combined to go 0-21 with 6 K's and 12 left on base. Michael Cuddyer accounted for 4 of the strikeouts and 3 of the men left on base.

It's a shame, the Twins yet again wasted a great effort by the starting pitching. Matt Garza gave up just the 1 run in 6 and two-thirds innings while he struck out 6 and walked no one. Dennys Reyes finished the 7th inning by throwing just 6 pitches to two batters. Pat Neshek threw a scoreless 8th with 1 strikeout.

Game Ball!

Pretty sad that the game ball goes to the only batter who had 2 hits in the game. It's ironic, probably the only person who didn't cry to management about the loss of Luis Castillo is the only batter who made any sort of contribution to the offense. Hmmm. Matt Garza also deserves this.

Game Ball

Profile: Alexi Casilla, #25, Second Base

Game: 2-3, 1 BB, SB

Next

The Twins head out west to face the Los Angeles Angels on Friday. Scott Baker hopes to continue his recent success but will likely have to do so with little (or no) run support since the Angels will counter by sending Kelvim Escobar to the mound. Escobar pitched a complete game 1 run win against the Twins on June 5th. He only gave up 3 hits but also walked 3 batters as well.

Twins to sign Williams.

No, unfortunately I'm not talking about Reggie Williams whom the Twins drafted in the June draft and who still hasn't signed. But I'm talking about Jerome Williams. Williams is a former first round pick by the Giants in 1999. He had some success as a 22-23 year old with the Giants a few years ago, but since he was traded for ex-Twins LaTroy Hawkins, he's been horrible. After being cut by the Cubs, and nontendered by the A's, he signed with the Washington Nationals and was released after poor performances and injuries.

According to La Velle E Neal III, the deal was made because the Wings are shorthanded with pitchers right now. But it raises the question, what about Anthony Swarzak? Is it a punishment for his 50 game suspension earlier this year? He clearly deserves a shot after having great success after the suspension.

Rochester Red Wings

No Games Scheduled

New Britain Rock Cats vs. the Erie Sea Wolves.

Game cancelled due to rain.

Ft. Myers Miracle beat the Brevard County Manatees, 6-4.

Starter Jeff Manship had a good game for the Miracle. Jeff gave up 3 runs in 7 innings while he struck out 5. Eddie Morlan later picked up his 15th save of the season while striking out 3 in a scoreless 9th inning. With Brian Dinkelman getting a day off, Steven Tolleson took the leadoff spot in the lineup and he delivered with a great game. His leadoff double in the 1st lead to a 3 run inning. Tolleson finished with 2 doubles and an RBI. Dustin Martin hit his 25th double and 59th RBI. Erik Lis also drove in a run, his 59th of the year.

..

Incase you missed it, Jeff Manship answered some questions for us earlier this week.

Beloit Snappers lost to the Wisconsin Rattlers, 5-3.

Cole DeVries struggled in this start giving up 5 runs in 6 innings. The Eden Praire native and University of Minnesota alumnus gave up 2 solo home runs but did strike out 4 batters. Jose Lugo and Anthony Slama both pitched scoreless appearances. Steven Singleton had 2 hits and 2 RBI's for the Snappers. Danny Santiesteban also had 2 hits and an RBI. Elit Tintor moved up in the batting order ahead of Chris Parmelee and he responded with 3 hits in 4 at bats. Parmelee meanwhile went 0-4 with 3 K's while moving down a spot in the order.

GCL Twins lost to the GCL Pirates, 5-4.

Glen Perkins made his first rehab start since reaggravating his last month. He went the first 2 frames while he gave up no hits, he did walk one batter and struck out 2. Danny Berlind has been stellar all year for the Twins, until yesterday. The 6'7'' 19-year-old rookie gave up 5 runs while he pitched 4 2/3 innings. He did strike out 4, but his ERA jumped from .074-1.76. Jeanfred Brito hit his first home run of the season, it was a two run home run. Juan Richardson went 3-4 with his 8th double. Jon Waltenbury had two hits including his 5th double of the season. Andrew Schmiesing had 3 singles for the Twins. And James Beresford had 2 RBI's as well. Ben Revere and Danny Rams both went hitless in 4 at bats.

Elizabethton Twins beat the Johnson City Cardinals, 11-5. (Game 1)

Elizabethton Twins lost to the Johnson City Cardinals, 7-6. (Game 2)

Game 1: Henry Reyes threw 10 K's while he picked up his 5th win of the season, giving up 2 runs through 5 innings. Danny Latham gave up a 2 run home run in the 7th. D.J. Romero went 3-3 with 2 RBI's and his 8th home of the season. Rene Leveret had 2 doubles, 2 walks and 4 RBI's. Ozzie Lewis had 2 hits including his 11th double. Mark Dolenc drove in RBI's #31 and 32. Greg Yersich had 2 hits and 2 doubles as well.

Game 2: Michael Rogers gave up 2 runs throughout the first 4 innings. Omar Alcala gave up 3 runs (2 earned) in his inning and a third. And Bradley Tippett gave up 2 runs in his 3.2 innings pitched. It was his 1st loss of the season. Estarlin De Los Santos went 2-3 with his 10th double. Rene Leveret went 2-5 with his 47th RBI. Ozzie Lewis and D.J. Romero also drove in a run each.

Have a great weekend!

Now, that's what I'm talkin' 'bout!

The Minnesota Twins have been silent as of late with the bat. After scoring just 10 runs in the club's first 6 games of August, the Twins unloaded with 19 hits and 11 runs against the Kansas City Royals on Wednesday.

Michael Cuddyer and Torii Hunter both hit home runs for the Twins lineup who have had a "power outage" since Torii Hunter's home run on July 31st which also came against the Royals.

Every batter reached base safely. Jason Tyner, Alexi Casilla and Nick Punto were the only batters with just 1 hit. Jason Bartlett had a good game from the leadoff position with 2 hits and 3 runs scored. Joe Mauer and Justin Morneau also did well with 2 hits each while Mauer drove in 2 RBI's. Michael Cuddyer and Torii Hunter both had 3 hits and 3 RBI's apiece. Mike Redmond had 4 hits to go along with his 25th RBI of the season.

The Twins were lead by a strong start for starter Johan Santana. The venezuelan southpaw hasn't had a win since he beat the Oakland Athletics on July 13th. Although he has had an abnormally high 4.85 ERA in the last 4 games after that. This go around, was different. The reigning AL Cy Young award winner pitched 6 innings and gave up just 2 runs while striking out 6. He usually would've pitched the 7th inning, despite his pitch count reaching 100, but the Twins were at that point up 9-2 and the two runs came in that final inning for Johan Santana. No need to overstress your best pitcher in a blowout.

Matt Guerrier pitched a scoreless 7th inning for the Twins with his 45 strikeout of the season. Ramon Ortiz's two innings of relief look a lot worse if you didn't see the appearance. The wind was blowing hard to right field and there was even bags and garbage blowing around the field while he was pitching. Every ball that normally would've been a flyout to Michael Cuddyer were hit over his head and it made things troublesome for the 34-year-old reliever.


Next
The Twins will send Matt Garza to the mound in the series finale against the Royal's (recently acquired) Kyle Davies. Garza was pulled after just 4 innings in his last start while he gave up 2 runs to the Indians last Saturday. Acquired in the trade with Atlanta for reliver Octovio Dotel, Davies was hit hard in his first game for the Royals while giving up 5 runs in 3 innings to the New York Yankees.

Hopefully the Twins can continue with their latest offensive surge and finish off the series on a good note with 2 straight wins. But I won't get my hopes up because I've seen the offense score what seems like 100 one game to almost nothing (or maybe nothing) the next.




The Game ball
Last night is hard to pick just one player to give the game ball to, but I will it to Torii Hunter for making us forget the bad call on Justin Morneaus "double." By the way, if you can't tell, I too thought he should've been awarded 3rd base. I'm still not sure why he had to go back to 2nd.

Game Ball

Profile: Torii Hunter, 48, Center Field

Game: 3-5, 2 R, 1 2B, 1 HR, 3 RBI

Brian Buscher goes on DL, Watkins called up
La Velle reported that the Minnesota Twins have placed 3rd baseman Brian Buscher on the 15-day Disabled List with an infection in his leg. The infection was thought to be a bruise after he initially fouled a ball off of his left shin against the Indians. Here is what La Velle had to say about Buscher's situation:

Brian Buscher’s right leg infection worsened on Wednesday, so he’s been sent to
the Twin Cities to be hospitalized. He’ll be hooked up to an i.v. so he can get
medicine in him to attack the infection.

The move on the 25-man roster opened a spot for a guy who's been with the Twins organization since he was 18 years old, and now 27 year old Tommy Watkins will make his ML debut for the club that drafted him in the 38th round, 9 years ago.

This season, Tommy Watkins has been a solid bat for the Red Wings this season, providing the wings with a .271 average, and 8 HR's with 49 RBI's in 110 games.

He's played almost every position for the Twins, besides catcher. Yes, he even pitched in 2.1 innings between the 2002-2003 season for the Ft. Myers Miracle. The Twins will likely try him out at 3rd base with the struggling Nick Punto now the starter again with Buscher out.

I'm just happy the Twins gave T-Dub the shot. He's deserved it!


Rochester Red Wings lost to the Syracuse Chiefs, 4-2.
In just his 2nd game since being activated from the DL, Nick Blackburn had a good start giving up just 2 runs while striking out 4 in 5 innings. After 5 innings, he was just 64 pitches, but the Red Wings want to be careful with him so he can ease into the longer innings again. Julio DePaula and Bobby Korecky both combined to pitch 5 innings of fantastic relief. Together they allowed just 1 hit and 1 walk while striking out 7. Unfortunately, the same luck didn't go with Jason Miller. He gave up a 2 run walk-off HR in the bottom of the 12th inning. It was his 5th loss of the season. In his 2nd game since being demoted, Lew Ford drove in 1 of the runs for the Wings with a game-tying RBI single in the 6th inning. Gil Velazquez drove in the other run. Garrett Jones had 4 hits for the Wings. The "mentally unprepared" Matt Tolbert had 2 hits.

New Britain Rock Cats beat the Erie Sea Wolves, 5-2.
In his first game since being demoted back to New Britain, southpaw Ryan Mullins gave up just 2 runs in 6 frames while striking out 5. Jose Mijares pitched the next two innings and didn't allow any runs and with the late surge by the Rock Cats, he was victorious for the 5th time this season. Tim Lahey picked up his 10th save. David Winfree recorded 3 hits and his 31st RBI. Garrett Guzman had 3 hits. Trevor Plouffe had 2 doubles and his 43rd RBI of the season. Matt Moses and Brock Peterson also drove in runs.
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Ft. Myers Miracle beat the Daytona Cubs, 9-8.
Errol Simonitsch gave up 6 runs between the 2nd and 3rd innings and left during the 3rd. J.P. Martinez and David Shinskie both gave up 1 run in 2.2 innings each. Rob Delaney picked up win number 2 with a scoreless 9th inning. Erik Lis, Johnny Woodward and Dustin Martin all had 2 hits and 2 RBI's each. Dwayne White and Jeff Christy also drove in runs. Danny Valencia had 2 hits and 2 walks for the Miracle.
.....
Beloit Snappers lost to the Wisconsin Rattlers, 5-4.
Matt Fox gave up 4 runs in his 5 innings. 2 of the runs came off of a HR he gave up in the 1st inning. Jesus Carnevales pitched 2 good innings of relief with 2 hits and 2 strikeouts. Danny Vais couldn't keep the tie when he gave up a 9th inning run. It was his 4th loss of the season. Wilson Ramos had another solid game for the Snappers. He went 3-4 with 2 doubles and his 38th RBI. Eli Tintor and Steven Singleton both had 2 hits. Joe Benson, Dan Berg, and Matt Betsill also had RBI's for the Snappers. Chris Parmelee went 0-4 with 2 K's.

GCL Twins
No Games Scheduled.
...
Elizabethton Twins beat the Johnson City Cardinals, 5-2.
Michael McCardell pitched 6 solid frames of 1 run baseball. He also struck out 8 batters while picking up his 3rd win with the E-Town Twins. Curtis Leavitt gave up 1 run in the 7th inning, but Caleb Moore picked up his 2nd save while pitching to just 1 batter. Ozzie Lewis went 2-4 with his 8th HR of the season and drove in 4 RBI's. Estarlin De Los Santos also drove in a run and stole 2 bases. Eric Santiago went 2-3 with his 3rd stolen base of the season.